21 replies to this topic

[yuzer]

Starting with week 6 day 1
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Hey guys,

My name is Dave. I'm a 20-year-old male with moderate acne. I've been on the regimen for approximately 6 weeks so far.

On July 17th or so I started the CSR with Dan's BP gel. The date today is August 26th and I return to college (aka. university for you non-Americans) tomorrow. I'll be a junior! These past two years with acne have actually caused me to put makeup on my face every day. I used a concealer stick, a brush, and a CD every morning in a stall. The CD was used as a makeshift mirror, and the brush came with my electric shaver. I apply it to this day (it only takes 2 minutes) and I make it look very natural, but as a guy I'm hoping to ditch makeup forever with this regimen. I'm a man, damnit!


Products I use:

-Cetaphil Cleanser
-Dan's CSR BP gel
-Switching moisturizers from Cetaphil with SPF +15 to Neutrogena with AHA. Reason: I'm sick of these damn redmarks! This new stuff burns a little but hey people seem to like it.
-...Umm, how can I say this and still feel like a man... Concealer stick (press on redmarks lightly, use brush to smooth out so it looks natural).
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Week 6, Day 1:

So far this regimen has done wonders for my forehead acne! Unfortunately my acne is still aggressive on my chin and other locations on my face. Whitehead city my friends! I'm sick of these, but I guess some people adapt to the regimen much slower than others. I'm glad the BP gets rid of whitemarks within a couple days.

Total # of active pimples: 4 or 5
Total # of redmarks: Too many to count! I wouldn't mind whiteheads every now and then if my redmarks faded quickly. Instead they linger.

I'm really trying to look at this regimen with a positive attitude, even though every other product I've tried so far has screwed me over somehow. My confidence is only 85% with the ladies, I need that 15% boost which can be done with clear skin! Wish me luck people!

(Did I mention I'm single? It's so hard to find a pretty girl with morals these days. If I find one I'll be sure to post the news here!)

[Brandy]

Hi Yuzer and welcome!
I look forward to following your log.

One bit of advice, if you have very oily skin, the Cetaphil cleanser may not cleanse well enough. At least that is my experience with it, and others too. My skin is normally super oily and when I tried Cetaphil (I was clear at the time on the CSR) I had whiteheads in a matter of days! And it also doesn't clean makeup off well. So, if you think that applies to you, then you may need to consider a different cleanser. My favorite's are Purpose bar and gentle Wash and the CSR cleanser.

Otherwise, keep on. Do the CSR twice a day religiously! As for using a makeup brush, I don't really like those. They can be scratchy and unless you wash it everyday they can get nasty. Just something to think about.

Good luck! And holler if you need help!

[yuzer]

hmmm, well my skin doesn't seem to get oily until the evening. But you just reminded me of something. When I first got that Cetaphil cleanser (about a year-and-a-half ago) I loved it! Now all of a sudden after I wash my face with it I get the feeling it's still on my hands. It's kind of hard to explain.

But I shall take your advice and I think it would be best to purchase the CSR cleanser as soon as this thing runs out. Thanks Brandy!

[Brandy]

hey, you promised action and romance in this thread....I'm not seeing any....

[yuzer]

Patience; there must be some kind of character analysis before the big crescendo!

[mrsdarcy]

Good luck with the CSR (and with school - I'm a junior this year too! )! I will be checking back for this "action and romance".

[Brandy]

Hey Yuzer,
How's things going?

[yuzer]

Week 7, Day 2:

I'm feeling tense right now. This first week has been rough - Trying to fight acne while trying to deal with college. Putting on a concealer stick every morning (8 am classes Monday and Wednesday) - Missing morning applications of BP because it takes forever to dry. And having a roommate throughout all this?

I look in the mirror in the stall of a bathroom with fluorescent lights. I look at my redmarks and wonder when this nightmare will end. I wonder what it would be like if those redmarks on my face healed as fast as they do on my neck, which is completely clear within a couple weeks after I get a zit there. I think about what will happen if I miss an application of BP in the morning because I don't have enough time for it.

I need to get some freeweights for my room or do some serious pushups. I'm stressed and I've barely done any schoolwork.

Now for girls -- My taste in girls is very picky. Look, I don't define romance as these stupid one night stands everyone's doing - Quality girls, where are you? All around me, I just don't see them. I don't know if I'll find them at stupid parties... A word of hope - I'll be performing at open mic night in a couple weeks or so (guitar and singing). There I expect to find girls who share my passion for music and hopefully single out the girls who aren't sluts.

Another thing - I feel like a total jerk sometimes. I'm a nice guy, but naturally I'm attracted to the pretty/cute girls, and I've been told that my taste is "shallow" by 2 girls who happen to be very unattractive. This really makes me feel like a jerk, and I don't know what to say. I love all people and wish everyone the best. I don't care who you are; there's someone out there for you that can make you happy - No matter how you look on the outside, these people exist all over the place... you just have to know where to find them. Have faith.

You know what people, I'd care less about my little redmarks if girls would stop looking at me all the time. If I ever had to go out in public without putting some concealer on my face I'd feel like spears were flying through my heart every time a girl looked into my eyes.

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Week 7, Day 2:

I missed applications in the mornings for about 5 days in a row - I think it shows. I'm getting whiteheads on my nose and in between my eyebrows, as well as my forehead and my temple area. That Neutrogena Healthy Skin really burned the hell out of my skin last week - I stopped using that until last night. I think that irritation in itself was part of the reason for that last wave of breakouts, which seem to be slowing down, but VERY slightly. Oh, I've also been drinking a couple/few bottles of water every day. Hope that helps!

Total # of active pimples: approximately 8 (very small, but I hope to God these don't turn into redmarks that last for ages, and no I don't pick my zits). Hopefully this moisturizer will help the problem.

It's labor day weekend - I'm going to do homework tomorrow. In the future I plan to get into my gym and workout a lot. This will make up for lost confidence from acne. Dating? Working on it, though things will start a little slow this semester...

[Brandy]

Yuzer,
you may only be able to use that Neutrogena Healthy Skin Face Lotion once a day, or once every other day. Some people just can't tolerate it more often than that.
As you already know, skipping applications generally isn't a good idea. Try to find a way to spend those few extra minutes in the morning getting that BP on. I know it's hectic in college, I've been there, but if you want the CSR to have the best chance of getting this under control for you, you need to do it religiously.
One more thought, are you still using Cetaphil?
And if that NHSFL is just too strong for you, consider trying Lac-Hydrin Five lotion. It is 5% lactic acid which is milder than the 7-8% glycolic acid that is in NHSFL. It might feel better to you.
Hang in there! And good luck with school!!

[yuzer]

Hi Brandy!

Thanks for the advice. I've been doing my morning and night applications for the past couple of days. I'm no longer using cetaphil at night, because I've been taking showers at night instead of just washing my face. The reason for this is to get the hair gel/grease out of my hair. So cetaphil has been replaced by shower gel these past couple of days. Maybe that's a bad thing?

My acne is getting worse every day I'll hang in there but it's tough. I think I see a couple of blackheads forming on my nose - I haven't gotten blackheads in years! I wonder if it has to do with NHSFL. I'll definately consider using it only once a day. I'm just so anxious to get rid of my redmarks.

As far as these whiteheads go... My acne is making me kind of depressed. I think this moisturizer might be breaking me out. I'll look into that product you suggested.

[yuzer]

Week 8, Day 6

I've been very strict about the regimen these past couple of weeks (no more missing applications of BP). One thing though - Has anyone not put moisturizer on at night and woke up to realize your face was flake city? Sounds gross (that word flake is nasty, huh?) and I've had a couple of those days. No big deal though - A lot of moisturizer in the morning almost takes away all the flakes.

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Week 8, Day 6:

Redmarks redmarks redmarks... Fading a litte bit! That's a good thing, and I'm not sure if it was from all that water I've been drinking of my moisturizer - NHS with AHA (does this even help redmarks by the way?). Oh and one more question... Do you people change your pillowcase every two days? I heard that was suggested for people with acne.

Total # of active pimples: 2 or 3 little scumbags, but they'll be gone soon.

[david n]

'sup yuzer, good luck with college man, I just graduated last spring quarter. Believe it or not, I have actually thought about using concealer, but I just couldn't get myself to do it. I feel your pain man. I get less redness, and more dark spots because of my skin type.

First and foremost, that moisturizer your using with the AHA. Please stop using it. It will make your face worst. Beleive me. I still have a whole bottle of that stuff. My girlfriend uses it now (she's got really good skin). But anyways, it burns like hell all the time, it's not like BP where your skin begins to adjust to it. And it made me break out even more.

Neutrogena does have the moisturizer for sensitive skin--it dries really quick if you don't use a toner (don't know why). You should try it. You asked about not moisturzing and waking up with flaky skin. That has happened to me. I personally moisturize everytime I put on BP because the BP really dries my skin out. I've notice in the past that if I leave my skin all dry, itchy, and irritated --- that's when the break outs come.

For the redness, I don't really know what you're talking about. Is it like the redness you see like after you pop a pimple, where it's an open wound. OR it it like my dark spots where it's hyperpigmentation that just looks ugly, but it's not a pimple.


As for the pillowcase thing. I don't wash my pillowcases all the time, and even when I tried washing them all time, or sleeping with differnet pillow cases. It didn't really matter for me. That's just me though.

Good luck yuzer.

[yuzer]

Week 9, Day 2

Flakes are taking over! Okay I've been using more and more moisturizer lately and every morning I wake up my face is dry as hell! Mind you I've been on NHS AHA for the past few weeks - I wonder if that is causing me to flake more? According to Dan's page about it, it's supposed to do the opposite, right?

Well, let me tell you a little story. I was on a product called Benzaclin for over a year. The product contained 5% BP (as opposed to Dan's 2.5%) and even if I didn't put moisturizer on my skin wasn't nearly as dry as it is now. So is BP really to blame for the flakes, or is NHS with AHA provoking it?

It's really becoming a pain to wash my face, wait 5 minutes, apply bp, wait 10 minutes, then do moisturizer every night in college. I just wanna crash in bed, you know?

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Week 9, Day 2:

I'm still on NHS with AHA. For some reason my face is drier than ever when I wake up in the morning after applying it at night and waiting 5 minutes. I think I'm going to stay on the NHS with AHA for my hyperpigmentation red marks, as well as to get rid of my flakes, which I'm not sure if it's provoking

Total # of active pimples: 3, but they're probably the smallest whiteheads you can imagine.

P.S. I think I found out something cool about eliminating a pesky whitehead. No, it's not popping it, it's something better: Apply some Tea Tree Oil on both ends of a Q-Tip. Then put one end of the Q-Tip on the whitehead, and rub VERY GENTLY in a circular motion for as long as it takes - The whitehead will disappear! Then use the other end of the Q-Tip and continue rubbing the general area just in case any bacteria ran loose. But just as a warning - Do this maybe a couple days after the whitehead has had a chance to grow. Disclaimer - This is just my observation.

[Bob Smith]

nice to see a log that has more than just acne related stuff. sounds like you want a chick whose hot and deep

Disclaimer - This is just my observation.

haha

[Megz]

Word of advice: do NOT look at your face under a flourescent light without some kind of concealing stuff on; it will ruin your week.

Another thing, once you're pretty regular with the CSR, if you miss an app. or two, it won't hurt anything. I went about 2 and a half weeks off if it entirely until problems came back. (I'm back on CSR again unless the derm has any other suggestions).

[david n]

It's really becoming a pain to wash my face, wait 5 minutes, apply bp, wait 10 minutes, then do moisturizer every night in college. I just wanna crash in bed, you know?

I use a fan to speed up the drying process. I don't know if it affects what your skin absorbs, but it sure helps speed up the drying process.

[yuzer]

Week 13, Day 4

It's been a while since I've posted here. Guys I'll be completely honest - My acne is only partially under control. I switched moisturizers to my old Dove one a couple of weeks ago. I still use the Cetaphil facial wash, and I don't see how that could break me out if I wash it off thoroughly...

I did a bad thing this week - I got a big zit last week and popped it. I hadn't popped a zit in... I can't remember, over a year! In all fairness, I went 3 weeks and only changed my pillowcase twice. But seriously, my redmarks don't fade - They just stay for ages and it kills me. I'm feeling depressed - I'm still having to go in the bathroom stall at college with a little mirror and concealer and put it every single day. My roommate just thinks I take long sh*ts and turns it into a joke. Oh on top of that it makes me a couple minutes late to my 8AM class (I get up at 7 and still rush). My mornings can be summed up in one word: Chaos.

Friends, I don't think BP is what I need right now. I think I'm going to modify the regimen to something that will help my hyperpigmentation. It's like, every time I get a little whitehead, it dies on it's own and leaves a redmark for month after month after month... It's time for a change. It's time for a regimen that attends to my painfully slow-fading redmarks.

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Week 13, Day 4

Total # of active pimples: possibly none. These days a zit just starts to form and dies, sometimes before it's even a whitehead. And it leaves a redmark in the process.

Total # of redmarks: 200? More than ever. My forehead has actually gotten worse since being on this regimen. Someone help meee!

I tried an egg mask for the first time last night, yes both the yellow and the white mixed together. I didn't break out, although it did dry the heck out of my face. Maybe it was the few drops of lime I mixed in. Whatever the case may be, I need to get rid of these redmarks and the regimen just assumes they go away on their own

P.S. I've tried using a fan too, but it doesn't really help it dry much faster, I only save about a minute. That's the problem - Benzaclin used to dry fast, but Dan's BP takes a good 13 minutes to dry for me. Ahh Benzaclin, I kinda miss the stuff.

[yuzer]

Week 14, Day 5

Okay I've been using Dan's BP during the day and an egg mask at night. I think the egg mask is slightly helping my redmarks! I think I'm going to try ACV (apple cider vinegar) soon too. I started this thread with high expectations - Unfortunately, I keep getting zits, especially on my T zone (that's like the nose through the forehead, right?).

Zits, zits go away. Is it my concealer that keeps causing these suckers to creep up? I don't know, but as you can tell from my last post I'm really losing faith here. Damn.

[the who?]

well, if your problem is the red marks, BP isn't helping. It takes way longer for a red mark to heal with BP applied twice daily. How many active pimples do you get a day? What kind of pimples do you get? You need to address your specific problems, the CSR isn't for everyone.

I would first find a method of treatment that works well for you and then start searching for the root of the problem and eventually how to stop pimples from forming int he first place (without using topicals)

[Mr Harmonica]

hey, we appear to be in pretty much the same boat, not so many spots (3-6 on average) but plenty of red marks plaguing our once youthful good looks. From the studies i've read it would appear it's simply a case of keeping the spots at bay while the red marks fade which takes around 3-5 months. Meanwhile i noticed you gigged on guitar, i'm a pretty novice guitarist myself so hoped you could you could help me solve the wonders of Fm, i just can't seem to fret the chord properly it just tends to come out totally out of whack, and it's quite a well used chord any advice on the fingering? kind of need to work it out because one song i specifically promised i would play for my friend for her birthday the whole song appears to be based round it and i can't help but think it's massively easy to do i'm just missing something obvious.

cheers and in the words of Humphrey Bogart "...it doesn't take much to see that the problems of three little people don't amount to a hill of beans in this crazy world. Someday you'll understand that. Now, now... Here's looking at you kid."