Excoriated acne occurs when an acne patient continues to pick at or squeeze acne formations on their face, never allowing skin to heal. This constant picking aggravates acne condition and often times leaves severe scarring. 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 existence of pimple out of proportion and view it as a severe case of acne.

Underlying both of these acne fetishes is fear of being ugly, or dysmorphophobia. It’s an easy psychological state to acquire in a society that increasingly places more value on superficial looks than personal traits.

Steps to combating an acne fetish include: Spending less time self-critiquing in front of mirror; and Embellishing your talents.

We say we want to eat better, feel better, and look better. But in order to make our goals materialize, we have to take responsibility for what we want by taking appropriate actions. Here are three simple steps to help you turn your healthy goals into concrete accomplishments:

Step One: Blame No One. Pointing fingers at fast food industry, media or your mother is not going to move you one step closer to reaching your goals. Blame invariably inspires guilt and reproach, so that when we start out blaming others, before we know it we are faulting ourselves. There is no time for that. Besides, minute you blame something or someone for shape of your life, you are denying yourself opportunity to take action you need to transform your circumstances. It isn’t a question of whose fault it is that you are where you are today. The point is to shoulder responsibility for moving your life in a more positive direction.