Inside Story Of Azziad Nasenya's 7-Year Battle With Acne

Content creator and influencer, Azziad Nasenya, opened up on her pitfalls with acne, a skin condition that she suffering from for a period of seven years.

This is after she shared photos of herself without her usual makeup, which caused a huge frenzy across social media platforms given that fans were so used to her dazzling photos, especially on Instagram.

In a 30-minute video recently uploaded on her YouTube channel, Nasenya noted that her acne troubles began as far back as her early years in high school, something she did not notice until she called it out in the open.

That was when she was in Form Two, and two years later, she decided to take action against the condition by purchasing products to treat it but to no avail.

“I have been suffering from acne for the longest time since I was in like form two that was in 2015. Oh my God! That was 7 years ago. I didn’t realise that until I said it out loud.

“After form four I got into a skincare routine and stuff like that so I bought products but it didn’t work. My acne got worse, if you would rate it out of 10 it would be like a 4 out of 10," she said.

She cycled through a series of dermatologists who prescribed her medications but she did not get the changes she was working for.

Nasenya realised that she was wasting money being prescribed some pills to manage the acne, with one dermatologist continuously suggesting that she goes back for follow-ups.

“In 2020 I decided to see a dermatologist, he gave me a prescription for like a month, 2 weeks I didn’t see any changes and he was also arrogant so I never went back. After that, I visited another dermatologist who also gave me some pills to take.

"I did that for months but nothing was happening. She told me to keep going back, which I did, just wasting money. But nothing was happening," she added.

Her skin began clearing out in 2020 towards the end of the year, which she thought was her landmark achievement in the fight against acne, but she had no idea that it was to come back even worse.

In January 2021, the dreaded skin condition came back lightly on her forehead, this time with more potency than before. During a trip to a different dermatologist, she was informed of the root cause of the acne.

“So I went to see this lady, but she’s not a dermatologist, she does monthly facials but it goes deeper into the skin and she was like you have oily skin and what I needed to do was to go back and realise what my triggers were. So for that first month, I went home and I realised my triggers were proteins," she noted.

Nasenya recently slammed a troll who had bashed the snippet to this video saying that nobody had asked her about her condition and that there were other important things people could focus on.

“It always amazes me when these Kenyan influencers think we have all the time in the world to pay attention to them,” said the user identified as Bazengadaddii, to which she responded  “Yet you’re here. Thanks for your attention."

Acne & Symptoms

Acne is a skin condition that occurs when your hair follicles become plugged with oil and dead skin cells. It causes whiteheads, blackheads or pimples and is most common among teenagers, though it affects people of all ages.

Acne signs vary depending on the severity of your condition. Some of the symptoms include:

• Whiteheads (closed plugged pores)
• Blackheads (open plugged pores)
• Small red, tender bumps (papules)
• Pimples (pustules), which are papules with pus at their tips
• Large, solid, painful lumps under the skin (nodules)
• Painful, pus-filled lumps under the skin (cystic lesions)

Acne usually appears on the face, forehead, chest, upper back and shoulders.

Azziad Nasenya posing for a photo. /AZZIAD NASENYA

When to Seek Treatment

"If self-care remedies don't clear your acne, see your primary care doctor. He or she can prescribe stronger medications. If acne persists or is severe, you may want to seek medical treatment from a doctor who specializes in the skin (dermatologist or pediatric dermatologist)," a statement from Mayo Clinic reads in part.

For many women, acne can persist for decades, with flares common a week before menstruation. This type of acne tends to clear up without treatment in women who use contraceptives.

In older adults, a sudden onset of severe acne may signal an underlying disease requiring medical attention.