Trigger Warning: Dermatillomania, Skin Picking, Skin Damage, mentions of blood

I bet you may be wondering why I am talking about a lifelong struggle in the midst of a financial blog. At first, I did not see the connection of my own financial health and my mental one. For years, I spent what I wanted (within reason of course, I didn’t want to spend to homelessness). As the anxiety started to rise and become almost unmanageable without medication, I saw that my cuticles were worse for wear. I was also turning small pimples to open wounds on my face, convinced that I was purging my skin of a pustule invader. The more I spent, the more I became an open wound of my own making.

It became so bad that I eventually had to go to a dermatologist that my insurance covered to be put on medication to help clear my face and I started really trying to take care of my skin. Healing my skin took 2 years and I now take pride when someone tells me that I have a beautiful face. With the knowledge of my severity with Dermatillomania, I know what I do that causes anxiety may eventually lead to a bad skin trip.

In March 2025, I had my first severe emergence of skin picking.

On my left hand pinkie finger, I started to really tear up my cuticles and the skin further outside of my nail bed. Sometimes, I am unaware that I am doing it until there is blood smearing across my hand and I feel the wetness of it. It also just so happened that I was spiraling in my finances because I was wanting to pay off debt quicker than having a stable foundation of savings. Me and my partner were hit with a bill that would have been manageable if we had an adequate savings. The bill was less than a $1000 dollars. We did not even have that to cover. Spiral.Spiral.Spiral.Pick.Pick.Pick

Lessons are learned best the hard way. My skin will heal, but if I don’t take care of my financial health, it will spill over into other areas of my life. With me, it’s my skin.

Friends, take care of yourselves and your emotional spending habits.

Much Love, Elle.

*For those also struggling with OCD or Dermatillomania, I recommend OCD Center of Los Angeles Blog. I am not affiliated, I just love their blog and I subscribe to their email subscription.*