You are responsible for your own acne
You are responsible for everything that happens in your life, no matter the external circumstances
We don’t always control what happens to us.
But we ALWAYS control how we interpret our experiences as well as how to respond to our struggles.
I used to say “why me? why does acne have to ruin my life? Why is my body’s immune system weaker than others? Why does she eat like crap but still has clear skin yet I have all sorts of food sensitivities? I didn’t ask for this”
And someone would reply. “I’m sorry to hear that Liz. It’s not your fault, these things are just out of you control sometimes”
As a result, I would wallow in my depressed thoughts, feeling hopeless as ever. Since I believed it wasn’t my fault, I started to blame everything but myself. I victimised myself and held onto the belief that I was just unfortunate, that I will have to live with acne because it wasn’t my fault.
It wasn’t my fault the doctors prescribed antibiotics when I was young and didn’t know any better.
It wasn’t my fault that I can’t control my hormonal disorder.
It wasn’t my fault…
But the very fact that I didn’t see acne as my responsibility was what caused me to feel disempowered.
The thing is, I MISTOOK RESPONSIBILITY AS FAULT.
We often see these terms as interchangeable. But they are not the same thing. If I was to pick and scratch at my skin, I am both at fault and responsible for my acne. This is how things work, if we mess up then we need to fix it. But sometimes we encounter things that aren’t our fault but still need to be our responsibility.
For instance, the uncontrollable factors that cause acne such as genetics, allergies, environmental pollution, isn’t our fault but we make the choice of doing things that can help us endure these issues.
I am constantly responsible for my own emotions and my own reactions to my skin.
Once I held myself accountable, I was able to make real changes for myself.
First, I stopped blaming external factors that I initially saw as uncontrollable. I stopped putting myself down. I began to improve myself through healing foods and a good skin care routine. I started to deliberately talk to new people in my class, making strong eye contact despite having huge lumps protruding on my cheeks.
And slowly, I started to feel better.
My skin still isn’t the best, but at least now I am taking responsibility for my own emotions and skin and that’s what most important: SELF-GROWTH AND INNER CONFIDENCE.
Ending note: whether acne is your fault or not, you still need to take responsibility for it regardless. Because the more we choose to accept responsibility in our lives the more power we will exercise over our lives. It is the first step in solving our problems.