YOU ARE NOT ALONE: REAL LIFE STORIES
Anonymous Notes From Picky People – Ants
When I feel like picking and don’t do it… it feels like ants crawling all over my skin or it feels like my chest is going to collapse in on me.
I tend to want to pick when I am feeling totally overwhelmed with the amount of work I have to do. I procrastinate on the work and go pick my face to get instantaneous relief, but then I feel guilty because I have wasted more time. I didn’t get my work done and end up feeling even more overwhelmed.
I have thought about the short term benefits I get from picking: the immediate relief from stress, the fact that it does clean out my pores and makes any pain or pressure from the pimples go away. It feels satisfying, because I am in action over something. But on the flip side, I feel guilty and have started to notice pitting and scarring on my face. It makes me feel bad about myself.
If I can just get past the ants, I’d be ok. But putting off the instant gratification is disappointing and I feel deprived of my satisfaction.
Now when I start feeling that way, I growl “ANTS” as intensely as I can say it (with clenched teeth) while I clench and shake my fists. It’s almost like I am shaking the ants off and it seems to alleviate the pressure somewhat. It also makes me laugh sometimes which helps to alleviate some stress.
