| To wake up and find a huge pimple on his or her | | | | teenager who is facing acne for the first time or are |
| nose or in another very prominent spot is every | | | | just facing their first breakout that's bad enough to |
| teenager's worst nightmare. For them it is the | | | | warrant medicine, there are a few rules to help |
| absolute end of the world and they couldn't imagine a | | | | making choosing an over the counter acne remedy: |
| worse thing. | | | | Here's what to do: |
| Unfortunately for them it could get a whole lot | | | | · The first thing that you need to do is pick |
| worse. One word is guaranteed to send shivers | | | | a medicine. Whether the treatment is a cream, gel or |
| down every teenagers back: Acne. | | | | pad, you must go with the one that has the least |
| For any teenager who suffers from severe acne, the | | | | amount of medicine first. If benzoyl peroxide is the |
| condition can be even more devastating that an | | | | chosen medication, pick one that has a concentration |
| occasional pimple. Severe acne, we are talking about | | | | of about 2.5 percent. Don't choose one over that |
| the kind bad enough for a person to seek out | | | | limit. As long as the medication doesn't cause severe |
| medical advice, is reported to strike about 40 | | | | drying or irritation, keep using it for about two |
| percent of the population. Teenage boys tend to get | | | | months. |
| severe acne much more than girls, but the condition | | | | · Next, when two months have passed, |
| is equally damaging to both and can cause both | | | | examine the situation. If the medication seems to |
| psychological and physical scars. | | | | have worked, keep using it. If not, try a higher dose. |
| Acne is a particularly cruel condition that attacks its | | | | Two months may seem like a long time but this will |
| victims on 3 different levels: | | | | give the treatment a real chance to do it's stuff. |
| 1) It makes them feel awkward and self-conscious as | | | | · Rinse and repeat. |
| the breakouts occur. | | | | · If the over the counter remedies, even at |
| 2) It can make them the centre of jesting, joking | | | | higher doses, show no signs of working, it's probably |
| and ridicule from their peers. | | | | time to enlist professional help. Going to a doctor for |
| 3) It can leave scars that will act as a permanent | | | | acne is a sensible thing to do if all else is failing. The |
| reminder for the rest of their lives of the condition | | | | doctor will be familiar with all of the current drugs |
| that embarrassed and humiliated them years in the | | | | available for severe acne sufferers and will prescribe |
| past. These can have a deep psychological effect on | | | | one to suit you. Don't panic. In the majority of cases |
| the sufferer even in adulthood. | | | | your acne will clear with over the counter products. |
| Avoiding the effects of acne isn't always possible, | | | | Remember, if everything you've tried hasn't worked, |
| but there are definitely things that can help. For the | | | | a doctor might have the solution. Treating acne is |
| average acne sufferer simple over the counter | | | | highly personalized and not all medicines will work for |
| medications are all that's needed to do the trick, but | | | | every person all of the time. What a doctor can |
| even then, trying to figure out which one and how | | | | offer may take time to work. Your doctor will be |
| long to try it for can be a chore in itself. | | | | able to monitor your condition and adjust the |
| If you are a teenager or the parent of a distressed | | | | medication to suit you. |