Clean and Clear

The Clean and Clear acne treatment does a better job than Proactive, according to the commercial. If true, thats a good thing, because acne, especially the worst acne, can be terrible for a teenager. Even if no one says anything, the kid still sees the problem. As a kid, I was more traumatized by being teased for crying. My weight was never a big issue, except in my head. I mean I lived in my body, I looked in the mirror, and I felt the humiliation of not being as athletic as everyone else.

Fun Fact: I once saw a book at the library about re-thinking American gym classes. "It's about time," I thought, and I scanned the book on a break from my reference job. It intrigued me as I do think physical education is very important. But 11 years of gym never taught me the things I needed to know to be fit. I only learned those things in my college gym class. I learned about the heart rate and that it didn't matter what what I did. So what if I couldn't run? I could walk and it was ok. At that point in my life, I still thought I could change people's minds, or at least have a discussion with them, even if they had never met me. So I emailed the author, telling her that I saw her book in the library. I asked how she would work with those children that might not ever get the skills of sports, but that still needed physical activity in their lives, children like I was. In her response, she asked me where I bought her book.

I was insulted. This woman arguing that she was really an academic, and that physical education was crucial to society and life, only cared that I contributed to her income with my purchase. I didn't bother to respond, thinking, "she's just a gym teacher."

Kids with acne do not need to be teased to feel bad about their acne. They see it in the mirror and they think it is ugly. If something works even better than Proactive, which works well, then great! We could eventually cure acne. Then I see the before and after. I thought I was seeing the after picture. The girl had some brown spots on her face, very faint. But it was the before. She had acne? The second girl was the same. Those girls looked like me, or any other woman, simply without make-up. I have differently colored spots all over my face. I also have a natural redness in my cheeks that doesn't look really look good. I feel more confident and professional in make-up, and people think my skin looks awesome. Really, a co-worker asked me, my 265 pound self, if I ever thought about modeling because of my skin. I was flattered, then told her the story about the time I was approached to be a model in a mall and declined because "I had to put my groceries in the fridge." And people have said that I don't look that different without my make-up, but I feel different. With make-up, I don't have to think about my face, so I can think about other things, like my job. I don't think there is anything wrong with doing what you can to feel confident.

But the women in that commercial were not suffering from acne. I've seen acne, I've seen the faces scarred by acne, and that was not acne. The Proactive commercials have far more convincing before pictures. Do not lie to me, as an adult, and do not fool any teenage girls into thinking they have acne too, when they don't.