Dry Hand OCD?

[DylanGM]

I'm not entirely sure how to explain this. I've had it my entire life, or for as long as I can remember. (I'm 17.)
I have searched for what it is so I can put a name on it many times, with no success. Just recently I found a forum post which relates very closely to what I have been experiencing.

So when I touch water, mainly with my hands but it happens on my feet too, I'll get a dry, unbearable feeling that makes me clench my fists. I'll be unable to touch anything rough, and the thought of it gives me goosebumps. Touching very soft blankets, or my hair releaves the feeling. So does touching water again, for as long as I keep my hands in it, and then I'll get the feeling again. I wouldn't necessarily call the feeling pain, but it's extremely uncomfortable. Enough to instinctively clench my fists, which seems to help.

So far, the only way to help it is to use lotion, and as a guy it seems a bit weird, but I always have lotion on me. If I don't have lotion, I have to wait it out.

From the 2nd quote below, he says "Anything dry touching teeth... this one drives me crazy where I have to rub my teeth with my fingers to get rid of the feeling it gives me."
I'm exactly the same way, thinking about it has my teeth feeling dry.

I'll quote what others said on the forum I found.

"Hi. My name is Ashley. I am 29. I have the exact same "compulsion" I guess we are calling it regarding my hands feeling dry. I never in a million years thought this would be something shared by another individual. I have the same obsession/dependence on lotions, and the same discomfort and even anxiety over hands (or even feet) that "feel" dry (whether they truly are or not). I have several surfaces I "can't" touch. The WORST of these is after I shower, and go to dry off. The feeling of a towel on my pruny hands makes me gag and get goosebumps all over. I either have to have my husband dry me off, or I wear latex gloves to dry off. I, too, get goosebumps even writing about this. Touching paper, clothing, PAPER TOWELS (shudder), really anything besides a smooth plastic or metal surface is bothersome to me. I know my hands cannot really be dry, as I moisturize constantly and do NOT overly wash my hands. I ball my fists up, and have also licked my palms to dissipate the "dry" feeling.
I have a history with extreme anxiety issues, since childhood. I don't know why I never attributed this odd behavior to something like anxiety (or OCD). I guess I just thought I was a weirdo with a weird phobia. Turns out I am not alone! Let us "dry handed" freaks unite! "

And

"I have this same problem but mine goes in different directions too. I'm curious if these things bother you...

Anything dry touching teeth... this one drives me crazy where I have to rub my teeth with my fingers to get rid of the feeling it gives me.

Thats really the worst one for me. I cannot touch anything dry with my feet or hands. As soon as I step out of the shower, I have to put lotion on my feet and hands because of the dryness. I'm actually having surgery tomorrow and they said that I have to shower the night before AND that morning and CANNOT put any type of moisturizer on. I'm thinking of skipping the shower just so that i dont have to go through the dry torture. "



If you could shed some light, tell me what this is, or anything, I would be much appreciated.

[Smarinap]

I too have this ‘condition’, and have my entire life. I am 23 years old, and since I can remember I’ve always had what I thought or subsequently classified as hypohydrosis. The only reason I came to that conclusion was because of the sense of relief I got after masking my hands and feet with lotion - profuse sweating. I’m assuming this is because the clogging of my pores. I can remember at age three consistently licking my hands (gross, I know!) just to mask this terribly irritating feeling. I do not have eczema. It’s like crawling beneath my skin, which although not always visible, can sometimes be seen as my hands ‘wrinkle’, I mean I am 23 years old, and even at a very young age in prior years I can see the wrinkling, as if I was 78. It got to the point that my mom was so tired of seeing me lick my hands that by the age of 7 she started buying me lotions - crappy ones at that - that actually made it worse. I’ve gone so far as washing dishes and splashing water on the floor just to soothe my feet, which to me felt like the dessert sand, but I’m sure we’re perfectly average. I have immense amounts of lotions in my home, and on my person at all times. I’ve had many bad experiences being at friends houses or new environments and not having my lotions. It has and continues to cause me severe mental agitation if I do not have it. I HAVE to sleep with socks on, and NEED to lotion my hands and feet multiple times before I go to bed so I am at ease. I’ve always felt very alone in this, but knew someone else out there has to have this. The reason I try to lear myself away from believing it’s OCD, is because well, my 3 year old daughter has the exact same issue, point by point. I have not at any point made it known to her that this is an issue I have, as I do not slather my extremities in lotion in her presence nor have I expressed distain in not having my lotion with me with her in my proximity. She just coincidentally has the exact same issue. I was certainly scrutinized as a child by my mom and siblings which I do not want her to experience; so I’ve taught her that instead of licking her hands and rubbing them on her feet, she can use some lotion - as licking your hands is for obvious reasons very unsanitary. It is just an indescribable sensation when my skin is ‘dry’, and my body has developed the “ability” to make my main extremities, being my hands and feet, sweat on command - which is unfortunately an ability I am known for in my social circle (lol). I, too, get great satisfaction when touching condensation on bottles etc, as well as picking up snow (Canadian, eh?). It is a necessity after washing dishes, showering or washing my hands that I lotion. I also have a sensitivity to certain materials I.e. faux fur blankets, fleece and often static prone materials/objects. It is quite easy to, at this point in my life, chalk this up to OCD, but I hate to think my child is somehow suffering from the same and being unable to offer a constructive alternative to religiously lotioning her hands and feet. It’s just a terrible skin crawling feeling that is only relieved by aggressively moisturizing.

The only advice I can offer is to stick to lotions with vitamin e, this has more of an effect for me than any other, and to avoid thin watery lotions that are heavily scented. You’ll smell great! But you’ll be lotioning yourself again in the next 5 minutes. I’ve accepted that this is just me, and it’s better than needing to flick your lights on and off 28.7 times to ensure they’re working. No offence intended there.. I still have OCD (I think?!).

All the very best to everyone in the same boat here, if you can offer me any advice - it’s always accepted.

Moisturizers Unite!
-SP

[hmmmingbird]

I just want to say it is interesting your daughter has the same. My older sister has the same - we did not grow up together. She is 20 years older than I am. She has been this way her entire life just like me. With some speculating what we are going through  is sensory processing disorder or OCD, it is nice to hear another unexplained account of multiple family members having this problem.

[rblack37]

I am 20 year old male with exact symptoms and i've had them ever since I was baby.

it's an OCD of the oils being removed from the skin. Once the water strips away the oils, your hands are DRY and feel vulnerable to external touch stimuli, so by leaving your hands in the water it ironically provides a "temporary fix".

What does it feel like? The anxiety of nails on a chalkboard but 10x worse... goosebumpy tingles shoot all over body. fight or flight response is acutely activated and reactivates constantly" touching dry/rough materials (towel) is the WORST as you have a subconscious knowledge that this material will dry your hands out further. Remember, the anxiety is spawned by a desire to rebalance the oil (lubrication) content. The longer the water contacts your hands the more it dries them out.

Therefore, thick lotions provide the best immediate relief for the OCD/anxiety.

[LilDrei]

Hi I am 15 years old. I just want to share that I also feel the same way. I always wash my hands because I always feel dry and it irritates me. My hands became rough through out the years, I think it is because of always washing my hands.

[hmmmingbird]

I responded to this thread a few years ago and follow it once in awhile. I’ve had this since I was little - clenching fists out of shower and spitting on feet before socks could be put on. I’m in my early 30s now and still live with needing lotion. I traveled by foot in my late teens and was incarcerated for a night. I was forced to shower in jail and wet my hands. The feeling afterward was so terrible that I was spitting  and literally wetting my hands with toilet water. One thing I have noticed is that if I go awhile without lotion the emergency feeling and the discomfort seem to… dissipate. After the jail incident I kept traveling. During this time I was rarely showering and I noticed I didn’t even travel with lotion. I wasn’t often plagued by the discomfort unless I stayed put somewhere for a week or so and showered more often / did dishes / washed hands. Maybe there is something wrong with the way our skin on our hands and feet produce oil? Does this make sense? When I wasn’t often getting wet I really hardly ever felt that I needed lotion. Now I shower regularly and moisturize more with various oils and creams and feel this sensation worse. It’s not only my hands and feet now - it’s my face and whole body. I do not like to put on pants unless my legs have lotion…. shirts too… and my face feels un-comfy after wetting now without immediate lotion application. My hands and feet still have it the worst and when I apply lotion to my hands I typically need to apply it to my feet too. This sometimes requires me taking off my shoes and socks to accomplish. I wish I knew the answers, but the more information we collectively put out here the closer we can be to an answer. Thanks everyone.

[hmmmingbird]

I responded to this thread a few years ago and follow it once in awhile. I’ve had this since I was little - clenching fists out of shower and spitting on feet before socks could be put on. I’m in my early 30s now and still live with needing lotion. I traveled by foot in my late teens and was incarcerated for a night. I was forced to shower in jail and wet my hands. The feeling afterward was so terrible that I was spitting  and literally wetting my hands with toilet water. One thing I have noticed is that if I go awhile without lotion the emergency feeling and the discomfort seem to… dissipate. After the jail incident I kept traveling. During this time I was rarely showering and I noticed I didn’t even travel with lotion. I wasn’t often plagued by the discomfort unless I stayed put somewhere for a week or so and showered more often / did dishes / washed hands. Maybe there is something wrong with the way our skin on our hands and feet produce oil? Does this make sense? When I wasn’t often getting wet I really hardly ever felt that I needed lotion. Now I shower regularly and moisturize more with various oils and creams and feel this sensation worse. It’s not only my hands and feet now - it’s my face and whole body. I do not like to put on pants unless my legs have lotion…. shirts too… and my face feels un-comfy after wetting now without immediate lotion application. My hands and feet still have it the worst and when I apply lotion to my hands I typically need to apply it to my feet too. This sometimes requires me taking off my shoes and socks to accomplish. I wish I knew the answers, but the more information we collectively put out here the closer we can be to an answer. Thanks everyone.

[hmmmingbird]

I responded to this thread a few years ago and follow it once in awhile. I’ve had this since I was little - clenching fists out of shower and spitting on feet before socks could be put on. I’m in my early 30s now and still live with needing lotion. I traveled by foot in my late teens and was incarcerated for a night. I was forced to shower in jail and wet my hands. The feeling afterward was so terrible that I was spitting  and literally wetting my hands with toilet water. One thing I have noticed is that if I go awhile without lotion the emergency feeling and the discomfort seem to… dissipate. After the jail incident I kept traveling. During this time I was rarely showering and I noticed I didn’t even travel with lotion. I wasn’t often plagued by the discomfort unless I stayed put somewhere for a week or so and showered more often / did dishes / washed hands. Maybe there is something wrong with the way our skin on our hands and feet produce oil? Does this make sense? When I wasn’t often getting wet I really hardly ever felt that I needed lotion. Now I shower regularly and moisturize more with various oils and creams and feel this sensation worse. It’s not only my hands and feet now - it’s my face and whole body. I do not like to put on pants unless my legs have lotion…. shirts too… and my face feels un-comfy after wetting now without immediate lotion application. My hands and feet still have it the worst and when I apply lotion to my hands I typically need to apply it to my feet too. This sometimes requires me taking off my shoes and socks to accomplish. I wish I knew the answers, but the more information we collectively put out here the closer we can be to an answer. Thanks everyone.

[hmmmingbird]

I also want to add that I use all natural lotions and oils now. When I was little I used the brand Suave and NOTHING would soothe my skin if it wasn’t that brand. This had me thinking maybe it was the aluminum or silicones used in some commercial lotions. It felt like my skin was addicted to that particular brand. Now that this has progressed I am very mindful of the ingredients I use on my skin. Some lotions just don’t work. Sometimes I have to reapply lotion on my hands and felt 4-5 times after showering no matter what brand I’m using. I find emu oil and squalene seem to help if locked in with some sort of thick occlusive….

[Marie_bb]

I am 25 years old. Up until a year or two ago, I did not have this compulsion. I have a history of substance abuse, poor impulse control etc. (I’m a mess) but in the past year I have gotten clean, I work a lot and I have a kid. I have bettered myself in a lot of ways, but my mental state is fragile. I need constant distraction (watching shows on my phone) and nicotine. I have poor spending habits and I have an awful sleep schedule and routine. My hands almost always have to be moisturized. Sometimes it doesn’t bother me as much, but at my worse I will use chapstick or even lick my hands to relieve the anxiety around my dry hands. I cannot touch anything super soft, like micro-fiber towels, and after showering it’s really bad and I always need to have lotion on hand. I have the sensation anxiety when it comes to my feet too, just not as bad. After reading this, I guess I’m not alone, but I wish I knew what in my life caused this to become such a necessity. I hope I can get help…