5 replies to this topic

[lastexile]

Hi, Im 16 years old, boy, I'm new to the forums and I thought I would keep a log of my Retin-A experience. You can just call me RJ. I tried Proactive and I guess it worked to some extent...there were days when I was clear of acne but things just werent getting better so I stopped ProActive. Things just kept getting worse... everyday now I wake up with a new face problem. I don't know if it can be due to shaving because this year is the year I started shaving and now I'm at the point where I have to shave every other day. Sometimes, like today, I get bumps under my skin...but I don't know if its acne or from shaving...the bumps I found today dont hurt...I don't know what to make of that...but its just so annoying.... Last week I had a huge bump on my face and it looked all bruised...that one hurt...people thought I had been in a fight or something...I know that wasnt from shaving because it was near the eye/nose area. Right now I'm on Retin-A .05%. Well see how things turn out. I'm probably also going to log what I eat since maybe I can find a pattern or something. Oh and since I get a new acne problem practically every day...I wonder if I'll even be able to tell when I'm have the "initial breakout" since I always feel like I'm having a breakout...I'll try to post photos when I have a chance to get a camera. For now I'll just let the words speak.

Oh, and by the way this is how I'll probably go by with my day. I think I could call my skin really sensitive, really dry, and really oily...so a mix of everything...just depends what time of day.

My daily routine will go by the following.....(any suggestions would be great! thanks ahead).

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Morning: 1) Neutrogena Fresh Foaming Cleanser
2) Neutrogena Oil-Free Moisturizer with SPF 15

Every Other Evening: 1) Neutrogena Fresh Foaming Cleanser
2) Followed by shaving using King of Shaves AlphaGEl Shaving Gel
Razor: Gillette SensorExcell (Twin Blade); I changes blades after every 4-5 shaves.

Night: : 1) Neutrogena Fresh Foaming Cleanser
2) Wait 30 minutes, then apply Retin-A 0.05%
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OK, I'll try to give a description of how my face looks now. 1 small bump on the right side. Theres some healing scabs/scarring from the really bad acne I got last week but I hope they subside. On my left side, 1 bigger bump (but bigger only because I tried to squeeze it). and below the eye I can feel some lumpiness/acne, though theres no white stuff...yet. I have quite a bit of acne scarring on both sides and on my chin...but I wouldn't know if you would call it bad because my friends have never said anything about it...so I assume its not that obvious or they just never want to say anything. Sigh.

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Day 1: Monday, April 21, 2008 - Yay! (I'm trying to be as positive as possible). I shaved this evening after taking a shower and after checking my face a few minutes later I noticed a small lump on the left side of my face and a smaller, less noticeable, one on the right side of my face. I know I shouldn't have, but I tried squeezing the larger one...and nothing came out...I probably made things worse as it now appears twice as big, though nothing drastic. I have to stop squeezing every time I see something on my face...I'll try my best starting today not to squeeze my face anymore...Acne or shave bump?...I have no idea.

Extra Notes: - Oh...by the way...when I shave I always notice that my right side appears more cleanly shaven then my left side. While I never actually feel like I get a perfectly clean shave since I used a 2-blade, the left side appears as if the hairs are a bit longer...and the left side is where I've been getting more of my acne lately...could it be that I'm not shaving close enough and the hairs sticking out are causing irritation? I also don't want to shave over the same area twice as I've hear that probably makes things worse for my face...or should I go for that perfect close shave? Thanks

Food Log: Let's see. I ate Two Oats & Honey Nature Valley Bars today for breakfast. 4 Chocolate Chip Cookies and Raspberry Iced Tea (wow I never knew there was a P, I always thought it was spelled rasberry) for Nutrition. Personal Pizza and a Water Bottle for lunch. Hot Pocket for dinner. I know it might seem like a little...but trust me there are days when I eat a lot as you'll find out later. Now that I think about it, there are also days when I eat very little, or days when I will wait to eat until as late as 3 or so. I don't know if thats good. (If I was allergice to oats would that have any effect on my acne? Actually, are there any foods I should totally avoid. I know people says food doesn't affect acne, but I'm willing to change my eating habits if it will help.)
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[lastexile]

Day 2: Tuesday, April 22, 2008 - (ok so im actually on day 3 but...) Ok so my face wasn't that dry, but nonetheless it was still a bit dry, as it usually is after I wash my face in the morning. Ok, so more acne appeared around that one area where I had the larger bump on my left side? Could it be due to the fact that I tried to squeeze it and the bacteria spread? because if thats the case then I really dont want to be trying to squeeze pimples if its just going to spread more around the area. I feel bad because I popped some pimples on my right side after I told myself I was going to stop for good, and now they've turned into horrible scabs...same goes for the other side. I have to stop squeezing!

Ok, so I ate nothing for breakfast; 4 cookies and Iced Tea for Nutrition; Cinnamon Toast Crunch Cereal, Hot Dogs for Lunch, Chicken for Dinner.

[lastexile]

Day 3: Wednesday, April 23, 2008 - Ok...so I got really depressed and started squeezing some pimples...yeah I don't really wanna say anything else. It's bad. I need to stop looking in the mirror. Ok so I promise myself today that I'm going to stop squeezing no matter what. I guess I shouldn't care what other people think so I'm just going to stop starting tomorrow. I promise. As far as the Retin-A, there was no bad dryness today. and I've switched to the Neutrogena Oil-Free Moisturizer with SPF 15 because its supposedly non-comodognblah, non-alcohol, and whatnot.

Foods: okay so I don't even know if I ate today...I know I had some Pomegranate Juice, A Hot Pocket, some crackers and the rest of the evening I was locked up in my room cleaning.

[lastexile]

Day 4: Thursday, April 24, 2008 - Ok, so I had to go to a social event today and someone told me that if I had gotten sunburned really bad...it made me feel like I didn't want to be there...My sis also told me that my skin was peeling, which made me start sweating a lot as I got nervous the whole time. So I go home after...and I couldn't really tell that my face has reddened...maybe the lights in my house are too dim or something. Anyways, I put sunscreen this morning and it kind of stinged even though it said it had no alcohol in it (the Neutrogena one). Today I also found 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 new pimples too stare at. Now I don't know if that's the effect of shaving from yesterday or if it's from the (non-comedogenic, oil-free, really smelly, fragrance-free) moisturizer/sunscreen. Since I just began with the sunscreen today, I'm going to continue it. As far as shaving goes, I'm going to try to limit myself to only shaving once a week or so, maybe even stretch it out to two. Maybe a beard will look good on me haha. Oh yeah, I didn't pop my pimples today! I was looking in the mirror and thinking if I should but I just walked away and said no. Oh and my skin is peeling. That goodness...I really wanted my scabs to go away quick and hopefully now they will. Will Update tomorrow as usual.

Foods: 4 delicious chocolate chip cookies, 2 Oats and Honey bars, 3 Hot Dogs, 1 Hot Pocket, Steak, Bread, Salad, Water.

[lastexile]

Day 5: Damn I picked at my face again...I need help seriously. Face feels really dry and tight. Hopefully new scabs go away soon. Depressed. Oh and I'm not going to shave any more until my face is clear, whenever that is.

[lastexile]

Day 7: Sunday, April 27, 2008: Still very bad. Popped a whole mess of pimples. Dry, flaky skin. No noticeable improvements, besides more acne.