Do you not wash your face?

Why do you have so many spots for?.

A question many of us get asked. It’s so sad isn’t it? We live in such a superficial world where people think it’s okay to question your hygiene and pick on what they call your flaws. Acne isn’t something that should be frowned upon, as someone with acne prone skin I have always been bullied for my skin. I have had women come up to me and ask what’s happened to my face and why my skin is so irritated. Let me tell you something though, acne isn’t caused by lack of hygiene. Acne is mainly hormonal, there are many different types of acne. Acne is one thing that causes really low confidence and nobody needs you pointing out their flaws.

We get it, our skin isn’t perfect, we have bumps and we are not ‘Instagram perfect’.

I used to cry over my skin, I would cake my face with endless amounts of makeup thinking it would hide my acne. I had so many spots on my face and I was like 13 piling foundation on my face in the hope that my acne would just disappear under layers on cake. It’s so hard to deal with acne and having your hormones all over the place.

Oh drink water, it will clear all your acne away. No. Water is indeed good but sometimes water isn’t the cure for everything. When your skin is so hell bent on having acne, it will regardless of how much litres of water you drink a day. Water is one of the best things for our body so drink as much as you can. But when your skin is so angry and irritated and it’s not because of your diet or lifestyle. That’s the type of acne that needs some sort of treatment to help it. I tried everything from eating clean to Aloe Vera plants. I tried literally everything and nothing worked for me.

I used masks, I used home made remedies to help my skin and it did absolutely nothing. I was still left with huge spots here and there. I forgot what it felt like to have acne free smooth skin. I would not leave my house without makeup on, hell I wouldn’t even open my door to anyone without wearing makeup. I felt so caged and disappointed with myself.

I wasn’t perfect and I was expected to be. It took me a long time to become comfortable with my skin. I took baby steps and decided to stop wearing it unless it was really necessary.

I decided to do something about it. Instead of hiding under piles of makeup, I gave myself a task. I went outside into the big bad world without makeup for a full day. I felt as though everyone was staring at me. But they actually were not. It was normal? I was beginning to feel the slightest bit normal and nobody batted an eyelid. It took me forever to finally get confident and I genuinely thought I would never be. I had a support network around me and it made me so happy to see that I was loved without makeup as well.

After many different home remedies and treatments. I decided enough was enough and I was referred to my dermatologist by my GP for Roaccutane. One of the best decisions I’ve ever made. A full experience blog post will be up soon.

Until then

Withlovemona xo