Face to Face with Indiana - Beat the Acne Blues!

If you’re reading this, It’s likely you’re feeling a bit of acne blues. I’d like to start by saying a warm hello, it’s nice to meet you - you’re far from alone! 

I’d like to welcome you into a place free from skin-based judgement and full of good vibes that will hopefully leave you feeling fresher with increased self love and with a few tips to get you through this tricky time.

So you’re feeling a bit rubbish, your skin is perhaps red, bumpy and sore and your reflection changes daily to the point where you ask yourself who is this person in the mirror? This is not what you signed up for. It’s natural to feel let down when your skin acts up, it can come out of nowhere! As long as they’ve existed, advertisements have referred to acne and pimples as ‘imperfections’, we’re here to tell you that this does not mean you’re imperfect.

It’s easy to look at your appearance when your skin is breaking out and think it’s unsightly. We’ve been conditioned to feel this way. Brands rely on lowering our self esteem to stay in business - it’s time to rebel and feel good in your skin. 

If your skin is breaking out, your mind is probably in need of a little TLC, not the harshness of a negative inner voice. I’ve had many messages on Instagram asking how to handle an inner voice that tells you you’re not good enough, or not pretty or not good looking due to acne and if, along with this, you’ve had the unfortunate experience of people making negative I’m here to tell you that you have control over how you react to these inputs, you can take back the power.  

Top Tips for Raising Self Esteem During Breakouts

If you’re experiencing a breakout and just WISH it would go away and stop preventing you from feeling confident, here are some tips to help you through it while we wait for the treatment to work. 

1. Remove the perception of yourself and your worth, from your appearance - you are more than what you look like. A way to do this is by focusing on what you can do for those around you. How can you make their days a little brighter? Try to get out of your head by doing small things such as making them a cup of their favourite drink or listening to things that might be bothering them. Making other people’s days brighter will naturally reaffirm that you are in fact, a good person who deserves love and laughs, no matter your appearance. 
2. If you get in the habit of telling yourself you’re not looking so great, try to counteract each negative thought with a positive one. A professional therapist shared this tip with me; if you have a negative thought process, give it a name! This will allow you to separate yourself from the mental harm. If someone came into your room and started telling you the negative things you hear in your head, you’d surely tell them to leave! Alternatively, try to imagine yourself as a child, would you let someone treat them this way? We’re here to banish this thought process and help you through it! Your skin is already making you feel a little unwell on the outside, now is the time to be kind to yourself. 
3. Life happens, you may find yourself in a place where relaxation is just a line on the back of a bubble bath bottle i.e. not a possibility in your day to day life. When you feel low, remember that sometimes, you have to be broken down to grow. This moment is an opportunity to learn to have real unfiltered confidence. Your face is your main representative to the world around you - it’s demanding to be seen - concealing may help you feel better for a morning or night but sometimes, you just have to breathe. If you’re avoiding social settings or turning to makeup to help get you through, I completely get that. I used to sleep with makeup on because I was so affected by the appearance of my skin! I’m challenging you to try this one day this week (Sunday is a good one!) go one day without wearing any makeup and go out! Spend the whole day out and about. Go to a place with plants and animals, these places are always good for remembering that you’re not at fault and there are many so called ‘imperfections’ in nature. You’re beautiful and you deserve to feel it, no matter what. If you care to share this experience tag @systemakville on instagram so we can celebrate freedom together! 

I hope that you find some solace in this article, we are here for you and if you have any questions/comments - do leave them below as we’d love to hear from you. Until next time, rest well - Indiana, @indieskky x 

Indiana Wrigley works in Research and Development for TV in the UK.  Around her 21st birthday last year, Indiana experienced a severe case of cystic acne and during this particularly difficult month, she felt like she couldn’t leave the house.  She had a photo of her acne featured, photoshop free, in I.D magazine, Refinery 29 and The Guardian, now she’s writing a guest column for us and is here to help you through. Be sure to follow us on instagram @systemakville <3