How Keen Bracelet Helped
I’ve been pulling my hair since I was twelve.
I’m now in my mid-thirties and, really, it’s just a part of my life. I’ve tried to stop. I’ve tried fidgets, snapping rubber bands on my wrist, Band-Aids on my fingertips, hynopsis, therapy, medication. Every…thing.
Then there was Keen by HabitAware.
Looking similar to a FitBit, the Keen bracelet learns your unwanted behavior (eh hem, hair pulling, through an app on your phone) and then vibrates at an intensity you choose when you pull your hair! How easy is that?!
The set-up is quick (less than 10 minutes) and you do NOT need to have your phone nearby once your bracelet is activated for it to work when you’re on the go.
Here’s the deal. It’s not perfect, but nothing is, and I’ll explain why even its minor “faults” helped MORE than I initially realized:
(cont’d below)
At first, the occasional false alarms bugged me, but what I realized was even that was helping.
I trained my bracelet to learn eyelash and eyebrow pulling. But sometimes when I’d readjust my glasses or scratch my forehead, it would vibrate. At first, these false alarms bugged me but, what I realized as the day went on, was that the behavior always BEGAN with a harmless act (ex: scratching my forehead and then scanning the brow area or feeling my lashes).
Keen was keeping my hands down overall! Teaching me to keep my hands away from my face entirely so those “innocent” triggers don’t even happen. Thus, preventing me from getting to the next part: pulling my hair!
Keen’s support team, and Aneela, the founder (and former trichster herself!), were quick to answer emails and offered a free video call to help with troubleshooting.
SOME TIPS:
1. When training your Keen bracelet, sit in the position you are most likely to pull your hair. IMPORTANT: Before you press start for training, make sure your hand is already in your behavior position. Don’t press START and then bring your hand up to your brow for example. (Don’t worry there’s a short training video included.)
2. Adjust the sensitivity. This remains an adjustable setting as you go. If you’re not getting enough awareness or if the band is vibrating too many times, adjust and find your sweet spot.
3. They have a $30 off discount code for two bands (SETOF2) if you need one for each hand.
Order your Keen bracelet to get your hair pulling under control. I’m rooting for you!
Keen offers all of this.
