Identifying what is causing your acne is important in finding the right way to get rid of it. It may be as simple as changing your foundation or as complex as the side effects from a medication you take.
There are many different things that someone can do if they are plagued by acne, but I want to talk about some effective things that worked (and work) for me.
I Suffered With Acne Too! —So I feel yah.
There were a bunch of little bumps all over my face so that my skin texture was like a deformed orange peel. In addition to the small bumps, I had cystic bumps that never came to a head and hurt really bad. I spent a lot of time picking my face, which just made things infected and then made everything worse.
Of course, that led me to packing on the foundation to hide all the marks and bumps. It was truly a vicious cycle.
I tried a lot of things back then but nothing seemed to work. I tried BC pills, (a crazy) apple-only diet, over-the-counter acne creams, acne face washes, infomercial acne systems, and even a low dose of blood pressure medicine per a dermatologist—all with little to no success. But I wasn’t willing to give up on finding a solution because, as I am sure you know, acne is depressing.
That is why I am sharing with you my secret regimen and products to getting rid of acne.
So let’s start with the basics: Your at-home routines, products, diet, & stress
The Basics in Getting Rid of Acne
2. Products – The products that you use on your skin can create more acne. For example, maybe you are using an acne face wash, and what it is doing is drying out your skin—which increases oil production leading to more acne. So you really need to choose quality products that are gentle and non-comedogenic. There’s a big difference in cheap products and professional-grade products. Here is a small list and quick access to products that I use and recommend to my clients:
Disclosure: The following list of products are affiliated links. However, as mentioned above I only recommend things that I would use or have used.
FACE WASH – Mesoestetic Hydra Milk Cleanser
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MOISTURIZER – Use one. A good one. You may actually have dry skin posing as oily skin, but even if you truly do have oily skin there are still moisturizers that work well. Again, look for pro products like Mesoestetic, or Image Skin Care
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ASTRINGENT – Use Witch Hazel
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FOUNDATION – (This was a huge culprit for my acne) Again, you want to choose higher quality. Yes, that means typically they are going to be more expensive but it’s worth the nice condition your skin will be in. Try Chanel, Giorgio Armani, MAC Face & Body, or my personal fave Youngblood Liquid Mineral Foundation
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4. Reduce Stress. – Stress has a big impact on our skin, as well as our overall health. So make a conscious effort to reduce things in your life that cause stress. Make sure that you are exercising, meditating, and giving yourself a break.
Specific Acne Treatments
Again, there are many different things that you can do and I actually found a post that covers some other really good options. Of course I don’t use all of those, but they are all reliable.
I wish I could go into everything and all possible options but the purpose of this post is to share what I specifically do for clients and myself, not every possible option out there. So let’s talk about some effective treatment options that I use:
- Prescription Topical – This was a major break through for my terrible acne. I highly recommend this if you have acne all over your face. I used Duac for a few years and once my skin was consistently clear I slowly discontinued it. Today I rarely (but occasionally) get a few cystic pimples and very small break outs, but overall my skin is typically clear. Topicals are really effective in giving relatively quick results (about 4 weeks). Some topicals can really dry your skin out at first but once you push through the initial dryness, you will start to notice the difference it makes. You need to see a dermatologist for the prescription but it’s amazing what it can do along with a good home care routine.
- Chemical Peels – These can be pretty effective in treating acne and acne scarring. Of course you might end up needing a couple days off from work, unless you don’t mind peeling. If you find a good esthetician who is experienced with acne and you complete the series (usually 6-8 peels), you will see an improvement. The typical acne peels are glycolic or AHA, salicylic, and TCA.
- Spot treatments – There isn’t a cure-all treatment for acne, so you may need to spot treat pimples every once in awhile. Spot treatments are particularly effective when most of your acne as been cleared up. I treat each pimple a little differently so look below for the type/symptoms you have, and then you can proceed with the treatment specifically for that. However, one thing that you can do for all pimples is try to locate the hair that is in the center of the pimple and pluck it out. Of course you may not always be able to find it, so don’t destroy your skin looking for it.
Quick Tip: Use a white pillow case and white face towels as colored ones will end up being bleached.
B. Deeper pimples than the ones mentioned above, are larger headless pimple(s). There may be some inflammation, tenderness and/or redness. They are typically identified as papules.
C. For cystic, no head pimple(s). They usually hurt, are deep, and inflamed. They are typically called pustules. They are not easily treated with the above techniques.
After a few days, If you still have inflammation due to the cysts (and not dry skin), continue to use the Cosmelan 2. Once the pain from the cyst is gone and the peeling has started: if there is no bump, use only the antibiotic cream at night. If there still is a bump, then follow the instructions in A or B.
By developing a good regimen, switching out your products, and using the treatments I recommended you will be on the fast track to clear skin in no time!
What have you found works really well for your acne? Let me know in the comment box below!