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The urge is always there: with their jagged, bitten nails, my fingers take on a mind of their own. They dig deep into my skin, gnawing at blemishes and ripping up cuts, scabs, pimples, insect bites, and so on. My bright-red skin shouts at me to stop. But I can’t. Even if I’m bleeding, infected or scarred, I can’t stop scratching. Trust me, I’ve tried. And with the ongoing pandemic, the compulsion has only gotten worse.
Dermatillomania is a chronic skin-picking condition that is estimated to affect 1.4 per cent of the population. Beyond the discomfort of continuously picking your skin, dermatillomania can cause a whole host of other problems as picking creates scabs and, in some cases, leads to serious infections, sometimes to the point where a patient requires antibiotics. It can also leave behind scars, which can require professional treatments—including lasers—to improve, while some will never go away even with treatment. It’s taken me a long time to accept my scars.