A quarter of the British population now take unfiltered photos to monitor the appearance of their skin, and an estimated 500 million real skin selfies a year are being captured, according to research commissioned by Miiskin. It is no surprise that people are taking more pride in their skin than ever before as two in three people will suffer from a skin disease in their lifetime, according to British Skin Foundation statistics.
Ella Gorton, 28, is one of the internet’s skincare influencers who has decided to document her acne journey in recent months.
The beauty therapist and make-up artist makes others suffering with acne feel less alone by sharing photos of herself on her Instagram My Skin Story.
Ella told Express.co.uk that, in her early twenties, her acne seemed to come out of nowhere.
She said: “I started to suffer with acne at the age of 21. It seemed at the time that it started all of a sudden, without real understanding as to why.
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“At this time, I expected you’d be over the ‘teenage acne’ phase, yet I quickly learnt that acne does not discriminate against age.
“Quite early on I was in denial and thought it was just a random flare up that would calm down, but my mum promoted me to get help early on.”
Ella went on to explain how having acne “considerably” impacted her mental health.
“Working in the beauty industry too, I had the pressure to feel like I had to look my best, so having acne hit me really hard,” she said.
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“It wasn’t something that all of a sudden affected my mental health, but day by day as products and treatments didn’t work or I experienced the good skin days and the bad, it slowly chipped away at me.
“You become really self-conscious, lose your confidence and essentially feel a shell of yourself.”
Acne also affected Ella’s social life.
She continued: “Some days I found it a struggle to even brave going to the gym – something I loved to do.
“The minute I started to see consistent improvement my moods shifted, and I started to feel like me again,” she said.
Ella’s main advice to others suffering with acne? “To reach out for help.”
“Don’t suffer alone because the sooner you nip it in the bud the better – for your mental health, for the potential scarring after, and for your overall health,” she said.
“There is so much information out there and it can be so overwhelming, so go to an expert.
“Just like you would take your car to the mechanic when it breaks down and not try and fix it yourself – seek professional help for your skin.”
For Ella, the best treatment was “the functional approach”. She explained: “This is understanding all systems of the body and how they relate to the skin.
“Our skin is the largest organ and usually a representation of what is going on inside,” the 28-year-old added.
“Focusing on gut health, lifestyle choices, diet, hormones and skincare gives that holistic approach that really works.”
