Women who have experienced severe acne, what has your journey been like?

15 comments

1. i had severe hormonal acne and i didn’t wanna get on any meds so i just waited it out. it went away with time. i now see a dermatologist for my tretinoin cream tho

2. i had really bad cystic acne from 14-16 anti biotics stopped the large cysts under my skin that made my face swell and a routine using salicylic acid toner retinoid serum and vitamin C serum get rid of pimples and make my skin feel really nice using a moisturiser that has a high spf is good too

3. I get really bad cystic acne on my chin and take spironolactone. Now I get one or two medium zits every few months.

4. I never had acne until the last few years. I tried everything I could on my own at first & eventually gave up and went to a dermatologist. I should’ve gone long ago. It was the best choice.

   Now I’m on spironolactone for hormonal acne and I have a prescription for Finacea. I still have problems from time to time but the difference is so much better.

5. I don’t know what would count as severe but I was overly self conscious of my acne and scars because my mother literally did damage to my skin barrier trying to fix me growing up instead of just taking me to a dermatologist. Anything she read about or was suggested was tried on me, including this painful chili paste she made that I still don’t know how I didn’t end up blind from it (yes, I don’t talk to her anymore).

   Birth control finally got it under control for me. It was hormones and stress that caused it for me and once I fully put that together and cut out everything bad in my life, including her, my skin started clearing up. I sometimes want to get off BC but I get scared that I’ll get a bad flare up since I’m used to only getting one here and there around my cycle now. I’m still trying to repair my skin and scars though so it’s been a journey.

6. i’ve taken bc for several years now and also found a new consistent skincare routine that worked for me. i have very oily, acne prone/sensitive skin and realized i was playing into the sensitive part too much and “babying” it with no results. i realized i can exfoliate many times per week and that helps keep it clear. but i use good moisturizers too so it never dries out. it’s all about trial and error.

   i also worked at a spa for a while so an esthetician helped me figure all of this out. she basically told me i wasn’t exfoliating enough.

7. It sucks because the acne is less of a problem for me now but the real problem has been hyperpigmentation. I haven’t found anything that works yet.

8. Constant cystic acne from age 19-26. Never tried any drugs but tried every topical product in existence. Also tried doing absolutely nothing. Tried cutting out dairy and sugar.

   Nothing helped. Nothing made the slightest change. It was so frustrating every single day, wondering how I can make that big angry one look less nasty, my face being in pain all the time, people asking me “what’s wrong with your face.”

   And then around 26, it went away. It just. Went away. And it has never come back. I don’t do anything to my face anymore. I don’t need to. I don’t even wash it at night anymore. I unsubscribed from r/skincareaddiction.

9. I had severe acne. Rash like. From my forehead to nipples. The only thing that ever helped was birth control (unfortunately that was only when my mother deemed me “old enough” so I suffered for two years before that and have scars about 10 years later…)

10. Started seeing a dermatologist in my early teens, went through a bunch of different washes and ointments that helped a bit but my acne got a lot worse when I was about 17/18. Eventually I was desperate and went on acutance which completely cleared my skin with zero side effects. Buuuuut I later developed PCOS and my skin went straight to hell again. Birth control has definitely helped but at this point I’ve accepted I’ll always have some acne and as long as I’m treating my skin kindly (gentle products, lots of SPF and moisturizer) it’s all good.

11. First I had normal teenage acne and got prescribed the pill. When I wanted to go off the pill because I had thought I wouldn’t need it for my acne anymore, I got the worst acne I’ve ever had. Turns out I have PCOS. Got back on the pill but it didn’t help, so I was prescribed Accutane. That’s some strong shit but it worked. Had to go through two cycles but my acne is now gone. I keep getting pimples here and there depending on my cycle or eating habits but they’re not as severe as they used to be back then. Good skincare also helps!

12. I tried Accutane and it was the best! It did give me really dry skin and eyes whilst I was taking it but it outweighs the painful acne I had

13. I was on and off from accutane since I was 18 until 25. I never made it to 6mos as they recommend, I’d stop usually after 3-4mos because its all clear and I could NOT handle the migraine. I tried diane-35 as well, but it made my pad full every 30mins to the point that I almost fainted, so I stopped after a week.

    My acne was caused by PCOS/Hormonal (and genes), when I first got diagnosed at 18, I never really did any changes to my diet or exercise, so I’m not sure if I still have pcos now at 28, but at 25, my acne slowed down, and I only get them 1 or 2.

    I had cystic acne that’s so huge and painful, but can’t be erupted because its so deep underneath. I have some right now, but I just leave them alone and wash with cold water if they’re painful. They go away after a week or so.

    I feel like the more I notice them, the more angry they get. The more creams and ointments I use, the more sensitive they become. It really depends on what type of acne you have.

    tldr: Accutane really helped me, the side effects were hell, but worth it for me. Although they recommend using all moisturizers, I find just drinking water and sunblock (at all times!) helps. I find moisturizing slows down the drying of sebum slower.
    If you work, I only recommend moisturizers as a protection from dirt outside.

14. Changing diet, gluten dairy soy sugar caffeine free, increasing veggies and high quality proteins.

15. It was embarassing. I stopped meeting people and going outside. Clindamycin gel helped me.