Does anyone here suffer from dermatophagia or constant lip-biting?

I bit my fingers for the longest time since I was in middle school until about 3 years ago.

About 3 years ago I finally broke the cycle for the first time. I would give myself these “imaginary ultimatums.” I would tell myself like, “Okay, imagine someone is putting a gun to your loved one and orders you to stop biting your fingers forever. You gotta stop biting your fingers.” Stuff like that. And it worked eventually.

Then last year I fell into relapse.

Not here for political discussion, but I relapsed when Trump won the 2016 election. I remember talking to my friends online and realizing that I was biting my fingers again. Ever since then, I caved and can’t seem to stop again. This goes for the same thing with lip biting. If I don’t bite my fingers then I bite my lip and end up chewing off the outer layer.

When I was a kid, my pediatrician would check my fingers but he wouldn’t say much about them. Mom would ask him when my biting would stop and he’d shrug. He didn’t really assess it nor suggest anything – just acknowledged that it was still going on. I didn’t even know this impulse had a name until last year.

I’m trying to think of creative ways to stop again. Those “imaginary ultimatums” aren’t doing the trick again. Tried nail polish but it didn’t work. I tried tape a very long time ago before I broke the cycle for the first time, but it gets annoying because I type a lot and work with my hands.

I not only bite my fingers and lip when I’m nervous. I also do it when I’m thinking or trying to concentrate. Frustration is another one. Lately though I’ve been feeling this incessant vibe in my head. It’s not a painful sensation headache or a migraine. It’s like I know a portion in my brain is saying “Bite, bite, bite”, like it’s on overdrive and won’t stop, and I wish I could soothe it and relieve it. Why did this manifest? Was it something in my early development that made me do this? Some Freudian crap? Genetics?

I take note of other people and if they do it. The only other person I know who does it is my boss. Whenever he’s trying to think of something he takes a bite of his fingers.