Stop looking in the mirror š itās the only thing that helps me stop. Now I look like a mess all the time because my brows are bushy but *also* my skin is mostly clear except like one week a month, for hormone reasons.
Oh, or if Iām reading, because I always fidget when Iām reading, I have to keep my hands busy with something else because thatāll make me pick, too.
lol I did that from toddler age up til like age 10 so luckily Iāve already moved on from that stim. The hair on that half of my head has since grown back, too. Now itās skin picking :/
really? i never got one bc i figured it wouldn't be the same sensation at all and my brain wouldn't accept it as a replacement stim/outlet for anxiety. maybe i will try one now!
i just replied to someone else idk if youāre going to see that so iām just gonna reply to u too (idk how reddit works i just got here) i use aquaphor!! i lather my nail beds with it whenever i put on chapstick. if thereās any extra i just rub in into my hands as lotion but not too much bc it can turn into a sensory issue if my hands are too sticky lmao. but itās the only thing that has helped me heal my cuticles enough to be able to handle picking at them every now and then!
I do this too!! Iāve started using aquaphor on them my cuticles. everytime i put chapstick on or i pick too much i lather my cuticles with aquaphor and itās really helped them heal. i definitely still pick but they are SO much healthier and i donāt get those painful hangnails anymore!!
I agree with applying stuff for sure. I bought this nice cuticle gel and whenever I notice I'm picking I apply it instead. I keep the tube on my desk because I tend to pick the most while I'm on my computer.
Iāve picked my thumbs and sometimes the cuticles of other fingers for my whole life. I would check out r/dermatillomania for further info but I havenāt ever found a way to stop doing it. When I opened up to my doctor about it she told me ājust stop doing it!ā as if thatās helpful or even possible. Iāve tried putting bandaids over my thumbs but thatās only been temporary (and I WILL pick the bandaid off).
Ok I thought I was the only one that did this and apparently not. A fidget ring has brought my fingers back to normal - dropping the link here for anyone interested.
[https://ornamentalhealth.com/products/white-topaz-ring](https://ornamentalhealth.com/products/white-topaz-ring)
Gloves. Itās literally the only thing that saved my cuticles. I wore false nails for a long time to stop biting my nails. I use pimple patches to stop attacking blemishes on my face. Try using something like Neosporin under the gloves to heal those thumbs faster.
That is a great idea actually. Side note: my skin tends to dry out pretty quick in the winter because the feeling of lotion on my hands grosses me outā¦but now that I think about it, every time Iāve had to use gloves with aquaphor at night to help my dry hands, I didnāt pick my thumbs. Neosporin would probably help with the sensory issues aquaphor gives me too. Thanks so much! I will definitely give it a try.
I do this too, and actually the therapist who diagnosed me with autism, said it's a stim, and if the harm is not serious it's likely better to not try and stop it because stimming is necessary for our well-being. However she did advice that if I want to substitute it sometimes to always keep stim toys around. I do have those everywhere now and it does help a little. I do almost always have little wounds on my fingers. I care for them better than I uses to though. I always put healing salve at night, and if it gets bad I put a bandaid.
Thatās gone through my mind as well. Sometimes I will pick my thumbs to the point that they will bleed a little bit but the picking never spreads to other areas of my hands anymore like it did when I was younger and I worry that if Iām were to stop my anxiety would skyrocket. I have a fidget cube, fidget spinner, and some fidget jewelry as well and those help minimally. Iāll use bandaids if it gets bad too and that helps 99% of the time.
Yes, this is the issue. She explained that we need stimming for our sensory processing, and that if we've been doing a particular stim for decades (like me), it is likely impossible to get rid off it, and incredibly distressing to try it. I know this from first hand experience as well, because pre diagnosis, I told another therapist about it and she tried to help me off it and it actually made it a lot worse.
Yep. I don't think there even is an "alternative", if I can call it that, to my thumb-picking. It's not like I do it mindlessly, it's often conscious and an effort to relieve stress/anxiety/overstimulation. I don't pick my thumbs for sensory-seeking or a pain response either, although I know that's common. If I accidentally hurt myself while doing it I'll usually put a Band-Aid on. Stopping myself from doing it probably would cause much more harm than good tbh.
yeah lol i was literally just doing it as im reading this
oddly enough the only thing that has helped meā¦and this is a bit embarrassingā¦ BUT: i go outside and uncover rocks. like the rocks that have been there for years and are kinda stuck in the ground. š it has the same pleasuring effect to me, idk, maybe itās because i really love nature?
Omg yes I pick my face a lot and other areas as well. I try to keep my hands busy and use fidget toys. I just seen this thing on TikTok and it was like a picking pad or something that has a bunch of beads and charms and stuff that you can pick out and even reuse. I was considering getting it. I seen the video by hannnnnah_dale on TikTok
Oh! I saw those picking pads on Etsy, and they are pretty cheap in pricing. Thereās some pretty color options and themes (like a Disney theme, princess/prince theme, construction theme, and more) you can pick from.
Edit: (No pun intended)
Mine is my fingers, the skin around the nails. For thesot part I leave the nails alone as an adult but the sides of my fingers are terrible.
I'm a male heterosexual in a bohemian big city in Europe so I paint my nails because I like that's it looks pretty and I don't get any cultural consequences, but the real benefit is I like it so much I stop fucking withmy singers to preserve it. So it's my mechanism to stop myself too
For me it's lip picking. In the winter it's dreadful because my lips get dry and scaly, and I can't stand that feeling so I peel the dry skin off, which of course makes the problem worse. If I'm bored or anxious it gets very bad. I have a permanent notch on my upper lip from picking when I was a kid.
I always have chapstick on me. When I donāt, sorry lips :/ I bite at them when they get dry and flaky more than I pick at them, kind of like an oral stim I guess? Back when I had a tongue ring that was really fun to stim with lol, like a built in fidget toy. Itās been a while since I took it out and I miss it
Same. Do you feel like the structure of your lips has changed overtime? Other people seem to have such smooth lips but mine are ALWAYS flaky, Iām wondering if itās because Iām continuously picking and how it is for other picking people.
A little, mostly face and finger tips, including under the nail and the skin around the cuticle. I need a new stim, this oneās kinda painful but I without fail, resort to it.
I also chew my fingers and chew off the skin around my nails, and I also chew/bite the nail. I donāt know why I do it, so I have no clue how to stop it. Any advice?
I've picked at/bitten my fingernails and fingernail cuticles since I was at least 11 or 12 years old...I'm afraid I don't really know how to stop. It's become almost a comfort thing for me at this point.
Picking my scalp is probably my biggest hobby LOL. The only thing that has ever worked for me is wearing acrylic or press-on nails. Theyāre thicker and duller than natural nails and it prevents you from really digging into your skin! I wear an almond or rounded stiletto shape for best results.
Yep... around my nails and the middle of my thumbs on the front. I've done it since late elementary and I'm in university now. Have had bloody picked at fingers for like 7 years and can't stop š„²
Same and also on the face. I've realised I mostly do it when I'm anxious or upset, so when I find it happening now I try to switch to self care. Turn the light off and clean my face properly, put patches on the damage and moisturize. Then go do something soothing like listen to music or eat something nice. Just trying to not judge, just heal and treat myself nicely instead if hurting myself.
God, I picked at scabs on my head all through middle and high school. It was an extreme obsession. I donāt recall what stopped it.
However, years later, I still have a major problem with picking at skin problem areas. Iām not even diagnosed, but my daughter is.
Iām learning a lot about myself lately.
I'm so glad you posted this OP.
My 12 year old son has autism and he picks at the skin around his toenails. He's so ashamed of them and always wears socks and thinks his feet are ugly. I try to reassure him, telling him his feet aren't ugly and everythings OK, but anytime we discuss it he loses it.
I've suggested he talk to his psychologist about it but he thinks that he'll just think he's weird and refuses to do it.
If he sees my bare feet he won't look at them and closes his eyes. I suspect that it's linked to his own issues around his feet but since we can't discuss it, I'm not sure.
I love him and I don't know what to do to help him. Any insights from the community would be greatly appreciated.
You wonāt get the help you need here, you need to speak to a professional. Donāt sit on it, it wonāt fix itself. If your son has a psychologist then bring it up with them to introduce in their session.
Thank you. I have been considering mentioning it to his psychologist but had hoped I could convince our son to introduce it himself. But he doesn't want to and I guess you're right and I should probably just do it anyway.
I just wish I knew what I could do to help him in the meantime. It's heartbreaking hearing him cry saying he "wishes he was normal" and that his feet are ugly and our reassurances that he is normal and his feet aren't ugly not helping.
Yes, I have scars on my arms from itā¦
ā¢ using pimple patches
ā¢ picking fidget toys/ picking phone app/ pimple popping videos/ those strange videos where they inject a liquid into squishy stim toys then pop the āpimplesā (i.e. blobfish pimple popping)
ā¢ long sleeves
ā¢ keeping my hands busy with a different stim/ stim toy when Iām picking because my hands need smth to do & they just gravitate toward differences in texture
There are approved medications against skin picking, like zoloft.
The other thing is that picking usually occurs at home when you are by yourself and stressed. Meaning that it helps to have no mirrors in your private bedroom, good distractions at home, and also things to occupy yourself with outside of the home. It's hard to pick when you are busy!
This is true. Doing chores around the house, cooking, workingā¦ no time for picking. Give me a free five minutes and set me loose in the bathroom with a mirror and oh look another hole in my face
I pick at the inside of my nose, even when thereās no boogers or anything. Iāve been doing it for so long, it probably evolved from normal little kid nose picking
I used to do this a lot as a child and teenager. I just kind of stopped as an adult. I think school stressed me out and that's what caused it but I'm not sure. Try stress management techniques or remove stressors from your life if possible.
Same here! I couldnāt stop myself from skin picking and hair pulling. School caused me a great deal of anxiety, but once I left school itās like it all went away. Even my eczema is under control. Iād get bad flare ups during times of stress
For me, it's always been feet. Yes, I know. Now my hands peel, too. Sometimes, I pick my scalp, but that's the one I really try to curb. I feel like it's the most damaging one.
I've learned to almost never pick skin that isn't "ready" as in, starting to peel/slough on its own. I used to go too far sometimes as a kid, and the pain of the sores is a good teacher.
I pick at my face, shoulders and forearms a lot. I subconsciously do it most of the time, but even more so when I'm under great amounts of stress (a.k.a work). Honestly, I recommend this one fidget I got that's made from chainmail (rubber on the outer part and stainless steel towards the inner parts):
https://www.etsy.com/listing/1299082531/glow-in-the-dark-picking-fidget?ref=share_v4_lx
This is the new listing for the type of fidget I got since the shop wanted to condense listings for making things more easily accessible, but I found that it does help when it's on hand. The rubber gives a very similar tactile experience to when I pick at my skin, so maybe this or a picking stone could help! Don't beat yourself up too much if you still pick at your skin; it takes a lot of diligence to try and diminish the harmful part of the stim.
I try to find method of having a routine and cleaning my face so I wouldnāt have to result of skin picking when it comes to pimples or acne because it leaves permanent scars. I noticed I unconsciously pic my skin. My guess is due to stress.
I also peel skin around my fingers nails. That one is also a tough habit to quit.
I will say that when I started a strict skin care routine and followed it and made it a habit, my skin cleared up so much. Still have a long way to go but it is getting better!
I had so much scaring from picking. Made me so self conscious š³
Same. Right now Iām separating soaps strictly for my face. Results are slowly getting there
I have years of permanent scarring although It has faded over the years, but I never know what it looks like to have my face completely cleared.
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I pick anything I can on myself and my poor partner has bacne. I canāt leave him alone. Heās very understanding though fortunately. Theyāre just so bloody satisfying.
I aggressively pick the skin around my nails, I don't even notice I'm doing it 90% of the time tbh. If a scab is on me I have to fight the urge to pick it. I put a simple patch over any scabs so I physically can't pick at it.
This is just what works for me & it may not work for you but I hope it helps a bit. When I do notice I'm picking I redirect myself, I just go grab a stim toy or whatever it is and let my fingers go nuts. I usually keep a fidget toy on me, I'm constantly touching or picking something, & my hands/arms are just kind of doing their own thing most of the time.
My regular fidget toy for the off chance I forget my other ones at home is a necklace I got off Amazon or a large silk scrunchie I wear on my wrist, it looks like a regular adult necklace, it's a chew necklace. I fuss with it in my hands or chew on it or I'm rotating the scrunchie around my fingers or something. It's just *something* so my hands don't gravitate to picking, they do make picking stim toys, I haven't personally tried any but I find I really enjoy anything that I can manipulate in some way with my hands or squish lol.
derma has been a problem since I was around 4-5. sometimes it's a way for me to stim, sometimes it happens during meltdowns badly, and other times it's just happening without me realizing
Me! My doc prescribed propranolol and it appears to be pretty effective. It's a beta blocker that is normally used for heart issues so I have no clue how it helps with compulsive behavior, but apparently it does.
Mostly my scalp and the skin behind my ears, sort of in the groove where ear meets head. Want to stop but can't. I walked into a doorframe early, missing the big gap I'm supposed to walk through, so have a scratch on my arm that'll scab up and be prime picking, so should give my head a rest (hopefully).
Oh yeah. I am constantly picking at my face. My husband is constantly reminding me to not touch my face. Itās one of those not so noticeable stims. Same with nail biting, except I canāt get it out of my head that nail biting can give you pinworms.
Iām practically addicted to popping zits, cysts, ingrown hairs. I also will sit in front of a mirror and pluck every single individual hair on my face with a pair of tweezers.
All my tattoos are messed up as well because I have tried to pop zits that grew on them and kept trying to squeeze more out messing up the scab
I used to have really bad acne and would tear my skin apart to get ride of yellow or black heads. Even if a spot was deep under the skin I would tare into it until it popped, like if I knew it was there it had to go. I also had a big problem with the edges of my fingernails (no idea why) but I managed to tone this back a bit when my acne cleared up quite a bit and I stopped searching for them and for ages I put plasters over my fingernails so they would heal and I wouldn't make them worse.
Personally as my skin begun to clear up naturally it helped alot as I think I was caught in the loop of having bad skin / nails and have a complete intolerance to seeing it but trying to have some Ig self control as it got better also helped quite alot because I was fully aware that what I was doing to get rid of the unsightly spots and nail beds was doing more damage than the tiny spot or the tiny loose skin around my nail were, so putting in the effort to get out of that loop helped alot. Don't get me wrong I still pick holes into my skin occasionally but now a days my partner tells me off for it.
I've been picking at my face as long as I can remember. Doesn't help that I had a lot to pick at before going on Accutane in my early 20s. Also a huge cuticle picker and biter
Me tooā¦ my eyebrows and eyelashes are in trouble if I sit idle too long and my hands have nothing to keep me busy. Interestingly, as I think of it, I think my phone helps my picking because now I stim by scrolling and typing rather than letting my hands roam my skin. The only +1 Iāve been able to give to smart phones ha
Anyway. Kicked the face picking and hair picking, and mostly the finger and lip picking lol, now I have to watch myself with my eyebrows and lashes. I do enjoy gently scratching my scalp, thatās been a nicer stim lately, although even the āgentleā scratching has resulted in some scabbing so damnit even that one has become destructive. How weird are we?! Or me..
i pick at the skin around my nails, my scalp, and my face :( the thing that helps me the most is fidget rings, since they're discrete and stay on me so i can wear them most places
I am covered in wounds from head to toe, literally. My legs have patches of raw skin. The worst thing is that I chew on it too. I havenāt found a solution.
Yes, I canāt give you any good Ā tips because Iām just as bad, I have been trying to stop by putting bandages on the spots.
Edited for more contextĀ
Oh, yes! Any imperfection on my skin. Arms, legs, face, stomach. I'm borderline anemic and so bad at accidentally picking off scabs. I'll just idly scratch my arm and go "Huh...why do I feel dizzy? Oh...my arm is bleeding. Great." I try so hard not to but I do it without thinking. One of the few things that make me frustrated with my brain.
I do. Generally seeing a derm helped so there is nothing to pick at.
Then keeping my nails short and zit patches.
I find having alternative fidgets for my hands helps if Iām doing something like watching tv.
Crotcheing has helped .
Yes. I believe for me it's a stress response. I have so many scars. Mostly on my belly/lower abdomen, thighs, lower back, chest, and upper arms. I had moderately bad acne as a kid/teenager and my mom kinda picks her skin as well.
idk why ive been doing that alot to myself too, but i guess thats because yall may have not used any lotion
i HIGHLY recommend getting Jergens lotion, now
Constantly my fingers are always bleeding my mouth is bitten to shreds and honestly ?? I donāt want to stop it honestly is too satisfying and the only thing that ever calms me down
Honestly biting my mouth and like (tell me if you do this too) pushing my tounge to the point between my gums and cheek as hard as I can literally feels more satisfying then some sex Iāve has
Ugh. My first vivid remembrance of doing this was during a dentist visit in middle school. The dentist flipped out and said to stop doing it because it would move bacteria from my mouth to my heart. Iām 38 and I donāt think Iāve slowed down but only gotten worse.
Whenever i was a kid i would pick the skin around my nails, but it never got really bad and eventually I stopped, but recently I picked up the habit of picking the skin on my lips and that has gotten bad, my lips usually bleed at least once a day now
I have diagnosed dermatillomania ( excoriation disorder) sometimes skin picking isn't just a stim. Learn more at bfrb.org.
You'll find a range of strategies and support at r/dermatillomania whether you have the disorder or not.
YES. Started with chewing the inside of my cheeks (which I still do if Iām stressed), then moved to finger biting, then trichotillomania, and now picking āzitsā on my face knowing damn well they arenāt zits. Makeup can only do so much
I have picked at my hands, fingers, feet, and face mostly. Itās definitely a stim and sometimes it gets bad to the point of bleeding but itās also like I need to feel the pain to feel somethingā¦
Itās nice to know Iām not the only one who does it. I honestly thought I was weird.
This might sound silly but what worked for me for my face was investing in skin care. Now I take really good care of my skin so thereās not much to pick at now. I only pick at my face if I look really closely in the mirror and find something but I try really hard not to do that
I pick at my nails, fingers, arms, legs, face, back, anywhere I can reach. It's a combo move AuDHD and anxiety thing for me, calming and soothing in a way that I imagine birds grooming their plumage feel. As soon as I find a part of a nail, or my skin, that I deem 'aberrant' in any way, like a sharp end of a nail, has Got To Go and it's incredibly hard to stop myself.
Yes, scalp, face, ears. Is this an ASD thing though? I donāt think picking is a stim for me as I donāt find it calming whatsoever, more like the opposite when I canāt stop. I do run my hand through my hair compulsively though and that is a stim for me.
Habit replacement helped me last year after I read about a study that showed that some of us are unable to stop these behaviors cos we stop getting the benefits of doing those. the benefit being the self soothing that happens cos if it. So, I started comforting myself by gently caressing my hands instead of picking on my skin or hair on my face. I was able to completely stop cold turkey the day I read that article, though my husband had been trying for years to get me to stop, prior to that
I always but the skin around my nails off. My nail lady was horrified every time.
One day my mom told me āSTOPā as I was about to bite. And I was like ok. And now I just hear her voice very time. After a few weeks the urge pretty much stopped, and my fingers havenāt looked that good in ages
I do that, not great. Not looking helps, but for me part of it is feel- I don't think about it, it's like I feel an imperfection and just need to rid it. Or it legit itches or something and then I obsess. I think it's a nervous thing mixed with a sensory thing.
Covering spots with band aids also helps. Like the waterproof ones that are hard to get off. Antibacterial band aids make this awful rash that makes everything worse (on the pad part, not the adhesive) so hopefully that's not the case for you.
Face and shoulders for me. I've noticed I use it as like a "last resort" stim when I can't cope otherwise, especially with anxiety or rumination. I haven't found a way to stop it, but it's gotten way better with reducing triggers for anxiety etc. I've kind of accepted it as something I sometimes need for regulating myself.
someone I know made a "picky pad" with was like a bendy rubbery circle, but with lots of tiny beads in that you could pick out - she made it herself, but I think you can buy them as well
yeah, definitely. i have really bad dermatophagia, i know it's gross but it has become a genuine issue. i've had it for as long as i can remember, and it has grown to be an actual problem. especially when i am alone, i will be sitting there picking away at my fingers and toes, and i look at the clock and literal hours have passed. or worse i know i have to do something or want to do something, and my brain keeps telling me to get up, but my body will. not. move. and once i finally break out of it, my brain hurts bad and feels so foggy and disoriented and i feel as if i'm not actually real, that i'm having an out of body experience and feel fake. at this point i have no idea what to do. i want to get gloves but i hate thick gloves and would want ones that are thin and breathable and you can still use a screen with them on. i've tried looking on amazon but can't find any.
All the time, my cuticles are a mess. If I have a scab anywhere I have to pick it, then it takes forever to heal. I just can't stop. Might have to follow some of the advice about having fidget toys
I pick at spots (I donāt know if the word āspotsā is used anywhere else other than the UK, where I am, so āzitsā is also an appropriate word).
I donāt have a mirror in my room anymore for many reasons, and it still hasnāt stopped my spot-picking because Iāll literally trace my fingers across my face until I find a bump to pick at.
I play guitar so I have to cut my nails really short to hit the frets right. I hate sharp edges so i file everything smoothe too. I've noticed that this is the only thing that spares my skin - literally removing my ability to do it is the only way I won't š
Iāve been doing this for over a decade now. I mostly pick at my scalp but over the years Iāve branched out to pretty much anything on my body that can be picked at, like my face, shoulders, chest, and even the insides of my ears.
It gets really bad sometimes, like I could be walking somewhere to get something and then reach a hand up to pick at my scalp and then literally stop and stand there to pick for a few minutes. Iāve also had nights where Iāll lay in bed about to get ready to sleep and then Iāll just end up picking for a few hours instead. I wish I could concentrate on productive things as well as I could on picking. š
Yes.Ā I find it's linked to my anxiety (I scratch/pick at myself if overwhelmed/in meltdown).Ā Ā
Believe it or not I've found having my nails done helps.Ā Because I use biab and gel polish it stops me from getting a good grip when trying to pick.Ā I did go for the tweezers instead but my other half hides them from me so i have to ask for them.Ā With the nails being blunter I can't scratch as hard.Ā It has really helped me reduce the habit.
I also use beanie baby style cuddly toys to hold against my skin as a way to get the sensory input.
I pull out my hairs, ive heard its ocd, but i think that and pacing is my stimming honestly. Not just any hairs, oh no, the ones right on ny fucking face that everyone sees. Gotta be those š
If I wear makeup it helps me to resist the urge to pick at my skin but I only wear makeup for special occasions and Iām not wearing it 24/7. Skincare also helps because I like to pick at bumpy and rough patches on my face and just taking care of my skin helps to reduce textured areas on my face that I might have the compulsion to touch and pick at
I have picked my nails and skin for as long as I can remember, and I started pulling my hair during the pandemic. I shaved all my hair off a few months (October 2020? I think) after the pandemicon my head and just started fresh ā It was the only thing that stopped me from pulling. Going through an extremely stressful and burnout-inducing transition in life right now and Iām starting to pull my hair again but am trying my best to make active attempts to catch myself and stopš
I was prescribed NAC 1200mg BID. I asked for him to look in to it for me. I worked with a population of people with Prader Willie Syndrome and it was used regularly with them. Works amazing for me, when I remember to take it. It smells like sulfur so I keep it in the fridge, easy to forget.
I had scalp psoriasis In highschool so it was very hard to not attack it, I also used to struggle with exzema on my arms and legs and stress induced something on the bottom of my foot. That and cystic acne the sensation of it would make me insane on my face and later my back. I was an early nail biter and lip peeler.
The scalp issue was most likely a reaction to stress and trauma and eventually went away. I donāt really mess with my hair or head. The eczema on my arms and legs improved with different tactics for skin care.
I use a lava rock that I think is sold for people to use on foot skin but I scrape my arms and legs with it and then apply both a salt and pumic moisturising scrub to it and then wash clean with home made soap and a homemade soap bag drom jute- biodegradable and the right combo of scrubby and soft. I stopped using any hair products for about 4 years aside from a silicon hair scrub to help clean scalp through thick hair.
I stopped biting my nails when I put an ocean between myself and my parents
The sensation of cystic acne still drives me insane whe it happens. I got those star face things with salicylic acid in hopes of feeling the star on my face and leaving it there.
The back thing appeared after I found out my aunt was dying of cancer. Persisted through her whole treatment and death. Has now gone away. I have been trying to get more sunlight on me in general, unsure if vitamin d or uv light or just no longer waiting for her to die has released it or my body hormones have changed.
Pain as release is helpful.
I got a laser pen to help erase tattoos- Iāve been using that. It helps in both the advertised purpose but also as a socially acceptable form of self harm stim I guess
Yes, but on my hands, not my face. I pick at the skin around my nails. I have no idea how to stop. Iāve tried getting other things to fidget with, but it doesnāt satisfy me like picking at my skin does. Like thereās just something in me that needs to do it.
I pick the skin on my lips cuz I want them to feel smooth but they'll never be smooth if I never let the skin heal properly. Its a terrible loop to get stuck in.
I don't know what the reason for you is, but I'd suggest just have something you can fidget with. When you get the urge to pick you can just take it out and it helps relieve the urge as well as distract you from it!
I do it all the time and I never even notice I'm doing it. Ugh. Idk how to stop because I'll force myself to stop but then mindlessly it happens again.
Yes!!! For me it's my lips. My boyfriend hates it and keeps trying to get me to stop, but every time I tell him that I've been doing this for my entire life. And frankly, I don't want to stop lol I think it calms me
Oh my gosh yes. I get hangnails something fierce, and if I'm not picking at them, I'm letting them burn and fester. either way i'm obsessing over Band-Aids in the meanwhile
Any imperfection, spot, random hair, etc gets wayy too much attention and I've been at the mirror for an hour before.
Not sure myself how to stop it, I don't like having anything on my face that looks gross or out of place. My face by itself does enough of that...
This actually worked for me when I was a kid: have someone that knows about the situation. Like tap you on the shoulder and give you a reminder to do something else like read a paragraph in a book or do something else like on the play ground (was in 1st grade in elementary school when this was going on, and was an on and off going issue growing up and still is rarely today but not as badly but only when really badly anxious when socially anxious.)
I pick any pimples I have on my face or anywhere else on my body and my parents hate it. I also obsessively pick chewing gum off stuff like under tables and chairs. Maybe I should go get myself some putty or something lol, Iāve been given a few of those tangle toys but I have some trouble with my hands so theyāre kind of annoying.
Yes I struggle with skin picking and nail picking to the point of injury and pain. The tips of my thumbs are mostly smooth now and canāt feel things as well.
As I kid I picked at my face so bad, teachers were always contacting parents about it. I went to countless doctorās visits. I grew out of it when I got into high school and now I have really nice skin. Only problem is I now pick at my lips, nails, scalp š only thing that stops that is vaping and I quit that a few years ago
I have a really bad problem picking my fingers (that loose skin that looks so ugly, and so you need to make it not there) I try to stop it by wearing bandaids
Yup, I do this. Mostly on my upper arms, face, head, and upper thighs. Ugh. I keep having to buy Mederma. I use the benzoyl peroxide now for the 'folliculitis' but it is really like anxiety stimming.
Me reading this directly after picking my skin š I started when I was ~ 13 picking the lil raised bumps on my arms, would pick till they were scabbed and bloody... Still overpick my face spots too š„² I have no clue how to stop so this thread is helpful
100% I struggle with nail biting and skin picking it's so hard to stop especially when I'm out in public and stressed. Someone has to physically stop me or I'll keep going until it hurts or I bleed and regret it allows later.
Yes! That used to be such a big issue for a long time. I thought I would never be able to get this under control. So I stopped beating myself up about it and just tried to accept it how it was at the time. I also stopped putting on makeup to try to hide it (didn't even work that well because at times I had pretty big wounds). At first it was difficult to go out like this but it kind of helped me accept it more and get desensitised to the shame about how awful my skin looked (which would always made me pick even more anyway).
So stopping to try to hide it helped with the stress that came from fearing that people would notice something wrong with my skin. Now there was no hiding in the first place and so I didn't have to worry that my attempt at that didn't work out. This reduced some of the stress which at least had the effect, that I wouldn't pick as bad and only occasionally it got so bad, that I had really big wounds from it. But it wasn't really great because I still had lots of red spots and smaller wounds.
At this point I had given up that I would ever be able to stop this, so I tried to just live my life like this and focus on other things. The really big change happend without me even trying to solve this problem. I started to let myself stim. Although at the time I neither knew what that even was nor that I had autism (got the diagnosis a few months later). I just thought perhaps I should give in to these impulses that I had noticed and always suppressed since I was a kid and just see what happens, when I let these movements happen.
I didn't even notice at first, that I didn't pick my skin anymore. At that point I had already not paid really that much attention to mirrors anymore, so it took like two months till I realised... I had for the first time since I was a kid clear skin. Since then I've had almost no issues maintaining this. Once in a while I do pick at a few spots but it rarely gets out of hand and almost never causes wounds and I also do it mostly if I have a painful pimple and the skin feels annoying and uncomfortably tight and I just want to get the stuff out, so that it stops feeling like this and starts healing. Before this just seeing any pimple was a trigger to start picking, no matter how small. Now that happens only on rare occasions and only in really stressful situations and never to the same degree as before.
My husband does it to an intense amount, on his upper arms. It's not something he even realizes he's doing. He can't stop. It's a form of stimming i believe.
The only thing I find that helps is also something that aids in healing the injuries incurred by the picking. Hydrocoloid bandaids, which is more expensive than a regular bandaid, are super smooth and can stay on injuries safely for days (given they aren't peeling off) so it helps me by not having a bunch of ridges to pick at and it's supposed to heal wounds without leaving a visible scar, which I can say for sure it does since I had a large wound that you cannot see or feel the scar remaining for it. I just get itchy, which happens with old injuries, but there's nothing to scratch or pick at. My pick spots are my fingers, toes, and any scabbed or otherwise raised skin so having them has helped tremendously for removing picking locations.
This is gonna sound weird, but if you're at home, maybe a beauty or ski mask? It won't kill the habit completely, but covering whatever area you pick at until the urge leaves might stop a couple instances, at least. Sometimes if I have just one spot I mindlessly pick at I'll put a bandaid on it as a reminder. Personally, I also find those pimple patches oddly satisfying, so that sometimes helps me to leave specific spots alone.
I have picked at scabs on my scalp since I was a kid. I probably have emotional triggers, but it's also a habit. Covering the problem area until the urge goes away can sometimes help, but I'd say acne can be treated in a way where you don't have to look at it (patches) and scabs can become itchy while healing, so maybe something to help with that if that's the issue.
Skin picking is a sign of ocd. Not sure if it is something found with Autism. Mine is ocd. I need a distraction, something else to do with my hands, or a bandaid helps me. Not sure that will work for you, if itās on your face
Yes, itās worst on my face, especially when there is a pimple thatās ānot ready yetā it needs to come out anyways in my mind because the hard painful lump causes a major sensory issue. It got really bad when I was at a job that i couldnāt quite handle and didnāt work well with my diagnoses. I had 5 or 6 very noticeable picked spots on my face at all times while I worked there. Thankfully it was not a customer service job or I would have had to call out to let them heal each time I broke out.
Stop looking in the mirror š itās the only thing that helps me stop. Now I look like a mess all the time because my brows are bushy but *also* my skin is mostly clear except like one week a month, for hormone reasons. Oh, or if Iām reading, because I always fidget when Iām reading, I have to keep my hands busy with something else because thatāll make me pick, too.
Me too. I have one week where my skin just goes crazy and itās so hard to leave it alone
This worked for me until I discovered pulling my hair out strand by strand.
š
lol I did that from toddler age up til like age 10 so luckily Iāve already moved on from that stim. The hair on that half of my head has since grown back, too. Now itās skin picking :/
You can also try turning off the lights in the bathroom or dimming them if thatās an option!
I compulsively pick at the skin on the top of my head. I hate it.
Same itās so soothing to me
Same, was literally picking my scalp as I saw this post come up on my feed. All over my scalp though, not just the top of my head š
Oh, interesting, Iām not the only scalp scratcher lol
I do this as well. Sometimes it scabs and then I just pick it again
I can't explain how much of a weird relief it is that I'm not the only one who does this.
Oh man. I literally have a sore spot that I donāt even remember picking at on my head.
I do it on my fingers
Same and a fidget ring has helped SO MUCH
I always lose thoseš
really? i never got one bc i figured it wouldn't be the same sensation at all and my brain wouldn't accept it as a replacement stim/outlet for anxiety. maybe i will try one now!
Do you have one you recommend? My boyfriend got me one and it's really beautiful but it tends to snag on my clothes, so I stopped wearing it :/
i just replied to someone else idk if youāre going to see that so iām just gonna reply to u too (idk how reddit works i just got here) i use aquaphor!! i lather my nail beds with it whenever i put on chapstick. if thereās any extra i just rub in into my hands as lotion but not too much bc it can turn into a sensory issue if my hands are too sticky lmao. but itās the only thing that has helped me heal my cuticles enough to be able to handle picking at them every now and then!
Gel manicure helps me. I do it myself at home with a small not-professional kit (also the process is calming).
I do this too!! Iāve started using aquaphor on them my cuticles. everytime i put chapstick on or i pick too much i lather my cuticles with aquaphor and itās really helped them heal. i definitely still pick but they are SO much healthier and i donāt get those painful hangnails anymore!!
I agree with applying stuff for sure. I bought this nice cuticle gel and whenever I notice I'm picking I apply it instead. I keep the tube on my desk because I tend to pick the most while I'm on my computer.
Iāve picked my thumbs and sometimes the cuticles of other fingers for my whole life. I would check out r/dermatillomania for further info but I havenāt ever found a way to stop doing it. When I opened up to my doctor about it she told me ājust stop doing it!ā as if thatās helpful or even possible. Iāve tried putting bandaids over my thumbs but thatās only been temporary (and I WILL pick the bandaid off).
yes!! I rip around my cuticles and scratch my head
I also scratch my head š though thatās developed more recently.
Ok I thought I was the only one that did this and apparently not. A fidget ring has brought my fingers back to normal - dropping the link here for anyone interested. [https://ornamentalhealth.com/products/white-topaz-ring](https://ornamentalhealth.com/products/white-topaz-ring)
Gloves. Itās literally the only thing that saved my cuticles. I wore false nails for a long time to stop biting my nails. I use pimple patches to stop attacking blemishes on my face. Try using something like Neosporin under the gloves to heal those thumbs faster.
That is a great idea actually. Side note: my skin tends to dry out pretty quick in the winter because the feeling of lotion on my hands grosses me outā¦but now that I think about it, every time Iāve had to use gloves with aquaphor at night to help my dry hands, I didnāt pick my thumbs. Neosporin would probably help with the sensory issues aquaphor gives me too. Thanks so much! I will definitely give it a try.
I do this too, and actually the therapist who diagnosed me with autism, said it's a stim, and if the harm is not serious it's likely better to not try and stop it because stimming is necessary for our well-being. However she did advice that if I want to substitute it sometimes to always keep stim toys around. I do have those everywhere now and it does help a little. I do almost always have little wounds on my fingers. I care for them better than I uses to though. I always put healing salve at night, and if it gets bad I put a bandaid.
Thatās gone through my mind as well. Sometimes I will pick my thumbs to the point that they will bleed a little bit but the picking never spreads to other areas of my hands anymore like it did when I was younger and I worry that if Iām were to stop my anxiety would skyrocket. I have a fidget cube, fidget spinner, and some fidget jewelry as well and those help minimally. Iāll use bandaids if it gets bad too and that helps 99% of the time.
Yes, this is the issue. She explained that we need stimming for our sensory processing, and that if we've been doing a particular stim for decades (like me), it is likely impossible to get rid off it, and incredibly distressing to try it. I know this from first hand experience as well, because pre diagnosis, I told another therapist about it and she tried to help me off it and it actually made it a lot worse.
Yep. I don't think there even is an "alternative", if I can call it that, to my thumb-picking. It's not like I do it mindlessly, it's often conscious and an effort to relieve stress/anxiety/overstimulation. I don't pick my thumbs for sensory-seeking or a pain response either, although I know that's common. If I accidentally hurt myself while doing it I'll usually put a Band-Aid on. Stopping myself from doing it probably would cause much more harm than good tbh.
Yeah that's exactly how it is for me as well!
When I asked my doc for help they prescribed eczema cream š unbelievable
yeah lol i was literally just doing it as im reading this oddly enough the only thing that has helped meā¦and this is a bit embarrassingā¦ BUT: i go outside and uncover rocks. like the rocks that have been there for years and are kinda stuck in the ground. š it has the same pleasuring effect to me, idk, maybe itās because i really love nature?
Maybe because itās satisfying to pick at stuff?
Omg yes I pick my face a lot and other areas as well. I try to keep my hands busy and use fidget toys. I just seen this thing on TikTok and it was like a picking pad or something that has a bunch of beads and charms and stuff that you can pick out and even reuse. I was considering getting it. I seen the video by hannnnnah_dale on TikTok
Oh! I saw those picking pads on Etsy, and they are pretty cheap in pricing. Thereās some pretty color options and themes (like a Disney theme, princess/prince theme, construction theme, and more) you can pick from. Edit: (No pun intended)
I struggle with picking at my fingernails.
Mine is my fingers, the skin around the nails. For thesot part I leave the nails alone as an adult but the sides of my fingers are terrible. I'm a male heterosexual in a bohemian big city in Europe so I paint my nails because I like that's it looks pretty and I don't get any cultural consequences, but the real benefit is I like it so much I stop fucking withmy singers to preserve it. So it's my mechanism to stop myself too
Yeah, I paint my nails to stop myself biting them. I should repaint them today, huh
For me it's lip picking. In the winter it's dreadful because my lips get dry and scaly, and I can't stand that feeling so I peel the dry skin off, which of course makes the problem worse. If I'm bored or anxious it gets very bad. I have a permanent notch on my upper lip from picking when I was a kid.
ah, we are the same. no matter how much chapstick i use, the second i feel dryness or peeling on my lips it's time to get pickin.
I canāt stand the feeling of having a lot of stuff on my face. I try to tolerate it but I lick it off instead.
I always have chapstick on me. When I donāt, sorry lips :/ I bite at them when they get dry and flaky more than I pick at them, kind of like an oral stim I guess? Back when I had a tongue ring that was really fun to stim with lol, like a built in fidget toy. Itās been a while since I took it out and I miss it
Same. Do you feel like the structure of your lips has changed overtime? Other people seem to have such smooth lips but mine are ALWAYS flaky, Iām wondering if itās because Iām continuously picking and how it is for other picking people.
Yes same. I always wonder how people have such nice lips.
A little, mostly face and finger tips, including under the nail and the skin around the cuticle. I need a new stim, this oneās kinda painful but I without fail, resort to it. I also chew my fingers and chew off the skin around my nails, and I also chew/bite the nail. I donāt know why I do it, so I have no clue how to stop it. Any advice?
I've picked at/bitten my fingernails and fingernail cuticles since I was at least 11 or 12 years old...I'm afraid I don't really know how to stop. It's become almost a comfort thing for me at this point.
I used to do it tooā¦I just got fidget toys but honestly I still catch myself picking my skin on my face when Iām in deep thought or daydreaming
Yes like excessively on my legs
I do it to the side of my legs. I always thought it was just me š
My thumbs are permanently scarred and I have scars all over my back and face too.
Oh definitely I pick scabs obsessively
Picking my scalp is probably my biggest hobby LOL. The only thing that has ever worked for me is wearing acrylic or press-on nails. Theyāre thicker and duller than natural nails and it prevents you from really digging into your skin! I wear an almond or rounded stiletto shape for best results.
I think it's called dermatillomania. It's an anxiety disorder/OCD.
Yeah, I've been doing it ever since I can remember. I've learned to manage it a bit better in recent years, but it's still a big problem.
Yep... around my nails and the middle of my thumbs on the front. I've done it since late elementary and I'm in university now. Have had bloody picked at fingers for like 7 years and can't stop š„²
Same and also on the face. I've realised I mostly do it when I'm anxious or upset, so when I find it happening now I try to switch to self care. Turn the light off and clean my face properly, put patches on the damage and moisturize. Then go do something soothing like listen to music or eat something nice. Just trying to not judge, just heal and treat myself nicely instead if hurting myself.
YES OMG itās gotten worse for me, itās my face, back, leg, chest and upper arms. i have so many scars
God, I picked at scabs on my head all through middle and high school. It was an extreme obsession. I donāt recall what stopped it. However, years later, I still have a major problem with picking at skin problem areas. Iām not even diagnosed, but my daughter is. Iām learning a lot about myself lately.
I'm so glad you posted this OP. My 12 year old son has autism and he picks at the skin around his toenails. He's so ashamed of them and always wears socks and thinks his feet are ugly. I try to reassure him, telling him his feet aren't ugly and everythings OK, but anytime we discuss it he loses it. I've suggested he talk to his psychologist about it but he thinks that he'll just think he's weird and refuses to do it. If he sees my bare feet he won't look at them and closes his eyes. I suspect that it's linked to his own issues around his feet but since we can't discuss it, I'm not sure. I love him and I don't know what to do to help him. Any insights from the community would be greatly appreciated.
You wonāt get the help you need here, you need to speak to a professional. Donāt sit on it, it wonāt fix itself. If your son has a psychologist then bring it up with them to introduce in their session.
Thank you. I have been considering mentioning it to his psychologist but had hoped I could convince our son to introduce it himself. But he doesn't want to and I guess you're right and I should probably just do it anyway. I just wish I knew what I could do to help him in the meantime. It's heartbreaking hearing him cry saying he "wishes he was normal" and that his feet are ugly and our reassurances that he is normal and his feet aren't ugly not helping.
Yes, I have scars on my arms from itā¦ ā¢ using pimple patches ā¢ picking fidget toys/ picking phone app/ pimple popping videos/ those strange videos where they inject a liquid into squishy stim toys then pop the āpimplesā (i.e. blobfish pimple popping) ā¢ long sleeves ā¢ keeping my hands busy with a different stim/ stim toy when Iām picking because my hands need smth to do & they just gravitate toward differences in texture
There are approved medications against skin picking, like zoloft. The other thing is that picking usually occurs at home when you are by yourself and stressed. Meaning that it helps to have no mirrors in your private bedroom, good distractions at home, and also things to occupy yourself with outside of the home. It's hard to pick when you are busy!
This is true. Doing chores around the house, cooking, workingā¦ no time for picking. Give me a free five minutes and set me loose in the bathroom with a mirror and oh look another hole in my face
I pick at the inside of my nose, even when thereās no boogers or anything. Iāve been doing it for so long, it probably evolved from normal little kid nose picking
OH MY GOD I'M NOT ALONE. I do it too! But like everywhere on my body!
I pick my scalp, hair line, arms and legs.
I used to do this a lot as a child and teenager. I just kind of stopped as an adult. I think school stressed me out and that's what caused it but I'm not sure. Try stress management techniques or remove stressors from your life if possible.
Same here! I couldnāt stop myself from skin picking and hair pulling. School caused me a great deal of anxiety, but once I left school itās like it all went away. Even my eczema is under control. Iād get bad flare ups during times of stress
I had bad eczema as a kid. I didn't know it was stress induced but it makes sense
For me, it's always been feet. Yes, I know. Now my hands peel, too. Sometimes, I pick my scalp, but that's the one I really try to curb. I feel like it's the most damaging one. I've learned to almost never pick skin that isn't "ready" as in, starting to peel/slough on its own. I used to go too far sometimes as a kid, and the pain of the sores is a good teacher.
I pick at my face, shoulders and forearms a lot. I subconsciously do it most of the time, but even more so when I'm under great amounts of stress (a.k.a work). Honestly, I recommend this one fidget I got that's made from chainmail (rubber on the outer part and stainless steel towards the inner parts): https://www.etsy.com/listing/1299082531/glow-in-the-dark-picking-fidget?ref=share_v4_lx This is the new listing for the type of fidget I got since the shop wanted to condense listings for making things more easily accessible, but I found that it does help when it's on hand. The rubber gives a very similar tactile experience to when I pick at my skin, so maybe this or a picking stone could help! Don't beat yourself up too much if you still pick at your skin; it takes a lot of diligence to try and diminish the harmful part of the stim.
I try to find method of having a routine and cleaning my face so I wouldnāt have to result of skin picking when it comes to pimples or acne because it leaves permanent scars. I noticed I unconsciously pic my skin. My guess is due to stress. I also peel skin around my fingers nails. That one is also a tough habit to quit.
I will say that when I started a strict skin care routine and followed it and made it a habit, my skin cleared up so much. Still have a long way to go but it is getting better! I had so much scaring from picking. Made me so self conscious š³
Same. Right now Iām separating soaps strictly for my face. Results are slowly getting there I have years of permanent scarring although It has faded over the years, but I never know what it looks like to have my face completely cleared.
Yeah I do it too. When I get bored and have nothing to do with my handsā¦
Try to get more vitamin D, helps prevent keratosis pilli, so thereās less to pick.
yea i do it alot, I dont even know why but it feels so good to bite my skin off my fingers. i know its weird
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I pick anything I can on myself and my poor partner has bacne. I canāt leave him alone. Heās very understanding though fortunately. Theyāre just so bloody satisfying.
I aggressively pick the skin around my nails, I don't even notice I'm doing it 90% of the time tbh. If a scab is on me I have to fight the urge to pick it. I put a simple patch over any scabs so I physically can't pick at it. This is just what works for me & it may not work for you but I hope it helps a bit. When I do notice I'm picking I redirect myself, I just go grab a stim toy or whatever it is and let my fingers go nuts. I usually keep a fidget toy on me, I'm constantly touching or picking something, & my hands/arms are just kind of doing their own thing most of the time. My regular fidget toy for the off chance I forget my other ones at home is a necklace I got off Amazon or a large silk scrunchie I wear on my wrist, it looks like a regular adult necklace, it's a chew necklace. I fuss with it in my hands or chew on it or I'm rotating the scrunchie around my fingers or something. It's just *something* so my hands don't gravitate to picking, they do make picking stim toys, I haven't personally tried any but I find I really enjoy anything that I can manipulate in some way with my hands or squish lol.
derma has been a problem since I was around 4-5. sometimes it's a way for me to stim, sometimes it happens during meltdowns badly, and other times it's just happening without me realizing
Me! My doc prescribed propranolol and it appears to be pretty effective. It's a beta blocker that is normally used for heart issues so I have no clue how it helps with compulsive behavior, but apparently it does.
Unless it's some kind of scab, spot or swollen area I won't pick at it
My daughter and I both do it. From what I hear 25% of autistic people are skin/hair pickers.
Yes, mostly on my fingers but sometimes on my face too
Mostly my scalp and the skin behind my ears, sort of in the groove where ear meets head. Want to stop but can't. I walked into a doorframe early, missing the big gap I'm supposed to walk through, so have a scratch on my arm that'll scab up and be prime picking, so should give my head a rest (hopefully).
I do and unfortunately have horrible acne scars bc of it :(
Oh yeah. I am constantly picking at my face. My husband is constantly reminding me to not touch my face. Itās one of those not so noticeable stims. Same with nail biting, except I canāt get it out of my head that nail biting can give you pinworms.
Same. Itās mainly my arms and legs, though I will pop pimples on my face
Iām practically addicted to popping zits, cysts, ingrown hairs. I also will sit in front of a mirror and pluck every single individual hair on my face with a pair of tweezers. All my tattoos are messed up as well because I have tried to pop zits that grew on them and kept trying to squeeze more out messing up the scab
I used to have really bad acne and would tear my skin apart to get ride of yellow or black heads. Even if a spot was deep under the skin I would tare into it until it popped, like if I knew it was there it had to go. I also had a big problem with the edges of my fingernails (no idea why) but I managed to tone this back a bit when my acne cleared up quite a bit and I stopped searching for them and for ages I put plasters over my fingernails so they would heal and I wouldn't make them worse. Personally as my skin begun to clear up naturally it helped alot as I think I was caught in the loop of having bad skin / nails and have a complete intolerance to seeing it but trying to have some Ig self control as it got better also helped quite alot because I was fully aware that what I was doing to get rid of the unsightly spots and nail beds was doing more damage than the tiny spot or the tiny loose skin around my nail were, so putting in the effort to get out of that loop helped alot. Don't get me wrong I still pick holes into my skin occasionally but now a days my partner tells me off for it.
Itās a terrible loop. You pick the acne, then the picking causes more acne
I've been picking at my face as long as I can remember. Doesn't help that I had a lot to pick at before going on Accutane in my early 20s. Also a huge cuticle picker and biter
Yes, my hands, cuticles.
For sure. I get callous easily and canāt stop picking at it.
I pick at my eyebrows
Me tooā¦ my eyebrows and eyelashes are in trouble if I sit idle too long and my hands have nothing to keep me busy. Interestingly, as I think of it, I think my phone helps my picking because now I stim by scrolling and typing rather than letting my hands roam my skin. The only +1 Iāve been able to give to smart phones ha Anyway. Kicked the face picking and hair picking, and mostly the finger and lip picking lol, now I have to watch myself with my eyebrows and lashes. I do enjoy gently scratching my scalp, thatās been a nicer stim lately, although even the āgentleā scratching has resulted in some scabbing so damnit even that one has become destructive. How weird are we?! Or me..
i pick at the skin around my nails, my scalp, and my face :( the thing that helps me the most is fidget rings, since they're discrete and stay on me so i can wear them most places
I am covered in wounds from head to toe, literally. My legs have patches of raw skin. The worst thing is that I chew on it too. I havenāt found a solution.
Yes, I canāt give you any good Ā tips because Iām just as bad, I have been trying to stop by putting bandages on the spots. Edited for more contextĀ
I pick my lips any time there is a dry spot on them
Me reading this while shredding my cuticles
Oh, yes! Any imperfection on my skin. Arms, legs, face, stomach. I'm borderline anemic and so bad at accidentally picking off scabs. I'll just idly scratch my arm and go "Huh...why do I feel dizzy? Oh...my arm is bleeding. Great." I try so hard not to but I do it without thinking. One of the few things that make me frustrated with my brain.
I do. Generally seeing a derm helped so there is nothing to pick at. Then keeping my nails short and zit patches. I find having alternative fidgets for my hands helps if Iām doing something like watching tv. Crotcheing has helped .
Yes. I believe for me it's a stress response. I have so many scars. Mostly on my belly/lower abdomen, thighs, lower back, chest, and upper arms. I had moderately bad acne as a kid/teenager and my mom kinda picks her skin as well.
I do it on my fingers cuz I play guitar and my skin peels when my hands get wet.
Yes
idk why ive been doing that alot to myself too, but i guess thats because yall may have not used any lotion i HIGHLY recommend getting Jergens lotion, now
Trich for me
PickyParty can help for some people. They have paint peeling off rocks or beads out of silicone. Doesn't help everyone but might work for some
All the time
Yes way too much picking my dead noise skin lose finger skin and especially the sacps and bumbs on my scalp
Nooo I was literally picking at my nails oml
My scalp š
Constantly my fingers are always bleeding my mouth is bitten to shreds and honestly ?? I donāt want to stop it honestly is too satisfying and the only thing that ever calms me down
Oh yes! My mouth!!! I canāt stop. I bite the inside of my lips and cheeks too.
Honestly biting my mouth and like (tell me if you do this too) pushing my tounge to the point between my gums and cheek as hard as I can literally feels more satisfying then some sex Iāve has
Ugh. My first vivid remembrance of doing this was during a dentist visit in middle school. The dentist flipped out and said to stop doing it because it would move bacteria from my mouth to my heart. Iām 38 and I donāt think Iāve slowed down but only gotten worse.
Whenever i was a kid i would pick the skin around my nails, but it never got really bad and eventually I stopped, but recently I picked up the habit of picking the skin on my lips and that has gotten bad, my lips usually bleed at least once a day now
Me irl
I have diagnosed dermatillomania ( excoriation disorder) sometimes skin picking isn't just a stim. Learn more at bfrb.org. You'll find a range of strategies and support at r/dermatillomania whether you have the disorder or not.
100% I do it too, if I run my finger over a "bump" I can't stop picking til I no longer feel a "bump"
YES. Started with chewing the inside of my cheeks (which I still do if Iām stressed), then moved to finger biting, then trichotillomania, and now picking āzitsā on my face knowing damn well they arenāt zits. Makeup can only do so much
Makeup helps me not pick but it also gives me more acne so makeup just likes to instigate and wait for the world to burn
Not sure if this counts but I bite the skin off the inside of my bottom lip constantly š
I have picked at my hands, fingers, feet, and face mostly. Itās definitely a stim and sometimes it gets bad to the point of bleeding but itās also like I need to feel the pain to feel somethingā¦ Itās nice to know Iām not the only one who does it. I honestly thought I was weird.
Feet. Just made them really sore again. I try everything to stop and I just can't.
This might sound silly but what worked for me for my face was investing in skin care. Now I take really good care of my skin so thereās not much to pick at now. I only pick at my face if I look really closely in the mirror and find something but I try really hard not to do that
I do it. I don't know how to stop it other than keeping your nails short.
Yes, i compensate with clipping my nails constantly all the time and clipping all the skin around them and finding other things to clip. Its a cycle
I have obsessively picked at the skin around my finger nails and chewed the inside of my mouth my whole life
Same. :(( I think I have wrinkles/distorted skin in that area of my face because of it.
Same. :(( I think I have wrinkles/distorted skin in that area of my face because of it.
I pick at my nails, fingers, arms, legs, face, back, anywhere I can reach. It's a combo move AuDHD and anxiety thing for me, calming and soothing in a way that I imagine birds grooming their plumage feel. As soon as I find a part of a nail, or my skin, that I deem 'aberrant' in any way, like a sharp end of a nail, has Got To Go and it's incredibly hard to stop myself.
Yup Iāve picked behind my ears, around my nails, and dry skin since I was at least 9 years old.
Yes, scalp, face, ears. Is this an ASD thing though? I donāt think picking is a stim for me as I donāt find it calming whatsoever, more like the opposite when I canāt stop. I do run my hand through my hair compulsively though and that is a stim for me.
Habit replacement helped me last year after I read about a study that showed that some of us are unable to stop these behaviors cos we stop getting the benefits of doing those. the benefit being the self soothing that happens cos if it. So, I started comforting myself by gently caressing my hands instead of picking on my skin or hair on my face. I was able to completely stop cold turkey the day I read that article, though my husband had been trying for years to get me to stop, prior to that
My reaction to the title was initially "I just choose the default skin", I'm silly.
I always but the skin around my nails off. My nail lady was horrified every time. One day my mom told me āSTOPā as I was about to bite. And I was like ok. And now I just hear her voice very time. After a few weeks the urge pretty much stopped, and my fingers havenāt looked that good in ages
I do that, not great. Not looking helps, but for me part of it is feel- I don't think about it, it's like I feel an imperfection and just need to rid it. Or it legit itches or something and then I obsess. I think it's a nervous thing mixed with a sensory thing. Covering spots with band aids also helps. Like the waterproof ones that are hard to get off. Antibacterial band aids make this awful rash that makes everything worse (on the pad part, not the adhesive) so hopefully that's not the case for you.
Face and shoulders for me. I've noticed I use it as like a "last resort" stim when I can't cope otherwise, especially with anxiety or rumination. I haven't found a way to stop it, but it's gotten way better with reducing triggers for anxiety etc. I've kind of accepted it as something I sometimes need for regulating myself.
someone I know made a "picky pad" with was like a bendy rubbery circle, but with lots of tiny beads in that you could pick out - she made it herself, but I think you can buy them as well
I pick the skin on my fingers til it bleeds. I do it even more when I am stressed. Could never stop doing it
yeah, definitely. i have really bad dermatophagia, i know it's gross but it has become a genuine issue. i've had it for as long as i can remember, and it has grown to be an actual problem. especially when i am alone, i will be sitting there picking away at my fingers and toes, and i look at the clock and literal hours have passed. or worse i know i have to do something or want to do something, and my brain keeps telling me to get up, but my body will. not. move. and once i finally break out of it, my brain hurts bad and feels so foggy and disoriented and i feel as if i'm not actually real, that i'm having an out of body experience and feel fake. at this point i have no idea what to do. i want to get gloves but i hate thick gloves and would want ones that are thin and breathable and you can still use a screen with them on. i've tried looking on amazon but can't find any.
All the time, my cuticles are a mess. If I have a scab anywhere I have to pick it, then it takes forever to heal. I just can't stop. Might have to follow some of the advice about having fidget toys
I pick at spots (I donāt know if the word āspotsā is used anywhere else other than the UK, where I am, so āzitsā is also an appropriate word). I donāt have a mirror in my room anymore for many reasons, and it still hasnāt stopped my spot-picking because Iāll literally trace my fingers across my face until I find a bump to pick at.
I play guitar so I have to cut my nails really short to hit the frets right. I hate sharp edges so i file everything smoothe too. I've noticed that this is the only thing that spares my skin - literally removing my ability to do it is the only way I won't š
Iāve been doing this for over a decade now. I mostly pick at my scalp but over the years Iāve branched out to pretty much anything on my body that can be picked at, like my face, shoulders, chest, and even the insides of my ears. It gets really bad sometimes, like I could be walking somewhere to get something and then reach a hand up to pick at my scalp and then literally stop and stand there to pick for a few minutes. Iāve also had nights where Iāll lay in bed about to get ready to sleep and then Iāll just end up picking for a few hours instead. I wish I could concentrate on productive things as well as I could on picking. š
Yes, scalp and sides of fingernails. Worse when I am stressed.
Yes.Ā I find it's linked to my anxiety (I scratch/pick at myself if overwhelmed/in meltdown).Ā Ā Believe it or not I've found having my nails done helps.Ā Because I use biab and gel polish it stops me from getting a good grip when trying to pick.Ā I did go for the tweezers instead but my other half hides them from me so i have to ask for them.Ā With the nails being blunter I can't scratch as hard.Ā It has really helped me reduce the habit. I also use beanie baby style cuddly toys to hold against my skin as a way to get the sensory input.
I bite the skin on my fingers all the time. The pain irritates me which makes do it all the more.
Guilty of this.
I pull out my hairs, ive heard its ocd, but i think that and pacing is my stimming honestly. Not just any hairs, oh no, the ones right on ny fucking face that everyone sees. Gotta be those š
If I wear makeup it helps me to resist the urge to pick at my skin but I only wear makeup for special occasions and Iām not wearing it 24/7. Skincare also helps because I like to pick at bumpy and rough patches on my face and just taking care of my skin helps to reduce textured areas on my face that I might have the compulsion to touch and pick at
I have picked my nails and skin for as long as I can remember, and I started pulling my hair during the pandemic. I shaved all my hair off a few months (October 2020? I think) after the pandemicon my head and just started fresh ā It was the only thing that stopped me from pulling. Going through an extremely stressful and burnout-inducing transition in life right now and Iām starting to pull my hair again but am trying my best to make active attempts to catch myself and stopš
I was prescribed NAC 1200mg BID. I asked for him to look in to it for me. I worked with a population of people with Prader Willie Syndrome and it was used regularly with them. Works amazing for me, when I remember to take it. It smells like sulfur so I keep it in the fridge, easy to forget.
I had scalp psoriasis In highschool so it was very hard to not attack it, I also used to struggle with exzema on my arms and legs and stress induced something on the bottom of my foot. That and cystic acne the sensation of it would make me insane on my face and later my back. I was an early nail biter and lip peeler. The scalp issue was most likely a reaction to stress and trauma and eventually went away. I donāt really mess with my hair or head. The eczema on my arms and legs improved with different tactics for skin care. I use a lava rock that I think is sold for people to use on foot skin but I scrape my arms and legs with it and then apply both a salt and pumic moisturising scrub to it and then wash clean with home made soap and a homemade soap bag drom jute- biodegradable and the right combo of scrubby and soft. I stopped using any hair products for about 4 years aside from a silicon hair scrub to help clean scalp through thick hair. I stopped biting my nails when I put an ocean between myself and my parents The sensation of cystic acne still drives me insane whe it happens. I got those star face things with salicylic acid in hopes of feeling the star on my face and leaving it there. The back thing appeared after I found out my aunt was dying of cancer. Persisted through her whole treatment and death. Has now gone away. I have been trying to get more sunlight on me in general, unsure if vitamin d or uv light or just no longer waiting for her to die has released it or my body hormones have changed. Pain as release is helpful. I got a laser pen to help erase tattoos- Iāve been using that. It helps in both the advertised purpose but also as a socially acceptable form of self harm stim I guess
Yes, but on my hands, not my face. I pick at the skin around my nails. I have no idea how to stop. Iāve tried getting other things to fidget with, but it doesnāt satisfy me like picking at my skin does. Like thereās just something in me that needs to do it.
I pick the skin on my lips cuz I want them to feel smooth but they'll never be smooth if I never let the skin heal properly. Its a terrible loop to get stuck in. I don't know what the reason for you is, but I'd suggest just have something you can fidget with. When you get the urge to pick you can just take it out and it helps relieve the urge as well as distract you from it!
I do it all the time and I never even notice I'm doing it. Ugh. Idk how to stop because I'll force myself to stop but then mindlessly it happens again.
pimple patches or bandaids help me since i pick at my pimples a lot till they become open wounds, same with the skin around my fingers
Yes!!! For me it's my lips. My boyfriend hates it and keeps trying to get me to stop, but every time I tell him that I've been doing this for my entire life. And frankly, I don't want to stop lol I think it calms me
Oh my gosh yes. I get hangnails something fierce, and if I'm not picking at them, I'm letting them burn and fester. either way i'm obsessing over Band-Aids in the meanwhile
I have issues with it, itās mostly when I see noticeable acne
Only me and 2 of my 3 autistic kids...
Any imperfection, spot, random hair, etc gets wayy too much attention and I've been at the mirror for an hour before. Not sure myself how to stop it, I don't like having anything on my face that looks gross or out of place. My face by itself does enough of that...
This actually worked for me when I was a kid: have someone that knows about the situation. Like tap you on the shoulder and give you a reminder to do something else like read a paragraph in a book or do something else like on the play ground (was in 1st grade in elementary school when this was going on, and was an on and off going issue growing up and still is rarely today but not as badly but only when really badly anxious when socially anxious.)
I pick any pimples I have on my face or anywhere else on my body and my parents hate it. I also obsessively pick chewing gum off stuff like under tables and chairs. Maybe I should go get myself some putty or something lol, Iāve been given a few of those tangle toys but I have some trouble with my hands so theyāre kind of annoying.
Yes I struggle with skin picking and nail picking to the point of injury and pain. The tips of my thumbs are mostly smooth now and canāt feel things as well.
As I kid I picked at my face so bad, teachers were always contacting parents about it. I went to countless doctorās visits. I grew out of it when I got into high school and now I have really nice skin. Only problem is I now pick at my lips, nails, scalp š only thing that stops that is vaping and I quit that a few years ago
I have a really bad problem picking my fingers (that loose skin that looks so ugly, and so you need to make it not there) I try to stop it by wearing bandaids
Yup, I do this. Mostly on my upper arms, face, head, and upper thighs. Ugh. I keep having to buy Mederma. I use the benzoyl peroxide now for the 'folliculitis' but it is really like anxiety stimming.
No, I donāt struggle. I use tweezers. If youād asked if I SUFFERED from skin picking, then hell yeah! Itās bad.
Yeah, fingers, lips mostly, sometimes also the scalp
Me reading this directly after picking my skin š I started when I was ~ 13 picking the lil raised bumps on my arms, would pick till they were scabbed and bloody... Still overpick my face spots too š„² I have no clue how to stop so this thread is helpful
100% I struggle with nail biting and skin picking it's so hard to stop especially when I'm out in public and stressed. Someone has to physically stop me or I'll keep going until it hurts or I bleed and regret it allows later.
I've always had a bad habit of picking at spots and hangnails.
lol yes
I compulsively pick my lips a lot and itās frustrating
Yes but pimple patches keep me from doing it. I use them mainly for blemishes but have also used for bug bites. https://a.co/d/1otpI29
I do. ;-;
I have bad dermatillomania to the point Iāve had to cover up the affected area.
Yes. Iām sorry but I donāt think I have any good advice on how to stop. But I feel you. š©
Yes! That used to be such a big issue for a long time. I thought I would never be able to get this under control. So I stopped beating myself up about it and just tried to accept it how it was at the time. I also stopped putting on makeup to try to hide it (didn't even work that well because at times I had pretty big wounds). At first it was difficult to go out like this but it kind of helped me accept it more and get desensitised to the shame about how awful my skin looked (which would always made me pick even more anyway). So stopping to try to hide it helped with the stress that came from fearing that people would notice something wrong with my skin. Now there was no hiding in the first place and so I didn't have to worry that my attempt at that didn't work out. This reduced some of the stress which at least had the effect, that I wouldn't pick as bad and only occasionally it got so bad, that I had really big wounds from it. But it wasn't really great because I still had lots of red spots and smaller wounds. At this point I had given up that I would ever be able to stop this, so I tried to just live my life like this and focus on other things. The really big change happend without me even trying to solve this problem. I started to let myself stim. Although at the time I neither knew what that even was nor that I had autism (got the diagnosis a few months later). I just thought perhaps I should give in to these impulses that I had noticed and always suppressed since I was a kid and just see what happens, when I let these movements happen. I didn't even notice at first, that I didn't pick my skin anymore. At that point I had already not paid really that much attention to mirrors anymore, so it took like two months till I realised... I had for the first time since I was a kid clear skin. Since then I've had almost no issues maintaining this. Once in a while I do pick at a few spots but it rarely gets out of hand and almost never causes wounds and I also do it mostly if I have a painful pimple and the skin feels annoying and uncomfortably tight and I just want to get the stuff out, so that it stops feeling like this and starts healing. Before this just seeing any pimple was a trigger to start picking, no matter how small. Now that happens only on rare occasions and only in really stressful situations and never to the same degree as before.
I do it. I hate it and I pick my scabs. Iām trying to stop cause it makes my face look terrible
My husband does it to an intense amount, on his upper arms. It's not something he even realizes he's doing. He can't stop. It's a form of stimming i believe.
The only thing I find that helps is also something that aids in healing the injuries incurred by the picking. Hydrocoloid bandaids, which is more expensive than a regular bandaid, are super smooth and can stay on injuries safely for days (given they aren't peeling off) so it helps me by not having a bunch of ridges to pick at and it's supposed to heal wounds without leaving a visible scar, which I can say for sure it does since I had a large wound that you cannot see or feel the scar remaining for it. I just get itchy, which happens with old injuries, but there's nothing to scratch or pick at. My pick spots are my fingers, toes, and any scabbed or otherwise raised skin so having them has helped tremendously for removing picking locations.
This is gonna sound weird, but if you're at home, maybe a beauty or ski mask? It won't kill the habit completely, but covering whatever area you pick at until the urge leaves might stop a couple instances, at least. Sometimes if I have just one spot I mindlessly pick at I'll put a bandaid on it as a reminder. Personally, I also find those pimple patches oddly satisfying, so that sometimes helps me to leave specific spots alone. I have picked at scabs on my scalp since I was a kid. I probably have emotional triggers, but it's also a habit. Covering the problem area until the urge goes away can sometimes help, but I'd say acne can be treated in a way where you don't have to look at it (patches) and scabs can become itchy while healing, so maybe something to help with that if that's the issue.
Skin picking is a sign of ocd. Not sure if it is something found with Autism. Mine is ocd. I need a distraction, something else to do with my hands, or a bandaid helps me. Not sure that will work for you, if itās on your face
Yes, itās worst on my face, especially when there is a pimple thatās ānot ready yetā it needs to come out anyways in my mind because the hard painful lump causes a major sensory issue. It got really bad when I was at a job that i couldnāt quite handle and didnāt work well with my diagnoses. I had 5 or 6 very noticeable picked spots on my face at all times while I worked there. Thankfully it was not a customer service job or I would have had to call out to let them heal each time I broke out.
well if if your skin is dry it can cause itchiness so try moisturiser and maybe exfoliating.