23 replies to this topic

[myhorriblehabit]

so tonight i decided i will start the 30 day no picking challenge. i wish i could say today was day #1 but unfortunately i popped and picked at a small white head i found on my cheek. most likely not noticable to any one but me. my face has been healing since my last horrible picking episode about two weeks ago. scabs are almost gone and im able to cover up small scars with make up. i dont have bad acne, i usually just get a few blemishes every month when my cycle comes. but the thing is, i pick at them. i pick and pick and pick until they become 5x their size and start bleeding and leave scabs all over my face. they usually take about 2 weeks to heal and i have one clear week before my hormonal breakout. then the cycle starts again. well things are and WILL change this time around! ive had this obsession with my face that i cannot kick.. i need to know that not everyone is perfect, not everyone has perfect skin (although it sure seems like they do) and if i do get a pimple or two i need to just accept it and let it be. well my new attitude starts tomorrow! the only time i have a hard time is in the morning and at night when i do my daily face washing regimine. i normally wash my face and examine my face for about 10-20 mins in the mirror, but starting tomorrow i will just walk away from the mirror after applying all my products. it will be hard but can be done! ill keep you guys updated!

[numbaunstunna]

I could never get over the picking! If the pimple felt like it was going to pop, I was on it!!! Sometimes it helped when I got the inflamed follicle out and it stopped growing. Most of the time I would mess it up and it got angry. Good luck!

[myhorriblehabit]

so its day one and i already failed. i woke up feeling very anxious for some reason, brushed my teeth, washed my face and after towel drying i noticed that the scab on my cheek was peeling away from my skin. so i thought it was ready to go! i started to peel it away and realized it wasnt even close to being healed. i just restarted the whole healing process i removed my scab only to reveal raw bright pink skin.. ugghhh i hate myself for that. its such a blow to my confidence. guess im going back to bed for the day. tomorrow i will try to be stronger. i know i can beat this. i tried to talk to my boyfriend about it but people who dont have this problem dont realize how big of a deal it actually is.. it hurts emotionally and physically. im just glad i can use this website as an outlet and know there are other people out there that are dealing with this issue as well.

[changedmynamefinally]

aww..good luck, hows it going so far by the way! stick at it!!!!! will be worth it int he end

[myhorriblehabit]

aww..good luck, hows it going so far by the way! stick at it!!!!! will be worth it int he end

ummm ya i pretty much suck.. lol its sooo hard. but today is the end of day one (i think for the third or fourth time lol) and i feel pretty confident. mainly because i dont have any active blemishes.. knock on wood i didnt just jinx myself... i just have some small scabs that are healing so if i can be strong and not pick at them then i think i can make it 11 days... thats my new goal! for thanksgiving

[PaulH85]

I just read your first post and can really relate to that. Although my skin isn't influenced by the same things, the breakout cycles are near identical. And my skin's not usually that bad either to be honest, I just get pimples these days rather than the full-on acne I used to get. But, I make the pimples so much worse and it spreads.

I'm guessing that my pimples would take maybe a week to heal if I left them alone. Popped pimples, picked skin and light scars from scabs seem to take about two weeks to heal for me. Because my skin breaks out on almost fortnightly cycles, it seems like there's a brand new load of pimples showing up just as the last lot are healing. Because of my interference, it's like the cycle is never-ending. So, I'm with you on this one and can totally see where you're coming from.

I agree especially about the kind of things we make worse. Sometimes, it's even just the smallest pimple which nobody would see. The only reason we see it is because we're pressed right up against the mirror and sticking out whichever part of our face it's appeared on. Right? They all start out as tiny pimples for me but when I catch sight of it and go crazy on it, it's soon a big red thing which has trebled in size and hurts like hell. The tiny pimple it was seconds earlier then seems like such a better option by comparison.

I've picked every day for the last week or so. I'm most likely to do it in a morning and at night, too, so it's not out of the ordinary for me in that respect, but I just went too far this last week. My skin broke out but has also been sore because I've had a cold. That soreness freaked me out I guess and I went a bit over-the-top with the picking. I usually pull back but this last week or so, I just went crazy on it. It actually heals pretty quickly so it's like my skin is even trying to show me that it can heal and that it really wants to. I have to let it. I have to trust it and belive that it knows what it's doing otherwise this will just carry on and on.

I have a pimple which has appeared today, right on my lower lip line, but there's nothing else which is active. Apart from that, just a bunch of red marks and scabs from my week-long pickapalooza. Given the lack of actives right now, it seems like the perfect chance to let everything start to heal properly and maybe that will also break the cycle at the same time. I doubt I’d make it to 30 days with active acne, but if I can get to 10 days or 2 weeks from now, maybe that would be enough to break the cycle and my skin would have healed enough for the final 2 weeks to be a breeze.

So, I reckon I'll join you. Day one, starting when I wake up in the morning.

You can do it!

Edited by PaulH85, 13 November 2011 - 08:51 PM.

[myhorriblehabit]

I just read your first post and can really relate to that. Although my skin isn't influenced by the same things, the breakout cycles are near identical. And my skin's not usually that bad either to be honest, I just get pimples these days rather than the full-on acne I used to get. But, I make the pimples so much worse and it spreads.

I'm guessing that my pimples would take maybe a week to heal if I left them alone. Popped pimples, picked skin and light scars from scabs seem to take about two weeks to heal for me. Because my skin breaks out on almost fortnightly cycles, it seems like there's a brand new load of pimples showing up just as the last lot are healing. Because of my interference, it's like the cycle is never-ending. So, I'm with you on this one and can totally see where you're coming from.

I agree especially about the kind of things we make worse. Sometimes, it's even just the smallest pimple which nobody would see. The only reason we see it is because we're pressed right up against the mirror and sticking out whichever part of our face it's appeared on. Right? They all start out as tiny pimples for me but when I catch sight of it and go crazy on it, it's soon a big red thing which has trebled in size and hurts like hell. The tiny pimple it was seconds earlier then seems like such a better option by comparison.

I've picked every day for the last week or so. I'm most likely to do it in a morning and at night, too, so it's not out of the ordinary for me in that respect, but I just went too far this last week. My skin broke out but has also been sore because I've had a cold. That soreness freaked me out I guess and I went a bit over-the-top with the picking. I usually pull back but this last week or so, I just went crazy on it. It actually heals pretty quickly so it's like my skin is even trying to show me that it can heal and that it really wants to. I have to let it. I have to trust it and belive that it knows what it's doing otherwise this will just carry on and on.

I have a pimple which has appeared today, right on my lower lip line, but there's nothing else which is active. Apart from that, just a bunch of red marks and scabs from my week-long pickapalooza. Given the lack of actives right now, it seems like the perfect chance to let everything start to heal properly and maybe that will also break the cycle at the same time. I doubt I’d make it to 30 days with active acne, but if I can get to 10 days or 2 weeks from now, maybe that would be enough to break the cycle and my skin would have healed enough for the final 2 weeks to be a breeze.

So, I reckon I'll join you. Day one, starting when I wake up in the morning.

You can do it!

yayyy im happy i have a buddy to do this with!! we can do it!! how are you feeling? better i hope! keep me updated on your progress!! good luck

p.s. i love the "pickapalooza" haha!

[Ghost08]

Good luck! I know you can do it

[PaulH85]

yayyy im happy i have a buddy to do this with!! we can do it!! how are you feeling? better i hope! keep me updated on your progress!! good luck

p.s. i love the "pickapalooza" haha!

Well, we can't have you going it alone can we! I was originally just going to reply with a bit of encouragement yesterday but then I thought, 'What the heck, I'm only just behind so I might as well give it a shot!'

Makes perfect sense really because I know it's what I need to do. I mean, my regimen is good, the antibiotics I'm taking are doing a good job, things usually heal fast and I know that it wants to get clear. The only thing stopping it is me, my feelings about it and the resulting picking. If I stop picking and break that cycle, the feelings will go and then I can move on.

I'm really glad I read your topic when I did, great timing!

I am feeling better, thank you for asking. My skin's improved so that's basically why. Goes to show how much my feelings are connected to my skin.
Things are still as they were when I last posted; the pimple on my lower lip line and the results from pickapalooza. I've managed to leave that pimple alone and it hasn't gotten any worse. I'll continue to leave it alone. Almost at the end of day one. I'm intending on shaving tomorrow as I haven't shaved for almost a week. That will be a test becaue it will mean spending a decent amount of time in front of the mirror. I'll try my best.

How are you doing?

[myhorriblehabit]

yayyy im happy i have a buddy to do this with!! we can do it!! how are you feeling? better i hope! keep me updated on your progress!! good luck

p.s. i love the "pickapalooza" haha!

Well, we can't have you going it alone can we! I was originally just going to reply with a bit of encouragement yesterday but then I thought, 'What the heck, I'm only just behind so I might as well give it a shot!'

Makes perfect sense really because I know it's what I need to do. I mean, my regimen is good, the antibiotics I'm taking are doing a good job, things usually heal fast and I know that it wants to get clear. The only thing stopping it is me, my feelings about it and the resulting picking. If I stop picking and break that cycle, the feelings will go and then I can move on.

I'm really glad I read your topic when I did, great timing!

I am feeling better, thank you for asking. My skin's improved so that's basically why. Goes to show how much my feelings are connected to my skin.
Things are still as they were when I last posted; the pimple on my lower lip line and the results from pickapalooza. I've managed to leave that pimple alone and it hasn't gotten any worse. I'll continue to leave it alone. Almost at the end of day one. I'm intending on shaving tomorrow as I haven't shaved for almost a week. That will be a test becaue it will mean spending a decent amount of time in front of the mirror. I'll try my best.

How are you doing?

im glad your feeling better and i know you can be strong enough tomorrow to not pick at anything! it might be hard but i believe in you! just remind yourself that! as for me im doing alright.. still havent picked so im extremely happy about that! but at the same time i am a little bummed.. my parents invited me to disneyland today but i skipped out because im still embarrassed to go out in public. even though my face has looked worse and its actually healing nicely i just feel like people will stare and judge me. sound stupid? so instead ive just been lounging around my room even though its a beautiful day outside. i wish i didnt care so much what other people think bleehhh... i guess ill get over it. tomorrow is a new day! gotta keep my head up!

[PaulH85]

Awww nooooo! Shame you didn't feel like going. Maybe next time. I'm sure Mickey and Minnie would have loved to see, regardless of how you may have felt about your skin! Kind of amuses me how you're able to choose whether or not you go to Disneyland - I'd have to take an 8 hour flight for that!
I have been once though and I did get to meet Mickey which was fun. Chip n Dale where my favourites though, gotta love those cheeky little chipmunks!

Those feelings aren't stupid. It's not true that everyone would have stared or judged you, but it's not stupid. Besides, if it is stupid, then we're both stupid together because I have a whole list of things I've bailed on because I wasn't happy with my skin or because I was worried what people would think. That list goes back 13 years, believe me. I went to a concert on Saturday and initially I wasn't going to go as I was feeling pretty down. I virtually had to push myself out the door in the end, but I went and I had a blast. I was sat yesterday, thinking about the concert the night before, and I thought, 'I enjoyed that and I'd have missed out on that if I had given in to those negative feelings'. On this occasion, I made the better choice. Most of the time, I make the wrong choice, but at least I showed myself that I can do it if I try. I bet you could, too

What you have to think about is whether or not avoiding a situation would actually help your skin. Generally, doing something or not doing something makes no difference to your skin at all so, as hypocritical of me as it is to say this, perhaps it's best to just go ahead and do whatever it is. It can have a knock-on effect on your mood either way. Certainly if you don't go, if your mood is down as a result and you happen to find yourself in front of the mirror, that's not likely to end well. Right? So maybe the best possible distraction from picking is doing things which take you out of those situations, away from those mirrors, and have a positive influence on your mood. So next time, go and say hi to Mickey!

Tomorrow is indeed another day and it's another chance to extend your run of not picking. Well done on not picking today! Keep it up!

Edited by PaulH85, 14 November 2011 - 05:36 PM.

[PaulH85]

Still going? Hope so!

I'm heading towards the end of day three and I made it through shaving yesterday without looking for any problems. First time ever. I caught a pimple when shaving which was just under my nose which I didn't even know was there. I cleaned it and applied some Isotretinoin gel. Today, it's almost gone. Before, I would have made a mess of it and it probably would have ended up forming again at twice the size.

I went to a group therapy session for depression today and we were talking about things we're tryiing to change. I decided to speak up first and tell them about my history with acne and how I've picked every single day and hidden away for long periods of time, etcc. I also told them that I'm trying to change things by not picking and that I'm in day three. I can only assume that my story is kind of depressing because telling it at length made one of the girls in the group cry! In a good way I guess, I think she was just sad to hear of how much all this stuff has cost me over the years.

Already seeing changes in my skin. The pimples I do have would have been a mess by now but because I've left them alone, they've stayed small and are insignificant to the point where I don't even care. Hope it continues to improve and I hope yours does, too!

[myhorriblehabit]

hey!!! good for you!! im proud of you!! i am doing well too... end of day four.. i can also see a big change in my skin.. i had a mark that i picked at last week and i would normally continue to pick at the scab and prolong the healing process but since ive left it alone its healed! i exfoilated today and the scab just washed right off! i was so happy still no active blemishes *knock on wood* so nothing to pick at! maybe this weekend ill get the courage to go out and do something. im glad your doing well! keep me updated good luck!

[PaulH85]

Hey, still going strong?
I popped a tiny pimple on my nose yesterday so I'm back to the start. No bother, no harm done, I'll just go again. Can't belive the difference in my skin Monday through Friday when I didn't pick my skin or pop pimples. I probably had about nine new pimples in that time and they've all gone within a couple of days because I dried them out with Isotretinoin gel instead of essentially turning them into open wounds and pushing bacteria further under the skin as a result. Aside from a red mrk on my nose now, no actives so I can't complain. Starting again, day one.

[myhorriblehabit]

hello!! yes im still going strong its okay to lapse a time or two- ive started at "day one" at least four or five times already. lol but you have to learn some way! its amazing to see the life span of a pimple. haha sounds weird but i have NEVER let one heal on its own! i ALWAYS try to get it and make it worse then left with a mark that takes about 2 weeks to heal. but now i think ill FINALLY not pick at my face, after seeing how fast it clears when i dont. what are your plans for thanksgiving????

[PaulH85]

Good to hear!

Yeah, I remember there was a topic once called 'The life cycle of a pimple' or something like that, and I suddenly thought that I didn't actually know because I'd never ever left one alone! Having done it now, because of the Isotretinoin gel, the cycle for me goes; pimple starts to appear, apply the gel for a couple of days, pimple has gone without really coming out. So simple! Awesome! My doctor told me when he prescribed Isotretinoin gel that it would work fo me, but I always had the feeling it wasn't quite doing as well as it should have been. Clearly, I wasn't using it properly and I was fighting against it by popping the pimples. Oh well, never too late to learn.

Into day two and there isn't even anything to pick and certainly no new pimples to mess around with. Sure I can keep this going, the key will just ben not to freak out when pimples do form. Instead, I'll just bring out my new best buddy, Iso! Likewise, I'm amazed at how fast things clear when I leave them alone. Wish I'd have known sooner... about 12 years sooner! That alone is reason enough to keep this up.

I'm in England and Thanksgiving isn't a holiday we celebrate. I'd be up for that though, can't beat a huge feast with the family. Guess I'm missing out, perhaps I'll have to move to the States! Sounds like you're on target to reach your goal anyway so whatever you get up to, I hope you and your ever-improving skin have a great Thanksgiving!

Edited by PaulH85, 20 November 2011 - 07:40 AM.

[PaulH85]

Still going?

I failed big time. Picked pretty much every day for the last eight days or so. Made a right mess of it so I'll have to see if I can start again once the current damage goes down and I'm feeling better about it all. Between stress and just generally feeling pretty rubbish about myself, those two things seem to be the main triggers. I end up taking it out on myself when I feel bad, which of course makes it worse. Guess I just need to ry and learn to be kinder to myself.

Hope you're doing well!

[Kara =)]

This is a really good idea I'm gonna do it too, day 1 starts tomorrow.

[ILLmatic718]

This is a really good idea I'm gonna do it too, day 1 starts tomorrow.

it is a good idea. im joinin' in too.

[Kara =)]

Day 1 was pretty good for me thank God. Here's a tip for you guys, try looking in the mirror less. It helps a bit