{This post is by one of my long time writers, and friend, Teresa Luong on her struggle with cystic acne and road to clear skin}

Everyone wants that flawless, luminous, glowing skin, but for me it’s more than a desire; it’s an obsession.  Since nature’s cruel joke of puberty, I was cursed with the onset of hereditary cystic acne.  I had what looked like puss-filled boils all over my face, neck and body – and I mean all over.  These painful lumps were the cause of ridicule and childish torture for three years of my life. I would beg my parents to home-school me as to avoid having to face another day of my adolescent peers. Even though they made me go to school everyday, my loving parents spent hundreds of dollars on any product that claimed to help acne, but to no avail.  I found out I was allergic to benzoyl peroxide, the active ingredient in most strong acne medications, including ProActive, and that salicylic acid wasn’t strong enough for my breed of acne.  Finally, one of my many dermatologists came up with a solution, a new drug on the market called Acutane.  Not yet approved by the FDA, this drug claimed to prevent breakouts for up to 10 years.  Acutane is now known for some of its severe side effects, such as: