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First time reaching out...any feedback is so appreciated
Hey everyone-
This is my first time posting here. I have come across this forum several times. I thought I would share my story and could get any feedback while I am at an ultimate low point. I never really realized I had a problem with picking until maybe a couple months ago. I have been blessed with good skin. When I look in the mirror, I don't see that. But when I take the time to actually think about it, I know I have. I don't have acne. But when I look at myself in the mirror I think I have this horrible skin.
I have always been a picker. Whenever I had a pimple I would pop it, pick it, etc. However, it wasn't something that stopped my life or prevented me from going on with my day. I think I started to develop a problem over the summer. Throughout the summer, I had about three or four episodes where I picked at a blemish that was barely even anything where I could not go to work, avoided seeing my boyfriend, and skipped out on some social events. After the summer, I had about a month where I wasn't picking at all. I forgot about my skin and it cleared up so well. However, for the past couple months, it has taken over my life. A lot of changes happened in my life over the past couple months, including starting law school which I think has triggered my stress which in turn triggers my picking.
It has been a never-ending cycle over the past couple of months. My skin will clear up and will be fine for a week or so. Then I will find a blemish, something completely insignificant to anyone else. It will start with me touching it and touching it. Then from touching it it becomes irritated. Then I try to pop it and there will be nothing there. And then it just gets worse and I end up with some kind of wound. Then the wound will scab or it will never scab and I put a million different products on waiting for it to go away. I isolate myself from my friends, I become so depressed, and I cannot get on with my day. I feel like it will never go away, even though it always eventually does. But I always prolong the time for it to go away because I continue picking the wound, keep scrubbing it, and cannot leave it alone. I had a bad episode a few weeks ago. I had promised myself I would never do it again. When it finally cleared up, I was acting like myself again. Well, I had my first exam and was completely stressed out because I did not think I did well. That same night I picked. It had been a week since I picked this wound and it hasn't gotten any better because I prolong the healing time every day. Every time I pick, I promise myself I will never do it again. Every leftover dark mark on my face is because of a picking episode. I don't have one mark that is actually due to acne or a pimple. It is all self-inflicted, which makes me more depressed because I am so angry at myself for bringing this all on myself.
First, does any one have advice as far as healing wounds? I have tried neosporin, aquafor, calamine lotion, and I don't feel like any one of those particular products helps. I know I need to heal internally for me to really fix this problem. I just don't know how. I have tried to communicate this with my mom. She tells me just go on with your day and it will be better if you just leave it alone. It is so much easier said than done though. I cannot just move on with my day. It completely occupies my mind.
Any feedback helps. Please use kind words those, because I am in an extremely vulnerable place. Thank you so much.
In reply to Hi and welcome! I also just by scar4life
In reply to Hi scar4life. Thank you for by ret16