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Re: crawling out of my skin (long) » Noa

Posted by julesvox on January 20, 2001, at 15:07:42

In reply to Re: Bizzarre compulsive behaviors anyone?, posted by Noa on January 18, 2001, at 17:15:40

noa--

thank you for all those links. i was glad to see them.

the problem i have with them is that they are so focused on skin-picking as pathology...trying to get it into the DSM seems to me kind of unhelpful. i mean, obviously this behavior can get severe and disfiguring and very damaging, and people deserve whatever treatment is available. and, like you said, i think there must be a biochem-behavioral loop (my parents & sister also have very dry skin, dandruff/dermatitis etc). and i hear that to you & others it feels very chemical.

and, i'm uncomfortable with approaches that treat the skin as completely separate from other parts of the body and mind and spirit. so i've begun gently asking my body what else might be going on. like, i know i have boundary issues and that when i feel threatened, like i can't say no, i itch & scratch & pick. the skin is our biggest boundary. when i had an allergic reaction to some antibiotics my fever shot up and my skin was bright red, swollen & so itchy all over. when i scratched i left bruises. so this was a chemical thing...and i think it was also about how i was feeling. i was so angry & nervous and the itching got a little less when i was able to calm down and be more present. not either/or. when i'm picking a lot, i try to remember to pay attention to how in touch with my body i am, if i'm dissociating (but also try not to beat myself up for picking).

andrew weil says "dermatitis is an allergic and psychosomatcic condition, for which conventioal medicine can offer only suppressive therapies....mind/body interventions combined with lifestyle changes and nontoxic symptomatic management will often allow the body to heal itself."

i wonder what you think of all this...i'm certainly not arguing that we can control how our skin feels or are to 'blame' for picking. i'm interested in a more wholistic approach. j.


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