5 minute read
iN my OWN SKiN
in my own skin Persevering through the struggles of having acne in high school
ARTICLE & ILLUSTRATION BY HAYLIE YEE DESIGN BY KYLA ULUG
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ans Christian Andersen’s 1843
Hfable “The Ugly Duckling” tells the story of a duckling who, when hatched along with his siblings, is teased and ostracized because they perceive him as ugly, ultimately teaching readers that individuals should accept and love themselves no matter their appearance.
Junior Alyssa Hartmann learned the same lesson after dealing with acne in her early middle school years. She felt alone in her struggle with her skin, but after starting high school, she noticed other students her age began to develop acne, too, and she became used to it.
“I felt a lot better about myself because I stopped caring about what my face looked like,” Hartmann said. “I gained more self confidence by being comfortable with myself when I didn’t look perfect.”
Sophomore Maxine Dizon has also worked toward being confident by caring for her skin and taking pride in what she sees in the mirror.
Dizon was first introduced to skin care through TikTok trends, specifically skin care enthusiast and content creator Hyram Yarbro, better known as “Skin Care by Hyram.” Dizon learned to do research involving her skin and what she was putting on it. One of Dizon’s first mistakes was using retinol—a type of retinoid containing vitamin A derivative—too often and burning her skin.
Dizon struggled with slightly textured and reddish skin on her cheeks that was worse on her arms. This caused her to feel self conscious when wearing dresses that exposed her arms. hygiene or diet can affect acne, they are not sole explanations for the condition. The pores in skin contain sebaceous glands that produce sebum, an oil that lubricates hair and skin.
As teenagers hit puberty, hormones cause excess sebum, and pores become clogged with bacteria trapped inside. Depending on whether the pores stay open or closed, they can become blackheads,
-Maxine Dizon
“I don’t have perfect skin right now, but I feel confident knowing that
I’m taking care of it,” Dizon said. “I’m working toward being a better person for myself.” While factors such as poor whiteheads, pimples or cysts. UC Davis Health estimates that more than 85% of teenagers have acne, and it is rare to have clear skin during high school.
Sophomore Celia Cuenca was first encouraged to start taking treatments like doxycycline, an antibiotic used to treat severe acne, by her stepmother, who would
often point out when Cuenca’s skin had severe acne. “When people point out certain things, it’s out of love, but it lowers your confidence,” Cuenca said. “I didn’t notice that until [my stepmother] pointed that out.” Cuenca has seen two dermatologists under the advice of her family, once at age 12 and another visit more recently due to worsening acne. Cuenca’s world revolved around school, causing her stress and hormones to form fungal acne— small bumps and irritation—that later developed into cysts, a type of painful acne in which the infection goes deep into the skin, affecting large areas and leaving scars.
Cuenca felt out of place when she first developed acne as the people around her, including her friends, cousins and family, had clear skin. But as her acne worsened in middle school, she was taught that acne is normal and prevalent through health education and her friends and family. When the eighth grade and freshman year stages of acne hit, she found she could relate with her peers about it.
“People shouldn’t be insecure about acne at all,” Cuenca said. “It’s normal to have insecurities, but be the best confident person that you can be.”
Hartmann, too, felt frustrated with her acne in middle school. After talking with friends who would point out their pimples, which were miniscule in comparison to her own acne that started at her forehead, Hartmann came to a realization about her confidence that changed her perspective.
“I look in the mirror and I’m focusing on all the things that I don’t like about my face, but when you’re in public, people don’t even pay attention,” Hartmann said.
The attention acne or other skin blemishes recieve is often overestimated and exaggerated in the mind. The spotlight effect, a term coined by Thomas Gilovich and Kenneth Savitsky, refers to the tendency in people to think there is a spotlight on them at all times, highlighting all of their mistakes or flaws for all the world to see.
Hartmann has struggled with motivation to stick with her skin care routine, often not
caring about it. Her mother originally suggested using a vinegar green tea toner recipe from a book called “Healthy at Home.” While this method worked for Hartmann’s older sister, she was annoyed and grossed out by the pungent solution. Hartmann found the transition to distance learning actually helped her confidence, but encouraged her laziness with regards to acne and skincare because she rarely thinks about her appearance with her camera off in virtual classes.
“There’s less motivation in hygiene and washing your face because you know that not a lot of people are going to be paying attention,” Hartmann said, “whereas at school, it feels like everyone’s eyes are on you, and you want to be presentable.”
On certain days, Dizon still feels insecure about her skin, but she is inspired by the people around her who radiate confident energy. She admires their confidence and strives to be just as loving to her body, and has used the new year as a fresh start to introduce better habits. Working to improve her overall health and confidence, she started with skincare.
“It’s human nature to care about what other people think of you,” Dizon said, “but in anything you do, people will have something to say, so you might as well do what you want.”
