1. Detour Ahead

One sure sign of being addicted to lip balm is if you’ll go out of your way to get some. Let’s say you’re on your way to work or school and you can’t find your usual lip balm in your purse. Instead of just going on with your day, do you feel compelled to stop at the store and get more? Have you ever had to make a detour or be late just to get your hands on some balm? If you find that your obsession is interfering with your life, it could be more of an addiction.

2. Can’t Get You off My Mind

Another classic sign of a lip balm addict is if you can’t stop thinking about it. Are your lips a little dry sans lip balm and you can’t wait to apply more? Do you ever find yourself thinking about moisturizing your lips while you’re out with friends? Do you talk about lip balms all the time? If you can’t stop thinking about lip balm even while you’re out and about doing things, it could signify a dependence on it.

3. Repeat Offender

Our lips only have a few layers of skin, so it’s very likely for them to get dried out, but think about how often you apply your lip balm. Many people can go hours or days without reapplying lip balm but then there are people like me who habitually reapply it. If you reapply lip balm multiple times within an hour, it can be a sign you’re addicted to lip balm.

4. Faithful Companion

I know that when I find a beauty product that I like, I tend to stock up. Are you the same way with lip balms? Do you buy several lip balms and leave them in numerous places so that you’ll never be without it? Do you make sure you have a tube everywhere you go? If you feel uncomfortable without having your trusty lip balm on hand, it can be a sign of an addiction.

5. Constant Comment

Do you ever get bothered or irritated if a friend or family member makes a comment about your lip balm usage? Maybe they call you a lip balm addict because they see you reapplying it a lot or perhaps they bring it up because it annoys them. Either way, if the comments of others make you feel uncomfortable or upset, it can be a sign that you’re dependent on lip balm.

6. Quitting Time

Another sign that you could be a lip balm addict is if you’ve tried to quit using lip balm before and weren’t able to. Some us don’t mind being known as a lip balm addict, so we accept it and don’t think much of it. Others might not be so keen on the label and don’t want to feel hooked on something, so they’ll try to stop. Some ingredients in lip balms have cooling or medication-like effects that keep us coming back for more, so our attempts in trying to quit can be difficult.

7. Liar Liar

Have you ever lied to anyone about the amount of lip balms you own or how much you use it? How about the amount of money you spend buying lip balms? We all have certain obsessions and things we spend a lot of time thinking about, but if you find yourself having to lie to make yourself feel better about your lip balm use, you could be dealing with a lip balm addiction.

8. Lost in Emotion

If you feel like you have a mild obsession with collecting and using lip balms but you’re not worried about it, good. If you feel depressed or anxious about using/not using or having lip balm, talk to someone about it. Using lip balm may or may not be linked to an underlying issue, so it’s best to talk to a professional and get some help. Check out lipbalmanonymous.com, which provides information on lip balm addiction. At first glance you might think it’s poking fun at the issue, but the creator of the site, Kevin C. assures that it’s very serious.

Many experts will say that lip balm addiction isn’t harmful and that some lip balm companies use certain ingredients that will keep us coming back for more. They suggest trying natural lip balms like EOS or natural alternatives to lip balm, like oils and shea butter, so that you get the moisture but none of the other add-ons that can be addicting. Do you think you have an addiction to lip balm?