Acne and mental health: how I improved my self-confidence

Topics mentioned: self-esteem, depression, body image, counselling and therapy

About: For Rowan, the link between skin and mental health couldn't be clearer. Here's how she learnt to cope with acne, depression and look after her self-esteem.

My journey with the complicated relationship between skin and mental health started around the age of 16 when I started sixth form. I was really struggling with long periods of depression and at the time I didn’t know how to deal with this. My skin began to flare up and I suffered on and off with acne (as well as depression) from then until the age of 24. I can completely empathise with you if you’re dealing with acne.

Soon after I developed acne, my daily ‘skin checks’ began. I would wake up in the morning and my first thought would be to check my skin in the mirror and my perspective of the day ahead would be determined by how ‘bad’ my skin was. I also felt constantly self-conscious during conversations with people. I wondered whether they noticed my acne and while nobody ever made comments to me, I created their potential thoughts and comments in my own head. Unsurprisingly, my self-worth and body image declined during these flare ups and the intersection between skin and mental health couldn’t have been clearer to me.

I went to the doctors for my mental health as well as my skin and was prescribed antibiotics. These worked temporarily but soon my skin flared up again and my self-esteem once again began to suffer. This was a never-ending cycle.

I quickly realised that my acne wasn’t going to disappear overnight, and I needed to try and shift my perspective in order to manage my mental health and gain back some self-confidence. It’s hard to explain how I managed this, but it was like ripping off a plaster. I left the house without makeup on and realised that I could face the world with my acne on show and nothing bad was going to happen. It is incredibly hard to do but experience will show you that you will be okay.

A stranger is much more likely to comment on you being rude to them than to make a comment about your skin. This is because our skin is only a small part of who we are as a person. We are so much more than our skin. I know that I’m a good, fun friend. I’m a caring family member. I’m a dedicated student and have exciting plans for my career. I developed a love of makeup that I probably wouldn’t have if it wasn’t for my acne. Ultimately, we should all value our personalities above any physical attributes we may have.