Admitting you have an addiction is the first step to recovery, right? Well then I admit: I have an addiction. To chapstick.

It is a hard addiction, one I’m not willing to cure honestly. I know using too much chapstick can create dry lips or an outbreak of red bumps. But I’ve never reached that point and I love the feeling of velvety lips. However, the life of a chapstick addict is not easy. It’s necessary to have backups to your backups and if for whatever reason I have lost all my back ups, the overall stability of my body is thrown off by my dry, chapstick-less lips. Now, I know there has to be other people out there like myself, so here is a little insight into the life of a chapstick addict:

1. We keep chapstick in all major areas of life. The car, the wallet, the jeans pocket, the bathroom, and the bedside table.

I have tried having one main tube of chapstick and just bringing it with me everywhere. Let me tell you, it’s a lot easier just keeping one in all the main spots you visit on a daily basis. Since, I almost always have my wallet on me, it’s vital to keep one in there so I can access it at all times.

2.We know our favorite brands.

I prefer the brand ChapStick original, but occasionally I get flavors like pomegranate, green apple, or even seasonal ones like gingerbread. Cherry is a least favorite and strawberry is tolerable. If I decide to spoil myself I get the Eos brand (blackberry is my all time fav).

3. We become frantic if we lose a tube of chapstick.

It’s true. A little havoc leaks out when I can’t find my chapstick. I think to myself, I know I wouldn’t have moved it anywhere so where could it have possibly gone? Only to find that it rolled onto the floor or something and then I can breath air of relief.

4. Our lips are actually miserable if we go hours without putting Chapstick on.

If I go too long without chapstick my lips become dry and my whole self feels simply out of place.

5. Chapstick is the finishing touch to our daily “getting ready routine”.

No, I cannot leave the house without first putting on chapstick.

6. We have to put aside all germaphobic issues and learn to share with other people.

This applies to different scenarios. One scenario is if I forget my chapstick, there’s a good chance I’m going to be asking around to see if anyone has any that I can borrow. The second scenario is that people know I will always have chapstick on me so they know I’m the girl to ask when they need it. In either case, I have to be willing to share germs with other people and not freak out about sharing. (I’ve come a long way on this one, let me tell you)

I’m still trying to decide how serious of an addiction this is, but if it’s not life-threatening and I’m fully aware I’m addicted maybe it’s not so bad after all. To say the least, I will always have moisturized lips and a tube of chapstick if you ever need to borrow some.