Journal

Ever wondered about how someone with acne goes about her/his day?

Option 1- Follows the normal day routine until some ‘well-intentioned’ advice on taking some treatment is given by someone.

Option 2- Starts the day on a self-conscious note, taking a good look in the mirror, until the most ‘well-intentioned,’ ‘well-meaning’ advice crops up in her/his life again.

Both options have one thing in common, i.e. unsought advice. All future sufferers can be sure of it. In a manner most drab, unconcerned, and almost ritualistically (amusing), we sufferers, who can well have a comity of nations, have heard clichéd sentences like: “Haven’t you tried something yet?,” “What have you done to your face!?” or my least favourite – “I know of such and such doctor… I’d be so kind so as to recommend you to him” (!! – punc(h)uation marks in order here after listening to such blatant tomfoolery).

To all this nonsense I retort (in my head of course)– “Nothing comes in between my acne and me. It is a matter almost sacred whether I decide to leave it be or to take up arms against its menacing survival.” And since it mostly affects us and inflicts zero pain on anyone else.

Where acne and responsibility is concerned, we are, I believe our own acne sufferers and healers. We may suffer from it but we also become its healers the moment we try and sort its causes and stop its re-occurrence. The causes of acne may be as varied as there are treatments available for it (right from the herbal aloe veras to the prevalent antibiotics), but as we try to find our way through the labyrinth to the solution, we must also recognize ourselves as healers (not just as sufferers). With this view, the agony and confusion of living with acne (especially in chronic cases) become less painful and more realistic, or perhaps even more solution-oriented.

An approach sprinkled with dollops of good humor especially helps the cause – for instance,

“What’s the common thing between A for aunties and A for acne? - Both positively help you to judge yourself negatively,”

“Why did the doctor give me a medicine that ended up inflaming my acne? - Maybe his brain was acne-ing up,”

“Why is there no one solution for acne?: because all acnes are (u)mpires unto themselves,”

“If a dermatologist was a lover of Shakespeare’s plays, he’d probably say ‘What’s in an acne? That which we call a zit by any other name would look just the same (sighs).’”

At the end of it all, after we’ve tried all the lovelorn treatments, been through the struggle and zapped the zit(s) successfully, we’d have seen light at the end of the tunnel and have our own bag of humorous/ dreadful/weird/catastrophically funny stories to share. Whatever works for us will automatically strengthen our belief towards that process and that might ultimately aid in healing our skin for good.

On this note of sharing a very personal belief, I must end this post soon if I have conveyed my message, otherwise, I might break into ‘suffering’ another very unwelcome acne breakout ;)

<Mike Drop> 

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this journal are those of the authors and are for information purposes only and not medical advice. Further, they do not reflect the opinions or views of Aminu Wellness Pvt Ltd or any of its directors. Any content provided by the author(s) are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, ethnic group, club, organization, company, individual, or anyone, or anything.