Hi all. I decided to post here because I am just going out of my mind over the state of my legs and I was so hoping someone could clear me up. I've looked around on the internet for about 5 months now with no success.
For some background information:
As I said, I was hoping that ripping my hair out at the roots would solve my insecurity about my legs. It seemed to work for a few days, but then I noticed that little tiny black dots had appeared in the pores, like tiny grains of sand. They are thicker and more black than my already pretty dark leg hair. They don't grow with my leg hair, just stay as little pinpricks in the pores. Being the skin picker that I am, I've attempted to remove them using tweezers, and I've been successful though I'm nowhere near able to extract them from every single pore -
Pic attached - I apologise about the state of my legs. I've not shaved since I wanted to see the difference between my actual leg hair and the black pores. You can sort of see the difference between the two "types" of pores.
If I use tweezers and push down on the top of the pore (hairs usually grow in clusters of two or three hairs per pore, so usually there are two or three black dots close together, if you know what I mean), then push the tweezers down in the direction that they are "growing", they usually just pop out. They are soft, black and thick. Part of me thinks that they are actually hairs, the hair roots left behind/dislodged from my last wax, because some of them, when "pushed", stay stuck and reveal more of it beneath the skin, like a regular hair, but if they are hairs why aren't they growing, and why is it so easy for them to be pushed out? Another possible reason may be that they are blocked/clogged pores because some of them smudge kind of like dirt (though they are NOT blackheads, I'm sure of it).
Exfoliation and rubbing hard with a mitt doesn't get rid of them. Swiping with a toner containing salicylic acid doesn't work, either.
Can anyone help me? Has anyone had this before? What are they? How can I get rid of them, and how can I prevent them from appearing again?
Thanks so much.
For some background information:
- I'm 21
- Up until late last year I've only ever shaved my legs, with a very brief career in epilation.
- I have pale skin and dark hair, so when I shave my legs my skin looks like it has lots of dark brown and red spots all over it where the hair roots are still visible beneath the surface. I was hoping waxing would solve this problem for me, but it has only given me a new set of problems which I'll go into below these bullet points
- I have dermatillomania, a body focused repetitive disorder (BFRD) and a form of OCD which involves picking at imperfections on my skin. I have scars on my upper arms, face and chest from this. I am hoping to avoid leg scars, hence my post.
- I also have BDD, body dysmorphic disorder, which causes me to be hyper aware of myself, my body and my flaws to the extent that my view of myself is distorted.
- I only mention these things because I just want to explain why this seems so urgent to me even if it's just a small matter. My self confidence and my social/sex life have plummeted since this problem began.
- I can't afford IPL/laser removal, though I would probably get it done if I could afford it.
- I have been home waxing. I've never had a professional wax done as I've either not had the funds to do it when they have had appointments or I've needed smooth legs for an event a couple of days afterwards and there were no appointments available. Ideally I'd have professional waxes.
As I said, I was hoping that ripping my hair out at the roots would solve my insecurity about my legs. It seemed to work for a few days, but then I noticed that little tiny black dots had appeared in the pores, like tiny grains of sand. They are thicker and more black than my already pretty dark leg hair. They don't grow with my leg hair, just stay as little pinpricks in the pores. Being the skin picker that I am, I've attempted to remove them using tweezers, and I've been successful though I'm nowhere near able to extract them from every single pore -
Pic attached - I apologise about the state of my legs. I've not shaved since I wanted to see the difference between my actual leg hair and the black pores. You can sort of see the difference between the two "types" of pores.
If I use tweezers and push down on the top of the pore (hairs usually grow in clusters of two or three hairs per pore, so usually there are two or three black dots close together, if you know what I mean), then push the tweezers down in the direction that they are "growing", they usually just pop out. They are soft, black and thick. Part of me thinks that they are actually hairs, the hair roots left behind/dislodged from my last wax, because some of them, when "pushed", stay stuck and reveal more of it beneath the skin, like a regular hair, but if they are hairs why aren't they growing, and why is it so easy for them to be pushed out? Another possible reason may be that they are blocked/clogged pores because some of them smudge kind of like dirt (though they are NOT blackheads, I'm sure of it).
Exfoliation and rubbing hard with a mitt doesn't get rid of them. Swiping with a toner containing salicylic acid doesn't work, either.
Can anyone help me? Has anyone had this before? What are they? How can I get rid of them, and how can I prevent them from appearing again?
Thanks so much.