Overview
The goal of this study is to find out if brain stimulation can help people stop skin-picking or nail-biting. The study wants to answer two main questions:
- Does brain stimulation reduce the urge to pick skin or bite nails after those urges are triggered?
- Does brain stimulation reduce how often people pick their skin or bite their nails?
Participants will:
- Talk about their skin-picking, nail-biting, and other mental health concerns
- Be placed in situations that make them want to pick or bite
- Rate how strong their urges are before and after brain stimulation Researchers will compare real brain stimulation to a placebo (a fake version that looks the same but has no effect) to see if the real stimulation works to reduce skin-picking and nail-biting urges and behaviors.
Eligibility
Inclusion Criteria:
- Ability to provide informed consent (as established by clinical interview), and voluntary, signed informed consent prior to the performance of any study specific
- Ability and willingness to perform study-relevant clinical assessments and tDCS
- Endorses mild to extreme intensity of urges to pick or bite their skin or nails
Exclusion Criteria:
- Any unstable medical, psychiatric, or neurological condition (including active or otherwise problematic suicidality) that may necessitate urgent treatment
- Daily use of psychotropic medications that substantially lower seizure threshold (e.g., clozapine)
- History of psychosis, mania, major neurological disorder, significant head trauma, or seizures/epilepsy
- Current suicidal intent
- Any major neurological disease or history of major head trauma, including concussion with extended loss of consciousness, or of psychosurgery
- Current or suspected pregnancy
- Endorsing possible contraindications for tDCS