Hello. I have decided to post a picture of my condition, as hard as this is for me to post this. I am desperate and at the breaking point. I need advice so badly. I have suffered with acne since I was 12 and I am now 21. I am in tears right now because I was trying to clear up in time for college, and now I only have 2 weeks left until the semester starts. I have been eating very healthy for years, and a few months ago I completely cut out gluten, sugar, dairy, and all processed foods. Basically I am following the holistic diet similar to the Tracy at the Love Vitamin. About 2 weeks ago all my pimples had cleared and I was so excited. I did still have my chronic blackhead issue and my red marks/hyperpigmentation, but it was a step in the right direction. A few days ago, I broke out again on my forehead. The picture you see below was taken just a few minutes ago. I thought I was making progress, but now I'm starting to lose hope. *cries* And yes, I've tried all the antibiotics, topicals, etc as well.
As you can see, my big problems are active pimples, chronic blackheads, red marks, and inflammation. I'm an absolute mess. The weird thing though is that I only get this extreme inflammation on my forehead. I do get acne on the rest of my face, but it's not as bad as on my forehead. For some reason, the region between my eyebrows is extremely sensitive and easily prone to inflammation. I have idea what to do with it anymore.
I suspect that if I could get rid of the blackheads up there, then it would definitely help with the amount of pimples up there. I do think a lot of these pimples I get used to be blackheads. The problem is that I am at a loss at how to get rid of the blackheads. I cannot try and extract the blackheads out myself because my skin is very easily prone to damage. I did recently purchase a lactic acid peel and a salicylic acid peel to try and get the blackheads out, however my skin is so sensitive I am worried about making the inflammation worse. And then we have the red marks/blotchy skin which is an issue to tackle... I am just so overwhelmed. If you guys had my skin, where would you start? I am trying to remain positive, but after almost 10 years of this I am starting to lose hope. Please help.
I should also say that I am on Spironolactone right now as my derm thinks this may be due to hormones. However, she said that the Spironolactone will not help with the blackheads, red marks, or inflammation. Time will tell if it gets rid of the active pimples. Also, the blackheads are extremely deep-seated and stubborn.
What is your current skin care routine? Could you be using a product or doing something to that area to irritate it? Sometimes "over-working" a problem area can do more harm than good and it is best to leave it alone and let it heal for awhile. I recently did this with an area where I was having issues and it now looks good. Try not to stress about it too.....I know it is easier said than done. I am finding that stress plays a role in my skin issues. I have been working on minimizing stress lately and it has been paying off.
I don't know if this would work, but you could try washing your forehead with nizoral shampoo twice a day. I had something similar on my forehead a few years ago, and that cleared it in about a week. If you want to rty it, make sure you leave it on for 3-5 minutes so it has time to work. If it's the same thing I had, you should see improvements in just a few days. Good luck!
