Hi Everyone! This is my first post here. I want to tell you all my story. I just got done picking my face and I felt an urge to document it. My hope is that maybe this can help someone out there who is struggling with what I am struggling with.
I'm 18 now, and when I was about 15 years old I developed severe cystic acne. It was really painful, pussy, and swollen all the time. I tried to conceal it with makeup, but I had very visible bumps on my face 24/7. At some point, I realized I could temporarily relieve the pressure by popping my cysts and pimples. It always got worse afterwards, but it that moment it was extremely cathartic to see the disgusting puss and blood come out of my face. I felt as if I had all this disgusting stuff inside of me and I wanted to get it all out.
3 years later after numerous oral and external acne medications, my cystic acne has gone away. However, I have a lot of intense scarring and my face looks almost as bad as it did before. This is because as my cystic acne went away, I began picking at it more and more. I picked and do pick at anything- scars, bumps, blackheads, white heads- you name it. I pick my face until I'm left with a few dozen sores covering it. The following morning, it scabs over and gets a little bit of pus from infections- and I pick at that more! I feel like an insane person.
Everything in my led is dictated by my skin. I plan everything around it and I avoid events in advance because I am afraid that I will pick my face for them.
Two days ago, I told my boyfriend for the first time. I think he might of known already, but it was great to get it off my chest. I'm going to a therapist because of this problem but it doesn't seem to help too much. I think it has gotten worse since I started seeing her actually.
Anyways, I know many of you suffer with this too and I want you to know YOU ARE NOT ALONE. I know how it feels to promise yourself again and again that you won't pick your face and end up doing it at the worse times. I want all of you to know that even though this disease, skin picking, is ugly you are still beautiful. You must love yourself and realize that skin picking doesn't make you any less of a beautiful person.
If anyone ANYONE needs a buddy to help them through this journey, I will help you. I will give you pep talks via internet- anything- because I know that we need to be there for one another.
Hi! I'm new here, I was relieved to see others struggle with the same issues as I do. In fact, as I am typing this message,I am covered in bandAides holding an ice pack on my face, rotating it from spot to spot because I picked so bad AGAIN pretty much all night ,I wasn't able to sleep and my husband was on midnights so I could pick in peace and now I feel guilty, ugly,disappointed.Ihavd cystic acne,I take doxycycline for it but it's not help long. Well..apparently I felt the need to "go hard or go home," cuz I took it to another level ,I have three spots that are now open wounds and my skin is sore, inflamed,and I hope I don't end up at the dr. I'm tired of hiding this, mAking excuses, I've been in the hospital twice with staph severe secondary infections. And needed IV antibiotics. It's exausting
emotionally and painful physically... I've tried many things to quit,but when I'm stressed it triggers my habit and starts all over. Anyway, I'm telling myself that it's ok that I gave in, just focus on the future ,I can do this. 
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I started picking in high school (I'm 25 now.) I've promised myself so many times that I'd stop, but I just couldn't quit the habit. A few times, my LDR boyfriend would want to FaceTime, but I'd be so ugly that I refused, or not show him my face even if I turned on the camera. It made him sad and it hurt me too. That's when I really made the decision to stop picking. I still did so a few times afterwards, but I'm getting better at controlling myself cause I don't want loved ones (family and friends too) to be sad or worry about me.
In middle school I had perfect clear skin. It wasn't until 8th grade that I would get the occasional zit. Around winter of that year, a painful zit formed on my chin. Because it hurt, I assumed that the only way to make it go away was to squeeze it. So I did, but I didn't stop. Each day I'd squeeze it and destroy the skin around it. Eventually it scabbed. I picked that scab off. This entire thing lasted for 2 months. It finally faded when I decided enough was enough. But that didn't stop my picking. The summer before freshman year I had a small barely visible zit above my brow. And of course, I squeezed at it for days. Turned into probably the worst scab I'd ever have, worse than the one before. Finally it went away, which relieved me greatly, but it left a dark large scar. Over the course of freshman year I developed acne, and I continued my picking rampage. Sores constantly on my face from the damage, and scars from it all. Just a few days ago I picked at a minor zit, which created a scab. I picked off the scab, and a red sore takes its place. I start school in 2 days, and don't know if it'll be healed by then. I've decided that enough is enough, and I'm going to quit this senseless picking. I can control it and I will be strong.