I developed acne on my face and body at 10-11 years old (really badly on my back). And I can't for the life of me ever remember being bothered by it at the time. I still did what I could to treat it, I applied my retin-a gel at night time and used Proactiv as my skin care routine (back in those days) but I never actually remember caring about it that much. I never cried once - at all.
People assumed because I was a girl that was affected by varrying degrees (it waxed and waned) of fairly severe acne on my face and body that I must have a low self esteem and be in some kind of emotional pain but this was not the case at all.
I was a tomboy who wore boys clothes and didn't care what I looked like. I didn't feel like a *girl* somehow, I felt closer to a boy as though I had more of a male brain and wasn't as influenced by emotions over something like "appearance" as the other girls in my class dealing with ane. They wore heavy pancake makeup to school and bawled in the bathroom if someone said anything about their skin - I didn't give a sh*t. I remember some guy in middle school turning around and trying to insult me about my skin and I laughed in his face.. he just looked back at me "puzzled" - Like you're a girl you're supposed to be upset about that.
I don't know, maybe I'm just an alien. Can anyone else relate?
I'm 24 now and my acne is fairly under control with spironolactone. I do what I can to treat it but never got hysterical when my skin "got really bad" or hid in my home (which a lot of people do apparently?) I'd just go out without makeup with some Retin-A or lotion on my face without a care what people thought of me.
I'm not happy that you (anyone for that matter) had to be afflicted with acne, although I really do respect the way you've dealt with it. I'm glad that acne never interfered with your life, or the way you perceived yourself as a woman. Now if only every acne sufferer could adopt this mentality...if only.
LOL I don't think you'll find many people who will relate to that here.
Not sure the point of this post... I mean I'm happy for you, but a lot of us are suffering pretty terribly, emotionally, because of this.
Everyone has their own emotional thresh hold for what they can take. Some people are more sensitive about their physicality than others. This is influenced by coping style, self esteem ect. Everyone is so different.
I may have not cared what people thought because I had a strong sense of inherent self worth - I knew I was vauable as a person regardless of what anyone said to me, so I really didn't care. I couldn't get "broke down" because I had a strong sense of myself.
LOL I don't think you'll find many people who will relate to that here.
Not sure the point of this post... I mean I'm happy for you, but a lot of us are suffering pretty terribly, emotionally, because of this.
Everyone has their own emotional thresh hold for what they can take. Some people are more sensitive about their physicality than others. This is influenced by coping style, self esteem ect. Everyone is so different.
I may have not cared what people thought because I had a strong sense of inherent self worth - I knew I was vauable as a person regardless of what anyone said to me, so I really didn't care. I couldn't get "broke down" because I had a strong sense of myself.
For me it's never been my looks. I don't like being ugly or anything and it does hurt me emotionally, but it's always been the physical pain that made me depressed. For most of my life when I've had severe acne, it's been difficult to do anything physical, from dance to have sex to kiss. Even giving a friend a hug has caused problems multiple times when they accidentally bump their face or shoulder against one of my cysts and I end up screaming and crying in pain. Makes for some severely awkward social situations. 
I developed acne on my face and body at 10-11 years old (really badly on my back). And I can't for the life of me ever remember being bothered by it at the time. I still did what I could to treat it, I applied my retin-a gel at night time and used Proactiv as my skin care routine (back in those days) but I never actually remember caring about it that much. I never cried once - at all.
People assumed because I was a girl that was affected by varrying degrees (it waxed and waned) of fairly severe acne on my face and body that I must have a low self esteem and be in some kind of emotional pain but this was not the case at all.
I was a tomboy who wore boys clothes and didn't care what I looked like. I didn't feel like a *girl* somehow, I felt closer to a boy as though I had more of a male brain and wasn't as influenced by emotions over something like "appearance" as the other girls in my class dealing with ane. They wore heavy pancake makeup to school and bawled in the bathroom if someone said anything about their skin - I didn't give a sh*t. I remember some guy in middle school turning around and trying to insult me about my skin and I laughed in his face.. he just looked back at me "puzzled" - Like you're a girl you're supposed to be upset about that.
I don't know, maybe I'm just an alien. Can anyone else relate?
I'm 24 now and my acne is fairly under control with spironolactone. I do what I can to treat it but never got hysterical when my skin "got really bad" or hid in my home (which a lot of people do apparently?) I'd just go out without makeup with some Retin-A or lotion on my face without a care what people thought of me.
Good for you. Self esteem is something i think many of us struggle with and living in a world that thrives on beauty, its as if we are always competing with one another. My skin definitely affects me more than i like and that stems from things that have happened to me in my past. Hoping to get to a point where i can truly say 'fuck it!'