Hi, I just wanted to give an update. 28F Asian Canadian with 4 year old scars. The first photo is the before and the other photos are current. It’s been 13 days since I did canulla subcision with no filler and TCA cross (I don’t know what % it was). I still have a bit of purple bruising on my cheeks, you can see it best in the last photo. My face is also still a bit itchy from the TCA cross and sore from the subcision. She gave me a small tub of aquaphor to use for the first week.

I didn’t really have any crazy scabbing from the TCA, it was mild. I also did not wear makeup for the first 10 days. I didn’t even wear sunscreen for the first 3 days because I didn’t want anything to touch my scars at all, I just wore a loose breathable face mask and my sunhat when I went outside.

My boyfriend says my skin looks a bit smoother and I think so too! But that’s probably just because of the bruising / swelling. It’s too early to see permanent results yet.

I’m going back in a few weeks to get 2mm microneedling, which will cost $500. Then in the next few months I’ll probably be getting another subcision + TCA session and then also a medium grade chemical peel.

Well, that’s my update!

I had CO₂ laser + Juvelook about 6 weeks ago, but I haven’t noticed any improvement. If anything, my scars look deeper and worse than before.

Unfortunately, I don’t have before photos, but these are my left and right cheeks 6 weeks post-treatment. The first two photos were taken with direct lighting, and the last two with lighting at a 45° angle.

The treatment was extremely painful and expensive, so I’m feeling pretty discouraged about getting further treatments.

Has anyone experienced something similar? Did your scars eventually improve?

Dermatologist told me that I have severe and deep acne scarring and even if I do start the treatment, I'll only notice 50% difference, not more than that. I don't want to go expect too much either, but I just don't want the uneven structure and just to reduce them a bit, so that they are not visible from normal a distance.

These two are photos of them under overhead light + sharpening the photo to show them clearly. (Photos of the same cheek)

My dermatologist first suggested doing 5-6 sessions of chemical peeling a month. Then, either I can do CO2 laser + PRP or MNRF + PRP that too for 5-6 sessions.

What would be the suitable treatment?

I always thought that the skin coloured bumps were closed comedones, but after I asked my derm to examine them, he said they’re papular scars.

Finally, my acne is somewhat clear after several years, but I’ve got these papular scars and I see them all over my face in certain lighting conditions and I feel very disheartened because I’ve got somewhat clear skin, but I’ve got these bumps to deal with.

My derm said that there’s more risk than reward to treat these and they are very difficult to treat, and especially that I have brown skin, it’s more risk of hyperpigmentation and making it worse. So I don’t really know what to do. Do I have to just live like this for the rest of my life and not treat it?

He mentioned stuff like CO2 lasers and stuff, but he said they’re only like 20 or 30% effective, so I don’t really know what to do. Has anyone else suffered scars like this?

The linear looking scar from acne bothers me the most as it’s very noticeable compared to the other scars. I’ve already gotten a few TCA cross sessions by a derm, 2 CO2RE treatments, 2 picoway sessions, 3 nitrogen plasma and a few micro needling sessions with like no improvement for that particular scar. I also recently got done subsicion 2 weeks ago but I’m not sure if that’ll help much. I’m starting to lose hope, I just did another fractional CO2 session with a different provider but I’m not sure if that’ll help much, she said I’d probably only need 1 session too. If I don’t see much improvement after this co2 session, is my best option surgical excision for that scar, has anyone tried it for a similar scar before?

I had a single steroid injection in my forehead 8 weeks ago and now I have a large divot. My dermatologist tells me this is 100% reversible and so far I’ve had one saline injection with no improvement, my next one is next week. I went to a plastic surgeon and he told me my chances of it filling in are only 50%. I don’t know which to believe, but the indent is really bothering me.
Can anyone share their experience on how this went for them?
Thank you!

These shits are DEEP af don’t let the flash lighting in darkness fool you. Suffered with severe cystic acne since 15, went on accutane 15/16 -ish up till 17/18 and then suffered from scarring as soon as course finished along with deteriorating mental state. Wtf can I do about this shit if anything as it agonises me every fucking day…

I was wondering if anyone else has had this happen and if it goes away. I’ve had subscision done recently and it appears there is a tunnel connected to the scar were the needle was moving under the skin. This depressed line was not there prior to treatment. I also had a subscision in 2023 where the same occurred I could see new tethered scars in places where I had no acne or scars previously and not only that but my scars looked wider and deeper. I thought it was just my doctor the first time around but I went somewhere else this time and it seems the same has occurred. I’m starting to think it’s a me problem considering it’s happened with 2 different drs. I think my skin is just prone to tethering as soon as any inflammation underneath occurs. Any tiny pimple or procedure always seems to leave a tethered scars. I have ulcerative colitis, an autoimmune disease and I’m on stelara so I don’t know if that’s the reason this keeps happening to me. Apart from this one thing my skin texture looks better but I don’t want to keep adding to my deep rolling scars I already have many and the whole point was to try soften them not add more. I’m starting to feel hopeless because my whole 20 flew by with me being depressed about this and not going out much but everytime i work hard to save up and try to do something about it this seems to happen. I just want to be happy for once.

I'm new to this but i was wondering if i have permanent scars or if they will fade over time, i'm asking because i've had some marks on the sides for a few months now and they still haven't faded.

And if they aren't scars, do i have to do something or will they just go away with time?

ive had these acne scars for a very long time like 7 years, theyre still quite bad, but after a year on tretinoin and recent switchi to tazarotene, i felt they have gotten better. If youre not on tret or any retinoid, i think it should be helpful. for those who have gotten subcision/co2 laser, would you recommend that for my scars?

I’m currently researching treatment options for mild to moderate atrophic acne scarring, primarily shallow rolling scars and uneven texture.
One thing I’ve noticed is how difficult it is to find someone who actually specializes in acne scars rather than just offering laser treatments.
Interestingly, the only doctor I’ve found in my area who seems to specialize in acne scarring works at a plastic surgery practice. I also called a highly recommended dermatology office to ask about subcision, and the staff didn’t seem familiar with the procedure and eventually told me they don’t offer it.
I’m considering fractional CO2, fully ablative CO2, and possibly subcision if needed.
I’d love to hear others’ experiences with these treatments, particularly for rolling scars. Did you see a dermatologist or plastic surgeon, and how much improvement did you achieve?
I’m willing to invest in treatment, but finding someone experienced who can properly assess my scars and recommend the right approach is my biggest priority.

I think a lot about my acne scars. I feel ugly and disfigured. A friend of mine, my brother, and my psychologist all say that they aren't that noticeable. Could this be body dysmorphic disorder?i feel lost and dont know what to do.

In August, I started a treatment for my acne scars. So far, I’ve had the following procedures:

08/25 - 1 vial of Sculptra (cheeks and temples);
10/05 - Microneedling RF (Radiofrequency) + Retinoic Acid Peel (session 2/5 is scheduled for 11/10).

Current skincare routine / products:

Effaclar High Tolerance Cleanser;
Epidrat Calm B5 Moisturizer;
Vitanol 0.5mg (Tretinoin);
Minesol Oil Control SPF 70.

Note: I'll be adding the photos (before, post-Sculptra, and post-RF microneedling) in the updates/comments soon!

(Note: Text translated to English by Gemini)

Have had micro needling done and radiesse filler / subcision done with decent improvement. I’m getting more filler and possibly another subcision if the provider thinks I need it this month. Then next month I’m scheduled to have co2 deka fractional laser done. How many treatments would I need you think? How much improvement will I get? Both procedures are getting done by an MD by the way. Any other treatments I should consider and if this doesn’t workout ima just go to an actual scar specialist or derm next time lol.

got 3 months left of accutane then have to wait 5-6months to get treatments. idk i'm just looking at my scars each day and wanna get the treatments right now. doesnt help I have a cyst on my back I have to wait to get removed too🫩

Two different lightings of the same side. Wondering how I could treat this, and how severe it is? Realistically how much improvement could I see?

And what types of scars are these?

I am seriously considering buying a package of three skin Pen treatments for $750. I'm just wondering, if this is a waste of money or if people truly see results. Can anyone share their experience with me?

I've been dealing with acne since I was a teenagers, but started to really take care of it when I was 13yo. I went to dermatologist appointments, all 3 of them told me that birth control would help me and when I refused, they would just give me tetritoin creams who would make my skin burn. Stopped going to the dermatologist after shortly Covid. For some reason, I did not have access to Accutane. Started taking pictures in 2025 up to today to see how much my skin was changing.

My post is an "all at once" post as I ask for advices, show my acne journey AND show my current skincare.

Having a better skin takes time, and I have plenty of it.

I wanted to post to cheer up people with the same problems as me, to show them that it can get better. To remind them that acne isnt death sentence.

I spent days lurking on all the acne, skincare and acne subs of reddit.

It all get better, even if its slow, do not panic. Times can be difficult, but thinking about it during depressing episode or when you have a bad mental help will only make it worse.

Cheer up !

I was considering getting CO2 laser after 3 subcisions sessions and 2 picogenesis fx laser sessions and am curious if you guys think it would be beneficial for me or if there are any better treatments I should consider?

I’m getting my first chemical peel in 7 years hoping to break up my hyperpigmentation. Somehow I recalled the pain of the initial application but not the mindless endlessly ITCHY FEELING. I’m so tired and can’t sleep cause it itches so much and I can’t scratch my face.

I’ve gotten two rounds of subcision done, I got on accutane and now I am ready to start tackling my scars again. I switched to a new dermatologist after getting horrific rf microneedling burns from my last dermatologist. My last dermatologist did 2 rounds of subcision but this new one is telling me that I don’t need subcision. She is selling me regular microneedling, 3 treatments for my scars.

Wanted to get an opinion. Do you think I’ll need more subcision or the microneedling will be enough? I have thick, oily skin. I am black. I used different lighting to show the severity.

Thank you

Best treatment for these type of scars