Hi, I'm sorry I don't have any real solutions, but I've gone through periods of picking at my scalp. I actually bought myself a nice hat that I would put on when I was feeling the urge to pick. Didn't always work, but often did. I also found that when I had fake nails on, I didn't pick. I haven't had the problem for awhile. It just went away. I've had a few periods of that. I just realized I wasn't doing it anymore.
Hope this helps a little. I know how frustrating it is.

Thanks for the encouragement Lady Deb. I thought about a hat, I'm. It much of a hat person, but this may be the time to become one! I've never had fake nails either, but I could see how they may help too...great suggestions :)

i have a similar issue, except for i am a skin picker. acne, ingrown hairs, your name it. i just pick like crazy.

i am on n-acetyl cysteine (sp?) and inositol supplements to help and they DO seems to have helped. But, like your said, it is a comfort thing for me too. Lately i have been setting myself small goals. first that i would go one day without picking. then 3 days. then a week. sometimes i make it, sometimes i dont. but setting that goal for myself really seems to keep my mind focused.

I do the head thing at times, although I usually pick my arms a LOT more, and honestly, reading this is the first I've heard of it, and upon further reading, I think I have it, but I know I can't afford to go check. I find covering the area helps. Like I don't do it when I'm wearing a sweater (Unless extremely stressed) or when I purposely keep my mind on something else. Hope I helped, and if not, I thank you for helping me possibly figure out why I pick at my own skin :)

I have excema and I used to pick my scabs to the point of bleeding. Then I would wash, apply peroxide and band-aid them to cover up the evidence. This was going on since I was probably in middle school or earlier. Now my daughter tells me to stop picking when she catches me, and I keep my nails done (not professionally, just nail stickers) and when I wear them, I don't pick. I think awareness is the key here. If you are aware of when or why you pick, then you can probably distract yourself from doing it. When you feel anxious, try breathing instead. Fill your cheeks with air and hold it, then blow it out slowly. I wish they were simple quick fixes for this, but unfortunately, you have to find what works for you and you alone.

I used to have thick scabs on my scalp as well, as a kid. I don't recall what the doctor said caused them, but I eventually grew out of them. I used to pick at them, as well.

I've always been a skin-picker. It ebbs and flows, but lately it's been worse. My therapist has suggested many things, which so far haven't worked, but they may work for you. I just talked about it with her yesterday.

Her suggestions:
-Try playing with Velcro or something else, anything else. I tried that, and I tried playing with a chain of safety pins.
-Try telling yourself to stop for just a small period of time, maybe a minute, and then you can pick again. Slowly increase these periods of time. I'm going to try this one.
-One thing I've tried on my own that sometimes helps is to just gently scratch at the area and play with it instead of actually picking at it. I'm on a blood thinner, so when I pick at something, and it bleeds, it bleeds a lot, and that can be really embarrassing in public. I try to just scratch at it in public, and though it's a little embarrassing, it seems to work.

Good luck. Keep trying things until you find what works for you.