Ah, adult acne. Who would’ve thought this unrelenting burden of puberty would continue to plague us throughout our twenties, thirties, and beyond? Apparently a clogged pore has no mercy. Curing it, cursing it, and covering it up are battles fought on the reg. Here are seven legit struggles every woman with regular breakouts faces against her own face
(1)
It’s Freakin’ Hard to Resist the Urge to Touch
You can't resist the desire to put your finger on the culprit, but did you ask yourself why? To remind yourself it’s still there? To warn it that you’re aware of its presence and are not afraid to destroy it if necessary? To see if it has any friends in the vicinity that are also ready to ruin your complexion?
(2)
You Agonize Over Whether You Should Pop That Sucker
Anyone with constant zits knows the golden rule: Do not pop them! It can aggravate the offender, cause scarring, create more of them, detonate a small country…the results have no end. But when the alternative is walking around as a grown woman with a raging whitehead on your chin, extracting that unsightly bulge always seems worth the risk. When executed easily, it’s oddly satisfying. But let’s get honest with ourselves: It’s very rarely a clean break
(3)
Most of Your Money Goes to Pricey Skin-Care Products
You convince yourself that $100 face wash is going to change the course of your life. Throw in the toner, moisturizer, calming mask, and magic acne eraser, and next thing you know, your paycheck is gone. Then you ask your friend with flawless skin what products she uses—she casually responds that she lathers her face with an off-brand bar soap on occasion, and you have to resist physical violence
4
You’re Pretty Much Addicted to Concealer
Concealer is your friend...or is it? One shade off and that pimple is even more obvious than before you applied the supposed camouflage. So you try to top it with a different shade of cover-up and maybe some pressed powder. Then you spend the entire day on high alert to make sure this compilation of beige paint is still in place, which leads to another struggle in itself
5. Makeup Just Clogs Your Pores Even More
The smart approach would be to let your skin breathe, put on some benzoyl peroxide, and bravely march into the world, bright red bumps and all. But it’s so much easier said than done
(6)
You Avoid Selfies Like the Plague
When you’ve got a cluster of zits on your forehead you definitely won’t be turning the camera on yourself —but who’s to stop your friend or S.O. from snapping away? Once that photo is snapped, you become the Filter Police before this week’s blemish gets a chance to live in infamy on Instagram until the end of time
(7)
Sleeping with Someone New During a Fresh Breakout Is So Stressful
It’s that date, the one where you’re ready for your first sleepover. Your makeup (and zit coverage) has been solid all night, but there’s no telling what will be revealed after some bedroom action. Even if that hellacious jawline acne is still hidden when it’s time for bed, you know it’s in your skin’s best interest to wash your face. You don’t, against your better judgment, and hope for the best. You willfully dream of Proactiv commercials. (But also: Relax. Dudes actually don’t care about skin perfection