For the past 12 years I’ve avoided talking about one of the most obvious things about me. Something that is literally —well, almost — written on my face. My name is Evie, and I have acne.
過(guò)去的12年里,我一直避免談到我身上最為顯眼的一樣附屬物。那些東西,嗯,就像是被誰(shuí)放大了鑲上畫(huà)框然后裱在我臉上一樣。我叫埃維,我臉上長(zhǎng)了一片丘陵。
I decided to break the silence after I read multiple articles on how acne frequently leads to depression, and that this is “often independent of severity”. Despite living with acne, I’d never considered that my low mood over a breakout was something natural, I’d just thought it was how I dealt with it. In fact, acne has a significant, negative psychosocial effect, and we don’t talk about it because pointing out our flaws is the very last thing we want to do.
在接連讀了幾篇講述青春痘是如何助力通向抑郁之路(抑郁乃結(jié)果,且通常與粉刺的嚴(yán)重程度無(wú)關(guān))的文章后,我決定打破沉默,寫(xiě)下本文。雖然和青春痘相依為命了許多年,我卻從未因此覺(jué)得自己每次長(zhǎng)痘時(shí)的陰郁心情是合情合理的,我只是天真地以為這便是我處理它們的方式。但事實(shí)上,粉刺的確會(huì)對(duì)我們的心理產(chǎn)生巨大的負(fù)面影響。我們不去說(shuō)它,只是因?yàn)椴幌胍淮未蔚亟议_(kāi)傷疤。
Very few people realise what acne means. In all the media I’ve ever been subjected to, there has never been a protagonist with acne. If there is a character with acne at all, it’s an unsympathetic one, who is either submissive, mean, or both. There are no films about an acne-ridden girl who finds that she doesn’t need to be self-conscious but just has to ‘let herself shine’. All other ‘negative’ images are given support; whether you’re overweight, short, tall, nerdy, or even all-out Ugly Betty, there is a role model for you readily available. Because of this, people without acne often throw around the word “spotty” as a synonym for “young”, in a way no other negative attribute ever is.
鮮少有人意識(shí)到粉刺到底意味著什么。影視巨星和廣告模特都長(zhǎng)著一張張與粉刺無(wú)關(guān)的臉。如果真有誰(shuí)帶著粉刺上鏡,那也注定是個(gè)不討喜的角色,不是貧賤卑微就是鄙薄刻毒,抑或二者兼有。從未有一部電影會(huì)講述這樣一個(gè)故事:一個(gè)滿(mǎn)臉青春痘的女孩克服自卑,終于意識(shí)到自己不必在意別人的目光,而只需要在自己的世界里燦爛綻放。除了粉刺以外,所有其他的負(fù)面屬性都獲得了支持,都能夠在影視作品中輕易找到它們的主人,無(wú)論是肥胖如桶、矮小如凳、瘦高如桿、呆若木雞還是集齊所有丑點(diǎn)可以召喚神龍如丑女貝蒂(譯者注:電視劇形象)。因此,那些不長(zhǎng)痘的人經(jīng)常會(huì)把“滿(mǎn)臉痘”作為“年輕”的代名詞。普天之下,沒(méi)有其他哪種令人不愉快的屬性能夠得享此榮了。
There is no reason ever to be “proud to have acne” — but that doesn’t mean that a disease which affects 70-87% of teenagers and frequently continues into adulthood shouldn’t be talked about, especially amongst a student population that fits neatly into the affected age group. It’s not glamorous — we don’t get to be ‘curvy’, or cute, or intelligent, or strong. Acne is not ‘endearing’.
沒(méi)有理由為了滿(mǎn)臉痘痘而自豪。但這并不意味著這個(gè)困擾著70%到87%的青少年、甚至折磨他們至成年期的頑疾不應(yīng)該得到人們的重視,特別是在它所盛行的學(xué)生群體中間。它一無(wú)是處——不能讓我們變得可愛(ài)迷人,也無(wú)法讓我們更加聰明強(qiáng)壯。這一臉青春之痘,只會(huì)徒增憂(yōu)愁。
This isn’t a polemic, however. I’m mostly just trying to let you that it isn’t trivial - and you’re not weak or weird for letting it get to you. It might sound stupid, but in the same way, as a four year old, I wanted to be blonde and blue-eyed because Cinderella wasn’t Mediterranean, I spent my teenage years believing that anything that’s wrong with you can be overcome - unless you have acne. If a group of girls decided to adopt me into their social group and give me a make-over, it would never be perfect — because I had acne. If I found out I was the heiress to a small country and needed an image revamp, it wouldn’t work- because I had acne. The sudden, unexpected romance with the most popular guy in school would never happen — because no matter how great my body, or my hair, or my style was, I still had acne.
以上實(shí)非矯情。我只是想告訴你們,青春痘絕非小事,遭它入侵的你也并不是一個(gè)人。雖然聽(tīng)起來(lái)很傻,但早在四歲的時(shí)候,我還是想象過(guò)自己有朝一日會(huì)變成擁有一頭金色秀發(fā)、兩汪如潭碧眼的美女子,或早或晚,我會(huì)蛻變成仙度瑞拉,而不是地中海女漢子。我用我的青春韶華幻想著我身上所有的不完美終會(huì)煙消云散,然而那一臉青春痘卻隨著青春的長(zhǎng)驅(qū)直入愈發(fā)根深蒂固。如果有一群女孩子決定邀我一同玩耍,并打算為我化個(gè)妝時(shí),她們會(huì)發(fā)現(xiàn)所有心血皆是徒勞——我的一臉痘會(huì)告訴你為什么。如果某一天,我解開(kāi)了身世之謎,發(fā)現(xiàn)自己是某個(gè)小國(guó)的繼承人,需要重塑個(gè)人形象時(shí),哦,那根本辦不到——我的一臉痘會(huì)告訴你為什么。那種和全校第一花樣美男墜入愛(ài)河的校園言情小說(shuō)橋段從來(lái)不會(huì)在我的世界里上演,即便我的身材、我的長(zhǎng)發(fā)、我的個(gè)人魅力是多么無(wú)懈可擊——我的一臉痘會(huì)告訴你為什么。
My experience was that I woke up an hour earlier than I needed to, in order to make sure I had time to deal with my face. I wouldn’t go out with friends when they invited me, unless I knew well in advance. I’d convince my mum I was sick so I didn’t have to go to school on bad days. These are all reflected in experiences others have told me as well. In my case, I even developed the beginnings of an eating disorder simply because, if I couldn’t have the perfect face, I’d be damned if I didn’t have the perfect body. Thankfully, I managed to escape that downward spiral early on. I’m sure there are many who didn’t.
于是乎,我的多年經(jīng)驗(yàn)就是,比正常人早起一個(gè)小時(shí),以便能有充足的時(shí)間來(lái)處理我的面部問(wèn)題。除非事先被通知,我從不會(huì)接受不期而至的邀約。在粉刺嚴(yán)重的時(shí)候,我會(huì)裝病來(lái)逃避上學(xué)。所有這些經(jīng)歷,青春痘患者們都曾有過(guò)。我甚至還得過(guò)初期厭食癥,只是因?yàn)槲矣X(jué)得,如果已經(jīng)不能擁有一張完美的臉,那我死都要擁有一副完美的身材。感謝上帝,我總算是阻止了這樣的惡性循環(huán)繼續(xù)發(fā)展,但我堅(jiān)信有許多遭受相似折磨的同齡人們并沒(méi)有從這個(gè)恐怖的漩渦里走出來(lái)。
What I hope to have achieved from this article is to give to others what I gained from the pieces I read - a feeling that this daily annoyance isn’t just mine. That I’m not overreacting. That I’m not - forgive the trite turn of phrase - alone. It scarily confirmed that people are actually staring at my face and judging me but it also reminded me that at the end of the day, it’s not “acne-depression”.
我寫(xiě)作此文的目的正是想向讀者們傳達(dá)我讀完那些“通向抑郁癥”之流的文章后的感受——我想告訴人們,這種日復(fù)一日的痛苦不是我的專(zhuān)屬;我并沒(méi)有反應(yīng)過(guò)激;以及我并不是(請(qǐng)?jiān)忂@種陳腐的措辭)一個(gè)人在受著煎熬。在人們對(duì)著我的面部指點(diǎn)江山的時(shí)候,我的確抑郁過(guò);但在一天結(jié)束之際,我會(huì)告訴自己,這種抑郁與我的痘痘無(wú)關(guān)。
Acne is a factor, which, like anything else, can lead to depression. Instead of letting it reach that stage, we should just change the first element.
粉刺,和其他任何因素一樣,都是抑郁癥的誘因。我們要做的,不是放任暫時(shí)的陰霾真的變成風(fēng)暴,而是在云縫間、在自己心底灑上一縷陽(yáng)光。