5 replies to this topic

[DroseG]

Hey guys. First off I'd like to introduce myself- I'm a 17 year old female living on the East Coast in the United states. I've struggled with acne since the tender age of 10, when I was in fifth grade, and had [previous to the method I'll discuss in this post] tried EVERYTHING- well almost.

I'd tried going to the dermatologist, who gave me various prescriptions (as I went through a cycle of using the prescription, getting fed up within about two months, and trying other things again, rinse+repeat), ProActive, various Clear and Clear products, various face scrubs and masks, various Neutragena products, MANY salicylic acid products, biore pore strips, many benzoyl peroxide products, the OCM, and some other things I don't recall at the moment.

Right before I started this method, my skin

1.)Was VERY pale, which meant the acne I had was totally obvious, and also made me look like I had 24/7 bags under my eyes. Not only that, but it was about 3 shades lighter than the rest of my body!

2.)Burned sooooo easily.

3.) Was the dreaded combo- oily/dry (though it would sometimes be all oily, sometimes all dry)

4.) Had constant acne that lasted forever- mostly on my nose and chin and forehead, and rarely on my cheeks. Always on my hairline.

5.) Had almost every type of acne- white heads, black heads, cysts, those evil spots that are raised but never develop a head (maybe they're called cysts?)

It was hard for me, especially as I was on sports where my make-up would just come off and I didn't want anyone to look at me. Worse, it was hard to find make-up that would match my ill-looking skin, and when I wore it when my skin was dry it looked very odd and obviously fake. I longed to be like so many other teens whose skin was at least a regular color and only got few zits.

Anyway, after trying all of the different things (many of which I picked up off of the internet), I found many posts(on acne.org!) about a fad- not washing your face for a long period of time. sounds disgusting, right? Not only that, but many people promote doing it for weeks/months, and it is HARD to stick to- I know because I tried.

The idea- which is correct- is that when people get like, one pimple, they freak out and load up on things like benzoyl peroxide/salicylic acid face washes. We all know it's true. And what happens is they strip all the good stuff off.

Anyway, the people who didn't wash their faces for a long time maintain that is totally heals their skin may be right (I wouldn't know- I couldn't stick with it), but there are some unfortunate bumps along the way (dead skin build up makes it hard to wear any make up, and feels insanely odd and kind of itchy), and I personally believe what I did was easier.

Here is what I've been posting around to people who desperately need skin advice, like I did----


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A common misconception that soooo many people have- if they have oily/acne-prone skin, they need a harsh cleanser. Take it from me, whose acne erupted at the early and tender age of 10- this is the wrong way to go.

I've been fighting the good fight against acne for a looooong time, as I mentioned, and after reading countless blogs and websites and going for numerous dermatologist visits, I finally found my way with a more natural approach.

First, you must take a shower, but without washing your face (assuming you take a shower at night). Then go to sleep without washing your face.

You will feel the oil build up and even see it, but don't do anything. Just go to sleep with your face oily. If your skin isn't too damaged (I'll explain a bit later), then all the oil will have soaked back into your face. If it's still oily, then leave it unwashed for the whole day and do the same thing for another ngiht.

You'll find that the your face feels refreshed and not oily at all- my usually oily face even felt a little dry after doing this for two nights.

sleep without washing your face one more night AFTER the day you wake up without oil on your face, and then you have two options.

1. Keep it up for a few more days

2. Get a facial cleanser.

The 2nd option is tricky- you need to find a cleanser that isn't harsh on your skin AT ALL. Here's where the explanation comes in.

Our skin has a natural barrier on it. It is what protects our face from wind and sunburn. When we wash our faces with products on the market these days, like neutrogena facial cleanser, for example, we basically tear off the protective barrier.

After you take off the protective barrier, your skin scrambles to produce more oil for the protective layer. However, the skin under the barrier becomes so used to having the barrier stripped from it that it struggles more and more to absorb the natural oil that, instead of absorbing it, it sits on top of the skin like the nasty oil so many people want to get rid of.

On the other hand, in some people the body starts producing so much less of this essential oil that their skin is left dry.

By not washing your face for a few days, your body essentially restores the barrier, and you'll be able to notice a difference right away.

Why do they do this? Because of something called pH levels, which tell how acidic something in. If there is a low pH, the substance is acidic, and if there is a high pH, it is the opposite (called a base). The skin is kind of in between, but definitely more of a base.

so that's why it is important to choose a face wash that protects the natural barrier. I'm sure there are many different options, but I like to use CeraVe, which is very gentle, though you need to massage it into your face. (It also takes off make-up, ladies, though you should probably use separate make up remover for eyes).

Acidic face washes

1. Leave your face bleached(mini-story!-- I realized I had to stop using benzoyl peroxide face washes when, during a time that I used the 10% BP face wash from Clean and Clear, some got on my carpet and a favored sweatshirt. After I cleaned it off, both had been bleached a sickly yellow. Before, they had been light pink and dark blue, respectively) and unhealthy looking.

2. strip the natural barrier, which results in leaving your face unprotected against wind- and sunburn (ever notice that you burn easier than others? Yep.)

3. result in oily/dry patches and phases.

It takes a bit of time for your face to rehab fully, but it's completely and totally worth it- this also took care of most of my acne, in addition to my overall skin tone and dry/oiliness factor.

BTW if you follow this regimen, then I'd advise using a scrub (home-made, natural, or otherwise) once to twice a week (NO MORE) to get rid of dead skin.

You also will find you don't need to wash your face in the morning- your face won't be oily at all.

AND if you're a girl and you wear make-up but still want to try the no face wash at all regimen, then I'd advise either

1. Go without make up for a few days. Pick a long weekend or vacation, or just be brave!
OR
2. Just put your make up on in the morning and take it off at night with liquid make-up remover. NOTHING in the morning, and no moisturizers either.
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And that's it. I'm not saying that you'll be cured instantly- not at all!

For me, this took care of the oily/dry this right away, and within 1-3 months (sorry, it was a little while ago, guys, that's why I can't be more specific), I noticed that my complexion was getting a bit darker so as to be a lot closer to my skin tone everywhere that wasn't my face.

I also pretty much stopped getting ancne on my nose and on the sides next to my nose, and stopped getting red spots on my forehead and under my nose.

I had about a month (about three-five months after I started this) where my cheeks would form little clusters of pimples/cysts, and I got down, because once one cluster went away another would form again. But I had faith and stuck to my CeraVe at night, nothing in the morning regimen, and eventually it passed and my cheeks were again clear.

Also, I kept having flesh-colored bumps on my forehead and chin which took until about a month ago (I stared this regimen about 6.5-7.5 months ago) to stop forming, though they didn't really bother me after the years of blaring, red zits on pale pale skin.

I also had a bit of a problem with blackheads until a little while ago, and they crop up occasionally, but hey! Normal teenager acne was something that I had aspired to =P.

The skin on my face now actually matches the rest of my body, is clear (except for the occasional, and expected, teenage spot, and some along the hairline), has no oil/dry problem, and looks flawless with just a touch of make-up.

Also, it doesn't worry me when I'm over a friends house and I forget to bring face-wash- all I really need is make-up remover, and then I'm fine! There's also some times when I forget to wash my face, but it doesn't go all freak-o on me anymore. My skin is finally taking care of itself the way it's supposed to, and I'm the one that kick-started it.

Please, I urge you all to try this, especially those like myself who've been searching forever.

Good luck, and please tell me the results!

ps: If you have personal questions, feel free to e-mail me at emoisthenewpink@hotmail.com .


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I posted this over a year ago under Nutrition and Holistic Health ( http://www.acne.org/messageboard/Personal-...io-t260730.html ) and just realized it was under the wrong category... I'll leave the other up just because other people have added valuable input but I'm going to continue it here----

[DroseG]

***I had posted this earlier today on the other thread-- this will be the last 'copy' so to speak

It's so weird looking back and seeing what I went through... I'm back on this site because of my sister, who also has acne.

She started getting some at around 12 or 13 and bombed her face with loads of stuff after ProActiv stopped working for her. She's now 16 and her face is pale and she has a lot of acne everywhere.

After a lot of coaxing she's agreed to try what I did (or a parallel version, as I had forgotten my exact remedy until I came back on).

She isn't washing her face in the morning and uses only Neutrogena make-up wipes at night.

If she has a really strong urge to wash she'll use CeraVe, but no more than once a week.

It's only been about 5 days in but about 2 days after she noticed she didn't need a moisturizer anymore and then 4 days after she noticed her skin being less white/unhealthily pale than it had been before she started. As I didn't really keep a log I'm going to ask how it's going for her then report it.

BY THE WAY
Also as an amendment to what I said about using a scrub, once or twice a month is better than once or twice a week.

[shootemupx]

Heyyyyy, I'm interested in doing this but I exercise like every single night. So is it okay if I wash with just water in the morning, use sunscreen, and then wash with a legit cleanser at night? A really gentle one, I'm talkin all natural. thanks!

[DroseG]

Actually the exercise and the subsequent perspiration helps restore your skin faster! So just leave your skin untouched. It sounds gross , but I swear it isn't!
And it's better if you don't wash with water- try not to let it touch your face if it's possible, or just let it run over your face and don't touch it and let it dry naturally!
Remember this is about letting your face re-learn how to take care of itself naturally!

[fetus]

I might give this a try. What do you think about the occasional use of blotting papers when your face looks like you just dunked it in a vat of McDonald's frying oil?

[Wayward Son]

Two questions

1) For men, how would you suggest going about shaving when using this regimen?

2) Should you avoid washing your hair too when allowing oil to build at the initiation of this regimen.

Edited by Wayward Son, 14 July 2011 - 11:47 PM.