For anyone who has never experienced the lip balm habit, it is difficult to understand. Compared to other addictions, the economy, poverty, hunger, illness, and personal tragedies, this problem is a minor inconvenience and almost embarrassing to mention. But for those of us who panic when we can’t find our trusty lip balm and can’t leave the house without it, it’s a habit most would like to break. This is my story of how I cured my lip balm addiction…and it happened by accident and in just three days.
Over forty years ago, a high school classmate introduced me to Avon Dew Kiss Lip Dew in the innocent pink tube. I loved. Not caring about colored lipstick, I was thrilled that this balm gave my lips a natural, healthy glow. Little did I know how long my love for this product would last or how important it would be in my life. It seemed like a good item to have on hand for cold, windy days in Idaho, where I lived. It wasn’t expensive and it was easy to get. “Ding-Dong, Avon Calling” meant my neighborhood Avon Lady was delivering my Lip Dew order. As I moved around the US over the years, locating the local Avon dealer was at the top of my to-do list when I got to my new home. If I couldn’t find it right away and ran out of Lip Dew, I’d replace it with Chapstick in the old days, but it was too waxy and dull back then, so I was always looking for my next supplier.
How bad was my habit? If I left home without Lip Dew and had time to get home to get it, I’d drive home. If making the return trip was too long, I’d stop at a store and pick up Bonnie Bell, Carmex, or Chapstick. Later, the growing lip balm market gave me more options, like Burt’s Bees and Neutrogena. Of course, when I was home, I only wore Lip Dew. It was still my favourite. When I asked, he would sort 10-12 at a time and hide them all over the house and office. I put a tube in each of my most frequently used bags to make sure I didn’t leave the house without it. I also usually kept one in a pants or jacket pocket, which invariably slipped out when doing laundry, leaving little grease stains all over my clothes. If “ubiquitous” can describe a product, then it described Lip Dew in my life; in fact it was present everywhere. The reason I needed so many tubes on hand was because I reapplied every 15-20 minutes during the day, and if I woke up in the middle of the night, I’d grab my tube of Lip Dew on the nightstand. This had been a bad habit for decades.
You could debate whether or not lip balm ingredients are addictive, and thanks to the internet, researching this topic is easy. Probably the main site is LipBalmAnonymous.com, which lists many manufacturers and discusses the possibility that they deliberately include lip-drying ingredients to make you want more lip balm. This site is not only informative, but also entertaining, as it includes humor to help lip balm addicts relax from their habit. I wouldn’t say that the ingredients in lip balms are physically addictive like the nicotine in cigarettes, but there’s no question that repeating any action often enough results in a psychological habit that’s hard to break. Physical attachment to lip balm can be caused by licking your lips and probably not realizing that you’re doing it. As you lick, the balm disappears, so you apply more. Why do you think manufacturers add flavors? It tastes good, so you lick it! You lick it and your lips feel dry, so you apply more lip balm. Result: You use up your supply faster and have to buy more!
I would still be on the dry application cycle if it wasn’t for a friend who is an independent distributor of Senegence LipSense and asked me to try this long-wear lipstick and gloss system. I had never heard of lip balm addiction, so I didn’t know what I was asking! I’m not much into makeup and have rarely worn colored lipstick, so this is not a purchase I would normally make. Also, the few over-the-counter “long wear” lipsticks I tried had dried out my lips, so I needed even more Lip Dew. Actually, if my friend hadn’t insisted, I wouldn’t have bothered, but I finally agreed to try this product on a neutral color for a few days. On the first day, I thought it was a bit heavy, not like any normal lip balm, but since I was very self-conscious about this new sensation, I was reminded not to lick or chew on my lips. This was definitely what started to break the habit. I reapplied the gloss after eating and a few times throughout the day, but didn’t feel the need to reapply multiple times an hour. On the second day, I was still aware of something different on my lips, but I was getting used to the sensation and my lips did not feel dry. On the third day, I had the real breakthrough. That afternoon I realized that I had applied gloss right after lunch and then forgotten about my lips for hours. Hours! conceived. In three days, I went from applying lip balm every 15-20 minutes to not applying any at all for hours. That means I could actually leave the house for 2-3 hours without taking “a solution” with me. Only a lip balm addict could understand the feeling of freedom I felt!
You don’t need this product to cure your lip balm addiction. I think any of the over-the-counter long-wear lipsticks or glosses could do the same thing if you stick with them. “Long lasting” is the key feature to look for. There were three components to my success. First, because I was aware that there was something different about my lips, I noticed every time I started licking them and stopped. I had read that lips need exfoliation, so I added that too and used a light scrub on my lips every night, which probably reduced the feeling of dryness during the day. Three, because the lipstick I was wearing is long-lasting and the gloss contains shea butter, my lips didn’t feel stripped, dry, or unprotected for hours, which ended with me feeling like I desperately needed to apply some lip product several times a day. hour.
Did I trade one addiction for another? No. In fact, I was busy and forgot to use my Lip Sense and Gloss a few days and it was mid-afternoon when I realized it. In fact, I have spent entire days without anything on my lips and I have felt comfortable, so I would say that my habit has been successfully broken. While I can get by with nothing, I prefer the moisturizing and protective benefits of LipSense since I live in an extremely dry climate in Arizona. I’m sure I could have gone cold turkey for a few days to break the lip balm addiction but the fact is I wouldn’t even have considered trying so this was the only solution for me. After having a serious lip balm habit for over forty years, I never would have imagined I’d ever be able to break it, and certainly not in three days. I am finally free!