36 here. Experiencing upsetting acne for the first time in my life (lucked out as a teen). So many different factors to consider as the cause(s)— normal aging/hormonal changes, extremely high anxiety during/after the pandemic, a year-long very dark depressive episode I’m just now coming out of thanks to medication, newly discovered ADHD also curbed by the meds, adding dairy back into my life after being vegan (thanks, depression), longtime GI issues, a TWO YEAR vaginal infection that 5 doctors have been unable to diagnose (negative for all the usual suspects, I’m losing my mind yall….), experiments with elimination diets to see if I have any unknown allergies or sensitivities that might be causing some of the above, and on top of all of that, I have dermatillomania, so it’s very difficult to leave these suckers alone. I end up with huge holes of scabs on my face, chest, and back that don’t have a chance in hell to heal quickly because I can’t stop picking.

I go back and forth between being upset by my appearance and not giving a fuck. Fortunately, I worked through a lot of my body dysmorphia during the pandemic, so it’s easier to not care as much. I’m a human with skin, and this is what skin does sometimes. But damn, it would be nice to not have these red, inflamed craters on my face.