3 replies to this topic

[blackblake]

Hey guys,

Well i have had acne for about 10 years now. And in those 10 years iv been pretty miserable. It took me a long time unfortudently to see how big of a role diet plays in controlling acne, especially in me. And Iv been following a pretty strict diet for about 3-4 months now. But i still seem to be breaking out. It gets so discouraging sacrificing so much just to get my acne better, but still breaking out. There are very few things i even eat anymore, I constantly wash my pillow cases and blanket, I take cold showers ( Hot showers tend to break me out ), I try to avoid the sun. It just gets so tiring and depressing living like this . Even worse when your doing all this, and still breaking out. I thought my face was doing really good, then i look into the mirror today, and i see spots everywhere. Its so depressing.

[gingergirl22]

I am trying to help my teenage son with his acne and doing many of the same things that you are doing. It does get discouraging. I do notice that when he gets a little sun and exercise outside that his complexion improves, so maybe you shouldn't avoid the sun altogether. His nutritionist suggested 20 minutes in full sun a day. I have also noticed that his acne gets worse when he is stressed out. Have you noticed a correlation with break-outs and stress/worry? I had acne myself for years so I understand how you feel. I would love to hear from others on ways to reduce stress levels in order to keep acne under control. Also, are you being careful that the detergent you use to wash your pillowcases isn't aggravating your skin? Best to you.

Edited by gingergirl22, 01 February 2012 - 03:55 PM.

[blackblake]

gingergirl22, on 01 February 2012 - 03:54 PM, said:

I am trying to help my teenage son with his acne and doing many of the same things that you are doing. It does get discouraging. I do notice that when he gets a little sun and exercise outside that his complexion improves, so maybe you shouldn't avoid the sun altogether. His nutritionist suggested 20 minutes in full sun a day. I have also noticed that his acne gets worse when he is stressed out. Have you noticed a correlation with break-outs and stress/worry? I had acne myself for years so I understand how you feel. I would love to hear from others on ways to reduce stress levels in order to keep acne under control. Also, are you being careful that the detergent you use to wash your pillowcases isn't aggravating your skin? Best to you.

I am currently using Tide Free and Gentle. It's free of prefumes,dyes,etc. Yea i have noticed when i stress out i do break out. Which starts a never ending cycle for me. I stress, I break out because im stressed, im stressed because i broke out from being stresss and break out again. It keeps going on. it gets so aggrivating!

[jennifer36]

Try to keep your chin up!

I'm more or less in the same boat as you are, acne for about 10 years, diet changes for 3-4 months. I feel like there's not much that I can or will eat anymore, and sometimes that gets me down. Fortunately I'm a tea junkie and I usually get a new tea when I feel really down about things, tea always cheers me up. Earlier this week I bought a peach oolong tea and herbal vanilla chai. I still get breakouts, but each one is less severe and shorter than the last one. I tell myself each time that it will pass if I'm patient and calm. Also what helps me is going back over my log and looking at how my skin looked when I started my acne diet. Try keeping a photo log, it's hard to really see your progress over a long period of time, but the pictures help a lot!

In terms of stress, I try to avoid mirrors whenever I can. For me looking in the mirror can tempt me to pick my skin, which is essential to stop doing! I've almost entirely stopped picking my face, but on occasion I still pick my chest acne for some reason. I try not to think about my skin, which is nearly impossible. I'm fortunate that I have good, non judgemental friends who I feel comfortable around, spending time with them always distracts me from my skin issues. Try to take comfort in the fact that you're doing what you can to help your skin, taking good care of it and avoiding trigger foods. Yoga helps me out, and I'd love to do it more often. As well I've heard meditation helps a lot, it's something I feel would be so beneficial to get into.

Good luck with trying to relax and keep up your diet!