This technically refers to a different forum, but it's general enough to be funny.

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Thanks for your help!

Ok I am 17 years old and my acne is gone, but it keep coming back. Now I am trying to prevent my acne.

Advice please.

I had very bad acne age 15-22, and have the scars to show for it. Now at age 43 it's all coming back. Yet it's not like normal acne. It comes in waves and is more welt like and under the surface. I can be totally clear then get a dozen welts over night. They last for about 5 days. I clear up then get hit again. Im mostly thinking it's environmental or from food. The condition started 1 week after moving into our new home in a new county.

Any ideas?

Ive been on the pill now for 5 days now and i was wondering how long it takes to see improvement for body acne

pleeeease let me know i want to have some sort of idea of when i will be clear.

PS when on the pill how clear IS clear? is it like not a single spot appears or its just kept under control with little ones here and there?

pps my acne seems to have got minutely worse since Ive been taking the pill. does this usually happen?

thanks guys comments very much appreciated

Hello.
My story goes something like this:

I started getting facial acne at about ten/eleven years old. By the time I was twelve it had spread to my back and by this point, I had tried a plethora of OTC medications that never really made any difference. I quit trying for a while and counted on the acne fading itself. Sometimes I think I just ignored it during those years, but looking back, I remember doing things like swimming in a tee shirt to hide the bacne and wearing bangs that did NOT fit my face just to hide the break-outs around my forehead and temples. This, I realize, did not help the acne. But at the time, I didn't care. It hid it.
By the time I was fifteen, I was back to trying different things that never really worked. My doctor put me on some prescription cream medication that never really did much.
By seventeen, I had terrible back acne on top of the facial acne - as well as shoulder and chest acne and the occasional break-out wherever it decided to be.
I finally saw a real dermitologist who prescribed Tretinoin cream and put me on antibiotics. It took patience, but eventually I saw results like I never had before.
The thing was - the acne was still there. It was to a lesser degree, so I was fairly satisfied most of the time, but I remember thinking, "I've got to take these medications, AND go through a lengthy morning and night routine to take extra good care of my skin and I STILL don't have as good of skin as a lot of people that don't have to put in half as much effort."
I think that's what got me the most.
Still. It was better than it had ever been. I wasn't going to complain too much.

On the brink of turning nineteen, I lost my insurance and couldn't/cannot afford the monthly prescriptions, so I've been off of those for about seven months now.

My back acne flared up again faster than anything, though the shoulder, chest and even stomach acne were quick to follow.
When I was younger the facial acne was mostly on my forehead. It's still somewhat there, though the worst of it is on my chin and along the jawline.

I started wearing bare minerals make-up last year... make-up for the first time to cover it. Considering my personality type, I'm quite sure that just means I've grown desperate.
I was never really teased about my skin, certainly not regularly, but remarks have been made. And they're bothersome. Nearly depressing.
Even the remarks from clueless little children who really just want to know why I have "owwies" everywhere.
I pretend not to care. In fact, I don't think I've said the word "zit" or "pimple" or even "acne" out loud since I was a little kid. But really, that's because of shame more than anything else. This is the first place and time I've ever expressed any of my story/condition/thoughts/feelings on my skin and even though it's online, it feels awkward.
I've been trying ALL kinds of home-remedies, highly-recommended OTC products as well as some not-so-recommended OTC products. I've tried the at-home "cures" (all dozen of them and the "real" one) . . . I've studied up on its causes and such.
I've done ALL of this quite faithfully but very very privately. I have never had a friend or even SEEN a person in real life that has had acne a fraction of what I feel I've got.
It seriously makes me want to cry and curl up in a ball in bed and never get out when I hear young people or adults or teens get upset over an occasional break-out.
It's like, "That's what they think of a spot or two? What do they think when they look at me??"
Granted, I hide most of it the best I can, so I don't even know who all knows of my body acne. But still. I hate going the extra mile day in and day out every day to hide it. I hate that I have to. I hate that I feel like no one (and I mean no one) in the world can possibly understand. No one can possibly tell me what to do to make it better.
I'm sooo terribly tired of all of the conflicting information and conditions to the information out there.
From causes to products to what foods to avoid.
"Chocolate won't hurt you, it's not caused from that."
"DON'T eat chocolate or greasy foods, it'll make it worse!"
"Acne is hormonal."
"Acne is caused from bacteria outside."
"This product works wonders."
"That product stinks."
"Wash your face!"
"Don't wash your face more than once a day!"

I'm nearly twenty and I've struggled with this so long I wonder in agony if I always will.
I guess - I'm really just looking for someone to say, "I get it. I've got what you got. I've felt that. I feel it. You're not alone. Other people have it as bad as you do. Take heart."

And honestly? This is the first place I've ever seen where I can actually 'cry out' for that kind of feedback.
The first place that's given me hope that maybe if I can't be cured in the near-future... I'm not alone.

I am new here, so HI! I am actually looking for some advice. My face is covered in whiteheads, the occosional pimple and some blackheads but whiteheads are all over. The whiteds are very deep nd under the skin so steaming doesn't help much. I was on proactiv for years which and while on it I got pimples and blackheads but vary little whiteheads. Then I tried ZenMed which was gross and increased the whiteheads. I then tried Exposed which cleared my zits but did nothing else. I recently started the Oil Cleansing Method and it helps all pimples and black heads and reduces the appearence of the whiteheads but doesn't quite eliminate them. I know the deep whiteheads are a tough one and takes time, but I don't know what to do. I am wondering if there is specific combo for the OCM that is best for whiteheads?

After lurking the boards for about a year, finally decided to officially become a member. I have learned so much great info ( during my lurking ). My name is Robin, I'm a 44 yr. old female. My skin battle has been a roller coaster ride. I did not really have any major skin issues until during the time of my second pregnancy. Up until then I just had your occasional zit, here and there. That was it. During the pregnancy, my skin got pretty bad, but cleared up after the first trimester. I knew I was having a girl, so I kind of wrote it off to to much of the female hormones in my body. After that first battle with acne ( where the choices of treatment are so limited ) it was smooth sailing. I thought I would actually have managed to have avoided acne altogether.

WRONG!!! In 2005 at the age of 39 adult acne reared it's ugly head. Stupid me thought I had actually missed the battle that plague so many people, now I was the one scrambling to fix this!
I got a derm that is very well known here in New Orleans. She was the creator or green cream, always writing articles in the major female magazines, etc. We first tried the convention route. Antibotics, grean cream, prednisone and injections. It helps a little, but no way was I satisfied! After about six months we did 9 mos. of accutane. I was so happy with the results, and suffered hardly any side effects. I maintained the results till May of this yr. buy slathering on benzclin each nite.

Well this may I knew I need more than that. Instead of waiting 6 months for an appointemnt with my preious derm, I made an appointment with the daughter of my childhood derm. She's young, aggresive and so kind. I wanted to do another round of accutane, but she does not treat by using accutane on her patients. My face was never cover in acne, no blackheads, just that lovely under the skin cysts, which whe all now is a bitch to get rid of, so on my first appointment I needes about six injections for the " quick fix " . Then we set up my regimine. I'm going to post it and hope I do it correctly, so it shows when I make any posts. I'm like zit free after six weeks and my skin has never looked better, including the accutane. Ok, I have no clue how to put my regime steps up so they show with every post, so I need some help on this one...

Thanks and I'm so glad I finally signed up!!!

I have felt ugly for far too long.

No one should ever have to suffer from something that makes you feel such low self esteem,
so unnatractive, so much like you don't want your picture taken or to see old friends, something that makes you want to hide and cry. It diminishes your spirit and makes you feel horrible about yourself.

For everyone that is going to read this, I honestly, with all my heart wish you the best of luck
with your pursuit to stop your acne. You are beautiful. Regardless.

The only thing I can say that has benefited me from having acne is that I can now understand
how awful it makes the person feel who has it. And it isn't something to be taken lightly.

Hi im from IL and I'm going to be a junior in high school. I usually would never go on the internet searching for answers, but i felt like I had no other choice. My next dermatolgist appointment isnt for another two weeks and my acne is getting BRUTAL.


I use to a PERFECT skin. I would never even get close to a blemish. About two years ago i started to get mild acne which didnt bother me as much. Now, it is starting to be moderate to severe. It has stretched all over my cheeks to my temple, and keep on spreading all over my face. I lost half of my friends because im seriously depressed. Acne hasnt only taken my appearence, it has taken over my mental stability. I dont go out anymore, and ignore half of my family. Acne has made me loose interest in everything I use to enjoy. I cry every night thinking about how I had taken good skin for granted. I always feel that people dont even consider me attractive anymore because of this acne that has taken over my life. I need someones help, please ANYBODY, before I end up being suicidal.

Please, someone respond with help or advice!

Right now ive been on minocycline for about 4-5 weeks. (no improvement)
I wash my face twice or maybe three times a day.
I use benzaclin once a day. (improvement has decreased)

Heya, ive been on accutane for just ova a week now, and just lukin for sum advice.
The stuff is seriously freaking out my skin, i kno they say it gets worse before it gets beta but WEN??
Ive had moderate to severe acne for like the last ten years ( im 28 now), ive tried various skin care routines, medications, anti biotics etc. Accutane is my last resort. What if it doesnt work?
I hate that its taking ova my life.

Hello everybody,

this is a long post, but I believe you will find it informative. It is my 'coming out of the closet' if you will

First....I owe you guys on this forum more than I can really express. I would like to thank all of those who put time and thought into there posts, and actually know their stuff. I have frequented this site over the past 3 years and it has always been a refuge. I have had what derms have decribed as "moderate" acne, mainly of the cystic type. I have sensitive skin as well. I'm 23, and it has been very stressful for me going through the ups and downs. I know more about medications (thanks to this site) than any dermatologist I have been to. I mean that as a fact. I almost laugh when I go to them.

With that said, let me quickly summarize what I have done, what I found works, and what I find I a load of BS. I have tried most everything that has received praise on this site, some of the methods even receiving worked, Let me summarize:

1. The Regimen (Used Dan's products for 4 months or so) - Not bad...but not for me. Here's why. BP is good as what it does, and that is killing bacteria. It not the best at penetrating pores, which is why Dan's method work once you are able to put a whole crapload on your face. It work at getting rid of the more superficial acne closer to the skins surface, but did not help with the cysts. Plus it made my face itchy and uncomfortable. Next move (don't get mad that I didn't try it longer...it was sooo itchy and annoying)

2. Oral Antibiotics

a. Bactrim (2 weeks) - Made me break out in hives....also had a few beers and blacked out (like 3 beers). Next...
b. Doxycycline (3-4months) - Minimal affects, yet noticeable. No upset stomach. took for three months and it did OK. Recommended, but for temporary relief....it'll come back.
c. Minocycline (3-4 months)- supposed to be stronger and more effective, yet it didn't really do anything. No side effects. Worthless for me.
d. Erithromycin - Made me fart worse than the Klumps. Luckily I was around guys for the week or two I was on this and they found it hilarious. Once the farts lost their comedic value, I decided to stop this for fear of losing friends...LOL!


3. Topicals

a. Differin - Tried when I was about 17, hard to remember why I stopped, but the topical retin-a type stuff just tends to dry out aggravate my skin too much. Next...
b. Clindamycin/BC combo DUAC - Did alright....but ran into same problems as Dans regimen. I was on this while on one of the orals I believe.

b. Finacea - Weaker than watered down weak sauce...plus it's not pleasant to rub in. More for rosacea, not cystic acne...my derm was stupid.

c. Paula's Choice 2% BHA - THE BOMB!!!!! This shit made a new man out of me (for awhile). My regimen was to shave (electric) in the morning, wash with Spectro Jel, and then wait ten minutes and put a thin layer of this stuff on my face (but not my nose...for some reason it made my nose oilier and red at the tip...weird). No moisturizer, the salicylic acid, green tea extracts and some other indredients in here provided all I needed. I used this stuff for almost a year...the best year of my acne career! Still got occasional zits, but they healed faster. Then it turned on me. I was getting weird, unpoppable zits. Almost like my face was rejecting it. Lame.....next! (p.s. try it if you haven't, its pretty cheap and lasts like 5 months)

4. PROPECIA (WTF? read on...)

Now to something more interesting. I also have slight thinning of the hair on my crown area, which I guess I can attribute to my grandfather (thanks grandpa!), so I decided to cave in and try propecia. No extra hair, but my acne vanished in almost one month. It was either an insane coincidence or propecia actually helped my acne. If you are a dork like me, check it out. Propecia is a 5-alpha-reductase-inhibitor (or something like that), which is a chemical responsible for sebum production (it also attached to hair follicles and causes them to shrink). Anyway, there has been other reports of people having a sebum reduction due to this. In fact, Kinerase offers a product called Clear Skin moisture light which contains an avacado extrac that block this same chemical, check it out. Anyway, I was super happy with my skin, life, etc... until I broke out in hives 3 months into treatment. FML! Acne returned after 5 months

5.Other products I've tried

a. Tea Tree oil - super minimal effects, not even worth the smell. Works ALRIGHT for sebhoric dermatitis (fungal infections)
b. Sudocrem - Super gross, annoying cream that is hard to wash off and does nothing.
c. Hydrocotisone cream - I know, not the greatest idea to use steroids. Well, the don't really do anything for deep zits because of minimal penetration. Plus it has parabens and mineral oil typically
d. Glycolic acid gel (Paula's choice) - noticed nothing
e. Scotch tape - for exfoliation (doesn't work at all. It''ll get like 1-2 dead skin patches and leaves the rest...really ineffective)


So after all of this, I am back at square one. I have been using Cereve products for the past 8 months (cleanser and moisturizer twice a day), which I thought were working great for about 4-5 months (started them coincidentally along with propecia). But now even these Holy Grail moisturizers make me feel slightly itchy/tight in the face area. I also take Fish oil...multivitamins, and eat healthy as hell as well as exercise.

I was about to request Accutane from my derm the other day (because I have tried a reasonable amount of products ), so I called my parents and told them. I told my dad all I had been through, and when I told him about using moisturizer twice a day, he immediately said "well there's your problem...you're putting all that crap on your face...it can't breathe!"

Now...as callous as that statement is, he most definitely has a point! Between the cleansers and lotions I use daily, I must have upwards of 30 chemicals on my face at any given time. He told me that he never used more than warm water, and he has never had a problem!

I know....I know...genetics. But hey, it my F*ing father, my closest genetic equivalent! All my friends who are clear don't really use anything either, I just never have had the courage to try. So starting last night, I have sworn an oath to try at least 3 months of putting NO CHEMICALS on my face....period (unless I am going out in the sun for an extended period).

This is the only way I will know 100% that I am in fact bringing this affliction upon myself. So...I know the "Water only method" has been tried before by posters here, but I would like to start another "log" if you will, aimed at the poor bastards like me who have tried everything under the sun and who are afraid of Accutane.

Anybody want to be updated? If so, I will upload photos and progress. If not....screw you guys LOL! Take care yall....thanks in advance for the support.

Helle everyone, im a 17 years old boy and come from holland. So my english is not my first language and it can be bad. Ive suffered for more than two years now with acne. Ive a moderate acne type and its always on the very left and the very right of my face and chin. Also on my back, body and neck. On my forehead and around my nose, i have almost no acne. It al started 2 years ago on my forehead and then it started to expand to other parts of my face and after a while it began on my back and neck etc. It is horrible when your acne is expanding day by day. Everyday i feel frustrating and if its really bad i dont go outside because i hate when people see me with a heavy breakout. Just like today... I got 8 new pimples and every week its clearing up and then im feeling very happy but then at the end of the week a major breakout. I really hate those outbreaks. Im always asking myself WHY ME? In these two years it has been for one time cleared up totally and that was in the south of france at the Mediterranean Sea. It was the best time of my life! Next week i will go again to the Mediterranean Sea and hopefully my acne will clear up again. But i know it will come back after my holiday.

Im using this website to find useable information about acne so i can handle these outbreaks and clear up my face. Ive tried several things to clear up my acne, like benzyl peroxide 5% but i cant use that because i discovered my skin is allergic for benzyl peroxide. I also used a anti bacterial cleaner from my doctor and it also doesnt work for me. Im now trying minocycline 50mg twice a day because of my cyst back acne. So hopefully this is a drug that will work.

By the way, sorry for my english if its bad and thanks for reading. If you have any advice please tell me.

Hello everyone, I am new here and have been using the site for awhile now as of late as a steady informational database but never bothered to make an account. My story is probably very similar to all of yours. I have been battling acne since my sophomore year of high-school when I suddenly realized my skin started to get more oily after a summer vacation trip. This was the beginning of my acne prone dilemma. I was 16 then. I am currently 19 years old, a male and enrolled in a local community college. I find myself still hindered from fighting acne and the psychological/emotional problems it comes entangled with. In the beginning i had tried over the counter products, those helped me for the most part throughout highschool but never really solved the problem. I have the type of acne that practically turns every pimple into a lasting red-mark that seems to never fade. The bigger the pimple, the more stretched out and embarrassing the scar would be. I also have fairly oily skin, but it doesn't really tend to get semi-oily until 4-5 hrs after a shower, and really only is noticeable on my nose, and maybe half an inch away from each side of the nose. I saw a dermatologist maybe my junior year and started on the BP products like triaz etc. I then tried minocycline my senior year and my acne reached a moderate/severe period. I was on mino maybe 3 months and saw no results, so i went off and wouldn't see another derm for close to another year. After that i didn't really use anything aside from various cleansers such as burts bees, cetaphil, etc recommended from my sister. My acne gradually just continued to gather more red-marks and embarrassing whiteheads during this period, but never was too bad and i could live with it being a fairly good looking guy to begin with. I just always felt i didn't deserve this and felt like my scarring/acne kept me from self-actualizing and being the best possible version of myself. I lost alot of of friends simply because I was afraid of living life, and depression and anxiety would ensue till this day. About a month ago I saw a dermatologist again and she recommended accutane given I was ok with the blood-tests every two weeks etc. I was an idiot and kinda turned her down because I guess I was afraid of an IB, the price, and having to come in every two weeks along with the side effects i read about on here. Other factors swayed my decision as well but namely price given i'm a college student. Instead she prescribed me Doryx 150 mg, and a sulfur based facewash. I have been using this combo for about a month now and broke out terribly from the doryx IB, but persisted for a few more weeks. The doryx has upset my stomach tremendously so I set up another appointment where I can hopefully get Accutane as my derm had originally recommended. I have cut out alot of my partying because I want to live healthier, so I havn't been smoking weed or drinking as much as I was before. given I rarely smoked weed to begin with, and only socially drank maybe every weekend or every other weekend simply because I love women, and getting out of the house to mingle with some hotties is never a bad thing Off subject a little but I wanted to give some details as to what my life is like even with acne. Anyways i hope to make a log if/when I start accutane which should hopefully be within the next two weeks. *gasp* it feels good to talk about my skins history and vent a little for once... The log may be just what I need haha. Hope to keep you all keyed in on my progress in the future ^^

hi, as you know i am new here at acne.org. i chose to register here because i'm sick of my acne! i've had it for about 2 years now and i haven't really seen Great improvements of my skin - it's always ups and downs. it's really annoying too when i look back at my old pictures because my skin was so much better then. now my face looks like it has allergies (because of the pimples) and i have red spots on my cheeks, And blackheads (!!). i still don't know how to get rid of them, i know a few treatments (like BP) but i am allergic to BP. *sigh* right now i use a face wash+clindamycin... i really hope it works because everyone in my school has perfect skin (or so it seems) and i don't like wearing makeup. so yeah, that's my story

I have lurked here for simply, years! I love the regimen, I am back on that wagon, and I have a lot of questions too.

Am I the only one who thinks Dan Kern is a rock star? I am so glad he does all he does to help us.

See you later,
Persiandiva77

JUST WANTED TO SAY TO NOT GIVE UP ON FINACEA...JUST KEEP USING UR REG PRODUCTS AND USE FINACEA AT NITE...THIS REALLY STOPS REDNESS. THATS ALL IT DOES. THE OTHER PRODUCTS ARE WUT STOP THE ACNE.

Hello~I have been using the products for a few months now and am finally clear at 51 years!! Have tried EVERYTHING: Dermatologists, percription products, microdem, peels, Obagi, Proactiv, Zen Med (horrible--for my skin type anyway--I was even more clogged up.)

I was desperate and plugged in "acne". This site came up and the regimen seemed reasonably priced and the videos made it feel "friendly." I thought "what the heck?"-- probably another failure, but I was sick sick sick of constant breakouts, super oily skin and tons of whiteheads/blackheads with frequent cysts around the chin area.

I used the products and saw no results the first two weeks and almost gave up. I returned to the site and lo and behold there was my solution! I wasn't using enough product--I watched the video a few times and then used the products exactly as directed. Within a week my skin wasn't as oily and the blemishes I had healed very quickly with new ones quickly drying up, until by week four or so--NO MORE NEW BREAKOUTS! After 15+ years of acne ruining my day I am clear! I actually go without makeup and don't obsess about my blemishes anymore. YAY!

~JDeluxe

Hi,

I am new to this site and up until a year ago I never had any problems with my skin. I was happy, relaxed and always eager to be out and about. However I am now reduced to someone I dont know anymore. I have started suffering with my left cheek and some days its fine and others it is one big mess. Today is a bad day, my cheek is all upset and marked and I am in pieces. I am curently seeing a dermatologist every 3 months and I am using Benzoyl Peroxide which leaves my skin dry and itchy. I dont know why this started, I eat fairly healthy, exercise and drink water. I dont smoke or drink and this is ruining my life!!!

Hello! As you can guess thanks to the title, I've been a backseat reader of this forum for years.

I decided it'd be really nice to have a community I can go to, especially since I've never had anyone to relate to as far as my skin problems go.

The [user]name is trippspawn, which is odd I know. That's a name I use when I'm more or less flying under the radar, since this board is a haven for me and no place for my traditional public username. Someone somewhere out there probably gets what I'm saying right now, I hope haha.

Anywhozer just call me tripp or whatever blows your skirt up.

My story is the same, I assume, as a lot of yours in that I've essentially tried everything under the sun, so I won't get into that. I actually had clear skin at one point about a year ago, thanks to many months under my derm's care. But after all was said and done I decided I couldn't be dependent on prescriptions for the rest of my young adult life, it isn't practical, so here I am.

Just for the records I'm currently just over 2 months in on botchla's regimen. So that's what I'm doing these days.

Alrighty. I look forward to finally meeting some people I can talk to around here!

Hello to all the members!! Hi im Mishu.. New to this site...looking for advices...hopefully we all cooperate with each other. C u around fellows!!!!

Okay, I'm new.
I've never had a problem with acne or pimples, but when I woke up this morning my entire chin was broken out. It's really strange.
The same thing happened about a week ago around my mouth, but it cleared up and then this happened.
What could've caused this?

-

Hi im skeff and i want to kick the crap out of my crazy acne!! Woo

Its not bad its just not making any sense. Back in September my skin was better than ever an i was drinking tea coffee, eating chocolate. Mind you I was still using moisturisers and that. Then it just flared up so I was like okay no more junk food lots of exercise. but still it persisted. so that went on for a few months and then I gav up out of frusration- my quest for perfect skin failed. then out of desperation i stumbled upon this sight. now i got my panoxyl and im ready to go! one question though- mines 5% and only recommends usage once a day is that okay??

Hi, I'm turning 20 this August and my skin is at all time low. It has basically destroyed my life. I used to be on differin and duac in high school and although it didn't eliminate all my acne I'd say at least 90% of it was gone and i had a few break outs here and there. Then I made the stupid move of not using it anymore and trying Pro active throughout the first year of college, which basically destroyed my skin. I was on yaz and orcella birth control for about 3 months but then something go screwed up with my health insurance and i ended up not on it anymore. I don't think it really worked either way.
But Now it has flared up and I have never had my skin so bad. I recently went back to my dermatologist in May and I'm on Retin a micro, minocycline and birth control. I don't think my skin is improving so well, but I have another appointment the 20th.

I'm hoping my skin will have a much better improvement before I go back to school in September.

Here's some pictures of me from last summer.
[attachment=20219:100_0163.jpg]
[attachment=20220:100_0257.jpg]

Here are pictures of me this summer
Taken 3 weeks ago
[attachment=20216:4548_211...654857_n.jpg]
[attachment=20217:4548_211...255995_n.jpg]

This is from 4 days ago
[attachment=20218:6540_108...237959_n.jpg]

I'm keeping my finger crossed my face will go back to what it used to be like.
I'm pretty sure I'm going to have acne scarring as well .

I thought I would introduce myself since it would seem like it would help me better express my feelings towards my unrelenting struggle. I've had acne since I was fourteen years old and as soon as I began to first break out, I had tried a multitude of products. The earliest product I can remeber first using was Noxzema Citrus Scrub, which was horrible since it was EXTREMELY irritating. Other things I started using was Acne Free, Nature"s Cure, Clearasil, Clean and Clear, Proactiv, and many others that I can't remember at the moment. I never really did find much success in any of these products (except Nature's Cure may of worked, but I don't think I sticked to the instructions. I was young and not as mature as I am today). After years of trial and error, I decided to give Proactiv a second chance. So I started using the whole kit in the summer of 2007. At first, there were no results like they "claimed" there would be (go figure). My skin purged for about three months, and the breakouts continued until it was about March (my sixth month using the kit) At this time, my face had finally had been clear after years of struggling!!! Which was great since it was Prom. ( I will post pictures...soon...) However, it was short lived. Once May came around, my skin started breaking out again and it broke out even more later in the summer. The breakouts became so bad, that I stopped using the kit. (Which made it worse since I stopped using Benzoyl peroxide). Then I started to try other products (again). I tried the Murad kit, which my made my skin soft, but still not clear (I still broke out). I stopped using that kit and about a month or two later I started using Arbonne Acne Kit since my cousins and my sister had used it before and had great success (plus my acne is genetic. Both of my parents had acne as well as bad cysts). Well, it didn't work out. Then I finally saw a doctor because I had a horrible cold (which I will rant later in a post about). The doctor addressed my acne and prescribed a new regimen for me. The regimen was Differin gel and minocycline pills. This regimen was very difficult. I hate taking antibiotics, since they are not natural and can even do more harm than good, plus the minocycline did nothing for my face! So I stopped taking the antiobiotics after my first bottle. Then the Differin gel somewhat worked. It made my break out more (which was normal) but made me get some really bad scars from the breakouts. I still use it to this day, but I still get mixed results from it. Needless to say, I have joined this website to seek out new advice on what to do for my acne. I already plan on making another appointment but with a dermatologist instead since I plan on not taking Differin anymore since it only works sometime. Hopefully I will eventually find a cure!
Thanks for taking the time to read my life struggles. I also plan on talking to the dermatologist about accutane *screams*. I have been reading alot of it lately, so I will be posting some questions, opinions, thoughts, and other things about it. Thanks!

Hey im Matt....

I came to this site years ago and decided to use dan's regimen. I was desperate because pretty much everything else failed. I liked how it was nicely explained to me how to apply it correctly. I've learned a lot. It really helped. I don't get very many pimples anymore, only like one a week, but I still have rosacea and scars left over from 7 years of having moderate acne. I was thinking about some type of laser surgery to get the scars removed(or more likely made slightly less noticeable), idk do they do that? But I don't know very much about it.

So that's me. Thanks guys

I feel like I'm finally reaching that balance of good skin.
Of course, I still have my days

At one point in high-school, I pretty much resigned myself to thinking I would never have a decent complexion. I wanted to join to encourage people and say that it will get better--your face is a reflection of your inner-workings, so when you take care of your body as a whole, it shows on your face as well.

I also am still a product junkie so I wanted to have a place to learn about new products before I buy them

Merry meets, everyone!

Hi there. I am now 32 yrs old female and I have been "blessed" with problematic acne since the yr 2000. I have tried several products & the one I am currently using is the Acne Free system available @ Wal-mart. I was searching online for something additional w/ Benzoyl peroxide & found this website. I am excited to see all the info offered & am excited to see how these products will work for me. I am hesitant since I have found no products yet that have worked. I hope that w/ the regimen & the support offered will be deemed useful & effective in my quest for clear skin!