Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with blemish

How to get rid of small bumps on forehead?

Malad — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 18:15:52 -0800

I seem to have a perpetual set of quite small, flesh-colored or slightly red, acne-like bumps on my forehead. These are not too obvious (though they show when I tilt my forehead in the light as imperfections in the skin), and don't look grotesque or anything. They are not pus-filled nor do they hurt when touched. How do I make them go away? Daily face-washing doesn't do much, and the one time I had a facial didn't really help either.

How do I improve my dull, lifeless skin?

Anonymous — Fri, 28 Dec 2007 08:50:54 -0800

My skin is terrible. It's not just the acne, though I do have that. It is mottled and dull. I have deep shadows under my eyes. Wrinkles are spreading under my eyes and from the corners of my nose to my mouth. I don't (and never have) smoked, nor lived around smokers. I drink at least 2 liters of water a day. I'm a female in my early 20s, and I've got the skin of a nicotine and alcohol addict in their forties. What am I doing wrong? More treatment details inside. On top of what I already said, I do the following:
- I wash with Cetaphil and warm water, no washcloth or face scrubbing outside of a once or twice-weekly exfoiliation scrub.
- At night I apply either a 2.5% benzoyl peroxide treatment or a 2% salicylic acid treatment, though never both at once.
- In the mornings I use a retinoic acid moisturizer.
- At different times of the day (so they don't interfere with one another), I take biotin, a multivitamin, B-vitamins, a calcium-magnesium-zinc combination pill, an extra zinc vitamin, and fish oil.
- I exercise regularly.
- I am approximately ten pounds overweight, but otherwise in good health
- I sleep at least 7-8 hours per night 90% of the time
- I have taken various forms of birth control, but they didn't do anything for my skin and made me crazy.
- I have tried Differin and Retin-A, neither which did much (though that was years ago, maybe I should give it another shot?)

Possible Causes
- I have had a history of bad, blistered sunburns when I was younger--though only two or three times have they blistered on my face. Now I wear sunscreen.
- There was a six-month period two years ago when I drank way, way too much almost daily. This has long since ended.

In terms of treatment, I feel like I'm doing most everything right, but my skin just seems to get worse. I get tiny bumps all over my forehead and blemishes on my cheeks (it is not cystic acne). My skin is dull and lifeless-looking. It's awful. I could deal with the acne if I at least had a healthy glow, but I don't. What more can I do?

BlemishFilter: What are these tiny, black things?

violetk — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 14:28:17 -0800

what is this thing on my back? every once in great while i feel a really tiny black bump on my back and when i scratch it, it will dislodge, leaving an equivalent-sized pit in my skin that might sometimes fill with a minuscule amount of blood. what gets scratched out itself is like a really hard, tiny black seed/grain/pebble like thing. i've tried to squeeze them a few times and they don't really squish. also, i have only ever had them on my back. what is this?? does anyone know what i am talking about? i have tried googling it but haven't come up with a satisfactory answer. my boyfriend, while not having seen what i am describing, says the only thing he could think of is that it's a blackhead. is it a blackhead? if so, are blackheads hard like that? i always thought they were just like whiteheads (soft) except that they were…black?

How slowly does a new head grow?

AthenaPolias — Fri, 25 May 2007 20:35:43 -0800

Small, smooth, strange red bump on my shin for nearly four years. Doctors & pharmacist stumped. What is it? It appeared quite out of nowhere - not that I inspect my legs daily, but one day I went to shave my legs and *bam* - red bump, about 1/2 centimeter in diameter. I figured at the time that it was a bite, pimple, ingrown hair (of mammoth proportions), etc - something temporary. There was no pain (other than the pain of having this third nipple in the middle of shorts season). When it didn't go away, recede, or get worse in the next few weeks I ran it by both a pharmacist and a doctor, who were both stumped. More importantly, though, the doctor was unconcerned, and said not to worry about it.

That was about four years ago. The bump still hasn't changed one iota - still as shiny, red, hairless, and painless at ever. But it *is* embarrassing. As I have rotten (major medical) insurance, I can't afford the elective procedure to have it removed just yet, but I'd love to know what this could be.

Can you name my little friend?

Heal my acne cyst fast, please!

bonheur — Sun, 17 Dec 2006 22:16:26 -0800

I poked at a painful blemish on my forehead and now I have a big lump. What's the best way to fix this? I occasionally break-out, but I've never had cystic acne before. A few days ago a developed a small bump on my forehead. Of course, I idly poked and squeezed it, and now I have a rather large, dime-sized, warm, painful lump in the middle of my face. Delightful! Unlike standard-issue blemishes, there is no visible "head" to this beast, and when I did press on it, nothing came out. I won't squeeze it anymore, I've learned my lesson there. But how can I get this thing to heal as quickly as possible? Ice? Warm compresses? Acne creams? It hurts and I feel like Quasimodo. Please help!

Do facials work?

xo — Mon, 09 May 2005 10:55:07 -0800

Do facials work? I want to look like Isabella Rossellini. I want to be rid of minor blemishes that crop up often enough that I seem to always have some little thing to cover. But I'm wary of using unnecessary 'services'. Can a facial do something for me that I can't do for myself at home? How often would I need to go? Will it cost a million dollars? (Any NYC/southern CT recommendations?)