Why is Soraya Always Wearing Bandages?

Many of you have asked (or wondered 😉) why Soraya is always wearing bandaids on her forehead, arms, and legs. The answer is that she picks her skin until it bleeds when she’s in pain. Many times it’s the first sign of pain before she can even articulate it in words.

A couple of years ago when this started, we thought her picking was due to a sensory need, anxiety, or itchiness. We tried every behavioral strategy imaginable to combat it – reward charts, fidget toys, compressive/barrier clothing, distractions, therapies, anti-anxiety medication, you name it. This is how Soraya ended up with long gel acrylic nails 💅. Our hope was it would deter her from getting blood on her nails, which would help keep her from picking overall.

Despite our efforts, nothing made a significant impact. It wasn’t until we gave her pain medication (Tylenol) that we noticed a decrease in the behavior. There was a HUGE learning curve in understanding that Soraya may express her pain/levels of pain very differently than a typical child.

Keeping up with her pain medication with the help of our amazing palliative care team has helped but picking is still something we still actively struggle with. We use the colloid bandages to protect her skin as it’s in a constant state of healing.

While having acrylic nails may not have reduced her picking as we’d hoped for, Soraya still LOVES getting her nails done. It makes her happy, increases her confidence, and is often a talking point when she meets new friends. One of her hobbies is figuring out what nail design she’s going to get next!

So, there you have it! That’s why Soraya wears bandages. What other questions do you have?