Has anyone successfully stopped picking?

[fedup078]

For as long as I can remember I've picked at my face
I will pick anything . I can make the tiniest spot which is invisible to the eye into the biggest scab
I'm so sick of it
I just can not stop
Every time I think 'right my face is pretty clear now so leave it alone!'
I do it again
In 37 now and haven't found anyway of stopping
Even cutting my fingers nails right down didn't work
I did it last night and in the morning it's like when you've made a tit of yourself when drunk the night before and that feeling of 'oh god what have I done' washes over you

I don't really get spots now, but I have peeling skin on my wrist due to an allergy to my smart watch band. I've had some satisfying minutes removing it.

Fellow face picker here. I am exactly the same.

I have no hints but I'm here in case someone else does.

I will sometimes pick at them almost without realising I'm doing it. The only thing that stops me is if I put those spot stickers on any big spots. Of course this only works round the house/ garden as I'd look a bit weird going to work with them on. Though I have once or twice worn spot stickers out if they are in less conspicuous places eg mostly under hair/ clothes etc.

@ArnottsUnderpass I've just about managed to keep the picking to under my hair line today but I still can't keep my hands off my face looking for any tiny little spec
I don't even have to have any spots
I can pick at something you'd need a magnifying glass to look at
I've been lucky to avoid major indent scarring but I have scars pretty much everywhere which really show if I go a bit red in the face . There are so many they pretty much just join together
I notice as I get older they take much longer to heal and fade too

Yep. Me too. I have no idea why I do it either.

@SugarMiceInTheRain same
I sort of do it unconsciously. I'm worse if I'm concentrating and getting a bit stressed like when trying to write an essay
Maybe I should wear gloves 24/7

@SugarMiceInTheRain same
I sort of do it unconsciously. I'm worse if I'm concentrating and getting a bit stressed like when trying to write an essay
Maybe I should wear gloves 24/7

Too be honest it's not so much the big spots that bother me
Some spots need popping
It's the invisible ones that I really piss my self off with
Like literally making a mountain out of a molehill

I use the stickers too @SugarMiceInTheRain I tend to do the worst damage when at home so it stops that at least!

I totally get it- I get so cross when I make something tiny 100 times worse and last for ages when it would have just gone away if I could bloody leave it!!

Me too. Gotta squeeze them....even if there's nothing there

Maybe I need to retrain and do these spot squeezer videos??!!

I'm the same with picking around my thumbs too

Body focuses repetitive disorder.
I have this but I pull my hair out. It's so frustrating :(

I pull my hair. It’s really hard to stop. But you could try:
Gel nails
Fidget toys
Covering your face in a v slippery cream

Oh thank god it’s not just me!!!!
There’s a couple of things that drop me.... being so ill that all you do is sleep, or are too weak, full of cold etc and having false nails on (stops you squeezing and they don’t have the sensitivity of your own nails) I think I started when I was about 11 and now in my fifties😠 wish I could stop, but🤷‍♀️.
Have been known to prod and poke around the Ddog if I’m desperate😆

** stop me - not drop me🙄🙄

Have you tried taking NAC supplement? Definitely helps with my hair pulling, should work for skin picking too.

www.bfrb.org/learn-about-bfrbs/123-n-acetylcysteine-for-trichotillomania-skin-picking-and-nail-biting

I do it too. Get so cross with myself. Every day.

@Horehound

Body focuses repetitive disorder. I have this but I pull my hair out. It's so frustrating :(

Me too. I'm 40 and have pulled my eyelashes/brows since I was a child. ☹️

[quote HelloDulling]Have you tried taking NAC supplement? Definitely helps with my hair pulling, should work for skin picking too.

www.bfrb.org/learn-about-bfrbs/123-n-acetylcysteine-for-trichotillomania-skin-picking-and-nail-biting[/quote]
Did it reduce all urges to do it? Mine are terrible atm

I’m awful for it I’ve been picking at the same scab on my shoulder for a year now. I’ve always been a picker but I don’t remember it being this bad when I was younger.

I've found my people! DH is constantly telling me off for this. My face looks awful at the moment due to picking. I tend to do it in the evenings when I get tired and itchy. I vowed this morning to be kind to my skin for a few days to let it heal... I've just finished picking at them again 😔 Mask wearing is not helping either at the moment. So many more small spots to turn into big ones 😩
I am the same age as you OP. My skin seems to get spottier the older I get.

I have been hair pulling since puberty. I am now post menopausal and the urge and therefore the pulling has spontaneously virtually stopped. I am absolutely convinced hair pulling is hormone related. I wonder if picking is the same?
No consolation in the short term but perhaps there will be relief in the future.

I pick spots, once I squeeze them I pick the scabs, then a new scab will grow and I pick that too. I’ve got quite a big scar next to my nose where I picked and picked at a spot and it basically left a crater on my face.
My teenagers won’t let me anywhere near their spots

Same here.

I do genuinely want to stop, and each time it's 'oh well this one needs doing' or I do it absentmindedly.

My skin is best when I am away without mirrors.

I may be camping or living in a way that others would find difficult with little access to washing facilities but at these 'dirty' times I'm much better as haven't been gouging at my own face every time I see a mirror!

Never get a magnifying mirror!! I’ve got one that’s a x20 - it really doesn’t help my urge to pick (well... it’s does... But you know what I mean🙄)