ABOUT ME : Battling with Acne

This is my acne journey and this is my story.

I started to have pimples in 6^th grade. My face was so oily at that time but I don’t have blemishes, just small but sometimes big annoying pimples on some part of my face.  My dermatologist gave me Panoxyl 5% gel.  I used Panoxyl up to 2^nd yr. high school. At first, Panoxyl worked well for me but after some time my skin got used to Panoxyl and it doesn’t work anymore.

Panoxyl 5% gel

a big pimple on my forehead covered by lots of make up
Gr. 6 Graduation (2010)

a pimple in between my eyebrows
1st yr. recognition (2011)

I had my first facial in 3^rd year high school. I told my dermatologist that Panoxyl no longer work for me so she changed it to Epiduo and she also told me to use a moisturizer  since Epiduo can make your skin dry. During my first use of Epiduo , my skin started to peel. After the peeling stage, my skin started to look better. And during 4^th year high school, my skin looked good. It still has blemishes but the pimples were gone.

Epiduo 

3rd yr high school when my skin started to look better (2013)

4th yr high school when my skin looked better than ever (2014)

But like Panoxyl, Epiduo’s effectivity didn’t last long. During my 1^st semester 1^st year in college, MY SKIN BROKE OUT LIKE CRAZY! I can no longer call it simply as pimples. I now call it as “ACNE.” I started to have big pimples or papules all over my face. I also started to gain weight and became overweight. One my classmates asked me, “stressed ka no?”.  Yes! I am so stressed during that time.  1^st semester 1^st year in college was the time I didn’t have social life. I just study and eat, study and eat. So the result is weight gain and acne. Thankfully, it didn’t affect my confidence but during semester break I had wake up call. I realized that this is not good. 

I started to have double chin here and my skin broke out
1st year college 1st semester (2014)

And behold! I'm already overweight at this point and as you can see my face is all red due to acne

It kinda looks like this

So, I went to see my dermatologist and when she saw me, she was like :

“What happened to you?!” 

I was like, “I was so stressed.”

My dermatologist told me to stop using Epiduo and the moisturizer and changed my treatment to topical antiobiotic Erythromycin Solution, teatree soap and pink lotion. And it worked like magic! (Erythromycin solution is an antibiotic and should only be used for 3 months). Within those 3 months (start of 2^nd semester 1st year) , my skin started to clear up again. Yey! That was also the time I started to diet and changed my lifestyle for good.

this is not the actual Erythromycin Solution that I used

my skin looks nice again
1st year 2nd semester (2015)

After 3 months, she changed Erythromycin solution to Clarifying lotion and Benzac. I used it both up to 1^st semester 2^nd year in college.

Benzac 5% gel

2nd year college 1st semester

Like the other products that I’ve used before, Benzac somewhat lost its effectivity and my skin started to broke out again but not as terrible as before. Because of that, my dermatologist changed clarifying lotion and Benzac to Clindaze (Clindamycin, a topical antibiotic but less potent than Erythromycin). I also used this for 3 months (start of 2^nd semester 2^nd year), and like Erythromycin it worked!

this is not the actual clindamycin solution that I've used

2nd year 2nd semester (2016)

After 3 months, she changed it to Mandelic Acid with Malic Acid (a toner). It worked very well. It prevented breakouts and my skin is started to clear up again.

this is not the actual mandelic acid with malic acid that I've used

3rd year college student 1st semester

I continued using Mandelic Acid up to 3rd year 2nd semester. During that time, my skin looked good though I had occasional breakouts before having my period.

3rd year college 2nd semester

But like the other topical treatments that I used, it also lost its effectivity.

On March 2017, my skin started to broke out. At first I thought that it is just a common breakout and after I have my period it will be gone but I was wrong. IT WAS ACNE ALL OVER AGAIN.

It was so frustrating because I thought my skin was finally okay, that my battle with acne was finally over.

my right face

my left face

It kinda looks like this

I visited my dermatologist again and just like me she was also frustrated. She said that there are really cases when you thought that your skin is finally okay but a simple hormonal imbalance will ruin everything. She also said that since I have a hormonal acne, she will prescribe me again a topical antibiotic. I am currently using Cetaphil Antibacterial Bar, Erythromycin Solution and Benzoyl Peroxide.

After a week of using my new medication, there was a slight improvement but I still have some pimples on my face because I just had my period. Currently, I have mild to moderate acne with acne marks.

I am hoping for the best and my battle with acne has just started again.

A picture taken on April 23, 2017
Do not be deceived! I have acne but thanks to the power of makeup I was able to conceal it =D (I actually consider myself as a makeup guru LOL!)

P.S. Never let acne lower your self-esteem because acne is a normal thing. If you are suffering from acne right now, find the right people you can talk to like your family and friends. If you already did every natural remedy for acne and nothing works, it is better for you to seek a dermatologist because they are the right people that can treat acne.