skin picking - how to cope?

[Weetzie Bat]

i wondered if any of you have recieved help for this? i tried talking to my CPN about it but she either doesnt know much about it or doesnt think i have a serious enough problem to warrent helping.

the reason i do it is to stop the scary/bad thoughts in my head, although occasionally i do it without realising straight away. how would you tackle something like this? im so scared of how bad the thoughts will get if i stop, im terrified of getting lost in my head and paranoia taking over. So should i tackle the thoughts first?

i dont have a therapist at the moment, i struggle to talk enough so they wouldnt see me anymore, along with the fact i cant leave the house often enough to keep appointments.... so i think the only option at the moment is to try and help myself, but how?

i've tried getting a stress ball to see if that would stop my picking and scratching, but it didnt help really. i try doing art but i have no motivation or concentration to do it for long enough.

i feel stuck at the moment.

[Oceanic]

I can relate, somewhat. I can't really address whether or not you should address the thoughts first, because I imagine that could be hard without someone to help you.

What I would suggest, on a practical level, is to keep your nails cut very, very short - as short as possible. Maybe even wear gloves when you're alone in your room, and won't look silly. I'd also suggest keeping away from mirrors. If possible wear long sleeves and pants/skirts. Take showers instead of baths, and when you're ready to shower, set things up so that you need to be doing something else in a short period of time - too short of a time to get caught up in picking your skin.

I know those are all just protective, or proactive, so to speak, but .... if you can minimize the opportunities, then hopefully you can decrease the amount of skin picking you're doing. I do think therapy could be helpful, but of course, there are obstacles to that.

Good luck.

[Licentia Poetica]

I can relate. I can't leave my mosquito bites/ acne alone no matter what I do, sometimes even I do it in my sleep. I have dermatillomania and I've been doing it since I was a child.

If you dont know you're doing it - maybe get people around you to tell you? And as sar suggested, I tend to leave things alone if I'm wearing clothes over them.

It's an anxiety issue, so yes, you need to resolve your thoughts first.