Pizza Face

                Pizza face, unfortunately it's something I've been called most of my life. All through middle and high school I was bullied because I didn't have clear skin. Of course I wanted clear skin, but it was not in my genes.

                I tried everything from Proactive, to the most expensive skin cream possible. And still no results were achieved. It was heart breaking to me, almost every boy I had a crush on referred to me as pizza face or crater skin. During your teens acne affects everyone, some more than others in my case. It was extremely painful to deal with emotionally and physically.

                My confidence was extremely low, no matter how much of a poker face I put on, I was devastated on the inside. I would look in the mirror and not even recognize myself.

                My mom spent so much of her time driving me to different dermatologists looking for relief. The search was not cheap, with a 40 dollar co-pay, it was extremely costly to find a relief.

                Finally, after visiting a dermatologist in Long Beach I was placed on a drug called Accutane. Many controversies surround the drug. Accutane, is likely to cause massive depression and in some rare cases, suicide. Accutane is also extremely dangerous if you become pregnant while taking it, deformities will occur in the child.

                I didn't care what the risks were, I wanted to have beautiful skin. The doctor told me the results would not be instant and that there would be side effects. Before I could go on the drug, I had to have blood tests and a basic physical. If I wasn't perfectly healthy, I couldn't take the magic skin pill.

                About two weeks later, I was cleared to start taking Accutane. However, Accutane is under extreme regulation by the government because of the large risks. Before I could pick up my prescription, I had to have more blood work done and take a pregnancy test. The process was pretty extreme for my age, I was only 15 at the time.

                I didn’t know obtaining clear skin would be such hell. The Accutane caused my skin to be flakey and dry. My lips were like a cactus because they were so dry. No matter how much lotion I applied, the Accutane kept drying my skin out. Any cold or warm breeze would bring tears to my eyes. My skin was so dry, any wind would irritate it more.

                Now, typically, most teens remain on Accutane for about 3 months. I had what my dermatologist referred to as “extremely stubborn acne.”  I remained on the drug for almost 10 months. Going to dances, cheer competitions, and school with dry flakey skin for 10 month was agony. My junior year of high school was hell because of it.

             Once I started looking past the dry irritation, I noticed something, my skin was clear! Enduring the misery was worth it! After I stopped taking Accutane, my skin was smooth and clear. I looked and felt like a model.

                The process was not easy or fun. Would I do it in again or recommended it? In a heartbeat! It’s an amazing feeling having beautiful skin. My confidence rose immensely, I couldn’t be happier with my results. My senior year of high school was like a dream come true. I didn’t have to layer my face with foundation for my skin to look beautiful.

                Do I still get breakouts? Here and there I do. But it feels amazing going from pizza face to crusty face, to clear beautiful skin. Anything is better than the horrible skin I had during my teens. Everybody gets acne and it is unfair to bully someone because of it. 

I have attatched a little before and after!

(Before)

 (After)

    The before is a little hard to see, but it's the only one I have with bad skin. I destroyed the rest of the terrible skin pictures. The after picture was taken almost a year later, as my senior yearbook picture. Both photos are not retouched or photoshopped. These are real results.