Me, Myself & Acne

Well Hello there! I have been away for ages so I just want to sincerely apologise for that. Life has been absolutely hectic and I've not even done anything!

   I hate not being able to prioritise blogging as I abolutely love it but life has just taken over and that's sad for me to say BUT I am now back. I know you've missed me loads right?! *blushes*.   Anyway I am back with quite a personal blog about my struggles with acne throughout my teenage years. It is a topic which I have dodged for as long as I possibly can and now I am speaking out!     I have struggled with acne for my whole teenage life. Acne came to me as a compulsary part of puberty which I had to deal with and learn to manage just as my hormones were going up and down like a yoyo which, if you know anything about acne, isn't the nicest of situations.   I think that my acne was probably at it's worst when I was around 15. This was when I really struggled. Boys were becoming part of my life and I was starting to get bullied because of the "chiken pox" on my face. I literally felt that there was no one else in this whole world that struggled with acne like I did. When all your friends have beautiful skin,  it's really hard to feel that it's "just a phase which everyone goes through". Friends would get the occasional break out but it was nothing compared to the sore skin which I went through. I would get angry at myself for envying my friends. This is when I started to pick at my skin. I would pick and scratch to try and get rid of the dry spots. It's probably the worst thing I could have ever done as now I will be left with the scarring for the rest of my life so I really don't reccomend any one who is going through acne to pick. However I do know that at the time it seems like the only way to get rid of the spots/scabs.

I would say the hardest part of being a teenager with acne is the pressure these days to always look good. There's always something whether it's the fact that you've but on a bit too much weight so now the top of your thighs are touching or the fact that everybody's skin was just so perfect and mine looked like the himalayas. It made me so self concious, I never ever left the house without make up on, I wouldn't even answer the door to the post man if I didn't have at least foundation on to cover my skin. I would be so scared at sleepovers with my friends that when I woke up they would judge me because my make up would have worn off over night and they would truley see the 'state' of my face. Don't even get me started on trying to talk/interact with boys.

 

I actually went through a horrible experience with a boy who I liked a lot when I was about 14. He was my first kiss and to any girl, the boy you share your first kiss with is a special one. He actually bullied me slightly because of my skin. He grew up to be lovely and we were quite good friends towards the end of high school but he did bully me about my skin which you can imaging did not help my confidence on the boy front. It was hard for me to be myself around boys as I was alwasy contious of what they would think of my face. It wasn't until I left school really that my confidence grew. I met a new group of friends and a lovely boy who brought me out of my shell and I do truly believe that he made me who I am today. Nothing worked out romantically with him and we just parted as good friends now, it was sad but it also lead me to D who I could not be happier with.

 

When I was growing up, I never thought I would be able to let a boy into my life as much as I do with D. I don't really feel obliged to wear make up around him even though I would prefer to wear it, sometimes I just can't be bothered and that's totally fine. The fact that a boy can even look/kiss/call me beautiful when I'm not hiding behind a make up mask is all that I could ever have wished for, to feel totally accepted as myself. I actually went out in public the other day with nothing but some moisturiser and a bit of powder on my face and I was totally fine - go me!

 

So, now for the advice. If you are a teenager struggling with acne the best thing I can recommend is go and see your doctor. I actually didn't go and see a doctor until I was nearly 16, after I realised that there was literally nothing over the counter that was working for me. My skin was sore and it was starting to scar. I put it off for so long because I was nervous and didn't really think that a doctor would be able to do anything for me, I was totally wrong.

Now I'm not saying that you're going to go to the doctor, get one tablet and some cream and it's all going to go away. It's taken me ages to find the tablet that has worked best for me and I do still get some small break outs, nothing sore or scabby like I did growing up but they still happen. You have to try different things, every person is so different and their skin and bodies require different things. However you're never going to find out what your skin needs if you don't go and speak to your doctor. I also now have a dermotologist who is really good at giving me tips and everyday techniques which I can do to help control my skin, so if you've not already seen a dermotologist, definately give that a go as well.

 

Please just don't suffer in silence, there are so many people who struggle with acne and people just don't hear about it. I will do a post with the best make-up and tips of things to help control your skin but for now, this has been my story.

 

If you have any questions about dealing with acne or any tips to help keep break outs to a minimum, please leave a comment, I would love to hear from you all!

 

To close, have a confident selfie of my naked face! (First naked face selfie I have ever put on the internet - feel privaliged!)

 

Love,