This is very similar to my acne when it first began (don't worry, it hasn't gotten that much worse and I'm pretty sure yours is even milder than mine ever was).

Acne on the chin and around the mouth tends to be hormonal, although not always. Have you noticed it popping up/getting worse in relation to your cycle at all? Certain birth control pills can help regulate this.

As far as topical treatments, Neutrogena face wash tends to have salicilyc acid, which isn't really effective for inflammed acne - it's just an exfoliant and helps clear dead skin. For a topical solution, I would try using something with Benzoyl Peroxide on your acne, which kills acne-causing bacteria. Start slowly (every other day), because it can be very irritating, but it kills the bacteria causing acne. You can try using a cleanser with BP such as PanOxyl Creamy Wash 4% or cleansing with a gentle cleanser such as cetaphil and applying a thin layer of BP as a gel or cream over the areas affected by acne. Make sure to use a good moisturizer, as BP is drying. If after a week or two you feel like your skin can handle it, you can increase your BP usage to once a day, and then possibly 2x a day, but be sure to be patient (more is not always better).

Three days isn't usually enough time to really see improvement, so you're going to need to be patient.

Also, try cutting out dairy and limit your alcohol and sugar intake as much as possible without going crazy.

Hope that is helpful! Lastly, try to see a dermatologist if you can.

I am on the pill (have been on the same one for 2+ years) and have never seen any changes in my skin like acne only the occasional breakout during that specific time every so often.
I used the face wash about 4 months ago that had sal. acid in it to try and heal some breakouts on a different part of my face and it seemed to not work/bother them so I stopped using it after 3 days. I just thought i'd mention it for background information as it has been something I used on my skin, even though these patches of acne didn't show up until weeks after.

Did you ever find out what caused your acne or what it was, has it gone away? I'll try putting some peroxide over it and see how it reacts.

I am on the pill (have been on the same one for 2+ years) and have never seen any changes in my skin like acne only the occasional breakout during that specific time every so often.

I used the face wash about 4 months ago that had sal. acid in it to try and heal some breakouts on a different part of my face and it seemed to not work/bother them so I stopped using it after 3 days. I just thought i'd mention it for background information as it has been something I used on my skin, even though these patches of acne didn't show up until weeks after.

 

Did you ever find out what caused your acne or what it was, has it gone away? I'll try putting some peroxide over it and see how it reacts.

Make sure it's benzoyl peroxide.

As far as I know, sometimes our bodies make a sudden change in hormones due to external factors, but it is definitely jarring and seems like your birth control maybe isn't the culprit (but I'm not a doctor, and that would be something to discuss with your gp or gynecolegist).

Salicylic acid clears dead skin which contribute to clogged pores, and thus helping with acne, but it doesn't do anything to kill the acne causing bacteria, so that's why you didn't see results. I used a three part system containing Salicylic acid for months at a time and it did nothing really, except improving the texture of skin that wasn't affected by acne. BP on the other hand kills that bacteria.

I'm in the process of determining the root of my acne too. Sadly, I wish I could be more help, but it's a personal journey for everyone. I do think that benzoyl peroxide will probably help calm things down immediately, until you can get to a dermatologist.

Here is what my dermatologist, who I met with recently for the first time, said to me: Persistent acne goes hand in hand with a reaction to the changes in hormones in your body. It isn't necessarily that your hormones are out of whack or there's something wrong with your hormone levels, but that for whatever reason, people who are prone to acne are somehow more sensitive to those changes that happen naturally or are triggered by other factors. So trying to regulate those hormone levels as much as possible is key in managing acne.

What I took from that was, for me, regulate my sleep cycle, try to pinpoint foods that my hormones react too (I suspect dairy, along with processed sugars and other foods that are related to insulin resistance, which affects a lot of women), and changing my birth control pill from an ethinyl estradiol/levonogestrel combination, which may promote androgen levels, to a birth control pill meant to help acne (I'll be starting Yaz this next cycle).

She also prescribed me differin (adapelene) to promote skin cell turnover. and a very low concentration of topical clindamycin, an antibiotic). I'll be continuing my benzoyl peroxide wash as well (Panoxyl Creamy Wash 4). So we'll see.