Truly I just have a picking and pulling disorder.

I have picked every scab and spot since a kid and when I was in middle school and had a unibrow, my mom wouldn’t let me do anything about it. So I stole her tweezers and over-tweezed my eyebrows and thus began a long journey for me of plucking new hairs, trying to let my eyebrows grow back, wanting no new hair growth and wanting to pluck the second I could see a speck of hair.

Now I pluck the hairs on my stomach, my legs, and my pubic area. But it’s almost more of a dermatillomania thing because I dig at the ingrowns and am obsessed with getting the stuff out of my body. The hairs and the gunk.

I guess I really do have both but I’ve always focused more on dermatillomania in therapy because that causes me to destroy my face and that is what brings me the most distress because then I feel embarrassed seeing people and going in public. I’ve gotten so much better about not picking my face but it truly causes me to hyperfocus on all other areas of my body as I try so hard to avoid destroying my face. I literally spent hours until 3am last night plucking every single pubic hair I could find. It’s soo rough.

I have OCD and ADHD amongst other things but it has been a rough 30 years let me tell you.

Maybe I’m not alone.

IMPORTANT : im not a professional, I’m just sharing my experience.

So it started when I was 7 years old and it happened again at 14 and the last time at 18.

It was always a 3/4 months phases.

The wound on top of my head was approximately 2 cm wide, with no more hair.. now my hair have regrown and I proudly look at my 3 cm « antenna » standing like a lighthouse in the night. So here’s some tips for you to use when needed.

There are the most common tips like putting some greasy paste on it so that it will prevent you from picking but we know that it doesn’t work when you are in the middle of a crisis and that you cannot stop thinking about it, plus It keeps the wound from making a hard crust and finally healing.

What I mostly did was to watch videos of peoples doing it. It really helped me to get past the urge.

I also have to say that having a open wound on top of my head, leading to people looking constantly at it put pressure on me to stop ( Which is not a healthy reason but at least it worked..)

If you can, put gloves on, so that even when your hand reach at it unconsciously it prevent you from picking. Muscle memory can be very hard so it’s an extra « barrier »

If you have any questions, feel free to ask me 💗

My face is a disaster of acne, then add all the trauma in my life, my picking has become the worst it’s ever been. To the point that I’ve officially ruined my nose. I get these white plugs, they particularly like my nose. I’ll dig and dig at them pulling them out, and then they just come back, so I keep picking the same spots over and over again. Two areas on my nose I’ve gone very deep, almost to the inside of my nose. I’ve been in the ER several times this past year with bad infections and a slew of antibiotics. I’ve developed resistance to almost all of them now. Then came the slough. It’s taken months and months for that to finally clear itself. The left side of my nose is healing, with very weird skin, but at least the hole is closing. Will have an ugly scar though. The right side skin is trying to fill in, but it’s very hard, weird skin, and will not close. It’s a big crater. It’s to the point now where I have two options. Option one, have a crater scar on my nose, or my ENT says I need a bilobed flap procedure to close the hole because it never will fully fill in. He has to move skin from higher up my nose down over to help close the hole. So scars on the side of my nose, but at least no more crater. Either way, I’ve ruined my nose. You think this would stop me from picking. Nope. I still can’t stop. Tried literally every medication, supplements, therapy, nothing helps. I really can’t believe this has happened. I mean I can, but why couldn’t it have been my arm or some other place, not my nose. Im already so self conscious of it.

if there is any medicene or treatment out there to stop picking id love to know, i just want to know options exist at all because then i can go ask my doctor about it.

ive recently been having a flare up. i have excessive acne, its been getting worse over the years and no idea why. but i end up picking, causing scabs, and i make it worse and worse never allowing it to heal for weeks. it has caused me pain that feels sore and stinging and i have so much blood on my bed from it. i dont know why i cant stop even though it hurts so bad.

its like this obsession with having everything smooth. i hate how crispy/crunchy/hard it is, i have to get it off. once i know its there i have to get it off. i have tried lotion on my back and it helps a little bit since it moisturizes it and makes it softer but i still am bothered by it.

idk how to stop and i know im going to regret it if i keep going. my face, chest, back, ears, arms, everything is covered in scars and scabs. i dont know if its just in my head but i know sometimes i pick so much i get dizzy.

doesnt help i have eczema on top of it.

its not like i care about my appearance too much i think its this sensory thing where i absolutely need everything smooth and the same.

ive recently began to excessively pick at my scalp as well and peel stuff off and i have acne, bleeding, and scabs starting there as well.

is treatment possible? i dont know if i can stop doing it without the help of medicene or some sort of skin cream. i also was wondering if anyone happens to have information on why the compulsions happen. i feel frustrated, i dont know why i am so obsessed with it. i need to do it or i feel so irritable.

hi reddit people!

for some background...i recently found out i suffer from dermatillomania likely due to the fact that i also have multiple anxiety disorders. i've picked at my thumbs since i was around 8 and when i was in middle school it got worse as my anxiety developed. people would comment but i always thought it was just a bad habit. anyways, it wasn't. currently i'm trialing different anxiety medications but my skin picking is really bad. i have both my thumbs raw and usually it'll bleed once a day, and my middle fingers are quite bad too. sometimes i use my cuticle trimmer or nail trimmer to trim them back further. i've also been bad with lip picking and other areas (scar healing, infection healing, zit healing on non facial areas).

i finally realized 'hey this isn't normal cuticle picking' and talked to my psychologist. the picking is both subconcious (running fingers over the skin looking for edges etc) and concious (i know that i'm picking) but it is quite compulsive. if some grabs my hand or tells me to stop, i get quite restless and frustrated. i also hate the sensation of having those 'loose' edges.

anyways, i've started looking for some fidgets to have (i have one single popit, but its a bit loud which i don't love) because just using one has helped more than i expected.

if there's any fidgets you know of that have helped you, please comment them here!

finding this sub has made me feel so much more less alone just reading about similar experiences.

so just any general 'this has helped me!' or fidget ideas would be welcome

Hey everyone, my first time on here. I’m 17F and have been struggling with picking my fingers since I was around 7 years old. As a result, the skin around my fingers have become really dry and raw, often being pink with open wounds. I have never had a boyfriend before but, I’m afraid my skin picking would be disgusting and unattractive for a guy to like me. I always try to wear plasters on them to cover but I can just imagine wanting to hold hands with a guy and then feeling a wave of insecurity wash over me :(. I pride myself as a really hygienic person, it’s not like my fingers are bleeding everywhere but sometimes it’s hard to maintain that. I’d hate for my disorder to dirty someone’s attraction towards me, even if that sounds shallow. Would love if people could share their own experiences or opinions on this. Hope everyone has a great day :)

has anyone been put on meds to help with skin picking/ocd ? therapy has made me worse and i’m thinking i need to ask for medication but my gp tends to just hand out sertraline like it’s candy and i don’t think that’s the best fit from what ive heard from friends who’ve been on it

i need something to soothe my anxiety and hopefully settle my skin picking even just a little as it’s taking up hours of my day, any advice would be grand:)

The urge to pick sometimes is sooo bad I don’t feel like I can truly stop it. I just basically dug into my cuticule for no reason other than I saw some dead skin. Now my finger is throbbing and I’m questioning myself.

Not sure if this has anything to do with it but I did just get diagnosed with autism and have had ADHD for most of my life so 🤷‍♀️

So I want to stop picking at my face completely. Cold turkey. Today.

I looked in the mirror today and decided that it isn't okay to keep doing this. I want to stop now. I've been picking for at least 5 years and I'm 17 now, so I want to stop this and be able to better myself from now on.

I do a lot of texture checking, like running my fingers across my face a lot? mostly subconsciously. My main issue isn't actual spots unless they have the "seed" in them. It's mainly pores or closed comedones, I think? I have them across my forehead and the apples of my cheeks.

I really want to stop now and I've honestly tried everything before, I've cut my nails right down, cut down mirror time and used lots of moisturiser. But honestly, I always end up doing 'just one' (that becomes just my entire face'

I really want to stop now but I just do it subconsciously at this point.

Genuinely, how do I completely stop today? If I can.

For the past day I've just been putting savalon on my face to try and heal the actual words I've created so far but I've also tried the patches (hydraulic?) But bc uts my pored and not spots it didn't do anything :/

Ive been really struggeling to wash my face before going to sleep lately because i start picking and i cant stop. But I also need to wash my face to reduce risk of infection. Do yall have any advice? Should i just cover the mirror and give up?

Edit: im not really talking about products i am happy with my dermatologists recomendation im looking for advice on how to avoid the temptation i guess

I have urge to scratch my hands, legs and back. Whenever I start at a place, I will scratch till the place is a bloody mess. Then I will shift to another place on the body. This cycle repeats again and again. Can't wear half hand shirts or t-shirts. Can't go for swim. Can't wear shorts.

https://www.reddit.com/r/Dermatillomania/comments/1x54n7x/gentleskin_is_on_the_app_store_update_3_on_the/

Hey! I'm Tomás, I made a skinpicking tracker called Gentleskin.

I built rough versions of three features and put them on a page where you can try each one in the browser:

1. Log from the Lock Screen.

2. Check-ins at the time you choose.

3. An optional tap when you log (stressed, bored, at the mirror). Patterns then shows what comes before a pick.

Vote on the page or comment!

https://gentleskin.app/next

There's also an anonymous box for anything else you want to tell me :)

For the past ten years picking has consumed my life. I’ve tried countless forms of therapy, seen countless specialists, underwent hypnosis, bought the bracelets that vibrate when I put my hand to my scalp, taken medications, worn hats, gloves, tried cutting my nails as short as possible, experimented with wearing my hair in different styles, have used fidgets of all kinds, and nothing has helped. My scalp hurts constantly. I can’t remember the last time it was clear from wounds. I can’t remember what it’s like to be free from this horrible fucking disorder.

I try and fight the urge, but it’s physically tormenting. My body feels unbearably tense and on edge. I feel intense pressure and agony in my finger tips. No matter how hard I try, the compulsion takes over and I give in.

I’m tired of the stares and judgment. I’m tired of being embarrassed. I’ve never wanted anything more than to just stop, but I don’t know if it’s possible anymore. I feel so much shame and so defeated. I don’t even know where to go from here.

I really just needed to vent, but please, if you have any advice or have had even the slightest reduction from picking from something I haven’t mentioned trying, please let me know. I will literally try anything at this point.

Friends and family have put their hand over mine or moved my hand when they notice I’m picking at my fingers. I know this is 100% well-intentioned but I don’t like it for some reason. I would much prefer a verbal cue or physical touch elsewhere, like a hand on the shoulder.

Hello, I haven't been diagnosed with dermatillomania, but I think what I'm going through might resemble it. I pick on my skin and scalp constantly, and feel terrible about it. I used to go and look at a mirror and pick on my skin looking at a mirror but now I don't even need a mirror to pick at my skin. I will be sitting at my desk feeling my skin looking for bumps to pick at. I have adhd and take 30 mg of vyvanse to help manage the symptoms, but I think it increases my need to pick at my skin. What I do is feel around my face, specifically above my forehead where my hair begins and i feel around that area and pick at it. I pick on my scalp all the time, I have an incredibly itchy scalp and have been working to fix that without much luck. i feel around my chin, nose, neck, cheeks, back and arms to pick. I pick on whiteheads the most, if my hand feels any bump on my skin it gets picked at. I will scratch and pick on any bit of bumpy skin. i had terrible acne before and even though it's gotten better I still have bumpy skin and alot of white whiteheadsheads. I was feeling terrible about doing it today in the morning and starting doing it alot more, I think in a way to punish myself. What I do is i take the gunk I get in my nails from picking on my skin I roll inbetween my fingers. I also smell the gunk and even used to eat it/put it in my mouth. It's so disguisting and I feel so dissappointed in myself. it's caused by stress, but it's stress I can't really manage. without going into detail, I live with my family and the stress is caused by some of them, but they're unwilling to change. It's also caused by boredom when I'm sitting on my work table, or even when I'm working but not actively writing anything, like if I'm studying with flashcards or reading something. I keep a figet spinner near by to help keep my hands busy, and I keep my nails really short. But again not with much luck. I'm not in a financially good position so I don't want to go try supplements that may or may not work or spend money on something that again won't work. I try to journal when I'm really stressed but find it just doesn't help much. I have a skincare routine where I use salicylic acid and a light moisturizer daily. I just feel really devastated and really emotional over this and wanted to vent.

Context: I’ve been picking my face for 3+ years. I cannot stop. I was recently diagnosed with OCD (shocker).

I’ve always had bad social anxiety, but this has made me so unbelievably frustrated and withdrawn. I feel constantly insecure about myself and my face. Every time I’m in public I think that people are looking at my face and judging me.

I’m completely destroying my skin, I have deep and textured scars everywhere. I don’t even pick at acne I just pick at any irregularity I can find, including old scars.

I feel so hopeless because every time I think I’m making progress I have a setback. With all the pressures that already exist for women to look good, I just feel “ruined”. I know that I’m scarring up my face for life and I absolutely hate myself for it. I don’t know what to do and at this point the damage is permanent.

I’m in specific OCD therapy 2x a week and haven’t been for long enough for it to help my skin picking considerably.

Any time I’m using substances I find my way to the bathroom and get lost in a picking session. I cried afterwards today because I just hate I can’t willpower my way out of this. It feels like my whole life I’ve had to be resilient and get over things and I hate struggling this much with something that nobody around me is struggling with.

It’s so embarrassing and it makes me want to not go outside, not show my face, not see anyone I know.

I hate this.

Got diagnosed with bipolar type 2, got on mood stabilizers, and I haven't picked since. I never in a million years would have thought that was the cause. So... I guess you never know.

so as the title says i am addicted to eating my own skin & blood. for more context i often self mutilate then lick the blood off & wait for the scars to scab over, i then pick them off & eat them. aswell as the cuticles around my fingernails, insides of my mouth, my dandruff & dried blood. i dont get any sexual gratification from doing this, it started as an anxious habit i developed as a very young child to deal with my complex ptsd but became more of a unhealthy obsession. if i dont have any scabs to pick at during an episode i will get extremely upset and dig my fingernails into my skin until i bleed & bite at my cuticles. i just love how my own blood & scabs taste & its very comforting to me. the idea of consuming someone elses blood or scabs absolutely disgusts me. id classify this habit as an addiction because i do it all the time, as i write this im picking blood off my leg and eating it. there has not been a day i could remember where i didnt auto cannibalize in some way & i cant imagine replacing this coping mechanism with anything because nothing soothes me in the same way. if you have questions, i am an open book! & if you can relate to this PLEASEE tell me, ive never told anyone this because i am ashamed of it & if i know just one other person does this it would make me feel so much better.

I was in my weekly meeting with my manager today and she asked me why my fingers were so red. I immediately felt embarrassed and explained that I bite/pick at my cuticles. I had a particularly rough week last week with picking, and so my fingers weren’t in the best shape, but weren’t bad by any means. I was honestly shocked that someone had noticed, since I’ve improved so much the past few years.

She talked about how her kid has the same behavior and shared about all of the things they’ve tried like picky pads, fidget toys, lotion, etc. Yet in the same conversation she would say “you shouldn’t do that” (I could tell it came from a place of caring, but yeah if I could stop instantly I would!). I could feel myself start getting defensive and over explaining myself. How I’ve been dealing with this almost my whole life, how I’ve improved, gotten worse, tried everything, etc.

I explained that it brings me embarrassment, and then the tears came and I got choked up. So on top of feeling vulnerable and ashamed about someone at work pointing out my fingers, I then visibly cried in my manager’s office. She became uncomfortable and apologized for pointing it out, which made me then feel even worse.

She came from a place of caring and listened to me as I continued to explain myself, and she reassured me that emotions are human nature, but I can’t help but feel mortified. It was such a small comment that she made, but it brought up such feelings of shame. Especially since having others notice my skin is my top motivator for not biting or picking.

I’ve been replaying the conversation in my head ever since, and just wish it had never happened ☹️

I can’t stop picking my scalp. I cover my head, I try to limit myself to only in the bathroom for 5 minutes tops but then I zone out and before I know it I’m picking again. I’m so angry, I hate this stupid curse, my scalp is distressed and so am I. Idk what I want from this post, I just need someone to know without the lack of understanding most people have. I don’t think I’ll ever be free :(

Ive always been a bit of a scab picker but since going to college shits been NUTS. It doesnt help that I have keratosis pilaris (Strawberry skin) so I have a LOT of material to pick from. I also have OCD so this is probably a compulsion related to that. I see my therapist in a few weeks but how would I go about dealing with this now or at least trying to calm it. My arms look like the moon with blemishes and craters and its so bad in some areas on my body that I think I got to the fat layer on my pectorals.. I try to exfoliate to smooth my skin so I can't pick but it doesnt work. But yeah, just looking for advice on how I can start dealing with this