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Do you think I have dermatillomania?
I'm new to this site,obviously,and it's such a relief to know that I'm not the only one out there that does some of these things!Anyway,I've been picking for a very long time.I started out chewing the inside of my mouth,which I still do,to the point where it bleeds and the skin gets completely pulled off.I also pick at my lips with my fingers,and make them bleed also.I have acne and I am literally always picking at something on my face and making it bleed,and I now have several scars b/c of that.I also pick at any scabs that I get on my body,and I have scars on my knees and back now,too.But porobably my worst problem is when I pick at my cuticles.I pick them pretty much all of the time.All of the fingers on my left hand are raw and bloody basically all of the time now,and my right hand is usually that way,too.It's gotten so bad that it hurts to put my hands in water sometimes,because they're always so raw.I pick all the time,whether i'm stressed,sad or even just bored,no matter what i'm doing. I even do it without realizing it,and it's like i'm in a trance where i don't know that i'm doing it.I even do it in my sleep sometimes.It doesn't hurt anymore,and it feels relaxing to me sometimes.It's a really good stress reliever,and I don't think I could go for an hour without doing atleast one of the habits I've mentioned.I've tried to stop many times,but nothing seems to help.Are there specific treatments for people with this problem?I'm going to see a dermatologist tomorrow for a routine checkup,should I mention it to him?Or is that something another type of doctor would know more about?Thanks!!
In reply to The trance part of picking by Bitterbrew