At some point in our lives, most of us suffer from acne ranging from mild, moderate, or severe and can have severe effects on people’s mental health because of the stigmatization around acne that causes people to feel excluded from certain spaces.
In honoring women’s month, communities should make an effort to increase women’s mental health awareness about beauty standards. The impact that acne has on individuals is often underrated. Acne often begins during adolescence and can often continue into adulthood.
Acne can take a toll on one’s emotional health and one can experience emotional stress due to poor body image. As part of emotional stress, there is an increase in levels of anger and anxiety, frustration, and depression. Therefore, acne negatively affects one’s school or work life and social skills because of dissatisfaction with appearance, self-consciousness, and embarrassment; this also leads to social dysfunction such as social and public interaction with individuals unfortunately creating a vicious cycle.
Content creator Valerie Mapfumo also suffers from acne and highlights the importance of being, aware that women who have acne do battle with mental health.
“As a young woman with acne, I often do feel insecure about my face and I’ve realized that it is okay and I am not my skin. What is not okay is encouraging the stigma against people with acne which can often result in mental health challenges. Skincare isn’t about having “perfect skin” it’s about having healthy skin and once we get to a place where we understand that, depression and anxiety caused by acne and our skin’s other imperfections, will no longer be a thing in our society,”- Valerie Mapfumo
Valerie recommends consulting with a doctor or dermatologist to find solutions to ending the issues of both teenage and adult acne.
“I do not think acne should hold us back from enjoying our lives because we can seek help and solve the issue. The treatment of acne depends on how severe it is, it might take time to see improvement but with consistency, I can guarantee that you will see a difference in your skin” she adds.
The right skincare regime, with the correct ingredients, is the best way to manage acne concerns and also following a nutritious diet and de-stressing as stress plays a part in aggravating acne.
“It is also important that people are aware of their skin type before purchasing facial products for their skin”- Valerie Mapfumo
As we celebrate women’s month, we should show individuals respect, love, and acceptance as acne and the impact it has on one’s mental health is a societal problem we cannot keep ignoring. Acne is normal and your skin should not define who you are.
