Teenager with severe cystic acne shares her skin struggles on Instagram

A teenager battling severe cystic acne has taken to Instagram to share refreshingly honest photographs of her problem skin.

Glasgow student Abigail Collins, 19, admits to spending up to two hours each morning slathering her skin with makeup to cover her blemishes.

Teenager with severe acne shares makeup-free photos - admitting she spends hours covering her blemishes

Instagram

The teen has struggled with acne since the age of 10 and admits to avoiding dating or even going outside.

Despite this, Abigail is sharing photos of her breakouts on Instagram to normalise acne and show the reality of her bare-face.

'Having pores, acne, birthmarks, hair, dry skin, oily skin, psoriasis, rosacea etc is all normal,' she writes on her Instagram page.

'It has taken me a really long time to accept the way my skin is, years of not being able to go out in public with no makeup on out of sheer embarrassment to now being able to go about my daily life with very little notice of it.'

abis_acne View Profile

just me again hopping onto ur timeline, first off, THANK YOU SO MUCH 💛💛 to everyone who left me lovely comments and lovely messages in my Q&A, I appreciate u all! - - now, I mentioned this briefly in my Q&A but wanted to chat about it more in a post as so many of you felt the same way! - - - despite how confident I have become in my skin, there are many aspects of it that I'm not as comfortable and confident in terms of the relationship I have with the way I look. - as I have mentioned before, I try not to let my acne define me in any way shape or form,I try not to let it stop me from doing things or achieving certain things. however, it is always easier said than done. - I obviously look very different to most people I know and for me to be at one with that has taken me a very long time. As I said, I don't let my acne stop me from doing things but I will admit it stops me from meeting new people and finding a relationship. - - I am not confident in the way I look to show myself in all my glory to someone I have romantic feelings for and THAT IS OKAY! Things take time and I am okay with that. It isn't that people don't understand or care but it's more that I just don't have the confidence to not know what my person is thinking or feels about my skin. That scares me SO much and it holds me back. Adding to the fact that guys are so shallow it makes a bad mix in my own relationship with my skin without adding a whole other person to the equation. - - now this isn't me calling out guys and making me the victim because I have came across so many people that are understanding about my skin and don't focus on my skin but it just sends me into so much turmoil as I'm so self aware about it. - - maybe one day it will happen but for now, I'm content being me, myself and I 🤷🏼‍♀️. - - - - - #acneskin #acne #acnescars #acneproblems #acnecoverage #acnejourney #acnehelp #acnecommunity #acneprone #acneproneskin #acnelife #adultacne #acnesucks #skinpositivity #freethepimple #pimple #pimpleproblems #pcos #pcoslifestyle #pcossupport #pcossucks #pcoslife #pcosjourney #pcosawareness #pcoscommunity #acneappreciation #acneawareness #cysticacne

abis_acne View Profile

💥POWER OF MAKEUP💥 (swipe for bare faced pictures) It has taken me a really long time to accept the way my skin is, years of not being able to go out in public with no makeup on out of sheer embarrassment to now being able to go about my daily life with very little notice of it. Unfortunately, my skin problems are a result of having pcos and it really has taken its toll on my life. For me, my skin has suffered years of cystic acne which has resulted in awful scarring as shown in the second and third picture. The scarring is so far gone that every new blemish I get ends up looking a lot worse than it originally was. I still have bad days and hate my skin but they are becoming far and few between and its all about getting my scarring under control now. * * The one thing that works absolute wonders for me is the double wear camouflage makeup, it covers my skin and leaves a flawless finish without looking too cakey or anything. * * #acne #acnescars #acneproblems #acnecoverage #acnescarring #pcos #pcoslifestyle #cysticacne #acnecommunity #acneproneskin #acnehelp #acnepositivity #acneprone #acnejourney #skinpositivity #pcosacne

Abigail shares with her followers her daily struggles with her cystic acne and the little milestones she reaches as it heals.

She explains her skin is a result of suffering from Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) which involves hormonal symptoms.

The mature teen also posts photographs of her skin with makeup on, teaching her fans about the deceptive power of concealer.

'The one thing that works absolute wonders for me is the double wear camouflage makeup, it covers my skin and leaves a flawless finish without looking too cakey or anything,' she said.

Go girl!

April Glover