Therapy for Excoriation Disorder

Therapy for Excoriation Disorder

While there are many treatments practiced worldwide for excoriation disorder (aka, compulsive skin picking) the following evidence-based therapies are the most effective for those with body-focused repetitive behaviors (BFRBs):

Therapy for Excoriation Disorder

Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Behavioral Therapy:

“Developing the skill of non-judgmental awareness and acceptance of present-moment experience, including all of the unwanted thoughts, feelings, sensations, and urges that are at the heart of these conditions. the aim of mindfulness is to recognize and accept that these uncomfortable experiences are transitory and inevitable aspects of human life. From a mindfulness perspective, not accepting these unwanted inner experiences is the source of much of our self-induced suffering.”


(source, ocdla.com)

Habit-Reversal Therapy (HRT):

HRT is an early treatment for BFRBs developed in the 1970s by Nathan Azrin and Gregory Nunn. HRT is the method that has been examined most in research studies. HRT has a varying number of components in its treatment package. The three components that are considered most critical are awareness training, competing response training and social support.”

(source, bfrb.org)

Dialectal Behavioral Therapy (DBT):

“The term “dialectical” means a synthesis or integration of opposites. The primary dialectic within DBT is between the seemingly opposite strategies of acceptance and change. For example, DBT therapists accept clients as they are while also acknowledging that they need to change in order to reach their goals. In addition, all of the skills and strategies taught in DBT are balanced in terms of acceptance and change.”                       


(source, skinpick.com)

Acceptance-Commitment Therapy (ACT):

“… ACT sees our problems, challenges, psychological distress and discomfort as normal parts of human life. In other words, ACT does not pathologize any of these normal human experiences or assume that you are flawed, broken or diseased because you suffer. Suffering is a fact of life, and how you deal with your suffering is the key. ACT says that accepting that you will suffer is an important first step. Fighting against suffering only adds more suffering into the mix, making your situation worse, not better. It’s antithetical to what most of us believe. It’s radical, and it works. Accepting uncomfortable thoughts, feelings and sensations results in less suffering and discomfort.”

(source, centerforact.com)


For a complete list of qualified mental health providers, visit the TLC Foundation for BFRBs. If you are a professional seeking training, get your certification through TLC’s Professional Training Institute.
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