78 replies to this topic

[americaninparis]

Hey everyone,

Just thought I would start a log to get me motivated to kick this thing's ass.

A bit about me: female, fair skinned, always had a few zits but started getting mild-moderate acne went I went off of Yasmin when I was 27. Had a bout with Retin-A last year that didn't agree with me, although I did finally get clear-ish after having three months of the worst acne of my life. Btw, living in Paris is possibly the worst place in the world to suffer from skin issues, everyone's skin here looks amazing!

Anyway, my approach is going to be GENTLE, cause I'm really worried about irritating my face. I'm going to get a hold of a good cleanser, but for the first week my regimen is going to be:

wash and jojoba oil moisturize in the morning

wash, acne.org BP and jojoba oil at night

can anyone out there give me some information on applying jojoba oil before the BP? My face gets extremely dry after washing and I like the sound of it.

Ok, here goes nothing. Wish me luck and feel free to put in your two cents!

[FTweekend]

Heya,

Goodluck sweetie! It's tough being in europe around people with beautiful skin, I went to Paris and lived in London this summer - the pollution I think just worsened it all!!! People there have such ridiculously flawless skin!

I apply jojoba after bp because I want to maximize the work of bp right away... and I have very dry skin. I apply LOTS of moisturizer with jojoba and sunscreen after though! anticipate for more breakouts and flakiness for at least the first 3 weeks. Hang in there when you want to give up - don't minimize that makeup or none at all - i remember it was a nightmare going to work cuz i was patchy, flakey, itchy, and makeup that seals it over from far away but upclose it's a complete disaster!!!

x

[americaninparis]

Thanks FT Weekend! Yeah, I really want to minimize irritation as much as possible, because of this, I'm willing to wait longer for clear skin. Basically gonna take things veeeeery slowly.

So, I guess this is officially DAY 2:

I did the regimen last night with my cleanser, applied jojoba oil, applied a very small amount of BP as instructed, and finally followed up with the jojoba, all with the recommended wait times in between.

As when I started the regimen a few months ago (I was only on it for a week before I went to south america and couldn't keep up with it) I noticed great results right away. My pimples seemed minimized and my skin felt really soft and fairly calm (a bit of redness in the morning though, that only I could notice). Because I don't like to psych myself up only for disappointment, I'm considering this the calm before the storm. But I'll continue tonight with the regimen, and a very small amount of BP. Will keep you all posted.

[americaninparis]

Oh yeah, also, what's the cleansing protocol if you wear makeup? I wear everyday minerals makeup, and live in very polluted Paris. I've been following the regimen and washing my face very lightly for less than 10 seconds, and haven't been using any makeup remover. Is this what I should be doing? Any thought would be great!

[americaninparis]

AND, has anyone tried Philosophy's purity cleanser while on the regimen?? Sorry for the crazy obsessive postings on my own damn log!

[FTweekend]

Oh yeah, also, what's the cleansing protocol if you wear makeup? I wear everyday minerals makeup, and live in very polluted Paris. I've been following the regimen and washing my face very lightly for less than 10 seconds, and haven't been using any makeup remover. Is this what I should be doing? Any thought would be great!

I was only wearing make up for the first week while on the regimen. I used Babyface from lush and/or aloe vera gel. But it isn't good now I think of it, there's so much irritation because I had to rub it off with a towel, then use diluted organic apple cider vinegar to tone and take off residue... I never felt like I fully took of all the makeup. So I just stopped wearing it all together and it's sooo much better. Now I enjoy looking at clean pores at places where I have no breakouts. lol.

If you get better and not get worse before clear skin then that's amazing!!! Just keep in mind that you might so yes be very patient.

[americaninparis]

DAY 3:

Still not much change, and I guess I shouldn't expect any, with the small amount of BP I'm using. Still seem to be breaking out at my regular rate, which is an average of one new pauple a day, deep under the skin, in the two triangular areas that extend down from the outsides of my nose, past the corners of my mouth, two my chin. One new pimple a day might not seem like that much, but since they're pauples they seem to stay around for weeks! Of course I have a few other clogged pores here and there, but they're not much of a worry for me at the moment.
Thanks for the words of encouragement, FTWeekend, I definitely know that I won't get out of this thing without anymore breakouts. But I'm just hoping to keep it a bit under control, maybe like one or two new ones a day?? I dunno, I know that there's no guideline to set, I just have to roll with it.
The good thing is I haven't been obsessing over my face, or my makeup, although I still wear it. I'm a private tutor and am interacting all day at close range with my students, so for the moment I can't quite face the idea of not wearing makeup! I can't "face" it, haha, what a pun! nerd alert . . . .
Hoping for a day when I won't worry about wearing makeup, except for special occasions. As long as my pimples keep coming up angry and red, though, I think it will stay.

[americaninparis]

Also, as a sidenote, I bought a small bottle of the Philosophy Purity cleanser, which I tried tonight. We'll just have to see how it goes, I put a small amount on the back of my hand a few hours ago and left it (which I know is not the point of a cleanser, so I'm trying not to over analyze) and a rash has come up on my hand. Weird. They have put a lot of natural oils and stuff in there, so I'm curious to see if I could be sensitive to any of those.

Anyway, will come back soon with the full report! Thanks to any and all who are reading this, sorry my log hasn't been more exciting up to this point!

[americaninparis]

DAY 5

I have a strange feeling I'm going to eat these words, but so far, I'm feeling really good. Breakouts are still on their same old schedule of about one new one a day, BUT:
Last night I came home from a long day out and about in Paris (think pollution, lots of work, not eating well, blergh), and of course a big new one had come up by the time I washed my face to do the regimen. So I did my thing, had dinner, took my zinc and fish oil before bed. . . this morning it is gone! GONE!! I've never known anything before that could do that!
I have to say, so far what I like the most about the regimen is maybe not the treatment itself (BP) but all the things that go along with it. Being gentle with your skin, for instance, I kind of think is the key to everything. Also, for those of us with inflamed acne, I couldn't recommend more taking zinc and fish oil pills (on a full stomach of course!). I mean, there's just nothing to lose, and it seems to really help me.
Haven't noticed any redness or irritation from applying BP twice a day, which is good, even though I'm still applying a small amount. Could the fact that I was on a SA regimen before this have "prepped" my skin for another regimen with harsh chemicals? Not really sure. Would love any thoughts on this.

So, here's my recapped regimen to date, if anyone's interested.

Morning and Night:

Bactopur or Philosophy Purity cleanser (depending on how I'm feeling)
follow a few minutes after with a light layer of jojoba oil
5-10 mins later: carefully apply BP, I'd say I'm up to a skinny 1/4-1/3 of a finger
10-15 mins later: apply jojoba oil again

Before bed: between 1200-2000 IU of fish oil
30 mg zinc

oh yeah, and I drink rooibos tea throughout the day, about 3-6 strong cups.

Everyone else out there, keep on trucking!

[americaninparis]

DAY 7:

Not tons to report, things are still going pretty much the same. I've had no increase in breakouts this week and no new zits in the last two days so things seem to have tentatively calmed down . . except where I picked at my skin of course. Why do I do that?? I'm not a chronic picker but every now and then I will mess with things if I think I can make it better or extract something, and it ALWAYS leaves it looking way worse than it was before. Arrrrg, you'd think I'd have learned by now!
Since doing the applications morning and night I have noticed a bit of dry flakiness, mostly if I casually run my nail across my skin, all these white flakes show up. So last night after cleansing I took a damp towel to my face and gently rubbed it around in circles to get some of it off. I know that this may violate the gentleness rule of the regimen, but I honestly felt like they had to come off, or they would just accumulate! And a lot of them did come off, and it seemed to make it better.
I can say that in the places I don't have breakouts (cheeks, forehead, mostly) my skin does seem to be glowing. I'm going to start combining my jojoba oil with Simple Kind to Skin Light Moisturizer, although I am worried that there may be some comedogenic ingredients in there.
Another concern I have is when I come back home late but have to get up early, I'm never sure what to do with the regimen. At this point my skin is so sensitive that I've skipped the morning application rather than apply BP too close together and risk crazy irritation.

Anyway, I'll keep you all updated on how things progress.
To everyone else out there, keep on trucking!

[americaninparis]

Oh yeah, just as a little sidenote, I've also decided to get rid of any products I use that contain Sodium Laurel Sulfate in it. Who knows if it will help. But I do use Head and Shoulders every time that I'm in the shower, and SLS is pretty much the main ingredient. I also seem to get acne exactly where the water would run down my face (like, in the channels on the outside of my nose), but this could be a coincidence. Anyways, couldn't hurt. So I replaced my shampoo and my toothpaste.
So I've only really been a week on the regimen, but after I put makeup on tonight to go out, I could really notice a difference. I can't remember the last time my skin looked this good. Hopefully this will last, but I'm still bracing myself for more breakouts!

Will keep you all posted

[americaninparis]

DAY 9:

Well, the regimen still continues to be going well. I'm slowly working my way up to half a finger's worth of BP, morning and night. Don't know if it's been due to applying jojoba 5-15 minutes before I apply BP, but my flakes have really been kept at bay. After the regimen I've been able to wear my mineral makeup no problem. Hope this keeps up!
At the moment I can tell there are two largeish pimples that are trying to come up in the usual places. But it really feels like the BP is doing it's job. This morning they don't seem angry or inflamed, and I really think they will disappear on the own accord. They're pretty much just skin-colored bumps that only I can notice. An amazing feeling! Before, it felt like any pimple that came up was going to be my new friend for 2 weeks to a month.
I know the other shoe can drop on this at any time, but I still continue to be really happy with how things are going. Slowly but surely, right?

Good luck to you all out there

[americaninparis]

DAY 11,

Feeling very good at the moment, I have two very small ones (still pauples though, not whiteheads), some red marks, and that's it! Oh sure, we're not gonna count the clogged pores I have here and there, but this is definitely such an improvement to a few weeks ago. I just upped the BP last night to about 2/3 of a finger, and have not seen any adverse affects. Still moisturizing and jojobaing the hell out of my face though.
I still often have to do the regimen much less than 12 hours apart though (sometimes 8 or 9) and I'm still not sure what to do then. I usually just put a much smaller amount on in the morning. Oh well.

Does anyone know why BP is banned in so many countries?? If the FDA says it safe, what is everyone so scared about? Just curious

[americaninparis]

DAY 11 - Later

So, I definitely 100% jinxed myself earlier. I now count around 3 new pimples since I posted this morning, one on my jawline, one RIGHT next to one that I just had that is going away, and one that is shaping up to be a potential monster on my upper right chin. Oh well. I know things go up and down on this stuff. I feel lucky that I had such perspective with Retin-A, as long as I don't get a breakout as bad as that from the Regimen, I can roll with it. I mean, so far my breakouts haven't been any worse than what I was getting before Regimen, so I really can't complain. Somehow I can't believe though, even with all the zinc I'm taking, how inflamed my acne gets! Like, I'm sure this one starting up now is actually really tiny, but I feel like my skin is so reactionary that on me they get really inflamed. When I was a kid I would get hives all the time for no reason, like my skin was just always ready to react. I'm not sure if these things are connected, but I wouldn't be surprised. I also have had a suspicion that drinking beer might cause my acne. I lived in Belgium for a year and really enjoy a few nice beers a week. Don't think I'll be going off the beer any time soon though. I mentioned to my french boyfriend that I was thinking about going off it for my skin, and he was just so disappointed at the thought of losing his drinking buddy. Points for bad skin supporting boyfriends/girlfriends, though!
Just applied my BP, and hoping I didn't up my dose too soon, too quickly. It's so tempting when you feel like your skin is handling the BP to try to race to the full finger, as if that would fix anything sooner.

[americaninparis]

DAY 14

Can't believe I've made it to the two week mark! Time has actually gone pretty quickly. Well, a lot to report actually: It's not my best day on the regimen, but far from my worst day either. I currently have three very angry pauples in my usual spots. They refuse to come to a head but are these kind of perfectly round mountains. . I cover them with makeup but I always think they are crazy noticeable just because they are so freaking huge! I know they are the kind that will stay around for weeks! I want to be clear so bad, but honestly, I would take small whiteheads over these monsters any day, and not even complain.
That said, I can say that in the places where I'm not breaking out, my skin is absolutely glowing! My friend even complimented me on it yesterday, especially on my cheeks where I don't usually break out, those areas are looking really really good. I can't really describe it, but it just has that very clear feeling, almost like new skin. It reminds me of the effect that I got after 3 months on the Retin-A. Imagining the possibility that that's what my entire face could look like in a matter of weeks is almost too exciting to think about, I don't want to jinx it! I can already see so many places on my face where I've had blackheads my entire life and they're finally clear! Like, you know that place under your chin where you can pull your skin back with your teeth and it's like blackhead city? (sorry, haha, a lot of gross images in there), it's almost all gone, all I see it beautiful skin. Amazing!
I've still been doing the regimen religiously, although I do worry sometimes when I only do it maybe 7 or 8 hours apart. A few days this week I've hesitantly gone up to almost the full finger, and I'm still astounded that I haven't had ANY irritation! Since I have such sensitive skin I'm really crediting this to the jojoba I put on after I cleanse, and before I put on the BP. I do have a few flakes here and there, which is normal for me, but I'd take that any day over itchy redness! Anyway, I'm going to try doing close to full finger at night and slightly less during the morning and seeing how it goes, I know it's only been two weeks so I don't want to overdo it.
I've been trying my best to not pick at my skin, it's hard but I know it's the best thing for it. Living with my boyfriend and working as a private tutor at close range with so many people stresses me out a bit, but I try to just avoid it and avoid mirrors as much as possible. Easier said than done! Especially when I see my reflection in the metro lights and my face looks like the frickin Andes!
I'm also adding Evening Primrose Oil to my regimen, in addition to the Zinc and Fish Oil. I heard somewhere that we're meant to take the EPO and Fish Oil at the same time for them to be effective? Also, I've been taking all my supplements at night, since when I take them during the day I sometimes feel like I get light headed. But could it be bad to take them all in one dose like that?? I always take them on a full stomach, I know that's important.
I sometimes get the impression that no one really reads this log, but if someone out there has any info on this, it would be much appreciated!

My friend was visiting me this weekend and she wasn't happy with her skin either so I was giving her some "advice," just things I've learned on this board about what products to avoid, why picking at your skin is bad, etc. She said I should become a skin consultant! I do credit this board for educating me a LOT on skin, even if sometimes I feel like I'm just going in a circle, I know that there are a few things that I'm learning that, over time, will help me.

Good luck to everyone else out there, let me know how you're doing on your regimen!

[americaninparis]

oops, sorry, reposted by accident

Edited by americaninparis, 09 October 2010 - 05:38 AM.

[FTweekend]

Heya!
Glad to hear that you are making good progress! I also love the 'glowing' part of the regimen!! it's pretty amazing. Though I find that the glow kind of goes down after a few weeks - but it'll still be there!
Evening primerose oil is excellent, i'm taking it as well but noted that these oils take months before you actually see results. Don't worry about the angry postules... in a week they too will disappear and your bumps will just be less and less...wohoo! clear skin!!
good luck and keep up the good work
x

[americaninparis]

DAY 15

Hey FTWeekend, thanks for reading! Yeah, I'm sure the glowy feeling won't necessarily last forever, but I'm happy to be excited about something at the moment! Yeah, I know all the supplements take awhile to work, but it's just so easy to pop a few pills before bed (hrmmm, that sounds interesting!) and I'm really not hoping to see immediate results on anything, so I can wait it out. My philosophy on this whole thing is that I'm fine waiting a while to see results, as long as my breakouts don't get significantly WORSE. So far, that's been the case, so I've been fairly happy.
Happy to report that the three monsters on my face are going down somewhat, and that no new buddies have come to join them in the last few days! Funny, in the middle of the night I couldn't sleep and decided to apply some EPO topically to the biggest one of them to see if it would do anything. I've read that people can do this. This morning I woke up and it had become the smallest! This was cool, cause I'm sure something like EPO or jojoba would be an acceptable spot treatment on this regimen. I don't really get the science though, since I thought EPO works against acne by regulating hormones, I'm not exactly sure why spot treating with this would work. Oh well.
Ordered more BP treatment to be sent to France today, and the shipping cost as much as the products! Crazy! I'll order a bunch to be sent to the house over xmas so I'll have a supply.
Will keep you all posted, good luck to everyone else out there!

[americaninparis]

DAY 16

Three monsters continue to be fading, if slowly, had a new one pop up yesterday but it didn't become huge and now I think it's on it's way out. Slowly increasing BP to full finger and still not feeling any irritation to speak of, yes! I mean, my face is red right after I apply it, but then it fades quickly, and it's the same with my moisturizer too.
The place where my face isn't broken out is so incredibly clear and soft, hopefully soon it will all be that way!!

[americaninparis]

DAY 17

Word to the wise everyone, spot treating with BP is risky business! I heard from someone that they use Dan's BP a few times throughout the day to spot treat, I tried it and it literally burned my skin off! Mostly in this one place my pimple now looks about twice its size and is red and angry. Luckily there's Neosporin, but daaaaaamn : (