A word of warning: I'm telling you about my trial and error process so you can relate to my experience. The above is not a guideline in any way for you to go about treating your own acne. Everyone's skin is different and what worked for me may not work for you. For all I know, your dermatologist's office might have been your last stop before clear skin. Maybe, like my sister, changing your diet is necessary. I don't recommend any one way to treat your skin. I do, however, recommend documenting your process (but you don't have to share it with the entire Internet like me) so you can figure out what your skin likes. Once I figured out my skin's "ecosystem," I was able to maintain the environment it flourishes in.

To help others battling the ol' acne beast, I created a website, skinacea.com. I documented my acne experience in detail, along with my experiences with common remedies and other skin issues.

My battle with acne, from my first breakout to finally clearing my skin, took about four to five years. There were times that I felt really low during that period. I was a young, social adult, but my acne made me want to hide forever. I felt like there was something wrong with me — that I was unclean or unhygienic or a bad person and that's why I was plagued with awful zits. Looking back, I wish I had gone out and socialized anyway. I can never get those years back, and staying inside moping over my skin wasn't fun. You can't choose whether you have acne, but you can choose whether you will let it control your life.

All images used with permission from skinacea.com