After an enthralling 8 years of back acne, I seem to have gotten it under control with the use of Isotretinoin. I have lots of scars of my back, but I have trouble describing them. They look bumpy, but when you feel my back they aren't bumpy. Those scars cover my upper back. My lower back isn't bad at all -- I have no trouble showing that off. My shoulders suffered with some white scarring, but I've come to terms with that and I'm able to wear tanks now! I still have some red marks, but those should fade soon, I only just finished my accutane course. There are a few lumps of scar tissue, but those should fade too. I'm very insecure of them all. I'd love to be more confident with myself, but it's hard after 8 years with it. What I want to know is, how do I go about telling someone who I want to date that I have these scars? I understand that they should be accepting of them and all that jazz, but I know in reality how people are and what they will think. I'm sure I'm going to find a person who doesn't mind them, but how in the world do I go about telling them? Sadly for me, I am a gay man and I feel that gay men are way too critical about each other's bodies. I'm far too insecure to be upfront about it, but when it comes to actually doing things that involve my shirt coming off, I'm going to have a hard time doing that. Things such as swimming, sex, showering, changing clothes, etc. I'm just so very insecure about them all. I don't even think that they are that bad to be totally honest, I'm just a perfectionist and having bad back acne has been the toughest thing I've had to deal with. It's emotionally exhausting. Any advice would help.
First off.. Congrats on finishing accutane and the fact you are worrying about scars means that your acne is no longer the problem, which is great!
Now onto the scarring.. I'm sorry to hear! I'm a gay male as well and, too, find myself getting very insecure. I have a couple of red scars on my cheeks and temples (I, too, have just finished accutane), which I cover up with a little bit of concealer.
What has your derm said? They should be able to offer types of treatment for your scars. It depends on the type of scarring (maybe if you uploaded a pic?), but if you have family members perhaps something such as a dermaroller could help, and having someone around to get the hard to reach areas would help.
And as for how to tell people.. Don't. Don't bring it up, it doesn't matter. I didn't tell my current boyfriend about my scars which I cover up, and when he saw me without concealer.. He didn't bring it up! Trust me.. If you start dating someone and seeing them, and getting to know them, they're not going to one day go.. Oh he has scars! And dump you 