Funny, i should have suspected that this habit would be classified. Compulsive Skin Picking - ok, but do we need another acronym?
I've been doing this since I hit puberty. My acne was already a major instigator of socially avoidant tendencies. It certainly made things no better when I turned my face into a red and swollen spectacle. My entire face looked like a burn wound. Not once has anybody commented directly on this habit of mine, although people have often indicated awareness.
Eventually my acne cleared up (for the most part), and it was only then that I became very aware of how bizarre this habit was. There are little white pockets of goo seemingly layered between skin layers, so prolific that it's almost like a reservoir beneath my pores covers my entire face. It is hardly noticeable to anyone but me. When I started picking at these, I kind of had to figure something was a little off.
Anyway, the point is, tiredly, tritely, you are not alone - you are not the only one with this habit. I escaped with minimal facial scarring. I'm lucky in this respect.
How did I stop picking at my face? I moved into a new house with extremely dim lighting. I subjected my face to less scrutiny when it seemed almost uniform gray. So, if you are doing this to your face, I advise you to 1) Avoid mirrors 2) In some way, make the lighting in your bathroom dimmer. It worked for me.
Now, if anyone has a simple solution for torso picking, I'm all eyes.