Your Stories - General

Being a Teenager with Acne - Fiona, Sutton

I am 16 and started getting small spots when I was 13. I hate having acne. Some of my friends have it, but none of them are as bad as I am. Some people at school tease me about my spots. They make me cry sometimes. I've tried not to eat fatty foods and chocolate, but it doesn't seem to make any difference. I think my spots put the boys off - no-one ever asks me to dance and my grandmother's always asking me why I haven't got a boyfriend.

I've tried all sorts of lotions, but they don't help. I've decided that I want to see the doctor about it. My cousin's getting married next year. She wants me to be a bridesmaid and all the dresses she's shown me in the magazines have low front and back necklines. I'm really worried about it, but I don't want to be difficult and refuse to wear a dress like that. I hope the doctor can give me something to clear up my acne by then - I don't want to be spotty for the photographs.

And in Later life.... Andreas, London

I am 28 and thought I would have grown out of acne by now - I always used to think it was something that went by the time adolescents reached their 20s. I think a lot of people think this way. A couple of years ago I was refused entry to a night-club because the owner was convinced that I must be under 21 because I had spots.

My acne is a lot better now and I feel more positive about myself. It was awful when I was younger though. I used to be a good swimmer and was in the school team, but I was so embarrassed about the spots on my back that I gave it up. I dreaded sports lessons. I would always get changed in a corner of the changing room. In particular, I hated having to shower with all the other boys after football. It made me so miserable that eventually my mother wrote to the school to explain that she did not want me to be forced to take showers. I still avoid taking my shirt off when other people are around, and I never go on holiday anywhere hot. The dermatologist has told me that it might be possible to improve some of the worst scars, but they will never disappear altogether.

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Page created: 8 July 2005