Is it normal to bite the inside your mouth?

I bite the inside of my mouth. Such as my cheeks, behind my lips and anywhere else inside my mouth. But I rip the skin off and basically tear the inside of my mouth to shreds. It gets really raw and bleeds sometimes. I do this pretty much all the time now. I used to only notice it when I am anxious but now I find myself doing it all the time. And even though I know I look weird and it hurts sometimes, I can't stop. Is this normal?

Voting Results
76% Normal
Based on 55 votes (42 yes)
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Comments ( 7 )
  • sissycakes

    Habits are normal, but please try to stop that.

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  • Terence_the_viking

    It happens to me but i don't do it on purpose

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  • MediumGrey

    It could be some form of "dermatillomania". My brother used to do a similar thing in which he would bite the skin off his knuckles. I would say it's fine until it gets to the point where you are physically hurting yourself. Then you should probably try and do something about it (unless it doesn't bother you of course).

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  • Jbabe

    I do it a lot, but I try not to.

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  • Littlebadgirl

    I don't do this, but I have a friend who does it ALL THE TIME. And sometimes it gets really ugly. But it guess it's kinda normal.

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  • NeuroNeptunian

    I do it as a nervous habit or out of boredom.

    You should probably see a professional because I did this the worst when I was dealing with anxiety issues and you may be the same way.

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  • Acerbic

    This isn't normal perse, but a lot of people do it. I used to. It's a way some people react to feeling anxious, as you figured out. Sometimes you'll notice when you're doing it, but other times you'll do it subconsciously without realizing it and in this way, it eventually becomes a compulsion similar to OCD. There's really no serious health risks to it aside from the obvious soreness and you may eventually get scar tissue if you do it for years on end to a significant degree, so it's not a good thing to do. This can be hard to stop but it is very doable. If you're interested, this site has some more information: www.skinpick.com/lip-picking
    Best of luck,
    ACE

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