'Kids called me pizza face - then I found life-changing acne cure'

A young pistillate who was cruelly dubbed "pizza face" and "spotty" by schoolmates owed to her acne, has revealed however a societal media advert transformed her beingness and skin. Dominika Zrastakova, 23, a retail adjunct and freelance contented creator, began suffering from mild acne astatine the property of 16, but she believed it would "go distant eventually".

As her information deteriorated, Dominika spent hundreds of pounds connected assorted products and adjacent tried galore prescriptions from her GP – each to nary avail. Feeling arsenic though she would beryllium "stuck with (acne) forever", Dominika astir mislaid anticipation until she stumbled upon an advert for Clarol skincare connected Instagram past year.

She was drawn to the products due to the fact that they didn't committedness to beryllium a "miracle" cure, and aft utilizing its look lavation and pick for astir 4 months, she feels similar "a antithetic person".

Dominika, from Bath, Somerset, said: “Kids astatine schoolhouse would telephone maine pizza face, spotty, ugly. My tegument was dry, flakey and producing pus and it was hard to cover, truthful it was truly heartbreaking, kids tin beryllium truthful cruel.

“But present I consciousness overmuch much comfy successful my ain tegument without having to screen it up each the time. It feels to maine similar I look similar a antithetic person. It’s been life-changing.”

Dominika, who is engaged to Evan, a 19-year-old chef, explained that she started getting acne erstwhile she was astir 16 years old, but lone mildly. She said everyone told her it would “clear up successful astir a year”, but arsenic the months progressed, her acne worsened.

“I tried truthful galore antithetic products, from scrubs to look masks to look washes, but thing seemed to marque it better,” she said. “In fact, they seemed to marque it adjacent worse and much furious.”

At school, Dominika said she was “mocked and bullied” and subjected to hurtful comments. She said she was called names, specified arsenic “pizza face” and “spotty”, and was told to “wash much often”.

“I retrieve sitting successful maths 1 time and a miss turned astir to maine and said, ‘Why are your spots truthful red?’ It has stuck with maine to this day,” she said. “You effort and motion it off… but successful truth, being bullied astir your tegument erstwhile you are younger leaves you with affectional scars, adjacent into adulthood.”

Dominika said her tegument was astatine its worst during her last twelvemonth of sixth form, erstwhile she was experiencing the added accent of exams. She said her “whole look was afloat of acne”, particularly her cheeks, and she described the spots arsenic “painful”.

“I would often aftermath up successful the mediate of the nighttime successful agony,” she said. “I wouldn’t beryllium capable to slumber connected my side, I would person to slumber connected my backmost arsenic it would beryllium excessively painful, and I ruined truthful galore furniture sheets and pillowcases with blood.”

In desperation, Dominika said she visited her GP and was advised to commencement taking contraception arsenic this tin beryllium effectual successful women who person acne. However, she said she experienced antagonistic broadside effects from taking the pill.

“This pill started to impact my intelligence wellness arsenic it made maine consciousness depressed and overly emotional, which wasn’t similar maine astatine all,” Dominika explained. “I was past prescribed an antibiotic called Lymecycline, which really seemed to marque my tegument worse.

“The past attraction I was prescribed earlier giving up connected doctor’s proposal was Accutane gel, which I was warned was lone a short-term solution.”

Dominika said having acne “ruined (her) assurance massively” and adjacent stopped her from leaving the location connected occasion. She said seeing influencers and celebrities connected societal media with “clear and perfect-looking skin” further exacerbated her slump and debased self-esteem.

On the different hand, she said societal media tin beryllium a “limitless root of information, enactment and honorable reviews”, and this is however she stumbled crossed an advert for Clarol. Although she was “cynical” astatine first, having tried countless different skincare products which did not work, she decided to springiness it a go.

“I’ve seen much than my just stock of adverts and reviews… but determination was thing astir Clarol products that was antithetic to mean acne products you work about,” she said. “They didn’t assertion to springiness you wide tegument quickly, they talked astir the information you needed to physique backmost up your skin’s earthy acne defences. This struck a existent chord with me, arsenic my tegument felt wholly wrecked.”

Dominika started with the Clarol Sebopure merchandise astir October past twelvemonth and said this made a “huge difference” to her skin. Within a week, Dominika said her tegument started showing tiny improvements and, implicit time, she experienced less breakouts arsenic well.

“My tegument was little red, delicate and adust and felt smoother, calmer and overmuch much flexible alternatively of adust and sore,” she said.

Dominika present uses the Clarol Silver and Birch Exfoliating look lavation and its Silver Serum antibacterial pick arsenic portion of her regular skincare regime. She present feels comfy successful her ain tegument and adjacent wears nary make-up to work, which is thing she ne'er thought would beryllium possible.

Although Dominika has been near with immoderate acne scarring and inactive experiences the occasional breakout, she said she has seen a 70% betterment successful her tegument and is nary longer “wracked with anxiety”. Dominika would counsel others who are struggling with acne to emotion themselves and to beryllium diligent arsenic “you volition find that merchandise that works for you”.

“It makes maine bittersweet however overmuch clip I wasted connected feeling atrocious astir my tegument and not enjoying things, wanting to miss retired connected things,” she said. “As hard arsenic it tin be, conscionable cognize that it volition get amended and you volition find that merchandise that works for you and helps you consciousness much confident.”

To find retired more, sojourn clarol.co.uk