6 replies to this topic

[BreLeo]

Hi everyone. My name is Ben, and I'm a 19 year old from Singapore.

I've suffered on and off from acne for about 4 years. My skin is *extremely* oily and acne-prone, which leads to frequent breakouts since my country is hot and humid all year round. Last month, I was hit by another massive breakout after almost a year of clear skin, and I'm determined to find a way to defeat my acne once and for all.

In the past, I had kept my acne in check with antibiotics and manuka honey masks, but the drugs made me dizzy and the manuka honey masks seemed to lose their effectiveness over time. After stumbling upon Acne.org, I was attracted by the positive reviews and community, so I've decided to contribute by updating my journey weekly. I will try to make this thread as informative as possible, and maybe touch other aspects of acne (lifestyle, psychological). Hopefully, someone can relate to this and find this helpful or motivational

My current regimen

Spoiler

6AM - Shower
Cetaphil Cleanser
2 Pumps of Dan's BP
Cetaphil Moisturising Cream

6PM - Shower
Cetaphil Cleanser
2 Pumps of Dan's BP
Aloe Vera Gel (Fruit of the Earth) or Dan's AHA+ or Cetaphil Moisturising Cream

Week 1

Spoiler

Started off slowly by applying a single pump of Dan's BP twice a day. After 4 days, my face started feeling swollen and itchy. This was probably due to the fact that I didn't moisturise properly. My acne was pretty horrible at this point, with many active pimples, and perhaps a couple of small cysts.

Week 2

Spoiler

My skin is really starting to suffer now after a week of BP. On top of the active acne, I have dark marks, flakes of skin and a completely red face. The pimples aren't really going away, and I have a few new ones along my jawline.

Week 3

Spoiler

Pretty much the same as week 2, but worse. My current moisturiser makes my face look shiny and oily, yet my face still feels dry and tight all the time. Moving my mouth to talk or eat can be painful, and results in more flakiness.

Week 4

Spoiler

Facial tightness and dryness persist, but my acne seems to be healing more quickly. New spots come and go much faster than usual, and a few leftover cysts are drying up as well. So far, the regimen has been a rough ride, and I'm glad to see progress. I've read that the adverse effects of BP seem to persist for a few months, so I'm bracing myself mentally for the road ahead.

Week 5
After applying 2 full pumps of BP twice a day, my acne has improved noticeably. I have less than 10 papules on my face now, and all of them are in the midst of healing. Also, for the past week, I only got 2 new ones, which is an incredibly low number for me. Although I've adjusted my lifestyle habits, I'm certain that its the BP thats doing wonders. After putting it on and letting it dry, my face feels "calmer" as well.

Another positive sign I've received is that my face seems to be getting used to the regimen. It is much less tight and painful, even though I've ramped up the amount of BP significantly. The only problem I'm facing now is the flakiness, which doesn't seem to go away even though I apply AHA+ every other day.

On a side note, does anyone have any recommendations for a better moisturiser? Cetaphil's Moisturising Cream feels thick and oily and makes my face look shiny, yet it doesn't do a great job of relieving tightness and dryness. I'm looking at Cerave's or Dan's moisturiser, and will probably pick up either one over the weekend.

Stay tuned for weekly updates

Edited by BreLeo, 02 May 2012 - 04:54 AM.

[5ive]

I loved Cetaphil for the longest time until I realized I hated it. If that makes any sense.

I just noticed it was way too greasy. I mean, yeah, it spread really nicely but it just felt too thick.

I switched to Spectro Acne Prone moisturizer. It's really super light and you only need like a dime sized amount for your whole face. It has Salicylic Acid in it so it could be irritating to your skin, but I found this ingredient helpful for mine!

Best of luck on your journey and hang in there!

[BreLeo]

I loved Cetaphil for the longest time until I realized I hated it. If that makes any sense.

I just noticed it was way too greasy. I mean, yeah, it spread really nicely but it just felt too thick.

I switched to Spectro Acne Prone moisturizer. It's really super light and you only need like a dime sized amount for your whole face. It has Salicylic Acid in it so it could be irritating to your skin, but I found this ingredient helpful for mine!

Best of luck on your journey and hang in there!

Thanks for the recommendation! But I don't think its available in my country

Its week 5 for me and the flakiness is horrible. On the plus side, my face feels much less tight/dry/painful and I'm really glad with that.

[BreLeo]

Week 6! Hey guys, here's an overdue update on my situation.

Firstly, the good news...MY ACNE IS GONE(ish). My face was a wreck 2 weeks ago with like 20 or so pimples but now, I have maybe 2 or 3 left, and those are healing fast. I didn't expect to see such great results in a short span of time but I must say that this regimen works really well. For the past 2 days I've been sleeping at 2AM, eating junk food and not exercising, and I didn't get a single zit! I'm not going to get complacent with the regimen though, until my acne is completely gone.

Okay, now the bad news. I'm not sure if its due to the BP, but the red marks left behind by the acne seem to be worse than in the past. I can see that I've got some slight scarring, small indents here and there, but it doesn't really bother me that much. My face is still looking kind of red, especially at the end of a long day at work. The other day, one of my friends commented that my face looked like its been burnt in a fire :/.

I'm trying out different products for the red marks (I have M2 Lotion and Dan's AHA+ right now) but I know that they take an extremely long time to heal, so the best I can do right now is to avoid getting another huge breakout.

Anyway, do you guys know of any *secret* products/remedies/tips to hasten the healing of red marks? I would appreciate it if you could share them

Edited by BreLeo, 13 May 2012 - 06:01 AM.

[abcd96]

I used a product in red marks called Healing Cream from Mario Badescu, and it was pretty good, I just don't know if it does interfere in the Regimen.

[thereisalwayshope]

Cerave is the best!!!!!!!! use the cream! You will not flake!

[geekboy]

hey, i'm from singapore too and your case sounds EXACTLY like mine. i'm 19 and i have the exact same oily/acne-prone skin due to the damn weather. Glad to see that the regimen has worked for you. What moisturizer are you using currently? Would love to hear an update from you, maybe we could order products together.