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Flynn , 17 Dec 2013

New here and looking to finally stop picking at my skin

I apologize ahead of time for the length of my post. I'm 24 years old and I've been suffering from dermatillomania since childhood; for me it started with scab picking and when I was 14 for the period of three years I developed trichotillomania and obsessively plucked my eyebrows. At 17 I grew tired of drawing them on and hated the little scabs so I forced myself to stop and actually used castor oil to grow them back.(Which I would recommend to anyone with trichotillomania) I think the most difficult part in curing my trichotillomania was actually in coming to terms with the damage I'd caused and not covering it with eyebrow pencil while I waited for the hair to come back in. Shortly after I'd cured my trichotillomania my dermatillomania became a problem which progressively got worse for 7 years, though I would say that it hit its highest point two years ago and has digressed significantly since then. The reason for that is because I naturally have very good skin and three years ago I chose to go off my birth control pills and try the needle instead which turned out to be a huge mistake. While on it I did get more pimples then I usually do but when I went off of it in favor of a non hormonal method my skin suffered greatly. For the first time in my life I developed acne, mostly on my arms and back but also sometimes on my forehead with pimples forming on my face and neck. Unfortunately during that time my picking got pretty bad causing a number of scars which now luckily have mostly faded. Two years later and I still pick a little bit even though my skin has returned mostly back to normal with maybe one or two period pimples a month. I mostly pop nose blackheads and I find it difficult not to pick at the few pimples I do get which is bad for someone with very pale skin that scars as easily as mine does. On top of that I pick at my lips daily and occasionally small hair follicles on my arms. One thing that's seemed to have helped me limit my picking has been the fact that I stopped wearing full face makeup when I was 17 and now only do spot concealing and under eye makeup. For that reason I'd call my damage fairly minimal compared to others I've seen. Something to also note which may or may not be the same for some of you; I also suffer from ocd and have my entire life in several different forms. Anyways I'm hoping to cure this disorder within the next few months as I'm getting married next September and frankly I'm tired of dealing with so many types of ocd.
1 Answer
CJayyBaybayyy
December 18, 2013
Congrats on your upcoming wedding! And best of luck in overcoming this disorder.I'm rooting for you! Pretty much everything in your post is something I strongly relate to, except the makeup. I'm so jealous! I never wore anything on my skin apart from concealer under my eyes to cover the dark bags my anemia causes. Now, though, public exposure is not an option without primer, foundation, concealer, and setting powder, if not a little bb cream as well. I feel like I'm more prone to a breakout with my face painted on, but I get anxious and depressed just viewing myself without, much less the panic that sets in at the thought of someone seeing me like that. All the scarring causes my face to always look really dirty. I feel like everyone is struggling with the same thing that affects everyone a different way. No matter what, though recovery starts with pointing your feet in the direction of your destination and believing that you are strong enough to overcome any and everything that will try to keep you from your goal, your freedom, your success. From what I can tell, you're on your way to where you know you want to be. Can't wait to read the success story! I'll use it for motivation. Lol! (:

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