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Help with identifying the type and cause of my acne

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(@neishyllio)

Posted : 02/14/2018 7:26 am

Hello, acne.org.

I'm 22 years old and have been struggling with acne for the past 6 years. For the first couple I really neglected it and thought it would go away on its own, but that obviously wasn't the case.
At first I didn't let it get to me, but I've reached a point where I'm getting depressed because I don't feel comfortable looking at myself in the mirror anymore, let alone interact with people face-to-face as I constantly feel like I'm being judged.

I regret not trying to do anything about it while I was 16/17 but my family's financial situation didn't let me buy any expensive medication or even visit a dermatologist once a month.

Now that I am able to at least take care of the basics, I've decided to finally do something about it and for the past 5 weeks or so I've watched my diet (no dairy/sweets/junk food), tried my best to not touch my face or pick any spots, changed my bedsheets twice a week, but to no avail.

I suppose my skin is extremely oily, since as soon as I glide my finger over my forehead, it becomes absolutely soaked with grease and nothing seems to be helping it.

This has been my routine for this whole time:

AM: La Roche Posay Effaclar cleansing gel, LRP Effaclar Duo Plus as a moisturiser, Biore Watery Essence SPF50 sunscreen

PM: LRP Effaclar cleansing gel, 10% mandelic/lactic acid serum to exfoliate, LRP Effaclar Duo Plus, BP on the worst spots.

I've also been taking 30mg zinc supplements and drinking only water and green tea.

My skin literally didn't change one bit, and while I know it usually takes around 8 or so to see results, I feel like not seeing ANY change (skin is neither more dry or oily, no spots, discoloration has gone away) is just wasting my money away and leaves me even more angry and stressed at my skin.

Pics of face/cheeks/shoulders below:
https://imgur.com/a/MYpHm

I'd definitely say my shoulders are in the worst condition by far. The massive red spots are deep beneath my skin, and even if I try I can't possibly squeeze them out.

I've read about a lot of different types of acne lately (fungal, hormonal, whether it's even active pimples or scars etc.) and I have no clue what kind I have anymore.

Please advise me on what products to add (I've been thinking of using Azaleic Acid from The Ordinary in the morning) and what to do in general moving forward. Feel free to ask any questions so that I can inform you to the best of my abilities.

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(@Anonymous)

Posted : 02/14/2018 8:39 am

Suggest dr and a course of oral anti biotics,i suspect something along the lines of folliculitus.just a weak oral anti biotic should help,oxytetracycline,something like that.
:)

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MemberMember
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(@neishyllio)

Posted : 02/19/2018 5:17 am

Been to a dermatologist and mentioned your suggestion to him, but after looking me over and listening to my story, he told me that since I've been dealing with acne for so long, the only possible treatment that will bring results for sure at this point is Accutane.
He prescribed me 20mg/day and said that the entire process will last for a full year.

I'm a little scared but looking forward to it at the same time.
Hopefully 2018 is the last year I'm seeing my face and back in this state.

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