Emma Mackey suffered from "really intense cystic and hormonal acne" throughout her teens and twenties.
Emma Mackey has shared her skincare journey, admitting extreme acne left her with anxiety
The 'Sex Education’ star has had to battle extreme breakouts for over a decade and after trying various treatments to zap the zits she finally had the problem under control thanks to a daily skincare routine that healed her skin.
Speaking to Vogue, Emma, 27, said: "I try to keep it simple. I’ve had really bad skin for most of my twenties – really intense cystic and hormonal acne and often all at once! I stopped being a teenager and the acne carried on in adult life – I was like, what’s happening?! I used all kinds of skincare, including retinol and acids, and that just made everything much worse. So now I use a La Roche-Posay cleanser and Dermallergo Fluid moisturiser, which are great. I try and keep my routine really pared back and exfoliate once a week.”
The 'Death On The Nile' star also pays regular visits to traditional Chinese medicine practitioner Ada Ooi whose facials keep the breakouts at bay.
She added: “I’m lucky to go and get facials with Ada Ooi. That’s obviously a huge treat but it helps to go once every couple of months, and it calms me down too. I’m trying to work on the inside as well [as the outside], and balance everything out so I don’t spend too much on skincare."
Emma's acne also affected her mental health and she suffered from anxiety over the appearance of her skin, something she has had to work on.
She said: "I just think that less is more. I’ve been so anxious about my skin – I think about it all the time and it made me spiral for years, which sounds really stupid, but it takes up so much headspace when you don’t have good skin. So teaching my brain new habits and trying not to worry about it so much, as well as paring everything back, has honestly been the best thing.”