An Acne Fetish is No Laughing Matter

While it may be easy to scoff off an acne fetish with remarks like, "I don't have that problem," it is more common than you might think. For definition, a fetish is an object of unreasonably obsessive attention or regard; we are not talking about a sexual fetish for feet or leather, but a real psychological obsession with acne generally not associated with pleasure. Sufferers give extreme attention to zits and pimples and are constantly obsessing if they have a pimple or are developing a pimple, often spending hundreds or thousands of dollars on treatments.

Two clinical forms of an acne fetish include excoriated acne and imagined acne. Excoriated acne occurs when an acne patient continues to pick at or squeeze pimples that form on their face which prevents the skin from healing properly. This constant picking aggravates the acne and often times leaves severe scarring followed by a significant increase in pimple formation. Imagined acne happens when a patient is convinced she has acne but in reality does not. This person may have one small pimple and blow the single pimple out of proportion; they view it as a severe case of acne and obsess over treatments.

Underlying both of these fetishes is dysmorphophobia, the fear of being ugly, which is an easy psychological state to develop in a society which places increasing emphasis on superficial looks rather than personality traits.

Steps to combating an acne fetish include spending less time in front of the mirror and embellishing your talents. You must stop one behavior and replace it with another, so when you want to look in the mirror to admire that new pimple take a walk around the block instead. Even a short hiatus from mirror visits may help acne fetish. If you do look in the mirror focus on features away from the zits. Look at the color of your eyes or the size of your lips and avoid criticizing. You may have lovely eyelashes or the perfect eyebrows; whenever you look in the mirror stop making negative judgments about yourself. If you find yourself thinking negatively and wanting to burst that zit just remind yourself that every zit that you prematurely pop may encourage the formation of 3 completely new zits, then walk away from the mirror.

In the final analysis, healing an acne fetish starts with recognizing that this condition exists in the first place. Admitting you have a problem is the first step to treatment. If you think you have a fetish visit a dermatologist to confirm, then ask for a recommendation of a good psychiatrist because the acne is probably not the only issue you need to address.