# Does anyone else pick at painfull things? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [June 6, 2004, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-else-pick-at-painfull-things/248920 "2004-06-06T05:42:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ThatGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e5b9ba/32.png) [@ThatGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThatGuy)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2004, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-else-pick-at-painfull-things/248920/1 "2004-06-06T05:42:18Z")
Sometimes when my gums or lips are sore for some reason or another i find myself subconsciously agitating the offending injury for the purpose of the pain (although slight) it causes me. I am by no means a masochist, in fact i’m a certifiable coward with actual pain. I know a few of my friends admit to the same so it seems to me a genuine human trait, but what advantage would we gain messing with a healing part of our body? Anyone want to shed any light? ---
**Author:** ![Muad\_Dib](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/35a633/32.png) [@Muad\_Dib](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muad_Dib)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2004, 6:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-else-pick-at-painfull-things/248920/2 "2004-06-06T06:01:21Z")
Only if they’re bad relationships and old memories. _takes a swig of whiskey and grimaces with a world-weary expression at the fading light of evening_ ---
**Author:** ![Ephemera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@Ephemera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ephemera)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2004, 6:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-else-pick-at-painfull-things/248920/3 "2004-06-06T06:23:01Z")
I pick at my lips when they’re dry and at scabs as well, but not for the pain associated with it. They just annoy me when they’re so dry and scaly and I rip them off to make it smoother, if not a little bloodier as well. ---
**Author:** ![Vision\_of\_Love](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Vision\_of\_Love](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Vision_of_Love)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2004, 6:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-else-pick-at-painfull-things/248920/4 "2004-06-06T06:56:05Z")
When I was a kid and a tooth had begun to detach itself from my gums, I could manage to remove the tooth completely within a day or two. Despite the pain, I kept twisting teeth up to 360 degrees until I would finally pull them off. ---
**Author:** ![screech-owl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/82dd89/32.png) [@screech-owl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/screech-owl)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2004, 9:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-else-pick-at-painfull-things/248920/5 "2004-06-06T09:57:30Z")
The damned little pimple on the uppper shelf of my ear. Teeny, tiny, can’t-even-see-it, but painful as all hell. It hurts like a @%#ofa&\*^+$ to touch it, but I want it OUT!! NOW!!! And I keep going back after it. ---
**Author:** ![Lobelia\_Overhill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/54ee81/32.png) [@Lobelia\_Overhill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobelia_Overhill)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2004, 11:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-else-pick-at-painfull-things/248920/6 "2004-06-06T11:33:43Z")
When I get a blister on my feet (which is quite often) I burst it, then cover it with a plaster until the “extra” flap of skin dries up, then I pull that off … sometimes (alright always) a bit of regular skin gets peeled off too. ---
**Author:** ![screech-owl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/82dd89/32.png) [@screech-owl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/screech-owl)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2004, 11:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-else-pick-at-painfull-things/248920/7 "2004-06-06T11:49:31Z")
> [@Lobelia Overhill](#): > > … cover it with a **plaster** … 😕 Is that a bandage (or a Band-Aid, to use a brandname)? ---
**Author:** ![Ace309](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ace309/32/1050_2.png) [@Ace309](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ace309)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2004, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-else-pick-at-painfull-things/248920/8 "2004-06-06T21:24:04Z")
Well, yeah. What other purpose do painful things serve? ---
**Author:** ![TheLoadedDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/35a633/32.png) [@TheLoadedDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheLoadedDog)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2004, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-else-pick-at-painfull-things/248920/9 "2004-06-06T23:47:18Z")
Yes. Last week, I contrived to drive a shattered duck bone point first into the roof of my mouth. After I’d stopped bleeding and cursing a blue streak, I found I was left with a little flap of skin at the site of the wound. It wasn’t painful to touch it with my tongue, but it was irritating. Did that stop me constantly doing so? Noooo… ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2004, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-else-pick-at-painfull-things/248920/10 "2004-06-07T01:07:32Z")
Yep. I’m a wuss with pain too but once I get over the initial shock on the injury I _constantly_ screw with it for the pleasure of that slight pain that can sometimes feel good. My friend used to put clothes pins on his ingrown toenails for this reason. I’ve never had an ingrown toenail but I imagine I’d probably do the same thing if I did. ---
**Author:** ![Sutremaine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e495f1/32.png) [@Sutremaine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sutremaine)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2004, 12:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-else-pick-at-painfull-things/248920/11 "2004-06-07T12:24:10Z")
> [@screech-owl](#): > > 😕 Is that a bandage (or a Band-Aid, to use a brandname)? I’m pretty sure that a plaster is the same as a Band-Aid. Little gauze pad surrounded by (usually) flesh coloured sticky plastic stuff? My wisdom tooth on the lower left wasn’t coming through properly, so I scraped off the bits of skin over the ridge of the tooth with my nails. This has left me with a little bibbit of gum, which I abuse quite regularly. Oh, and I also brush my teeth quite hard (I’ve a touch of gingivitis, I think) because of that warm buzzing feeling afterwards. And then I have a cup of coffee. I probably shouldn’t, because of the staining potential, but it’s the only unsugared hot drink that I drink. ---
**Author:** ![gouda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c77e96/32.png) [@gouda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gouda)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2004, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-else-pick-at-painfull-things/248920/12 "2004-06-07T12:28:39Z")
I pick at my 2-day old stubble. I pick at my nose hairs. A few days ago, I discovered a light fuzz on my ears (gah!), and sure enough, I’ve been trying to pick out individual hairs from it. All three occupations sting, all make my eyes water - I’ve sorta gotten used to the stubble part now - and yet, I continue. Why? Maybe because I don’t have boobs to keep myself otherwise occupied 😃 ---
**Author:** ![gouda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c77e96/32.png) [@gouda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gouda)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2004, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-else-pick-at-painfull-things/248920/13 "2004-06-07T12:30:19Z")
Not that I’d be picking anything off boobs. No, there would be no pain involved there… I’m going away now…