HOW TO STOP PICKING YOUR SKIN FOREVER.

 We all know we shouldn’t do it, but fighting the urge to pick at our skin can be really hard. The temptation to squeeze a spot or force the grime out of a blackhead is impossible not to give into. But why do we want to squeeze spots? And how do you stop squeezing spots forever? I’m here with some advice that will hopefully help!

Experts have revealed that squeezing spots, as gross as it sounds, is satisfying for a more scientific reason than you might first assume. The action of squeezing gunk out of our pores releases a chemical called dopamine, which gives us a sense of satisfaction. Unfortunately, this satisfaction is short lived, and soon turns into regret. Why did we do it again?!

Other than the very occasional hormonal breakout, I don’t tend to suffer with spots, but I did suffer from some stress-induced acne a while back, and it was pretty horrible. The spots were those horrible, impossible to get rid of, under the skin kind of spots and no amount of squeezing, prodding or poking would make even an ounce of difference - and yet still, I couldn’t leave my face alone. I messed with my skin so much that my face was red, blotchy and sore - so much so that I actually cried. I felt awful about myself, and the most frustrating thing of all was the fact I knew I would end up feeling this way.

Since that day, I made a pact with myself to never squeeze and poke at my face again. And whilst I can’t say I’ve stuck to it religiously, I am now much better at restraining myself - and that self-control is the result of a few different techniques which I am going to share with you in this blog post. So, let’s get to it.

How to stop picking your skin

1. Take a photo of your skin

Ideally, two photos - one from before you started messing with your skin, and another one afterwards. Hopefully reading this blog post will prevent any future picks and pokes, so an ‘after’ picture might not be possible - but if it is, take a photograph. You won’t like the picture, but that’s kind of the idea - looking back at the before photo and the after photo will remind you of exactly why you should never squeeze your skin. I can almost 100% guarantee you skin will look worse in the after photograph and this should help deter you from messing.

2. Try the elastic band method

I actually hated this method, but it does work! If you wear an elastic band on your wrist and prick it every time you feel the urge to pick your skin, it will dissuade you from messing. You have to stick with this - if you don’t actually prick the elastic band, then obviously, it’s not going to work - but if you do it every time you feel that temptation, it will make you want to stop. 

3. Keep a diary

If you have a habit of picking and prodding your skin, it’s likely you struggle to control yourself when the temptation to squeeze arises. A good way of combatting this issue is to keep a diary or journal of when you’ve messed with your skin and how it made you feel.

By keeping a diary, you may begin to recognise a pattern. Perhaps you have a habit of prodding your skin after a stressful day at work? Or maybe it’s after you’ve been scrolling through Instagram at all those perfect photos? If you are able to determine a trigger, you can then look to remove it. Maybe it’s time to find a new job that leaves you feeling happy and fulfilled, rather than stressed or anxious? And perhaps it’s time to curb those late-night Instagram scrolling sessions? There are much more productive ways to spend your time - including catching some extra sleep!

Recording how your picking session made you feel and how the look of your face made you feel afterwards is another way of deterring you from giving into those dreaded pokes and prods. Personally, I always feel sad and down on myself after I’ve messed with my face, which does help in preventing me from going down the same route again.

4. Find a new habit

A good one. Rather than picking at your skin, why don’t you treat your skin to something nice, instead? This one I actually find incredibly effective as you still get that sense of ‘doing’ something to your skin, but this way, you’re actually being kind to your skin. Whenever I get the urge to squeeze or poke, I take out my favourite clay mask and smother a layer all over my face. I leave the mask on for the recommended time, take it off and then I’m always super happy with how glowy and gorgeous my skin looks. This satisfaction completely removes that temptation to go ahead and mess. Perfect!

5. Try mindfulness

Mindfulness isn’t the easiest thing to master, and it takes commitment to really get yourself into the zone, but if you can do it, the benefits will be huge for you. 

Essentially, mindfulness is all about thinking more about what’s around you and taking the time to absorb those sights, sounds and feelings. Mindfulness teaches us to contemplate our actions for longer than we otherwise would, allowing us extra time to consider what we’re doing before impulsively attacking our skin.

I really hope you all enjoyed this blog post and I can't wait to share more with you soon.

Lots of love,

Grace x