Does mental separation from acne make a difference to your skin’s health?
That’s a really good question to explore that is pretty underexplored by mainstream medical care of acne. Acne breakouts tend to be an area of over-fixation for people. For example, having a pimple can lead to more trips to the mirror; increased touching or picking of the skin; and multiplying thoughts related to existing pimples, either in how they feel or how we imagine they look to others.
In addition, after getting a breakout, it’s tempting to put a magnifying glass to every aspect of the day: What skin care products you use, what you eat, how much you sweat after exercise, your sleep schedule, your supplements, the air you breathe outside, etc.
That magnifying glass may seem helpful in the moment. After all, if you’re getting a pimple or several of them, exploring the underlying root means looking at every single area of your lifestyle where you could possibly be doing something wrong — right?…
Unfortunately, some of the efforts we make toward treating acne can backfire when we’re too attached to 100% positive outcomes, too fixated on the details of the breakouts, and unwilling to look at how obsessive thoughts about acne can make matters worse.
Very often, hinging clear skin on every little thing you do during a typical day (or don’t do) can lead to obsessive-compulsive thoughts surrounding your skin and routine. Plenty of patients come in actually describing a struggle with both acne and what may be OCD or bordering on it. In fact, patients may have already spoken to a counselor or therapist about dealing with OCD.
If you have OCD-type thoughts surrounding acne, it’s natural to want to address this mental side of acne too. Ignoring those tendencies tends to make treating acne more difficult in some ways. For example, if you get a pimple and you start to become obsessive about what could be missing in your skin care routine, you may make rash decisions about switching old products out or switching new ones in. It may be a switch that never needed to happen in the first place!
Or, you could end up spending more time in front of the mirror, examining each pore too closely and following up with picking at your skin. You could go down the rabbit hole of wondering which offensive food the day or two before could have caused this specific pimple. Then more fear may build up about the foods you’re about to eat, down to the knitty gritty of trace ingredients in your meals.
None of it helps. If your lifestyle changes are fueled by a clear headed decision about what you do or don’t want in your routine, that’s a different matter. But if your changes are driven by fear, panic, obsessive thoughts, and fixation on breakouts, the benefits you’re seeking will be more out of reach and your skin may even relapse further from the added stress.
It helps to first look at where obsessive or compulsive thoughts about your skin or your lifestyle are appearing. Are they around diet, skin care, skin picking, makeup, supplements, or appearance in general? All of the above?
You can also take stock of where else in your overall activities a similar type of obsession or compulsion could be showing up. Do you see similar tendencies surrounding your work, education, family life, chores, etc?
Once you’re more aware of what you’re doing, ask yourself how these tendencies are helping your skin, acne, and stress level. The thoughts that are appearing may seem to masquerade as being helpful. Now it’s time to question whether they really are a positive influence or whether they’re just adding to the self criticism and negativity that acne can already bring on.
If you end up deciding that certain fixed, overly critical, stuck, or obsessive thoughts around acne or lifestyle are not helpful, then it’s time to step back. Challenge yourself to be more aware of 1) when these thoughts come up and 2) the reaction/action that follows the thoughts.
Paying attention is half the battle. Next it’s time to test it out. If your tendency for example is to over-examine your breakout at night and then frantically look for a product replacement to buy online afterward; then you may want to throw a wrench in it by forbidding yourself to pick up your phone or device for the shopping. Wait 1-2 days with this rule in place and see what happens.
If your habit is to pick at your skin when there’s a recent breakout, then you can make sure your nails are trimmed and then keep acne patches nearby along with a soothing spot treatment that you could apply beforehand. Once that patch is on, you’re not allowed to touch that pimple other than to replace the patch. Practice for 1-2 days and see what happens.
Little by little, you can train yourself to swerve your typical tendencies and start questioning the usefulness of obsessive-compulsive thoughts and actions toward your skin.
If you’re struggling with OCD or OCD-type thoughts alongside acne symptoms, feel free to schedule an appointment:
–You’ll get an individualized treatment plan (that includes natural medicine for your skin inside-and-out), as well as further resources and recommendations for skin-related OCD and how to break those habits for the long-term.