The Acne Thread

[Vega Magnus]

And here we go. It is starting to pull stuff up from my pores. Nothing too horrible and still no peeling or redness yet though. I'm happy with the progress thus far, although it is obviously limited since I've only been doing it for a little over a week, but despite the limited time, I can definitely tell that it is working as advertised. Oh, and the thinning of the upper layer of skin? Yeah, that is happening too, and it's WEIRD. I can definitely see why you shouldn't ever use Biore strips while on tretinoin.

 

[valliaddict]

I've never been to this thread before, so I highly doubt I'm saying anything groundbreaking, but for me the ONLY acne treatment that works for my skin in Proactiv. If anyone has any negative reviews about it, I bet it's because they used it for less than a month. The only misleading information about the directions of usage is that step 1 (the renewing cleanser) shouldn't be rubbed gently on your face. It should be scrubbed HARD for about a minute or two with warm water. It's basically an exfoliant that gets out all the dirt & toxins in your skin, so you really have to get in there. Another thing I never do is make a full face mask out of the refining mask. I just dab a little bit on every blemish at night & sleep with it on. In the beginning it dried my skin out so bad, but after you get over that hump of dryness your skin will begin to adjust to the Proactiv. The green tea moisturizer also works if your skin gets unbearably dry. I won't say I had terrible acne in high school, but my skin surely has come leaps & bounds from where it once was. I'm very happy with skin today because I committed to using Proactiv & it eventually worked. Whoever told you clear skin can happen over night is a liar. It happens with self-discipline & a good acne treatment. Sorry if this sounded like a paid testimonial.

ETA- And if you're constantly touching your face, STOP IT!! Really people, your hands are so dirty. And don't drink dark sodas. Drink water…..OK bye.

 

[Vega Magnus]

I'm really considering moving up to daily use of tretinoin. My skin is tolerating it extremely well. Thoughts?

 

[nita-karoliina]

I hate it that once a month i get one very bad cystic pimple. They always leave a mark, i guess it's hormonal. No skincare routine helps. I used to take birthcontrol pills and those helped. But i dont use them anymore and i really dont want to start them again. This is hopeless!

 

[Vega Magnus]

My prior question about whether clindamycin or tretinoin will bleach clothes has come up again. I went to put on a dark grey t-shirt today only to find that it had been bleached on the sleeves and around the neck. It is a shirt I wear during the day, so it is safe to assume that it was caused by the clindamycin. This is odd though as there is no evidence of bleaching on any of my other clothing, not even on the shirt I wore on my first day of using clindamycin, and I KNOW that I rubbed my face on the sleeves over the course of the day then. (I got irritated with myself for doing so because I wasn't sure if clindamycin bleached or not and that was a brand new shirt.) I have a theory though. The bleached shirt is rather large and too baggy to wear under dress shirts, so it must have been worn over the weekend last. This is relevant because on weekends, I tend to apply my clindamycin and then make myself something to eat before applying my aloe vera gel in order to let the clindamycin sink in, leaving plenty of time for me to inadvertently touch my shirt with my face. I'm also guessing that the layer of aloe over the clindamycin is what is keeping it from bleaching in other circumstances, so those couple of hours of not wearing aloe may have led to my ruined shirt. Is that a decent theory, or am I completely wrong?

 

[reesewu]

Hi, here I am again. Everything was fine with the tea oil and aloe vera. My skin was spotless until I started going swimming a few days ago. The water in the pool wrecks havoc my skin. But I love swimming and that's the only place in my town with a decent pool.

Is there anyway to prevent it? I go very early so I don't put on sunscreen? Would putting on some waterproof sunscreen on my face help?

 

[Vega Magnus]

^So do you think it is the sunscreen or the water that is causing it? If you think it is the sunscreen, try a different brand. If you think it is the water, well, I don't really know what to say about that. Pool water has all sorts of chemicals and God knows what else in it and that is not something you can exactly avoid if you want to swim. Maybe try washing your face off immediately after swimming.

 

[Vega Magnus]

Tretinoin is truly outstanding stuff. I've gotten fantastic results. Could not be more pleased.

 

[LijepaTajna]

I have gotten very good results with Minocycline lately.It does make you more sensitive to the sun,so I have to reapply sunblock before going outside (I live in the tropics) and often wear a hat.
Use pure Manuka honey as a face mask! I leave it on for an hour,it really evens out your skin and slowly fades any scars or discolorations.Also I am trying topical Epiduo which has Benzol Peroxide in it;I wanted to try Murad's Benzol Peroxide but it was a bit too pricey.

 

[Prenouveau]

^ How do you apply the honey, do you mix it with something? I want to try but it sounds messy.

 

[Vega Magnus]

^I tried putting honey on my face once a couple years ago and managed to successfully get a lot of it in my hair. Not very fun.

 

[tarantino]

I've been on Tetralylsal for about three months now and my acne has improved soooo much, I still get a few spots around certain times of the month but never the quantity or of the severity that they used to be
I'm so delighted, I've actually been able to get away with wearing no makeup all day

 

[reesewu]

^So do you think it is the sunscreen or the water that is causing it? If you think it is the sunscreen, try a different brand. If you think it is the water, well, I don't really know what to say about that. Pool water has all sorts of chemicals and God knows what else in it and that is not something you can exactly avoid if you want to swim. Maybe try washing your face off immediately after swimming.

I mean to use some thick waterproof sunscreen as a protection from the pool's water . I've tried and it works, well, kinda! My skin still has some new spots after every time I swim but it's much less.

 

[blackkohl]

Hi guys, I haven't posted here before and I'm pretty sure someone will have already mentioned the products I'm about to mention, but I just thought I'd put my two cents in. I have really sensitive, oily skin that is prone to blemishes. Had moderate acne in my teens – somehow got through it with the help of various big-name products from the likes of Neutrogena etc, on top of prescribed treatments from my doctor (these really dried up my skin, no matter how patient I was with them and how sparsely I applied them, so I gave up on prescription products after a while as I was sick of getting rashes, flaky skin etc etc). I'm now 20 and my skin is better now as my hormones have settled a little, but I still get spots pretty frequently, mainly the annoying under-the-skin kind that never quite seem to go away.

My favourite products to use are from Avene. I use their Cleanance Gel cleanser and their TriAcneal treatment (you have to persevere with it for a few weeks before you really see results, but it's totally worth it in the end). I sampled and then ended up buying a full-size Cleanance K, but after using up the whole tube it just wasn't doing anything for me in terms of my spots; I know you have to give these things time, but normally you see some sort of change in your skin after using up an entire tube of the product.

My dirty secret is using TCP on my spots from time to time – I only use it when I have really 'angry' looking spots that I just want to get rid of as quickly as possible – it smells horrible and stings a little but I grin and bear it, dipping a Q-tip into the liquid and then dabbing it on the offending area before I go to bed; when I wake up, the redness of the spot (and, usually, the size) has decreased. Sudocrem is another messy-but-cheap solution that works surprisingly well when applied before bed!

 

[tigerrouge]

I made a big improvement to my skin by remembering to keep my hands away from my face. That means no absent-minded touching, the way you do if you're thinking about something, or reading stuff on-screen.

 

[nita-karoliina]

Okay, so i have this music festival coming up this weekend and of course i got 2 huge pimples on my face (period time..) i need to get rid of them FAST!!!! any advice? i've used retinol, Paulas choice exfoliators, salisylic acid etc..
any good tips? Products?

 

[Miwi]

If I were you I would first use a proper medical (sterile!) needle, squeeze the hell out of it (unless the pimple is not yet ready to be removed) and then treat what's left (usually a red mark). But that's just me. Otherwise I think there's not much you can do. Especially because you already use some great products. I would suggest DIY vitamin C toner and clay masks though. I also use Bioderma Sebium Global, works better than the new version of LRP Effaclar Duo. At least for me.

 

[nita-karoliina]

If I were you I would first use a proper medical (sterile!) needle, squeeze the hell out of it (unless the pimple is not yet ready to be removed) and then treat what's left (usually a red mark). But that's just me. Otherwise I think there's not much you can do. Especially because you already use some great products. I would suggest DIY vitamin C toner and clay masks though. I also use Bioderma Sebium Global, works better than the new version of LRP Effaclar Duo. At least for me.

Thank you sooooo much

 

[lynette]

oatmeal mask

it sounds too simple to be true but today i came across a some research that suggests oatmeal is probably the most effective anti-inflammatory and skin soothing house remedy to put on your face.

you can see the research here:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17034418
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22777219
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17373175

i tried it for a few days and have to admit i love the results, the redness of my small pimples is visibly reduced and the fine oatmeal leaves a powdery finish on my skin. the recipe is easy, too: just mix 2 tablespoons of oats until very fine powder and add the same amount of water. lovely. i like minimalistic house remedies. i've posted a blogpost on this topic on my blog http://www.thesilentwhite.com


otherwise my go-to products are Aesop Fabulous Face Oil and Lush's Dark Angel Face Cleanser, i think the face oil truly is a staple for me

 

[dumbfairy]

I probably haven't posted in this thread in 2 years, but in 3 weeks time I have my dermatology consultation for roaccutane.

Now I appreciate this is a product that splits opinion, but I'm curious if anybody has used it before.

I'm open to trying roaccutane because at 26 years of age, every product I've had from my doctor hasn't worked for me.