I've had some really bad experiences with medications too. I hope sometime you'll be willing to give them another try - I think they are probably the fastest way for you to experience some relief.
While I know many of the drugs have serious side effects, I also have never heard of them causing permanent side effects - e.g., I'm not sure that the dermotillomania was caused by the medications - it may have been coincidental that it started around the same time - or it may have been exasperated at the time, but probably the ongoing issue is not related to the medication. Usually once the medication exits the system, the side effects taper off. You could ask a psychiatrist more about this - I'm not one.
Other than medications, CBT is your best bet. Do you live near any universities/colleges? Sometimes they will have less expensive options. In Philadelphia for example, I believe it is PCOM offers CBT sessions for $25/session (if memory serves me right). Yeah, it is a student performing the sessions - but, especially with things like CBT, it is a fairly definite process and less subject to the individual whims of the counselor (imho).
Do you think life is especially hard right now or is your anxiety especially bad? Could you find an alternative, less damaging behavior to soothe you?