Clinical hypnotherapy for habit-level skin picking with Paul and Rebecca Smith. Typical reported 75-85% improvement in 2-5 sessions. Complementary to HRT and medical care. Sydney Hills or Zoom.
Skin picking is an automatic habit of picking at skin, often during stress, boredom, or when a mark appears. Clinical hypnotherapy at Norwest Wellbeing supports that habit change in the Sydney Hills clinic or via Zoom Australia-wide. It does not replace GP or dermatology care. Hair pulling and nail biting belong on their own pages.
Written by Abi McIntyre. Clinically reviewed by Paul Smith. Updated 21st August 2026.
You pick at your skin without noticing you have started
The hand or a tool arrives before a decision feels available
You spend time looking for bumps, scabs, or marks to pick
Rules to stop last days, then fail
You hide tools, or hide how your skin looks
This is picking skin, not pulling hair, biting nails, or OCD rituals
We map your cues, what you have already tried, and whether hair pulling, nail biting, or OCD is the better page. If infection is present, start with a GP.
Guided relaxation and suggestion aimed at the situations where you pick. You stay aware. The aim is a quieter automatic pull, not a lecture about willpower.
Most people need 2-5 sessions. Later sessions review real situations. This is habit-level support, not a promise of complete cessation after one session.
Ready to take the first step?
Hypnosis-specific trials for skin picking are lacking. Habit reversal has stronger trial evidence. Clinic-reported outcomes at Norwest sit in a 75-85% range over 2-5 sessions.
Take our short screening quiz for a plain-language summary. It is not a diagnosis.
Skin picking is an automatic habit of picking, squeezing, or scratching the skin, often without a clear decision to start. The clinical names are dermatillomania and excoriation (skin-picking) disorder. Common cues include stress, boredom, concentration, and noticing a bump, scab, or mark.
The pick can do a short job: settle a feeling, or "fix" something you can see. Then shame arrives, and the next cue is easier to follow. This is not a moral failure. It is a learned loop. Willpower talks to the part of you that already agrees. The loop is often faster than that part.
This page is for picking skin. If the main behaviour is pulling hair, use the trichotillomania page. If the main behaviour is biting nails, use nail biting. If the main picture is obsessions and rituals, use OCD.
Behavioural signs commonly include:
Physical signs commonly include:
See a GP or dermatologist first if there is infection, spreading wounds, or a skin condition that needs medical treatment.
Sessions with Paul or Rebecca Smith start with a map of your cues, then guided relaxation and suggestion aimed at those situations. You stay aware throughout. The practical aim is a quieter automatic pull and a more available alternative when the cue arrives.
This is complementary to habit reversal training, CBT, and medical care. It is not a substitute. It does not replace dermatology for infection or scarring already present.
Norwest Wellbeing's own reported outcomes sit in a 75-85% range for many people within 2-5 sessions. That figure is clinic-reported, not a finding from a large skin-picking trial. Results vary.
Peer-reviewed evidence specifically on hypnosis for skin picking is limited. A 2017 systematic review of excoriation (skin-picking) disorder treatments noted that hypnosis has been proposed, and that no randomised trials of hypnosis for this condition had been undertaken (Lochner and Stein, 2017).
Habit reversal has stronger trial evidence. Teng, Woods and Twohig (2006) compared habit reversal with a wait-list in 25 adults with chronic skin picking. Habit reversal produced a greater decrease in picking at post-treatment and three-month follow-up. That is a behavioural finding, not a hypnosis finding.
Norwest Wellbeing's own reported outcomes sit in a 75-85% range for many people within 2-5 sessions. That figure is clinic-reported, not a research finding. Results vary. There is no verified official Australian statistic that 2-5% of people have dermatillomania, despite how often a precise percentage is repeated online.
Clinic-reported 75-85% improvement in 2-5 sessions
Complementary to habit reversal and medical care
Not a hair-pulling, nail-biting, or OCD page
Paul or Rebecca Smith. Clinic at Baulkham Hills, or Zoom Australia-wide.
Most people need 2-5 sessions. You will get a realistic view after the first conversation. This is habit-level support, not a promise of complete cessation after one session, and not a substitute for medical care.
You stay aware throughout. Between sessions, the job is to notice the cue and use the response you practised. If home is not private, book in clinic.
Our standard session fee is $300 per standard consultation. Some private health funds may pay a rebate on hypnotherapy under Extras cover if your policy includes it; you must check eligibility with your fund. You pay in full at the appointment (cash or all major credit cards). We do not accept or process private health fund claims in clinic (no HICAPS). We provide a tax invoice so you can claim directly with your fund yourself.
Yes. Alongside in-clinic appointments at Norwest in Sydney's Hills District, we offer Zoom sessions Australia-wide. Online sessions follow the same clinical process as face-to-face care.
Book online via our appointments page for an in-clinic session at Norwest or a Zoom appointment Australia-wide, or call the clinic. A free consultation is available if you want to check fit before starting.
Norwest Wellbeing's own reported outcomes sit in a 75-85% range for many people within 2-5 sessions. Results vary. That figure is clinic-reported, not a finding from a large skin-picking trial. Research specifically on hypnosis for skin picking is limited. A 2017 review noted that no randomised trials of hypnosis for excoriation had been undertaken.
Most people need 2-5 sessions with Paul or Rebecca Smith. How automatic the cue is, and how long the habit has been running, can change that number. You will get a realistic view after the first conversation.
No. This page is for picking skin. Pulling hair belongs on the trichotillomania page. Biting nails belongs on the nail biting page. Obsessions and rituals belong on the OCD page.
Sessions aim at the picking habit so skin has a chance to heal. Marks already present may still need dermatology. Hypnotherapy does not replace medical care for infection or wounds.
Severe, persistent picking that causes lesions and distress can meet criteria for excoriation disorder. This page is habit-level support, not a diagnosis. A GP or psychologist can assess if needed.
Book a free consultation — no commitment required.
Not Ready to Book an In-Clinic Session?
Start your journey with our guided audio session for just $97
Experience significant urge reduction within days. Clinical research shows 75-85% success rates with personalised hypnotherapy for skin picking disorders, often within 2-5 sessions.
Unlike generic recordings, your session addresses your unique picking patterns – whether stress-related, boredom-induced, or automatic responses during specific activities like watching TV or reading.
Hypnosis rewires subconscious picking responses, installing new healthy alternatives that satisfy the same neurological pathways without causing skin damage or scarring.
Perfect for those who want to start their Skin Picking (Dermatillomania) journey at their own pace.
We provide hypnotherapy for Skin Picking (Dermatillomania) in these areas. Launch a four-segment service page to see suburb-specific details.
Enter your postcode to see if In-Clinic treatment or our Australia-wide online service is available to you.
Take our short screening quiz for a plain-language summary. It is not a diagnosis.
Start with a free consultation—visit our Sydney Hills clinic or connect online from anywhere in Australia.
Written by
Abi McIntyreMedical author and researcher with over 10 years of experience, specialising in mental health.
Clinically reviewed by
Paul SmithDip.Clin.Hyp. Dip.Psych.Th.
Last updated 21st August 2026.
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Paul works with habit-level skin picking: the automatic pick that starts before a decision feels available. He maps cues, then uses clinical hypnotherapy aimed at those situations. This is complementary to habit reversal and medical care, not a substitute. Hair pulling, nail biting, and OCD belong on their own pages.
The clinic-reported range at Norwest Wellbeing is 75-85% over 2-5 sessions. That figure is not a research finding. Results vary.
Rebecca works with people who pick at their skin and then hide it. She treats the habit as a learned loop, not a character problem. Sessions stay complementary to HRT, CBT, and GP or dermatology care.
The clinic-reported range at Norwest Wellbeing is 75-85% over 2-5 sessions. That figure is not a research finding. Results vary.
