hey i’m not sure the title is accurate but i couldn’t think of anything better
basically i’ve been struggling with skin picking for my entire life
it started small
picking some overhangs and scans around my nails at 6
nothing too serious
as years went by it evolved into pretty severe skin picking, where i wasn’t able to go a day without making a lesion
and recently (like in the past year) the habit developed into full blown dermatilomania
i keep on picking to the point where my lesions can’t heal properly
the worst of it is i started picking skin on my heels to the point where i can’t walk properly anymore and when i do it causes me a lot of pain
it catches up to me in the evening when i’m bored
i’ve been advised to “occupy my hands with something” but what nobody seems to get is that it’s something i do absentmindedly i’m not sure what to do anymore
does anyone have similar experience or am i beyond help at this point ?
have a nice day
Picking skin is a symptom of something much deeper (and possibly darker).
The fact that you want to get rid of it is great but as someone mentioned you need help.
I would suggest reading “The body keeps the score” it may give a glimpse of the issue… But you need a professional
Good luck dear internet stranger and remember that you are lovable and loved
thank you, i really needed to hear that i’m aware my “habit” probably stems from my anxiety, but it’s really hard to simply not be anxious all the time yknow? thank you for taking your time to respond have a lovely day
Just to let you know, picking skin is not inherently a symptom of some deep hidden trauma. Sometimes brains do things a little randomly without there being deep psychological reasons behind it all, and that’s fine, if that’s the case.
Talk to your therapist about it, but don’t think you need to go hunting down some secret trauma, if you don’t feel traumatized or don’t remember experiencing trauma. Because sometimes the answer is just “brains do be like that though”