Advice, I felt the same way but picking at ur cyst will make the scar much worse, so let it be and just get through while it's temporary because pickingwill leave a permanent mark

I'm sorry, I don't have a solution; and i fight in the same way (28 yo // french girl, sorry to translate google). I also pick, if I don't do them they stay under my skin, my complexion is disgusting, all blurry, so picking seems to me the best solution, despite the damage, just desperate ... I was diagnosed with androgenetic alopecia , so I guess it's just bad genes. But I was told about diseases of the digestive tract, do you have a good transit? I'll try to dig there for my part!

Yep I know your pain and I am almost 40 (god I hate saying that)

I am not certain if what I get is technicallycystic acne but I get large painful closed spots around my nose area

I dont have them all the time but got a flare up about a month ago and while they have gone down I still have a mark.

The masks have not helped in the last year but I have had this issue since I was 15. They are generally single spots so I try and heal them with ice and BZ and SA spot treatment. The ice seems to be the better option.

Also after spending 38 years with out it been an issue right at the start of Covid in March 2020 I developed bacne.

This is mostly small red spots but do get better ones including one which I got about 6 weeks ago and refuses to heal fully

I have been plagued by this most of my life and I do just want it to end

On 7/28/2021 at 7:06 PM, Almost30andAcne said:

Hi everyone,

Ive struggled with acne on and off my whole life. In the past year with mandatory mask-wearing, my cystic acne has come back with a vengeance. As my user name suggests, Im almost 30. Im finding it very debilitating struggling with ongoing and never-ending cystic acne. I have bad OCD, and this has led to skin picking. If I skin pick, my cyst gets worse for a week or so, then goes away. If I dont pick, the cyst can stay for months (worst case). This gives me an insane amount of anxiety. Im just looking for anyone out there who can relate. I feel very embarrassed and alone.

Accutane got rid of my cysts. I struggled with them for about a year. Nothing helped - I put on topicals, altered my diet a little, tried to relieve stress, etc.

I did some research and was ready to go for Accutane despite some side effects. After a few months, I saw really good results. I was on it for about six months and my cysts completely went away. To this day (about 7 years later), I don't get them anymore. I still get a few pimples and whiteheadshere and there but those are minimal.

Accutane is very expensive without insurance. I think it's close to $1k/month on top of blood tests you may need to take. I'm glad insurance covered most of that.

Don't pick! I know it's really hard and I do it as well. You can get cortisone shots for them butbe careful because theriskis that you get an indentation or white spot. Would that be worth it for the cyst to shrink? That's your call. I think I got some minor scars from the cortisone shots.

Sometimes I feel like a broken record because I post "have you tried the regimen" on a bunch of threads. But have you? It should get your acne under control. And then there won't be anything to pick or not pick.

Also, yeah, Accutane is out there for us if needed. I took itback in college when I had acne all over my face and back. Like hundreds of lesions. So it's there if you need it. But for me it was only a short term fix (even though it helped the severity of acne) and led to lifelong side effects. So just saying enter into it with your eyes wide open.

I have just turned 60 and my acne is back with a vengence but this time its on my face at least when it was on my back I could hide it but since covid I am not able to get a GP appointment and its so painful I was on antibiotics for a long time but they stopped working so now its just me and over the counter products trying to fight this battle with little success