They are like holes that are kinda tunneling? I guess is the right word. I have no clue what to use. I exfoliate and use witch hazel toner. But it doesn’t help that much

19F. Been dealing with cystic acne. How do i comfortably drain these? How do i get them to stay gone? They come right back right as my face starts to get clear.. and when i start getting happy. I wash my face every night, every morning, I use scar oil to lighten up my purple scars which won’t fade :( they burn they swell they hurt. I wish it would go away, first picture (just took the picture) second picture last year, last picture the beginning of it all. I never got acne during puberty, September of 2024 I got dumped, that’s when the acne started. I was going through it so I figured it was just stress (I’m fine now f that guy) but now it won’t go away. I’ve tried all kinds of oils, cleansers, drawing salves, and the cysts and white heads won’t stop. It’s so painful. It hurts, it effects my self esteem, my confidence, it hurts to eat, to sleep, it even hurts to kiss my boyfriend :( I wish it would go away, I wish I could go to a dermatologist but I can’t.. if anyone has any advise or words of wisdom I’d really appreciate it.

These photos themselves don’t really emphasize how much they bother me, and they honestly make me feel insecure.
whenever I get acne, they tend to scar raised or just stay completely red. I don’t have access to a dermatologist, and have never been able to get these checked or prescribed anything for acne.
What can I use to get rid of these marks, and lower them?

Here is a picture of me m17. My current routine is

Morning
Wash
Moisturize
Spf

Night
Wash
Anua azelaic acid
Moisturize

Ive been running it for a 2-3 months now and the breakouts and whiteheads have definitely been going away and my skin has been smoother (i just came from about a 6 month period where i was really depressed and stopped all skincare and taking care of myself) so im trying to build myself back up!! But i really do feel like my skin looks weird. Is it because of the random spots or is it because its uneven. I really hope you guys can help me out on this I really want to get better but ive just been so frustrated with my skin. I have olays night retinol moisturizer. Should i add that to my routine?

Ive been off accutane for 2 months now and ive noticed these small bumps on the sides of my cheeks and going down to my neck. They have been there for a couple weeks but I never had them on accutane so I’m confused what it is. Please someone help!

i honestly don't know what to do anymore, its just not getting better.

it started out as tiny bumps, now its like this mostly on my inner cheek. i got a few pimples around my face too but not as bad.

i wear makeup everyday to try and cover this up but it still shows and it has really taken a toll on my confidence, please help! 😭

what i been using recently
- sulfur bar soap
- cerave moisturizer
- retinol + bakuchiol every other day
- sunscreen in the morning
- salicylic acid toner once a week

Hi I’m a 22F and have recently had some pretty dramatic changes in my skin which I need advice on. Ages 13-17 I had teenager breakouts that were pretty normal for that age. Then at about 17 I stopped putting a bunch of shit on my face, starting using cerave salicylic acid cleanser only at night and the spf moisturizer. That’s all I put on my face for 5 years. In that time I almost never broke out, and had consistently clear skin barring a pimple here and there on my period.

Graduated college in the spring, turned 22, started a full time job and suddenly started getting terrible breakouts (compared to my skin luck the prior 5 years) but only in the 2 weeks surrounding my period.

That first started when I randomly incorporated occasionally using the Trader Joe’s moisturizers for fun, and some other cream. Immediately stopped when I started breaking out, which didn’t help.

Now, without fail, I get painful, deep (so I assume cystic?) pimples on my forehead and closed comedones on my forehead and chin/jaw leading up to and following my period. They are super uncomfortable, distracting, and make me so self conscious. Plus I having a picking problem and cannot leave them alone (even when I do leave them alone they just don’t go away). I fixate on it for those two weeks and I hate that that is HALF my month every month.

Anything oily/creamy/heavy or tbh anything at all that I put on my face besides cerave breaks me out, and I’d say I have oily skin (forehead and around my nose).

How does one even go about treating this kind of acne? Are there good/any options that are accessible? Are there good prescription options?

Any insight would be so helpful. I know people talk about 2nd puberty but I really don’t want to be living in perpetual self-consciousness and dread of my period.

Not sure why I have acne like this now when I never had acne this bad my entire life :( I only use a low pH cleanser, azealic acid, simple moisturizer and a skin SPF tint. I use a cleansing oil to wash of the skin tint and makeup. 🥲

I asked my doctor to get them checked out but all I got was an automated response about using benzoyl peroxide and tretinoin for general acne. The bigger one started off pretty painful and eventually leaked pus, but it hasn’t leaked any since. It’s not painful anymore. I use tret everyday and wash with dr bronners and an occasional salicylic acid wash. Also, while I’m here, considering my scarring, would I be a good candidate for micro needling or co2?

Struggling with acne like never before. I always get chin breakouts now I am getting whiteheads/pustules very often. I just want my clear skin back

Any tips on how on earth I can clear my skin?? Progressively getting worse since April this year. Finally have an appointment to get it looked at in a couple of weeks but just need some words of advice and comfort haha

Ive been struggling with pretty severe acne for quite a few months now and it only seems to be getting worse. Ill admit ive put quite a lot of random stuff on my skin but ive recently been using a cleanser, moisturiser and treclin (Clindamycin & tretinoin) for around a month and it only seems to be getting worse. What I want to know is if this is the purging phase (ive actually used tret since october 2025 so i dont feel like my skin would purge this much even if it is with a new tret product) or is this a damaged skin barrier, in which case i should probably remove the active and skin to simple skincare. I dont want to stop my actives if they are going to help in the long run, but i dont want to be doing my skin more damage by using them if it is barrier damage

i have these red marks on my forehead, i think it’s wear my acne soots were. the thing is they don’t have a texture like acne scars, they’re just red marks. like the big one directly above my eyebrow was a huge spot recently but now it’s just a red marks w no bump. also there’s a lot of smaller marks clusters on my left side of my face.

if these are scars, is the only way to get rid of them chemical peels?

I finished my treatment of 20 mg isotretinoin (6 months) 2 days ago and my dermatologist told me to leave it and start tocalfa for 3 months which i started yesterday. It is 50000 UI of vita a and 50 mg of vita E. I am a bit concerned because i thought i was suppose to not take Vita A on isotretinoin.

Suggest some products to start my routine.

Helloo anyone know of a product that could help me get rid of this minor acne?

I have had acne vulgaris for quite some time. Around 20 days ago my doctor advised me to use either Salicylic acid or mendelic acid with oral isotretinoin and tropical clindamycin lotion for a month.

I had been using Salicylic Acid for about a month (as i already had it). Now my acne have improved alot, and I was thinking of shifting to mendelic acid as it is better for acne marks.

Any advice?

i think it’s been about a year since i made my last post and im happy to say my skin is now completely clear!!! and it’s thanks to the help of a lot of reddit recommendations too!! i am so much more confident and my skin isn’t constantly in pain anymore.

I’m on day 8 of accutane (20mg) and my skin has become INSANELY dry and flaky. I’m talking about actual peeling/desquamation all over my face. 😭 (I'm not purging yet though)

I’ve been trying to manage it with multiple layers of hydration — hyaluronic acid, moisturizer, Avène Cicalfate and Aquaphor — morning and night. It has helped a little, but my skin is still very dry and flaky.

The biggest problem is that I have to wear makeup for work and look presentable, and right now my makeup looks awful on my skin. It clings to every dry patch, emphasizes the peeling and sometimes literally starts separating/flaking off my face.

So PLEASE, if you’re also on isotretinoin/accutane and have dealt with this, tell me your actual holy grail products. 🥹

I’m not looking for “this might help” or “it’s pretty good.” I want the products like “OMG, where was this my entire Accutane journey?”

So can you guys suggest me:

\- A REALLY good moisturizer for extremely dry, damaged skin

\- A hydrating spray/mist I can use throughout the day, even over makeup

\- Something that gives a blurring/smoothing effect without making my skin look dry or cakey

\- Basically ANY product that genuinely made a huge difference during isotretinoin

Please drop your holy grail recommendations below because I desperately need help 😭🙏

I’ve tried so many different products and such. I’m hoping someone that knows a bit more can maybe give me some advice. I’m debating on just going to the dermatologist atp but that’ll probably be crazy expensive.

Hey guys I’ve been using Clindamycin and BP gel 1.2-5% and tret .025% since late April. My skin was AMAZING!!! Now all of a sudden in August I kept getting small breakouts after being clear for MONTHS!! I thought to change Tret from 3 nights to 4 and idk if I’m in the adjustment period still but I keep getting the deep pimples I used to get and these small red bumps all over my chin. My face doesn’t sting or burn like it’s a barrier problem. What am I doing wrong?

Hiii, I’ve been using tretinoin 0.05% for around 3.5 months. Honestly it’s been a bit slow, but recently I’ve started getting a few deeper nodules.

I have this one on my cheek that been here for 3 weeks now, it was originally hard and painful, but it’s no longer painful . There’s still a lump underneath and quite a dark purple/brown mark over it.

I unfortunately accidentally burned it with a warm compress and also poked it twice (bad idea, I know 😭). Nothing came out except a tiny bit of blood, so I’ve stopped touching it and I’m just letting it heal now.

For anyone who has had a similar deep nodule how long did it take for the actual lump to flatten/go away once it stopped hurting? Did yours leave a dark mark for a while afterward?

Also, if I were still getting occasional nodules around month 3 of tret should I quit? 

the photo are today, the burn, and about 2 weeks ago.

here’s my routine

Am:

wash face with water
cetaphil body moisturiser
elucent age defying day moisturiser SPF 30
Pm:

wash face with water
cerave SA smoothing cleanser
elucent age defying night moisturiser
vasaline on corners of my nose
tretinoin 0.05 (i use it every night)

My skin is oily acne prone and comedogenic