Freshman Brandon Garry wakes up every morning, makes his way to the restroom, and stares at a face full of acne. Even after several attempts to get rid of his acne, Garry’s friends still give him a hard time by making fun of his acne.

Acne is a disorder of the skin caused by inflammation of the skin glands and hair follicles. Students can get acne if their pores are blocked with oil, dead skin or bacteria, stated on WebMD. “In the morning when I get up and take my shower I wash my face and put Proactiv on and do the three steps,” Garry said. “ I do the same thing before I go to bed.”

Like many other acne treatments, Proactiv can cause student’s skin to become dry. “[I got] excessive dryness. I remember when I started to use [Proactiv] it got worse before it got better,” Garry said.

Students often begin to get pimples when they hit puberty. “I had it when I was 11, when I was in sixth grade I remember I would always get one on my nose or one on my cheek,” Garry said. “Then it got a little bit worse when I was in seventh grade and through eighth and ninth grade.”

Stated on the Proactiv website students may have genetics where they might overproduce dead skin cell which will then clog pores causing acne. If both parents of a student’s had significant acne then their chances of developing acne is very high. “My dad had it and my [older] brother had it too and I am pretty sure my little brother is going to get it too,” Garry said.

Acne doesn’t only affect a student’s appearance, but it can also affect them on an emotional level. For instance, acne can affect a student’s self esteem in a negative way. “If I am trying to take a selfie or something and I try to make myself look good I can’t,” Garry said.

Garry also faces the challenge of his friends who make jokes about his acne. “My friend was saying ‘let’s go ride the rocky hills on Brandon’s face’ or something like that,” Garry said.

Male students can expect to see a decrease in acne in their mid to late twenties stated on the Proactiv website. 25 percent of men can see some of their teenage acne persist into their 40s and 50s. “I kind of feel like I am going to have [acne] throughout the rest of my high school years. I am pretty sure that if it gets any worse I am going to get a bunch of scars on my cheeks, so honestly I don’t see it going away,” Garry said.

Stated on the Proactiv website girls release more androgen hormones from their adrenal glands, stress seems to have a greater impact on girls then it does boys.

Teenagers among everyone else is faced with their own set of challenges. “Keep your head up I know it sucks, but you can get through it,” Garry said.