Why do YOU pick???

I pick all of the time though, even while watching a movie, waiting for food, just standing around, while I'm on the computer, while I'm on my iPod.. I do it all of the time except for when I'm asleep. But the urge to pick peaks when I am anxious, depressed, or angry. If I'm not picking I'm fidgeting with my fingers or my ears, or I'm rocking my feet, curling my toes. I have a constant flow of anxious energy. I still don't know the real reason I pick. All I can think of that could possibly be what manifested into this is my past, my experiences, my upbringing.

Hi I have been picking my skin probably for about 20 years. But the last 4 or 5 it has got much worse on my face. I am seeing a counsellor now and hope I can help myself. I am trying to stay away from the bathroom mirror as that is where it often happens. I feel disgusting, the mess I make of my skin when their are no blemishes to start with. I try and cover up with make up but I feel that when I talk to people they also think i am disgusting. Vicious cycle. I find reading some of the comments really helpful on the forum. I believe my picking is a stress buster and of times of acute anxiety it gives some sort of pleasure even though the aftermath causes pain. has anyone purchased the book on this website and thinks it is helpful? xTabby

I have had therapy on and off throughout the years trying to get to the root of the problem. Just recently i went to a therapist who told me that my adoption (specifically the during the hour i was born) caused a lot of emotional turmoil for me..which set the initial wound for a lifetime of depression. Also, i know my picking is genetic, as my birth mom does it. I think picking goes hand in hand with OCD/depression/ADD/ADHD.I have been diagnosed with ADD and depression. In general, for most people, skin picking is something they do when they are bored, anxious, or feel any emotion very strongly.

I think I would say that I pick for a range of different reasons. I absentmindedly pick when I'm bored or distracted (I have a short attention span) or if I feel nervous. The problem with the nervous picking is it's often triggered by awkward social situations and the worst thing to do when you're in public is start peeling off scabs so what I started doing is biting and chewing the inside of my mouth. When I am really stressed out for example if I have a lot of work to do for uni I tend to end up with sores, ulcers and a broken lip. I have even hurt my teeth biting and chewing too much and of course when I eat and drink it hurts really badly. If I'm angry I frantically peel at my fingers, If I'm just sitting alone doing nothing I'll pick at my feet or my back but the worst and most distressing is the attention I pay to my face. I feel that the face thing started when I started getting spots as a teenager and I got obsessed with getting rid of anything that could even resemble a pimple straight away. Now the thing that really frustrates me is that because I have dark skin its difficult to get good foundation (I live in the UK and use Mac make up but its really expensive) and so I find it difficult to cover the scars. So I get stressed out and start picking and it just goes round in a horrible cycle. I am trying to stop the face and back picking as my main priority then I'll start working on the mouth biting etc. All of my anxieties come from my dad who was a bully throughout my childhood and still feels like he can control my life. I don't deal well with general stresses and rejection is a big issue but I have been to counselling and am considering medications so fingers crossed things will begin to improve. I am officially 2 days into my no picking challenge and am taking it literally a minute at a time.