Skin Picking - Forum

Hi, I'm a 48 year old woaman from the UK. I've been picking obsessively at the soles of my feet for about 16 years now. In my younger days I had other obsessive habits: a year or so of OCD riutualistic behaviour with which involved categorising things with numbers, then obsessive blackhead removal followed by a period of constant searching for split ends. The foot picking began after a period of self loathing in my early 30s and I have been unable to stop. The good thing is that it's largely invisible to the outside world and I manage to control it in the company of others, apart from close family. To this extent it hasn't ruined my life, job or anything but is nonetheless causing me great angst. Until I came on this site this evening I did not know this condition had a name and identity, CSP, which is strangely comforting. I hope just being on the site will help me overcome the problem. I have to say I 'm hugely grateful to all of you for posting your experiences here because it helps a newcomer like myself to understand that we are not alone. I have suffered terrible guilt and self disgust at my habit. I think the problem shifted to my feet because I loathe them anyway. They are big and wide and ugly with bunions. I've never been able to wear dainty strappy sandals and the foot picking is making things worse. In the summer the problem is exacerbated because my feet are in flip flops or sandals rather than safely zipped up in boots with socks all day! In winter evenings, when I'm in my slippers, and no one's around, are far worse. Sometimes I pick my feet so much (and use a chiropody blade too) they bleed and I have to clean blood off my shoes and wear plasters. I even limp for a few hours if I go too mad. I can't help thinking that the typical OCD perfectionism is at play here. I feel that I am striving to achieve a perfect smoothness with my feet and am not satisfied with any kind of roughness. Unfortunately I know deep down the roughness is mostly caused by me and I'm making it worse. Sometimes I manage to avoid foot picking for a while, when I'm out all day and in the evenings in the company of others. It usually occurs in situations when I am bare footed and resting for long periods eg. watching TV, using my laptop, reading the paper. These are all situations where I cannot resist picking my darned feet and eating the skin!! My husband sometimes tries to stop me but it just adds to the tension I'm feeling. I'd be particularly interested in hearing any comments from compulsive foot pickers out there. Is there a method for dealing with it, other than cutting my feet off or tying my hands behind my back...?

My picking has gone completely out of control the past couple months. I thought I was doing better. Now my breasts, right arm and back are covered in sores and scabs. I'm so embarrassed. I can sometimes see people looking at me weirdly when they catch a glance at my arm especially. It has about twenty sores on it now and each breast has about 5 large scabs on them. I pick them at night until I can fall asleep. Sometimes in the middle of the day at work I get an urge to pick at them in the bathroom. I don't think I'm under any stress but I could be in denial, I guess. Does anyone else pick their breasts?

Dear all, I've been a compulsive skin picker since I was 14 - seven years now. I pick my back, my face, and my chest. Recently, I've been doing much better: I can now go a whole week without picking and my relapses always last less than a half hour. My skin is most often clear - I no longer feel the urge to wear foundation or to cover my forehead with my hair. However, I can't seem to escape the thought of CSP. What bothers me most is this: if the skin is not pierced, where does all the trapped puss go? I feel that if it is not taken out, then remnants of it must stay within me. This thought is very difficult for me to handle... I would like to know how pimples naturally heal. If anyone could explain it to me, or send me a diagram of the body's response to skin infections, I can't begin to express how grateful i would be. Good luck to all of you in your fight, Roberta

Hey People, I have some questions and I hope you can help us. My fiancee has come out of the closet so to speak and told me about her habit. I was surprised because I never noticed but when I think back all the signs were there. I think it was a huge step for her to come and tell me too. Well anyway we know there is going to be no easy way to overcome this condition but we are going to try and I really want to support and help in any way I can. I have been learning more about trichotillomania and now there is also dermatillomania. I am not going through it so its a little hard for me to understand the feelings and motivation behind the habit. One question I have is when I tell her to stop, it could cause resentment as I have been reading so if someone wanted to help make you stop, how could they do it without causing resentment? Also if someone has helped you how did they help without causing more trouble? Has anyone conquered the the picking or hair pulling? or is it something we have to learn how to live with? If you are a conquerer, how long did it take? Any other advice for someone trying to support a person with this habit would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for any advice. Its really appreciated. P.S. There are people out there who want to help but just dont know the best method so dont be angry at them help them to help you.

ever since i can rember i have alway's picked im now 15 and pick my cuticles more than ever! i pick everything from Scabs Cuticles Bottom of my feet Noes Scalp (but no bald spots) Toes Lip Face and every other part of my body really idk what that would be classified as considering they all are different problems?

I've picked my face probably since I started high school. I'm now a sophmore in college. I do notice I pick when I'm bored or before/after I get into the shower, before/after I wash my face and when I'm studying which obviously causes me to become stressed which triggers me to pick my face when I should be studying or doing homework. It's gotten harder and harder for me because I pick on a daily basis and my family notices and i feel embarassed. I don't want my friends to notice ever, I'd feel even more embarassed if they knew what I do sometimes instead of going out. As a result, I use countless make up products just to cover my skin imperfections from picking. My parents always tell me I could stop but honestly I feel like I have no control over my face picking. I used to pick my back, chest, and shoulders but since have gained control over picking these areas and shifted my picking to my face only. I've read alot about CSP and how it can be linked to an eating disorder or BDD. I've never been diagnosed with an eating disorder or BDD, but I have to admit I have serious issues with food. Ever since I was in my sophmore year of high school I've become obsessed with dieting and I have frequent urges to be on a diet. I've dedicated alot of time and energy to losing weight. My weight has fluctuated from 110 pounds to 135 pounds probably. I know the anxiety I have about food and the self-esteem issues I have about my body can very well be causing me to pick my face. I definitely have a problem with perfectionism...I just want to be able to stop picking my face and I feel like I'd feel that much better about myself. It scares me that this can be a lifelong condition but I know sooner or later I will have to admit to this "sickness" and get help. If anyone can identify with my face picking and/or possible BDD please share your story with me.

Hi everybody. I'm 25. I've had CSP since I was 12 and been trying to resolve this for the past 2 years. Last year I tried CBT, which wasn't helpful for me what so ever. So now I'm considering medical treatment, but before I do so it's important for me to consult other CSPeople, and see whether SSRI's or SNRI's actually proved to be helpful for anyone, which, and how much. If any of you have had personal experience with medicinal treatment for CSP I would really like to hear (read) about it. Also, if you know anyone who'd tried hypnosis as a treatment method- I will greatly appreciate it if you share your/their impressions with me. Best wishes.

FYI: I have found a couple of beauty products that seem to help with healing and the scars: -Olay Regenerist Serum (NOT to be used if you have more than a couple fresh, raw spots) -Aveeno or Nuetrogena sunless tanning lotion (I have found these to be the best for healing quickly. I don't know what's in them that does it, but it works for me and I don't use very much because I don't actually want the color, just the healing) -Proactive Repairing Lotion p.s. Remember to use products carefully and as instructed. Don't over-use them. Your skin is most likely in a delicate state and needs to be taken care of gently; which reminds me- Cetaphil cleansers and lotions are extremely gentle. And try to only use cosmetics that are hypoallergenic and noncomedogenic [(sp?), means it won't clog pores]

My first time in a forum. Quick lowdown: I pick primarily on my face. My case is due to a combo of impulse control disorder, body dismorphic disorder, and depression. I've been on an SSRI antidepressant for 13 years and birth control pills, both of which I think have an effect on this disorder, but I'm not really sure how exactly. I am older, I think, than most people writing- 33, I have been dealing with this problem for about 15 years. Don't let this discourage you though; it has gotten MUCH better over the years and I do believe it can be beaten. When I first started picking on my face I would spend at least four hours every day in front of the mirror attacking microscopic specs and imagined bumps...I spent so much time doing this that my upper thighs became dented from leaning against the bathroom counter to be closer to the mirror. I literally had a horizontal line across my thighs that was two inches wide and a half inch deep. It took nearly two years for the dent to go away once I started beating this disorder. I have no idea why the disorder has gotten better for me- maybe my age (chemical changes), maybe more will power, or better stress coping skills, who knows...it's pretty much at the point where I don't pick at all except for a few days before my period, at which time I seem to have little to no control over it. Has anyone else found it to be linked to their monthly hormonal cycle? Any advice? I feel like if I can figure this part out I might finally have this thing beat. I don't have much advice to give, but thought I'd share some of what I have learned over the years... 1. It's important to find a supportive person or people to talk to about this problem; I know it's really hard, but the more I talked about it the less it became my "shameful secret" and the more I was able to focus on getting better. 2. If you're going to try substituting a healthier behavior be careful what behavior you choose. While I think this could be a great therapy, it backfired for me. I had decided that whenever I got the urge to pick I would instead harmlessly pull out leg hairs by tweezer (sounds ridiculous now)...well that quickly turned into me picking on my legs in addition to my face. I haven't been able to wear shorts in 10 years. I recommend a behavior that is "outside of yourself" such as an artistic or musical hobby. 3. Try not to get discouraged if you relapse. Don't blame yourself. It's important to believe in yourself and your ability to concur this. 4. Try to avoid the "spaced out pick"- ask your trusted friend to gently let you know that you're doing it (and try not to get mad at them when they do- they're doing it because they love you and want to help you) 5. Try writing notes to yourself on your mirror with a dry erase marker- mine say things like, "just walk away" and "remember, red, raw spots are way worse than a microscopic spec" 6. Try keeping a journal of your habits- it might help you figure out a pattern to your behavior and/or the things that trigger it (understanding the times that you're not compelled to do it could be helpful too) 7. I found that simply not turning on the bathroom light (unless absolutely necessary) has been helpful I'm starting to ramble so I'll wrap this up. I recommend watching the documentary Too Ugly to Love. I happened across it on BBC the other day. It follows three people with body dismorphic disorder. It might be a good thing to watch with someone that you want to share your problem with but aren't sure how to explain it. One last question- has anyone tried hypnotherapy and if so did it work? good luck everybody.

I have had this issue since I was about 13 years old. I also grew up in severely abusive situations and have very mild PTSD. I notice that there also seems to be a correlation between this and smoking with me. I know it's a direct result of stress. I seem to obsess over things and do this behavior when I'm deep in thought. I've tried to stop and will stop for a little while and then I end up right back to it. My mother also did this as well, to the extreme. What has others done to stop this behavior. I've created scarring on my face, it's terrible. I can't seem to stop. Does anyone one else here deal with PTSD? Thanks, artistgirl