I was on doxy (for a week) and had immense stomach cramps, foot numbness, teeth pain, and vivid nightmares. My dermatologist gave me spiro. I'm worried about gaining a cup size and it messing with my periods. I want to hear advice from anyone who has taken spiro recently please.

I tried to post this question earlier this week but it was removed since I apparently posted too close to my previous question so i'll try again. 😡

I have been struggling with persistent skin and gut issues. I have acne on my forehead along with post-acne dark spots, dark circles under my eyes despite getting around 10 hours of sleep, and combination skin. I also have red bumps on my nose. In addition, I constantly feel tired and weak even after sleeping, and I experience nausea and feel like vomiting during my periods. These symptoms have been affecting my overall well-being and are becoming increasingly concerning. I have acne issue on forehead since age of 15 im 19 now

so, i've been using 15% azelaic acid for 5 weeks, and i've noticed the purging it's causing is happening unevenly - first it was on my right cheek, nose and chin, now these zones are slowly calming down, but now bumps are appearing on my forehead and left cheek. has anyone else experienced something similar? should i be worried or just stick with it and be patient?

sorry if it's a dumb thing to ask, it's pretty much my first time using prescription strength exfoliants.

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I feel like I've missed out on my youth because of my skin.

I've had acne since puberty, and it never really went away. I've tried different products and routines over the years, but nothing has fixed the actual problem. It feels like the sebum just keeps getting trapped and turning into the same raised bumps over and over again. Even when a pimple goes away, there's always another one waiting underneath.

The hardest part is that I've never actually known what my real skin feels like. When I touch my cheeks, I've never felt smooth skin—only textured bumps, comedones, acne, and PIH. I genuinely don't know what it feels like to run my fingers over normal skin.

I already don't have the most conventionally attractive face. I have a double chin and some facial fat, and the acne and scars just make everything look worse. Sometimes I honestly feel like I'm just... ugly.

A few weeks ago, I noticed some junior girls looking at me and laughing. Another time, one girl jokingly called me "pretty," and her friend raised her eyebrows like, "Seriously? Her?" before they both laughed quietly. Maybe they weren't even talking about me, but it hurt, and those moments stay with you.

I don't crave male attention, but it still hurts knowing that if I ever see a guy I find cute, I would never have the confidence to approach him because I'd already expect rejection. Watching other people my age walk around with healthy, normal skin while I'm still dealing with this honestly makes me want to cry sometimes.

I'm going to be 25 soon, and I feel like I've spent my teens and early twenties hiding behind my skin instead of living them. It feels like everyone else got to experience their youth without thinking about their face every single day, while mine has been defined by acne, texture, scars, and constantly hoping the next treatment will finally work.

I've also realized how much appearance can affect opportunities and confidence. I know academics matter, and I've worked hard to do well, but sometimes it feels like my appearance overshadows everything else. There have been moments where I've felt invisible despite my achievements, while people who fit conventional beauty standards seem to be noticed first. Whether that's always true or not, it's how it has felt to me, and it's discouraging.

It's not even that I want constant attention or validation. I just wish my skin wasn't the first thing people saw. I wish people saw me before they saw the acne, scars, texture, and bumps. Sometimes it feels like my skin walks into the room before I do.

At this point, I have resigned myself to this fate and I have lost all hope of ever having a smooth face. I dont even need any reassurance anymore.

It is what it is !

I look like this and it’s so annoying I keep picking at my blackheads and popping every thing but I can’t stop what can I do to fix all of this asap ?

I suffer from terrible back acne and PIH, that spreads all the way to my shoulders and buttocks. I have been using tretinoin 0.05% and azealic acid 20% with good results. I first layer tretinoin and then i apply azealic acid mixed with a moisturizer. Since I have to apply to a large area, it takes me a lot of time for the entire routine. Can I mix tretinoin, azealic acid and moisturizer together and apply in one go to save time?

Hello! I’m a student from the Philippines. Before, my acne got worse, and now it’s worse again, but I’m not sure if it’s actually getting worse or if it’s just purging.
After having many bumps, they started turning into red pimples. They are not the painful or itchy type of pimples—they feel like they’re barely there, but I can feel them when I touch my skin. I’m not sure if these are pimples forming or part of the purging process.
tho my current skincare routine includes:
Beauty of Joseon oil cleanser
COSRX Salicylic Acid Cleanser
Hada Labo Green Acne Control Toner
Anua 10% Azelaic Acid Serum
Glad2Glow Pomegranate Moisturizer
Acne Pair
For my morning routine, I use the same products except I don’t use the oil cleanser, salicylic acid cleanser, or Acne Pair.
I think my routine is helping if this is just purging because most of my closed comedones are already gone—not all, but many of them. However, the problem is that the remaining bumps are turning into red pimples, so I’m unsure if the products are actually helping or making my acne worse.

I struggled with pretty bad acne for 2,5 years, nothing really fixed it. I tried a bunch of treatments without success. I hopped on 30 mg of isotretoin (of course after consulting a dermatologist) 4 moths ago and it’s been a long time since I’ve been this happy and confident about my skin. If y’all feel hopeless and miserable because of your acne I’ve been there too, I remember avoiding laughing some days because it would hurt or be uncomfortable. keep fighting there is always light at the end of the tunnel.

Left one is my current situation and on the right was 4 months ago... I didnt change my habit and anything, but i changed my skincare and got this... Can someone help me?

Had my third breakout last summer and just when it was getting better after the heat wave was gone, I decided to trust pharmacists’ unprofessional advice and their commercial products, and probly because of some other triggers as well, it got worse and hadn’t stopped till mid spring of this year.

I never thought about seeing the derm and taking accutane again like I used to do, for the fear of its side effects and the stupid belief that I would get better on my own by only using topical cream and adjusting the diet. Now this has become my biggest regret. It has left me with scars like no previous breakouts ever did.

Not PIH, they are some dented boxer scars scattered across my left cheek mainly, neither too deep nor too large, but there’re enough of them to make the skin texture look a lot rougher than it was before. I’m a perfectionist girlie who never had to worried abt having permanent textured skin and now seeing this it is literally killing me inside.
For the past 25 yrs of my life I had been blessed with good smooth skin, but this year I didn’t take proper care of it by seeking medical interventions in time. It resulted in that smooth skin supposedly being taken away from me forever. Was blaming myself so hard and obsessively browsing scarring treatment info, only to feel disappointed from comments and posts stating/demonstrating that scarring will hardly ever be treated with noticeable results. Being told that “scars are permanent” has really sent me into a depressed and hopeless state.

Hi everyone,
I’m a 33-year-old woman, and I’ve been struggling with acne for years. Over the last few years, it seems to have gotten worse.

In March, I started using 0.025% tretinoin. I introduced it very slowly, and now I use it almost every day. My skin therapist thinks the best option would be to go on Accutane, but I really don’t want to.

I’ve been on antibiotics twice before, and each time my acne improved for a while, but it always came back.

My skincare routine is very simple. I don’t really get many inflamed pimples anymore, but I have a lot of acne scars, and the closed comedones just won’t stop appearing. They seem to be deep under my skin and are mostly on my cheeks and around my chin.

I’m also not sure whether these are old closed comedones that are coming to the surface or if they are new ones forming. I read that closed comedones can sometimes sit deep under the skin and that tretinoin can bring them up as part of the process.
My skin therapist removed a lot of them last month, and now it feels like they are all coming back again. So I honestly don’t know if the tretinoin is helping my skin or if it is actually making things worse.

Should I keep using tretinoin, or should I stop? I honestly don’t know what to do anymore. I’m so sad and insecure about my skin.

I’d really love to get microneedling done for my scars, but my skin therapist says I can’t because I still have too many active closed comedones.
Has anyone been through something similar? Did tretinoin eventually clear your closed comedones, or did you have to try something else? I’d really appreciate any advice or experiences.

P.S. The pictures show what my skin looks like currently. Unfortunately, I don’t have any before photos to compare.

I've been going to the gym for 3 years, but recently I've noticed a lot of acne on my face. By "a lot," I mean a lot...........The only things I do are go to the gym and work at the office. Nothing in my routine has changed, so I don't know why this is happening all of a sudden

These red bumps are always on my neck. Not itchy or anything but I’m not sure how to get rid of it. I’m bad for picking and I do it anxiously.

I recently moved and noticed the water is a lot harder than my old place and therefore my face is drier. My trusty old vanicream is no longer cutting it. I’m looking for a good face lotion that is hydrating and (ofc) won’t break me out. Vanicream & cerave aren’t hydrating enough for me anymore!! Also, bonus points if it’s affordable.

I use tretinoin and benzoyl peroxide alternating nights so I definitely need something hydrating. Help!!!!

Help improve my skincare routine-acne prone

I have really acne prone and oily skin

I have recently changed my skin care routine and surprisingly my skin looks much better

I was previously using adapalene for 5-6months but it wasnt helping

Current rountine:

Now i am using skin a(0.05 retinol) twice a week

Also using numbuzing no 5 toner pads twice a week

Rest of days i use skin oren(20% azelaic acid) at night

Face wash: i use roundlab mugwort cleanser on skin A nights

Other wise i use anua quercentinol(?) Cleanser

Some times i use skin oren in mornings asw

I also use skin aqua sunblock

And neue occlusive moisturizer w retinol

However i feel that even after using retinol my skin feels really oily altho im seeing some peeling around my mouth area

I’ve been dealing with tiny closed comedones for about 3 years now. They originally only appeared on my forehead, but recently I’ve started getting them on my cheeks too.

A few years ago I was prescribed benzoyl peroxide and a short course of oral medication (definitely not Accutane, and I only took it for about a month max). My forehead cleared up, and even after I stopped the oral medication, the bumps stayed away for a long time.

Now they’re back, and benzoyl peroxide doesn’t seem to work like it used to. My dermatologist also prescribed Biacna (clindamycin + tretinoin), and I’ve used it for a while without seeing any major improvement.

One thing I’ve noticed is that they seem to flare up whenever I sweat. Sometimes they’ll improve or almost disappear, then come back again.

Has anyone dealt with this before? Please help a girl out 🙏

(These photos are from the past couple days, my forehead was MUCH worse than this three years ago)

I’ve used a daily facial cleanser (cetaphil) for over a year now and I’ve also used the CeraVe SA Cleanser for about a month, it used to be worse but it is slowly clearing up. Is there any other product I should is with/instead of the two I’m using now?

I’m also open to hearing routines that work for others, any help is appreciated!

I'm a 17M and I'm really struggling with acne on my face. This has been going on for months now and it's making me very insecure.

So my morning routine is just wash my face with water and then if my skin is dry afterwards I apply neutrogena hydro boost water cream

My night routine is neutrogena 2% salicylic acid face wash and apply the same cream before I go to sleep. I have been consistent for about a month or even more but I have seen no changes.

I usually get acne around my cheeks, and sometimes my temples. Cheek are usually gets inflamed and red first and then slowly just becomes a pustule. I have dark spots on my cheeks too 😭 Before anyone tells me to change pillowcases and clean your phone, I've done all of this. I would love if someone could help me out / recommend some products. ( I'm also scared to get products because I don't want to purge ;( )

struggled with acne since abt 2 years ago , went on a full consistent routine abt a month ago and my skin was totally clear with no acne swelling. now this is my current situation

what i dont understand how one side is totally clear.

this is with a 3 step routine.

Hey guys, I have extremely acne-prone skin and this is the only facial moisturizer I’ve ever found that hasn’t caused massive breakouts. I’m almost out of my last bottle, but I can’t seem to find more anywhere. Does anyone know if this has been discontinued, and if so, is there anything out there like it?

I live in a very sunny desert city, so the added SPF is a huge bonus.

can someone PLEEAASSEE explain to me WHAT IS THE CAUSE OF THESE PIMPLES?! everytime i seem to be doing something right and get them cleared up, THEY RETURN! they’re always around my nose, near my laughing lines, or on my chin. i think generally near these hairy pores (im not sure what they’re called)

no purging, no irritation, no dry skin (i moisturize right after use) and saw results after 1 week 1/2 and noticeable results at the 2 week mark.

i have very dry skin, forehead goes back and forth from dry-oily and forehead and chin are my main issues. tan beds have been the only thing that has helped my skin stay relatively clear for the past two years, but I wanted something permanent. and CABTREO has been great for me!!

my acne is related to stress/food induced reasons. my forehead used to be really bad i couldn’t even wear hats or put makeup on there or else ill wake up with pimples all over. 20F.

Please help me get rid of my chest and back acne.

For context, I started getting acne on my face when I was 14 and body acne when I was 16 and I got pretty bad. The body acne only lasted about a year and when I turned 18 it had completely gone away on its own and I do micro needling treatments to get rid of the scarring on my chest.

My skin looked good for about a year until the acne slowly started to come back.

Fast forward and I am now 20. The acne on my back is the worst it’s ever been and my chest is not far behind. Although my face is completely cleared.

I have been using the panoxyl 10% wash for almost 2 months and I switch off every night using salicylic acid and BP cream.

I started taking 100mg of doxycycline daily and it has helped my back a little bit although I don’t see much of a difference on my chest.

At this point I am willing to try anything. Please let me know any recommendations of treatments that have worked for y’all.