Facial/peels or medicine for spots?

[Notanothercherrybakewell]

Just a quick one,

I always have 3-10 'spots' at any given time. Not sure if they're considered acne or not, majority of the time they're under the skin and don't get a head.
They can be a decent size, sometimes red and take forever to go (we're talking a month plus). They tend to be quite tender too. If I do squeeze them a clear liquid comes out.

I am totally at my wits end with it now so am looking into a dermatologist in the NW.

I am unsure which route to take though as the idea of acne medication scares me a little. I have been prescribed an antibiotic by my gp in the past but it didn't do anything and they were little help when I returbed after 4 weeks.

I have sensitive skin and react to most things, so hoping you might have some idea as to what would be best.
Have seen some amazing facials and peels, led light therapy etc can really help.

So my question is, given I don't have typical 'bad' acne is asking for the medicine route overkill? Can I achieve decent skin with a mix of peels/facial type stuff alone? I want to go ahead armed with as much info as I can so I don't get upsold on loads of 'extras'.
Please point me in the right direction!!

I had amazing results from using an led mask, bought relatively cheaply from amazon. It was very effective but you really have to have the time to sit down and use it. I have two kids now so it's a bit harder and it frightened my son a bit!

Sorry, should have said, I tried some medication and it didn't work for me. It is so hard because it is trial and error.

I had medication and it worked.

@ParadiseLaundry what colour led did you use? I've got all the time in the world atm to dedicate to this so it's not an issue

@Fluffycloudland77 did you find the side effects manageable? I'm worried I'd be swapped spots for flaky skin for the duration.

Well I had antibiotics but it was cystic by then so they sent me off for roaccutane which was a miracle drug for me.

I have an led mask which I used daily and I think it stopped me scarring because I had extensive acne by then.

I’d bumbled along for years trying cosmetic cures and it literally exploded when I turned 40.

I used mostly the blue - that's the best one for acne. But I also saw benefit from green - this one helps repair and red - this helps collagen production and imo you can see the effects of this one the soonest, your skin looks more plumped up.