I am a 20 year old male who has suffered from severe acne since I was around 15 and I am at the point where I am seriously considering taking my own life because of it, when I first started getting acne it would just be the odd pimple here and there and it wouldn't bother me, but through the past few years things have just spiralled out of control completely, my WHOLE face is literally covered in reoccurring spots and scars from previous ones that no matter what I do or what medication I receive they don't go away, my whole life has been ruined because of this, I dropped out of college because of the embarrassment of going in and facing people everyday who were clearly noticing my face and even commenting on it sometimes, I'm now suffering from anxiety and depression and have suicidal thoughts on a daily basis, my whole life is centred around my skin I don't spend time with friends any more because I look at them with their clear face and feel ashamed of mine, I can't go out during the day be cause I'm afraid people will look and judge me and whenever i go out these feelings cause me to sweat uncontrollably so I will have a hood up 90% of the time when i am outside, whenever I look at someone with clear skin I wonder why they have it and I don't, I can't watch tv without looking at a persons face and being envious if they have clear skin, Im always walking with my head down, i feel my face and can feel new spots coming in everyday before they do, I'm short tempered I struggle to look people in the eye, what makes it worse is put everything I can into trying to stop it, I eat my 5 a day, drink ridiculous amounts of water, I wash my face with moisturiser twice a day, I don't drink or smoke, but yet every other day I have 2 or 3 new cysts that stand out from a mile away that cause me pain physically and emotionally, nobody around me like doctors or family see it a serious problem like I do they say it's just a phase when I try to tell the m a phase that will leave Me SCarred for the rest of my life they tell me the scars will heal, a statement that couldn't be more wrong! My acne scars will be with me forever, I don't exactly know what I'm looking for on this as I have tried EVERY remedy from laser treatment to lemon juice, I suppose I just hope if you read This u should know acne is a serious illness that is not appreciated as one enough, the affect it can have on someone's life is evident through mine, I can't do anything in life with a Face like this woman look at me and either laugh or scowl, employers won't give Me a chance because I look unhygienic and dirty, people stare at me like I'm a disease ridden animal and i cannot do it anymore, so please if you have the same problem as me and u manage to get through it just know u are a stronger person than anyone knows!! ScrewYouAcne!!!
Hi,
I can relate with you to some extent. I was in a similar state some years ago. It can be tough to deal with acne but we must attempt to stay strong and positive. I think exercise helped me a lot with my confidence. Do you work out? Whatever happens please never give up! Different treatments work for different people. You may not have found a treatment which suits your skin but that does not mean that you will never find it. I found that the cleanser and mosituriser I used could contribute to my acne. Could it be the same for you?
try Vitamin A and D supplement if you cant get accutane.
I think most people here can identify with you. I myself was at the point you are when I was about 24. My whole face was covered with acne. Not one patch of clear skin. I had no idea how I was going to come out of it, but I did and here I am telling you about it years later. Go to my profile and visit my site where I have put up a pic of myself covered with acne. And trust me that is not my worst.
First you need to get out of your depression. And stop focussing so much on your acne. There will always be assholes who comment on your acne but this does not mean you drop out of college and let them win. I went out when I had bad acne and one thing I knew I was not going to let people stop me. Yes, I got comments and was hurt and embarrassed, and looking back I realize I should have handled them better and stood up for myself more. But what I can do now is tell YOU to stand up for yourself. When someone makes a comment do not keep quiet and say something back even if it is to tell them it's rude. Start with this.
Acne is a serious issue which is not treated as such. The whole responsibility of getting clear rests in our hands, which I think is a good thing rather than bad. Acne scars do not have to be with you forever. There are better treatment today than there were 10 years back and I am sure they will only get better.
Many here have come out of the place you are in now and YOU WILL TOO.
Hey Pizza Face, please listen to me. I was in your shoes exactly. Stop doing anything to your skin. Leave it alone. The reason your skin has gotten so bad is because of all the shit you've been doing to it for the past 5 years. You say you moisturize twice a day?? Stop it! Stop all of it! Your skin needs to heal. I imagine that the worst areas of your face also happen to be the ones where you apply the most products. This is because you keep making them worse with products but you continue to use the products because you think that's what'sgonna help, when in fact it's what's causing everything in the first place. Trust me! I went through this. After years of using products and picking, I stopped everything. My skin got GROSS and every part of me thought it's not working and that I'm only making my skin worse and that I need to use cleanser, or moisturizer, or some topical. But I didn't, I pushed through. It's been 10 months now, and my skin is starting to look normal, even very attractive again!!! It feels like a miracle but it's not. It took 10 months of letting my skin repair itself because your skin naturally wants to be healthy. It doesn't need moisturizer and tretinoin and shit. Just let it be. It's gonna be hard. Your skin will get nasty. It's basically needs to scab over (the dead skin mask) and heal from underneath. It's the only way. Trust me. I'm 31. I lost a long part of my life fighting something that didn't even have to exist in the first place. You're young, this doesn't have to define your life. Stop doing anything to your face. Maybe some water here and there. And if you have to exfoliate a bit, then do it. But you need to let it go through its natural healing process, and unfortunately, sometimes it's not too pretty. But it will be worth it. And when you begin to see your skin starting to heal and you get hope back that one day you won't have to struggle with this anymore, it will be worth it. I wish you the best!
Don't give up! I know it's easier said that done, but the thing is, if you end your life, there is no chance of how you feel getting better or even your acne. Life does get better, even if your acne doesn't. You'll make it. I'm sure your acne will get better. Good luck, friend.
I can relate to most of the stuff you wrote. I have also lost the past 5 years of my life by caring about my skin and not doing most of the stuff that normal people do. And there is no sight of escaping all this struggle. I can only hope that a special day will come, when everything changes and I will have a clear skin for the rest of my life. But until then I have to keep on surviving. I really hope that you will get rid of it as well.
Hugs to you! I would just like to let you know that we are all here to listen if there are times when you feel so alone. Remember that you are not. We have experienced the same thing as you did, maybe not to that extent but we all share the same struggle with acne.
Keep this site as your daily journal, talk about anything, about what you feel. It will get better, maybe not now but SOON. Bottom line is don't give up. There will be something which will suit your skin. Once you've found it, stick to it and don't experiment with something else.
You are not alone. Please remember that.