I am also a former drinker and I had that same thing happen mostly when I was drinking and then into the first year or so after I stopped. I am certain that drinking interfered with my body's ability to heal, and I also think that the effects lasted well after my last drink. I wish I had known about cleansing then rather than a few years later.
I thought that drinking was responsible for bad skin in general, but was surprised that everything did not just get better physically when I got sober.
One thing that has been helpful for me with scars, skin in general, and lots of other stuff is oil pulling. It is the most powerful therapy I have tried in terms of early results and efficacy. (I love liver flushing, etc. but OP offers a pretty big/early bang for your cleansing buck, so to speak.) On the OP forum you can also learn about various oils and many of them are helpful with cleansing and healing.