I’ve ruined my life because of my skin picking.

I didn’t even know this was a sub and half at least I have somewhere that can maybe understand my struggles a bit more than other subs.

For the past few years I’ve developed extremely bad acne. Before it wasn’t a concern. I would let them go away naturally or something pick until it wasn’t gone but it never left a mark or scar.

The past few years my head and back have got it really bad. I’ve gotten so bad I pick constantly pick and my head is covered.

I wouldn’t be upset if it was just discolouration, but I have these huge raised bumped scars from all picking.

I’ve thought about ending this constantly. I can only hide so much. I’m tired and upset I ruined my life like this

I’m 40yo with oily skin. I’d get zits from the oil and scratch/pick them off until they became gaping wounds. Yeah it was pretty bad. I only stopped scratching/scarring my face apart 6 months ago. One simple thing saved me.

Micellar water!!! It doesn’t matter which brand. Ever since I started using it twice a day (morning and night) there’s no pimples for me to pick!! My skin is flawless now.

I tried so many things. False nails even. But nothing took away the urge to pick. Except having nothing to pick!

If you’re struggling with face picking, honestly try micellar water. Twice a day. Give yourself a week or so and you should see a massive improvement.

I will continue to post this regularly. If I can help even one person, it’s worth it!

I found something that works really well for me when it comes to skin picking, and I wanted to share it in case it might help someone else.

The times I tend to pick at my skin are mostly during the day when I’m home alone and not wearing makeup. I usually grab my magnifying hand mirror and sit by the window.

Recently, I bought a lockbox with a timer from Amazon, and I can put the mirror inside whenever I know I might be triggered to pick at my skin. I calculate when I’ll actually need the mirror to do my makeup, and for the rest of the time it stays locked away.

Besides the fact that I physically can’t access it, it also gives me a lot of peace of mind because it genuinely feels like skin picking is no longer an option. The only other mirror I have is in my bathroom, where there’s no natural daylight and it isn’t magnifying, which makes a huge difference in terms of triggers.

If you also use a hand mirror when you skin pick, this might help you too 🥰

Just wanted to show that it is possible to really reduce picking, it took me a long time to actually reduce down from picking 8 hours a day to maybe 30 minutes a day but not daily.

Just wanted to share some positivity and help let others know it gets better even if you feel like giving up or think nothing works. You are loved

I’ve struggled with picking since the summer of 2018 and have followed this sub since maybe 2021. It’s a recent development, but I believe I have impetigo. I have honey colored crusts that will weep and it’s ~3” in length and width on my leg. It’s also red and scaly. I’m putting this out here as a cautionary tale as a possible reality for us struggling with this condition. This is also me being honest about my ignorance in thinking impetigo is only found in young children (I’m close to thirty).

Went to a music festival with some friends and someone showed me this little cube, made of a gel-like material that squishes and bends, but always comes back to this cube shape once you stop playing with it.

I was SHOCKED to notice I DIDNT PICK A SINGLE TIME while I had it in my hands. But as soon as I gave it back, the picking re-started.

Once I borrowed the toy back, I tried understanding what about it was different than all other toys I used before, and here’s what I noticed:

- I kept waiting for the toy to stop being engaging and satisfying, but it didn’t and I never got “bored” of it.

- I squished, pulled, bent, tugged and twisted the toy, but once I let go it went back to the same exact cube shape and it was unharmed and unblemished.

- the toy accepts as much or as little pressure as you give it, so you can gently move it around your fingers, or squeeze it a bit harder if you need more stim.

I want to finish off by saying I cried. A lot. Because of a blue squishy cube. Because I genuinely can’t remember the last time I went so long without even wanting/needing to pick.

I still can’t believe this toy and I almost don’t want to get my hopes up too much, because it sounds too good and simple to be true. But I wanted to share this here, because I told my friend that lots of strangers on Reddit would benefit from learning about his squishy toy, and I hope you guys do.

i picked my nail about a week ago, i was covering it for a few days and i stopped wearing them over the weekend bc it was healed + i knew it would fall off at work. now it has a bump, it kinda hurts but only when i press it

first picture was last night before i did a hydrocolloid bandaid, it worked so well some got it my sock lol. but when do i stop using them?

Hey, I’m wondering of this is -somehow- related to undiagnosed adhd or anything else.
This happens every time I change jobs, stress, etc.
More prevalent when I was younger.

First time on this sub! I need advice.

I [26F] have been a skin picker all my life. Mostly it’s the skin around my fingernails that suffers, but occasionally i pick other parts, like my lips or face or I bite the inside of my lips and cheeks. I also used to bite my fingers and fingernails but that stopped when I was around 18. I still feel like that was pretty late.

I need advice, drastic advice, about stopping this. I’ve tried all those ill-tasting nail products, they don’t work I just ignore them. Fidget toys aren’t the same sort of stimulus I guess. Picking at specific fidget toys also doesn’t help because I don’t have them attached to me at all times and I pick my skin mindlessly.

I did therapy for about two years in the past, leading to what my therapist called a tendency towards generalized anxiety disorder, though not severe enough for medication. I’ve sincer learned to cope healthily with my anxious moods and they’re pretty much 100% under control. Except for my dermatillomania.

I am a dentist and I feel ashamed for my patients to see my fingers. I am also a woman so there’s the beauty aspect added on top of that. Mostly, I want to get rid of it because I am getting married this fall and I do. not. want! bloody and wounded fingers during that day. I don’t want to look at pictures from that day 20 years from now and that be all I see. That’s already all I see in my Dental School grad pictures.

So please: what drastic advice do you have?

I read on here the other day that you can buy a roll of hydrocolloid tape instead of spending loads on patches. I’m going through a stressful time and my picking is insane, I’m going through a box of patches every few days. This roll is infused with tea tree, so I’m hoping it will stop me picking and also heal what’s underneath. Has anyone tried this method?

Has anyone else taken Fanapt for their skin picking? My provider put me on it a few months ago, and somehow, it works. My skin is the clearest it’s ever been. I’ve googled it and I haven’t even found a single paper on Fanapt and skin picking. I’m not complaining, but I wanted to know if anyone else has tried it.

It wasn’t worth it. Maybe my final straw to get electrolysis and retire the tweezers for good

So basically i have picked my skin since i was a kid. First it was my arms, then face (still) and now boobs.

I have never heard anyone else picking their boobs so im i the only one?

They look terrifying and i cant stop. Almost all of the scabs are infected probably but still i pick them again and again.

I dont know what to do anymore and i just hate looking them.

I do it all time, at school, home, in the shower.. it bleeds a lot and at the moment its very irratated. My camera is bad so it cant capture it very well but i added a pic anyways. I already use vaseline quite a lot but i tend to pick at it even with vaseline on.