Fidget Toys for Hair Twirling, Skin Picking and Nail Biting

Hair twirling, skin picking and nail biting: what they have in common

Most of us have a thing our hands do when we're not paying attention. Winding a strand of hair round a finger while reading. Running a nail along the edge of a cuticle in a meeting. Nibbling a thumbnail during a tense bit of a film. Usually you only notice afterwards.

Hair twirling is the most common of these and for most people it's just a habit, a bit like tapping a foot. Pulling, picking and biting can go further. The US charity The TLC Foundation calls them body-focused repetitive behaviours, or BFRBs, and lists hair pulling, skin picking and nail biting among the common ones. They become a problem when someone can't stop and the behaviour starts to cause damage.

None of this is anything to be ashamed of. It's also not something a toy can fix. What a fidget can do is give your fingers something else to hold at the moments they usually wander.

Do fidget toys help with hair pulling and skin picking?

The NHS page on trichotillomania (hair pulling) includes using a fidget toy in its list of things you can try yourself, along with squeezing a stress ball. The NHS page on skin picking disorder suggests keeping your hands busy, for example by squeezing a soft ball or wearing gloves.

The idea behind both is the same: swap the habit for a harmless action that uses the same hands. When treatment is needed, the NHS describes a talking therapy called habit reversal training, which helps you spot what sets the habit off and replace it with something less harmful. A fidget is a tool you might use alongside that kind of help, not a replacement for it.

Which fidget suits which habit

For hair twirling

Twirling is a winding, turning motion, so look for something that twists. A linkloop chain can be rolled, looped and turned over in the fingers in much the same way as a strand of hair. Some people keep one by the sofa or the desk where the twirling usually happens.

For skin picking

Picking often starts with fingers searching for a rough patch. A textured grip fidget, with ridges and bumps to run a thumbnail over, gives them something to find that isn't skin. A smooth worry-stone style fidget with a gentle texture suits people who prefer rubbing to picking.

For nail biting

Biting is about the hands drifting up to the mouth, so the aim is to keep both hands busy and down. Something you hold in two hands works well, such as an infinity cube or a flexi animal you can bend about. One clear warning here: our fidgets are hard PLA plastic. They are not chew toys and shouldn't go in the mouth.

Tips for keeping your hands busy

• Notice your hotspots. Twirling often happens while reading or scrolling. Picking tends to happen in front of a mirror or at a desk. Put a fidget right where the habit lives.
• Keep it within reach. A fidget in a drawer is no use when your fingers are already at your hair. Coat pocket, pencil case, bedside table.
• Pick a quiet one for shared spaces. Clickers are satisfying but noisy. In class or at work a silent textured fidget won't draw attention. Our quiet fidgets for work page has more on this.
• Be patient with yourself. You'll still catch yourself twirling or picking sometimes. That's normal. Reaching for the fidget a bit more often is progress.

If anxiety tends to set the habit off, our guide to fidget toys for anxiety goes into that side in more detail.

When to talk to a GP

The NHS advises seeing a GP if you can't stop picking your skin, if it's causing distress or affecting daily life, or if you're damaging your skin, for example with cuts that don't heal. It also advises seeing a GP if you or your child are pulling hair out, and especially if hair is being eaten, which can make someone seriously ill.

A GP can talk it through without judgement and point you towards therapy if it would help. Parents worried about a child can book for them in the same way.

Every toy we make is 3D-printed by us in Kent, in small batches, from PLA, a plant-based polymer, carries the UKCA mark and is made to the UK toy safety standard, BS EN 71. They're not suitable for children under 36 months because of small parts. The quiet, textured ones below are a good place to start.