36 replies to this topic

[OmegaisJaded]

So I started using MyChelle's Skin Clearing Serum about a week ago (I think). Today I have noticed the blackheads around my nose and mouth are pushing themselves outward! I just pulled out three of them with a pair of tweezers...

It's also causing some tiny "mini zits"...but overall I see this as a positive thing. =)

Now,the only time I have ever noticed my skin doing this was when I was on accutane.I have never seen another product do this to my face.

So it makes me wonder if it really is the serum,or if my skin is going through another phase.

It's quite expensive,so I need to know if this is a fluke or not. It does contain lactic,salicylic,and azaliac acids along with retinol. I suppose a topical retinoid could have this affect on one's skin,but I have used every prescribed retinoid and don't recall this happening,and over the counter retinols are significantly less powerful.

Anyone else have a similar experience with topical products?

[OmegaisJaded]

Well,I took a chance and bought the full size.

31 bucks for large size.Ouch.

Hope this isn't some fluke

[greentiger87]

Well,I took a chance and bought the full size.

31 bucks for large size.Ouch.

Hope this isn't some fluke

I've experienced something close to that with BHA treatments before... but like Timehealsall, the pores cleared out gradually and came off with each washing. There was never such a large portion above the skin that I would think to use a tweezer to grab it. When you do use a tweezer, are you pulling out the whole plug? or does it break off at the surface of the skin?

Btw, your topic title provided me with so many hilarious images. Thank you for that

Edited by greentiger87, 09 January 2011 - 05:32 PM.

[OmegaisJaded]

Well,I took a chance and bought the full size.

31 bucks for large size.Ouch.

Hope this isn't some fluke

I've experienced something close to that with BHA treatments before... but like Timehealsall, the pores cleared out gradually and came off with each washing. There was never such a large portion above the skin that I would think to use a tweezer to grab it. When you do use a tweezer, are you pulling out the whole plug? or does it break off at the surface of the skin?

Btw, your topic title provided me with so many hilarious images. Thank you for that

Some off them were soft and just broke off,other were hard and left open pores behind.

I did wake up with a crap-ton more "mini zits" though.This purging thing is pretty nuts.

[greentiger87]

Well,I took a chance and bought the full size.

31 bucks for large size.Ouch.

Hope this isn't some fluke

I've experienced something close to that with BHA treatments before... but like Timehealsall, the pores cleared out gradually and came off with each washing. There was never such a large portion above the skin that I would think to use a tweezer to grab it. When you do use a tweezer, are you pulling out the whole plug? or does it break off at the surface of the skin?

Btw, your topic title provided me with so many hilarious images. Thank you for that

Some off them were soft and just broke off,other were hard and left open pores behind.

I did wake up with a crap-ton more "mini zits" though.This purging thing is pretty nuts.

hey, at least that means its working! And those extractions must be so effin satisfying.

[OmegaisJaded]

The breakouts healed quite nicely.

I think the pore purging tapered off.

An improvement is an improvement,though.

We'll see if there's any more improvement after a month or so...

[greentiger87]

The breakouts healed quite nicely.

I think the pore purging tapered off.

An improvement is an improvement,though.

We'll see if there's any more improvement after a month or so...

Aww, sad.. I was really fascinated by this.

[Acnarm]

Hmmm. Yep i would definitely think its the serum doing its job as it contains salicylic acid, azaelic acid and retinol. All of these are known to be strong chemicals and help shed skin thus resulting in reduction of black/whiteheads. I remember using retinoids (Retin A, Adapalene) along with azaelic acid (Finacea) and had the same effect. The blackheads were being pushed out to the surface, where it can be extracted easily.

That is actually good news, in my opinion. This means the product is quite effective as its shedding skin at quite a good pace.

[OmegaisJaded]

The breakouts healed quite nicely.

I think the pore purging tapered off.

An improvement is an improvement,though.

We'll see if there's any more improvement after a month or so...

Aww, sad.. I was really fascinated by this.

I was thinking,and the ones that mainly pushed themselves out were on my cheeks and the sides of my nose. The ones actually on my nose were barely affected,but I did remember you saying sebaceous filaments and blackheads were different. Could the light colored,soft "blackheads" on my nose be sebaceous filaments that fill up more easily?

Trying to make sense of this

And the batman guy- it also has lactic acid in it! Only .5% salicylic acid,but it might need less of it anyways because of the other acids and retinol.

I'm really shocked this serum isn't drying. It does have alcohol in it,but it does give a nice burst of moisture,however light it is.

[greentiger87]

The breakouts healed quite nicely.

I think the pore purging tapered off.

An improvement is an improvement,though.

We'll see if there's any more improvement after a month or so...

Aww, sad.. I was really fascinated by this.

I was thinking,and the ones that mainly pushed themselves out were on my cheeks and the sides of my nose. The ones actually on my nose were barely affected,but I did remember you saying sebaceous filaments and blackheads were different. Could the light colored,soft "blackheads" on my nose be sebaceous filaments that fill up more easily?

Trying to make sense of this

And the batman guy- it also has lactic acid in it! Only .5% salicylic acid,but it might need less of it anyways because of the other acids and retinol.

I'm really shocked this serum isn't drying. It does have alcohol in it,but it does give a nice burst of moisture,however light it is.

I've actually been saying they're not that different, just both different degrees of a "clogged" pore. A sebaceous filament is essentially a healthy, functioning pore that's overproducing sebum to the point that its clearly visible to us. But, it's not overproducing enough to cause any real problems or pathology. they're usually white because they haven't been oxidized by the air. The sebum of a subcutaneous filament should be soft and flowing, meaning it isn't overly mixed with dead skin cells and hasn't hardened. If the sebum stays that way, the pore will keep functioning relatively normally and never turn into real acne. Blackheads are pores that are so clogged that the top of the pore is stretched open, and the sebum plug is exposed to the air. The oxidation turns it black, like I'm sure you know.

With whiteheads, the pore opening is still microscopic, perhaps because the plug hasn't pushed through yet. The sebum isn't exposed enough to turn black. BUT, it's very large, and the skin over it is very thin - making it a pathologically clogged pore. This is why whiteheads often look like they're still "under" the skin.

I think some people call tiny pustules white heads, which makes things even more confusing. This is probably because we talk about bringing a pimple to a "head". A pustule, no matter how small, occurs when the immune system and the bacteria finally tango, usually breaking down the sebum plug in the process.

Yummerz.

[OmegaisJaded]

Yes,a while ago. From the time the blackheads popped out,it took about 8 hours for them to look normal again.

As an update for the serum,my skin is looking very toned and vibrant looking. Still isn't doing much for the clogs on my nose,but that's fine.

I love this stuff!

[OmegaisJaded]

Wow,this stuff is so great. My skin has a glow to it,more even in texture,No zits yesterday or today whatsoever....

Still have brown sebaceous filaments.Oh well.No such thing as a miracle product

I wish I started using this serum and acnescript sooner. This would have prevented years of anguish.

[OmegaisJaded]

No, my blackheads don't come off by rubbing them.

It's called MyChelle clear skin serum,as stated in my previous posts.You can get it for 30 bucks at some health supplement stores.You can also find 1-week trial sizes of it sometimes.

[OmegaisJaded]

Okay, so I didn't really see any noticeable "blackheads" on my cheeks,but I ended up plucking tons of whitish hard grains from my skin last night again. I thought the clogs had already purged,but apparently they are continuing to do so, except without the initial breakout.

Very,very interesting. I keep looking over the ingredient list over and over and it is still boggling my mind. Apparently there was an error with the online list of ingredients, there is no azaliec acid in THIS serum. They have that ingredient in another one of their products,and accidentally tagged it onto the acne serum.All the other ingredients were accurate,though.

The only things that could be purging me are the retinol,salicylic,and lactic.So this must be very well formulated.

Other than those,it has tea tree,niacinimide, panthenol,biotin,B6.Could applying B vitamins topically have any sort of purging effect on the skin utilizing your own skin's functions?

Here's the corrected list of ingredients:

Hamamelis Virginiana (Witch Hazel) Water, Aqua (Water), Alcohol Denatured (Grains), Glycerin* (Vegetable), Polysorbate 20 (Plant), Salix Alba (Willow) Bark Extract, Montmorillon-ite (Clay Minerals), Yogurt Extract (Milk), Retinol, Fructooligosaccharides (D-Beta) (NutraFlora®), Melaleuca Alternifolia (Tea Tree) Leaf Oil*, Totarol (SCO2 Totarol™), Panthenol (D) (B5), Niacinamide (B3), Pyridoxine HCI (B6), Biotin (D) (B7), Vaccinium Macrocarpon (Cranberry) Fruit Juice, Collinsonia Canadensis (Stone Root) Extract, Lavandula Angustifolia (Lavender) Oil*, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice Powder* (Aloe Leaf), Pogostemon Cablin (Patchouli) Oil, Cananga Odorata (Ylang Ylang) Flower Oil, Limonene (Citrus), Lonicera Caprifolium (Honeysuckle) Flower Extract, Lonicera Japonica (Honeysuckle) Flower Extract, Potassium Sorbate, Phytic Acid (Rice), Citric Acid, Maltodextrin, Xanthan Gum (Fermented Sugar). (*Certified Organic, **ECOCERT Approved/Accepted)

[wicky]

omega, my chin is sooo clogged right now i honestly dont know what to do...I get literally tons of little whiteheads all in the crease of my chin and blackheads and hard rice like plugs through out the other areas of my chin. If i use my blackhead remover tool i can gently express the plug out..the whitehead ones are tougher..Sometimes it doesnt want to release up and causes an open cut..Now its hard to cover and heal..Im wondering how you apply this serum? Do you apply it to the chin area and then ou have to extract them youself? I cant seem to get this in check. Sometimes they are really bad like now and others they are not. I was using a gentle cleanser by skinceuticals and it think it was way too emollient for my skin. I like that it wasnt drying but i think it added to my clogging..I need a gentle cleanser that doesnt plug me up...any ideas