Clear skin with even color distribution that glimmers when light hits it is something many teens dream of and imagine as perfection. However, it’s far from reality.
Acne is often thought of as pimples and redness, but it’s more than that. It’s a part of almost every teen, a characteristic, and another form of beauty. It should be more normalized as a trait of a perfectly growing person.
My face may be perceived by others as simple, with just a few marks. However, my skin underneath all my makeup is broken. It’s red and discolored, damaged from picking the pimples that appear on my face, creating even more than there was to begin with. I find myself embarrassed by my skin. I can’t afford to look at it in the mirror; it hurts me to see. I spend countless minutes trying to cover the natural look of my face that I will never get back.
Social media misleads me and creates a false reality of what people’s skin actually looks like in real life. It makes me feel alone even though I know tons of people who struggle with acne. If people removed their makeup from their face and the filters from their photos, it would be seen that the whole world is full of faces that struggle. Almost everyone has insecurity about their skin underneath it all.
Rather than covering up all the marks, we should take the initiative to start embracing acne as a natural beauty feature, instead of seeing it as something that holds our beauty back. Using makeup to cover up acne just creates more issues and places to conceal. If we let our skin breathe without touching it, it would give our skin a chance to heal.
There are numerous insecurities in the world, and the one I struggle with the most is my skin. When I look in the mirror and see a bright red mark, my insecurities begin to appear. I have to go and ask all of my friends. They dismiss this red mark, saying it’s invisible; however, to me, it sticks out like a sore thumb. Though when roles are reversed, and I run into someone who can’t stand a small pimple just like myself, it’s barely noticeable to me.
Why try to make an imperfect world perfect?
Acne should not be viewed as something bad that needs to be covered up. It should instead be seen as perfect skin in our imperfect world. Acne is not something that should be made into insecurity; it’s a part of many people’s lives. It should be seen as something similar to having a freckle.
