Wednesday, 2005-07-27
compulsive skin picking
I'm 22 and have picked at my face for around three years now. I'm not really sure how long it's been since my face has been clear, although looking through old photos would probably give me a good idea.
I don't know what to do about my face any longer, and have come to accept this aspect as part of who I might always be. That said, getting rid of the mirror in my apartment would probably help. Problem is, it's not mine to remove and this wouldn't solve my problem. Any mirror, even in public, may lead to a picking session.
Finding support groups has helped, though. For some time I thought I was the only one, as I now know many others here have also felt. Some lucky combination of search words had led me to the term "compulsive face picking", finally giving me a name for my condition.
If you're interested, I have started an article on this topic at Wikipedia that anyone has the permission to edit: compulsive skin picking. Please do so, as it will serve useful for others out there in my condition (and those around).
comments
2005-08-10 12:57 / pegorama:
Ever heard of Bach's Flower Essences? I would bet cash money that there is one for exactly this derivative of OCD.
2005-08-10 14:41 / Jonathan Horak:
Chestnut bud, crab apple and larch all appear related to my condition(s). The "essence" descriptions read like horoscopes, though, which I've long considered purposely vague/generalized.
2006-05-13 20:08 / Angie:
Unfortunately, covering the mirror or removing it is only a temporary fix.
I've suffered this for years...
A great support group I've found through LiveJournal is CSP Support Group.
2006-07-30 11:16 / abby:
hey, i used to do this, i tried everything, all types of drugs, therapy, hypnosis, removing mirrors, wearing gloves etc, finally i tried a practitioner of neural linguistic programming, haven't picked since. (its often called NLP for short if anyone wants to give it a try)
2006-08-04 21:32 / Jonathan Horak:
Angie, thanks for pointing me to the CSP Support Group. I've read that site ever since you mentioned it.
Abby, I haven't looked into any of the medical avenues for resolving this issue. And if the mirror in my bathroom were removable — and if I weren't in an apartment — I'd definitely take it down.
2006-08-19 20:42 / maria:
the ambulatory research center at the university of mn is currently studying the effects of particular amino acids (taken orally) on both compulsive skin picking and trichotillomania. i was unable to get into the skin picking study but did land a spot in the trich study. as of now, i'm not sure; but it IS a double-blind study so i could be on a placebo. others swear by it (n-acetyl cysteine).
picking became really problematic for me in high school and has been an issue since. i've found, and had professionals agree with me, that without the help of some form of therapy (e.g., cognitive behavioral therapy) nothing will change on a more permanent basis. that said, do what you can to help yourself out. i try to follow the "H.A.L.T." principles of AA--ya know, when you're most likely to relapse (hungry, angry, lonely, tired).
good luck to you.
2007-09-07 10:46 / skinpick:
Hi! A new website is out there to help people deal with skin picking: www.skinpick.com
I hope it helps.
2007-10-11 00:20 / Bettina:
Since you are writing about Bach Rescue Remedy, I would recommend Bach Crab Apple, it has a cleansing effect on the skin.
Then I would also recommend Neem Facial Treatment, Neem Supercritical and Neem Oil Cream.
In addition the Nelsons Acne Gel works wonders.
I would say after 6 weeks use that 75% of you will feel like a new person with beautiful skin.
If you use OCT07 in the coupon code you get 5% discount.
2008-01-10 20:52 / dow:
...recently found a focused website on skin picking