4 replies to this topic

[paintingtrees]

Hello(: I'm 17 years old, female.
I've struggled from acne beginning in 6th grade, it was mostly in my forehead. I used Duac Topical gel and it seemed to have worked because for 7th-9th grade my skin was wonderful!
Then around sophomore year, my acne came back but it left red marks all over my cheeks. My forehead barely gets breakouts, but my cheeks have scars and tiny red dots that resemble red blackheads.
It's incredibly discouraging and I often cry from frustration because even if everyone says that most teenagers get acne, I honestly do not see many seniors in my school with acne.
I went to the dermatologist and got prescribed with 100 MG of Monodox, twice a day; Aczone in the morning; and Ziana at night.
It slightly made the redness go away, but not completely

Anyways, I don't know what to do.
I drink more than 10 cups of water a day, with 1-3 cups of green tea with lemon a day.
I'm a vegetarian, have been since February, and I eat very healthy.
I have oily skin, and I don't really know what cleaners or moisturizers to use.
I have been using a Tea Tree cleaner and toner recently but it hasn't really worked so now I'm just using Neutrogena Acne Wash and then applying CeraVe moisturizing lotion.
I also do a treatment daily or every two days with natural ingredients, for example today I made a Turmeric/Honey/Almond Milk mask. Yesterday I applied lemon to my scars etc.

I'm going to the dermatologist on the 23rd. I want to be on new medication (not accutane), but I feel so disgusting thanks to my skin that I doubt I'll be able to even face leaving my house.

I really need help, any suggestions or tips would be great! I really don't want my skin from holding me back senior year. I know I shouldn't let it affect me, but I really can't help it.
Thank you

[LadyVintage95]

Hey! I've had acne since the 7th grade, and I'm almost 17 now.

I have a very sensitive skin, so I try to use as many natural products as I can to treat it. A honey mask helps me a lot, I do it once a week. On the other six days of the week I tend to 'spot treat' with small dots of honey on inflamed pimples for about half and hour before washing my face in the monring and at night. It's helped quite a lot!.. seeing as honey is an antibacterial. It's been used for thousands of years to treat wounds as well.

I also exfoliate with oats every 3 days. It's much gentler than a chemical exfoliater and is the first exfoliater to actually help my skin, instead of harm it more. It's important to exfoliate quiute often since it stops your pores from clogging... I take a small hand full, and put it in a ziplock bag. I take a rolling pin and roll over it a few times to crush up the oats a bit. I then put it into a small bowl, and add a teeny bit of warm water, but not to the point that the oats are soggy, just so that they are damp. I then splash my face with warm water (to open pores) and scrub my face gently for about a minute with the oats. Then I rinse it off, and wash my face.

Another thing that's VERY important is making sure not only to treat the acne on top, but also from within. I take vitamin E and vitamin D. I'm also starting to take Zinc (which I've heard is great for acne) and omega 3. I want to try Vitamin A soon too. If you have a deficiency in those areas, that could make your acne a lot worse.

I REALLY hope these tips help you in some way I know how hard it is having to live with acne on a daily basis Xxx

[paintingtrees]

Thank you so much! I'll test out the honey mask and the oats wash, and I'll see how that goes. I'm taking ShenMin Vitamins which has Vitamin E and all that good stuff; hopefully that'll help as well.
Thank you again (:

[michael2012]

Your doing the lemon wrong, squeeze half a fresh lemon is some warm water and drink on a morning 40 mins before eating or drinking anything.

[Getting_Clearer]

Hello Honey,

I'm sorry you're going through so much frustration-- stubborn acne is very frustrating. I know myself, having battled it since I was in grade 6. The worst part is doctors still don't know very much about it, you look to them for help, but they don't always send you down the right path. At 31 years old, I finally have my acne under control and would love to share with you a few things I WISH someone would've told me 15 years ago!!!!

Things I Wish Someone Had Told Me About Acne

1. Be gentle and use products for sensitive skin. We have a tendency to look at our faces and think we need to tackle a serious problem with serious astringents and scrubbers. Don't. You don't need to seek out expensive, all natural type products either. There are many good gentle, cheap, products on the market right now, I like Clean and Clears foaming facial cleanser for sensitive skin. Don't scrub hard, don't use face clothes or facial brushes- firmly and lightly use just your hands to wash ( and only twice a day) And washing your face alone is not what's going to fix your acne, it's what you put on it AFTER.

2. Benzoyl Peroxide is a God-send, but use it RIGHT. If BP has never worked for you- perhaps it's because you're not using it right. It's not going to help much with current acne. What it is, is a fantastic acne preventer. It works by killing bacteria in your skin that causes acne. I always have a small layer all over my face to keep acne at bay and nothing more potent than 2.5%.( Dan Kern sells a great one, that lasts forever) It takes a while for the skin to adjust, but when you figure out how to use BP- it's the ONLY effective thing. (This coming from a girl that's been on Accutance 3 times.)

3. Stay Away from Fragrance. Buy only products that are fragrance free, get dryer sheets and laundry detergent for sensitive skin, stay away from perfume. This means hair products and hair spray. You have no idea the products that caused me to break out because of the cheap chemicals used in them. AND just because a product claims it's "natural" doesn't make it better. I break out from things like lavender and lemon. Too harsh.

4. Get on a Zinc supplement STAT. Look up zinc deficiencies on the internet, I had all the symptoms. You might too. I take 50mg right before bed and you should see the drastic improvement in my overall health, let alone skin. It's amazing.

5. Take Vitamin D supplement. Vitamin D deficiencies also can cause acne. I take a supplement everyday along with a multivitamin.

6. Stay AWAY from salt and simple carbohydrates. Salt really aggravates acne and so do things like chips and white rice etc. Look for whole grain and complex carbohydrates. A good read is Dr. Perricone's list of foods to eat and avoid-- it's all about what creates inflammatory responses in the body. I truly believe this.

7. Stay Away from Caffeine. Soda pop and coffee, so NOT good for my skin not to mention how they disrupt getting a good sleep. I drink herbal teas and lots of water instead.

8. Stay away from peanuts. I don't know why, but anything with peanut oil, peanut butter etc. causes great inflammation with my acne.


I do a lot of other things too, like staying out of the sun and only using fragrance free, gentle sunscreens.

I keep my make up brushes extremely clean by spraying them daily with a small spray bottle of rubbing alcohol and washing them once a week in rubbing alcohol ( to kill bacteria) I wear make up, but it's gentle and oil free and I ALWAYS have that layer of BP underneath. Obviously no make up is better if you feel comfortable enough.

The biggest thing is to get a proper nutrition, be gentle, take supplements and use BP. It's what has helped me now to become completely clear, and what I wish someone would have told me when I was that struggling little girl in grade 6. ; (((

All the best to you!!!