Even when acne does not cause permanent scars, because acne affects
a person’s appearance it can take an emotional toll on a person.
People with acne often feel self-conscious about their appearance.
Over time, their self-esteem and self-confidence decrease. This makes
them feel insecure and anxious in social situations. In fact, many people
with acne avoid social situations due to self-consciousness about
their appearance. Indeed, many become shy and withdrawn. A
young man explains: “I’ve lived with really heavy acne for the last
five years. I feel so self-conscious that I don’t even like going out.
It’s ruined my confidence.”
The combination of low self-esteem, embarrassment, and increasing
social isolation leads many people with acne to become
depressed. When people are depressed, they often lose interest in
daily activities and feel tired, anxious, and unhappy. Some may
contemplate suicide. In fact, according to a 2002 survey by the Acne
Support Group, a British organization that helps acne sufferers, 15
percent of the acne patients surveyed reported feeling suicidal, and
75 percent reported feeling depressed because of acne. An acne patient
describes how acne-caused depression affected her: “I did not look in mirrors whatsoever. I walked into a room and immediately
shut out the light. Everything I did, I did in darkness because any
time I caught a glimpse of myself I felt suicidal.”
Truly, many people with acne bear both emotional and physical
scars all their lives. A former acne patient explains:
It’s easy to see the scars on my back and neck. What you can’t
see is what it did to me inside. I went from a fairly self-confident
kid to an angry, withdrawn, and embarrassed teenager. Even today,
the memories of the teasing and the embarrassment are
quite vivid. It makes me queasy just to think about it. Even when
the pimples are gone, acne stays with you a long time.
