Recently joined and just wanted to see if i could get some help here . Recently i have been dealing with acne . Im 19 and never have experienced acne like this before . Over 4 months ago i picked a really bad cystic pimple on my chin with a needle and from that point on i started to break out everywhere . From my forehead to my chin to now my nose . During this time i have fallen into a huge depression one i am afraid i cant get out of . Note for the first month after i popped my cystic pimple i had little to no problem with the rest of my face and then 2 months later my whole face is breaking out. I will insert pictures below . Ive tried everything from Mary Kay to La Roche posay to Lush coal face the list can go on . I refuse to use any harsh chemicals afraid it will cause my face to get worse . Recently the acne has started to get worse on my forehead leaving me with scars and hyperpigmentatuon . I use aloe at night for it . I usually dont pick at my pimples but yesterday i really went at on my forehead . Also Ive looked up all my symptoms and the one thing that comes up is PCOS but all my blood work has come back normal , im not overweight , and my periods are regular sometimes late but i feel like its just my stress . If any one could leave any suggestions for some hope or reassurance that would be great !
I am going through the exact same thing you are, and the acne is finally clearing up. Here is my advice, like you my blood work came all fine but my ultrasound showed cysts on my ovaries and I was diagnosed with PCOS. The good thing about this is that your blood work is good which means you won't have to change your lifestyle too much. Your number one priority is managing stress, I am so serious! You start to worry about eating right, natural treatments, working out, supplements and harsh products and your hormones imbalance gets worst because of the stress. I couldn't stand to look at my face anymore, so I started wearing foundation to hide some of the hyper-pigmentation scars on my forehead, and it helped a bit with my confidence. My doctor also prescribed 25 mg spyrolactane, and just like you i was so worried about taking anything harsh but the acne got so bad that I gave in and I also decided not to worry about anything anymore. You can always stop using a product or medicine that does not work for you. The stress worrying about it only makes the acne worst trust me. Well Spyro really helped! Just 25 mg twice a day, it was difficult at first and sometimes the acne would come back but it wasn't until I started using a satylic acid wash that the acne stopped coming. Again I was afraid to use the product because it is harsh, but I realize this type of acne is aggressive and sometimes need something stronger to heal it. The wash is from Murad Anti-aging wash (with 0.5% satylic acid, the smallest amount they have). Also invest in a chemical peel, that really helped me as well (The Body Shop, vitamin C peel) I had to use this every other day to get my skin back to its smooth texture. Now i only use it three times a week and it has been a month. For the hyper-pigmentation, I started using Murad lightening gel only at night and it works really well at fading the scars. This is something you can only use for three months, but I plan on stopping using it earlier if I faded enough scars. I use it as as a serum and use The Body Shop Tea Tree night lotion at night on top. Morning, make sure you get a good sunscreen (currently using The Body Shop Aloe spf 15). Also Aloe Vera gel and ice after washing your face helps diminishing the acne and irritation. Finally, try your best to avoid sugar and dairy and drink lots of water but don't stress too much over it. It's ok if you have some every now and then. Like I said the most important thing about this is being happy to keep stress low. Do things you enjoy, wear clothes that make you feel beautiful. Smile! I know how hard it is and depressing it can be. Even when you feel down, take a minute to cry about it. Self care is so important while dealing with this. I am so sorry for this long post but I know how you feel, and I wanted to write exactly everything that has worked for me so you can get out of this difficult period. I am always looking for people to talk to about this and I will update on here if anything changes.