There's nothing you can do for the scars as long as there are active acne. So it's important to get that under control first. I would suggest you try Baking Soda + Coconut Oil concoction. Mix the two (1:1 ratio) and stir. Gently apply to face and let it sit for 5-10 minutes, then rinse.

I don't see much actual scarring, but active acne and hyperpigmentation. You're in a good position to prevent actual scarring by getting on medication for the acne. This is a moderate case of acne and topical medications should be effective. If it does not control the acne, you can probably do a round of accutane, which for most people puts the acne in complete remission. My biggest regret is not getting on Accutane earlier, which ultimately resulted in my acne getting totally out of control and scarring me. I put Accutane off for years because of the exaggerated claims of side effects I read online. It's a serious drug, but the side effects are mostly overblown, especially by people who HAVE NEVER actually taken the drug and have agendas.

16 hours ago, Sirius Lee said:

There's nothing you can do for the scars as long as there are active acne. So it's important to get that under control first. I would suggest you try Baking Soda + Coconut Oil concoction. Mix the two (1:1 ratio) and stir. Gently apply to face and let it sit for 5-10 minutes, then rinse.

how many times should i do it per week?

3 hours ago, dazzed said:

I don't see much actual scarring, but active acne and hyperpigmentation. You're in a good position to prevent actual scarring by getting on medication for the acne. This is a moderate case of acne and topical medications should be effective. If it does not control the acne, you can probably do a round of accutane, which for most people puts the acne in complete remission. My biggest regret is not getting on Accutane earlier, which ultimately resulted in my acne getting totally out of control and scarring me. I put Accutane off for years because of the exaggerated claims of side effects I read online. It's a serious drug, but the side effects are mostly overblown, especially by people who HAVE NEVER actually taken the drug and have agendas.

do you think the medication provided by the dermatologist is sufficient? And also, what kinds of topical medication would you recommend? P.S. I have pretty sensitive skin

3 hours ago, darrelllee13 said:

how many times should i do it per week?

Try every other day for now. (Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Sunday). Baking soda is abrasive so don't rub your face too much. Anyway, are you currently using Retin-A? If not, go out and get Differin from Target or Walmart (that's if you live in the US).

On 5/7/2018 at 2:45 AM, Sirius Lee said:

Try every other day for now. (Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Sunday). Baking soda is abrasive so don't rub your face too much. Anyway, are you currently using Retin-A? If not, go out and get Differin from Target or Walmart (that's if you live in the US).

My dermatologist gave me an Aknicare cream and Aknicare cleanser, Stieva-A cream, Oxy 5 cream, and she asked me to take antibitotics of doxycycline, but it doesn't seem to be clearing up my acne or my scars. I have also been using a Clean&Clear moisturizer with Salicylic acid. My morning routine is to use the Aknicare Cleanser, apply the moisturiser, apply Oxy 5, and apply the Aknicare Cream. My night routine is to use the Aknicare Cleanser, apply moisturizer, apply the Stieva-A cream, and apply the Aknicare cream.

7 hours ago, darrelllee13 said:

My dermatologist gave me an Aknicare cream and Aknicare cleanser, Stieva-A cream, Oxy 5 cream, and she asked me to take antibitotics of doxycycline, but it doesn't seem to be clearing up my acne or my scars. I have also been using a Clean&Clear moisturizer with Salicylic acid. My morning routine is to use the Aknicare Cleanser, apply the moisturiser, apply Oxy 5, and apply the Aknicare Cream. My night routine is to use the Aknicare Cleanser, apply moisturizer, apply the Stieva-A cream, and apply the Aknicare cream.

Okay, bro, chill. First, your acne ain't that bad. They're nowhere near cystic. Why don't you take it one step at a time. Let's start by scrapping everything and start from scratch.

1) Let's start with the "Caveman" approach. Apply nothing on your face for the next 3 days. Not even water. See how your face responds. Does the zits go down in size? Are they less angry? Evaluate.

2) During the next 4 days, wash with only water. Avoid any cleanser or moisturizer. If your face is too dry and you need to moisturize, apply a thin paste of honey for about 15 mnutes and rinse off. Again, after 4 days, evaluate to see if it makes any difference to your acne. Did they go down? Did any new ones popped their ugly heads since this new regimen?

3) If all goes well up to this point, introduce honey into the regimen and repeat for another week. Basically, we're detoxifying your skin from all the nasty chemicals that you've been using.

4) However, if there is no improvement, you need to start using retinoids (Retin-A or Differin). This will help you exfoliate your skin. Note that you might initially break out more from purging. You need to use it for at least 3 months to see any real difference.

5) If retinoids don't work, then you might consider getting on Accutane. However, your acne is pretty tame. They're not the angry, bitchy cysts that are so prone to leaving unsightly scars. If you had those, I would have you go straight to Accutane, but that isn't the case here.

My acne was this level too and the lack of appropriate medical treatment led to my acne progressing into severe cystic acne. You need to hit the acne hard before the condition progresses further.

The reason doxycycline is not working for you is because a lot of acne bacteria strains are resistant to the antibiotics that have been over prescribed for it. I went through doxycycline as well and it did jackfor my acne. You might need to switch to minocycline.

When you treat acne, you need to hit it in 2 ways - the bacteria and the rate at which your skin sheds. You will need a topical retinoid (Retin-a, Tazorac, etc) which will exfoliate the skin and prevents the pores from being plugged. Then you need either an oral antibiotic or topical antibiotic. Because your case is on the milder side, Epiduo might help a lot.

Personally I would just suck it up and do a low dose of accutane and get it over with once and for all and AVOID scarring. My biggest regret is not doing accutane sooner, due to the fear-mongering that is rampant online. I wished I was not so naive and listened to armchair experts online spreading misinformation.

You're in a great position to save yourself from the misery of scar revision. Forget bs homeopathic regimens and get on medication that actually is proven to work.