9 replies to this topic

[Thin Lizzy]

I've been suffering from a breakout that has lasted about 3 weeks. Usually they last a couple of days but lately they've been lasting about a week, which I could just about cope with but this has just pissed me off. So I've decided to ditch cleansing of the face. It's like asking a junkie to give up heroin. I've taken one step into the beyond and I'm not going coming back! I;ve created a wordpress blog, which I will add to everyday. I'll add the updates here too but not daily. You know how it goes on here, people rarely post here until the end of their regime because when they see results they forget about the forum! But I promise I'll keep adding to it because I know there's serious interest in this regime and I want to help others to ditch the clearasil and all that crap! so here it is:

 

goincaveman.wordpress.com

 

 

Day 1

Posted on  February 13, 2013

I started this blog because I have recently undertaken the ‘Caveman Regime’ to see if it will silence my acne. Firstly, a little about my good friend acne and I. I started to get acne when I was about 16. I guess on the scale of things it was mild to moderate. I took antibiotics and all sorts of lotions and potions. I even ate raw turnips at one point! Then sometime in my early 20′s after a seriously painful breakout around my neck while on minocycline, the doctor recommended me to a dermatologist. He put me on the dreaded Accutane. For me, it was a breeze. A bit of dry skin around the mouth but clear skin! No suicidal thoughts, no hair loss. Since finishing my course I’ve had the odd breakout, the odd pimple, nothing major. Until this year, my latest breakout is refusing to budge. I think it could have been set off by a switch to a new moisturiser.

For years since my Accutane course, I’ve been cleaning my face with a salicylic acid wash, followed by a glycolic acid wash followed by a benzoyl peroxide gel. I’ve slowly come to the conclusion that I’m causing my own acne with overzealous washing with these harsh chemicals. So I have decided to go caveman….in other words I’m going to stop washing my face!!

Basically, you don’t let water touch your beautiful face for about a month. After a month you exfoliate the dead skin (with a cloth I presume) and from then on use water to wash your mug!

For a lot of people, especially women who wear make up, following this regime is an impossibility. I fear a number of things myself. Firstly, that my presumption is wrong and I’ll get the motherload of all breakouts. Secondly, the flaking dead skin. This has always been a problem for me, particularly after using a beard trimmer. But I’m willing to give this a shot.

Well I got the idea for this blog on Day3 so I have to backtrack a little.

Day 1: so it’s the first day since not cleaning my face yesterday. My problem area is that whole area between the cheekbones and my nose on both sides. I have small whiteheads and red crusted areas from previous ones. Have a sore whitehead on my chin and some crusty/red dead areas by my mouth, but that’s not too noticeable with my stubble. There are some under the skin in my problem area and no doubt I’ll be greeting these new guys in the coming days!

 

 

Day 2

Posted on February 13, 2013

 

Ok a couple of those new guys have popped in to say hello. The crusty areas are getting flaky and the wide heads are losing a bit of their lustre and getting that dead yellow look

 

 

 

Day 3

Posted on February 14, 2013

 

I have seen a definite improvement on yesterday. Redness has dulled dramatically. I’ve removed a few large flakes if skin on my face where pimples have dried up. Two tiny whiteheads and a kind of a iceberg whitehead (90% bellow the surface) appeared by my nose but these were brewing beneath the surface from the outbreak. Looking forward to looking at my ugly mug tomorrow. Hoping to see more improvements!

 

 

Day 4

Posted on February 14, 2013

 

Today is the first day in about 4 weeks where a pimple hasn’t been there to greet me in the morning, tipping its microscopic top hat towards me with a devilish wink.

My skin is feeling pretty tight. The left problem side looked like there was some talcum powder on it, small flakes of skin.

The flakes seem to be more or less gone a few hours later on my breakfast break in work.

The pimples that remain look that dead yellow. Redness is reduced further. I’m very happy but at the sane time a little pissed off to think I may have caused my own acne over the years. It could have been worse I guess. Since taking Accutane the breakouts haven’t been of major concern. Same with the odd pimple. Now I’m not gonna get my hopes up too soon but this all seems to be more than a coincidence. But let’s see

Edited by Thin Lizzy, 14 February 2013 - 05:32 PM.

[ohnelly]

Hello,

 

I also started the caveman regimen.  I'm going into week 3.  I think my skin texture and everything looks better but the whiteheads are unbelievable and i get red spots.  No cystic acne though.

[Thin Lizzy]

I kind of stopped updating the blog as it wasn't getting much views. So I said I'd come back in a few weeks. My breakout has cleared up more or less. The odd pimple I get which goes in a day. I'm just letting water on my face in the shower. I bought cetaphil. I use this to wash away the dead skin around my mouth after I use the beard trimmer. I still haven't washed my whole face. I'll do that next week when the month is up to get rid of the dead skin. I'm never going back to those cleansers again. It has worked for me and I'm happy. I think it's worth a try, what do you have to lose!?

[ohnelly]

Yah, I'm at this point where I feel like caving and just using a gentle cleanser every other day.  I'm in week 3-4 and the breakouts are terrible.  I never really had an issue with acne my whole life.  I just decided to treat something last fall and then everything went bad.  I really believe the topicals ruined my face; however, I used to use dove sensitive soap every day with no problem whatsoever.  But I also never concentrated on it.  On this method, I feel like it's all I think about and that has been depressing.  Also, not being able to cover up all my whiteheads and red marks sucks.  I know as a guy, the shaving part must suck.  But as a girl, no makeup is terrrrrrrrrible! 

 

Also, do you use a towel to pat dry?  I got really upset last night looking at my face and sorta exfoliated with a towel. 

[Thin Lizzy]

I think you can adjust this caveman thing slightly to suit your own needs. Since doing this I've felt the I'd bump under my skin asks popped it before it comes to head and dab some lemon juice on it before a shower . Obviously this isn't strictly sticking to the regime . It prevent the pimple forming. I'm using the lemon juice instead on bp. What I've also noticed is the pimples on my forehead are different now, you can't pop them like before. I get the odd pimple there, no big deal. Between my cheekbones and nose on both sides is my problem area.

To answer your question, yes I pay dry with a towel or i don't need to if I've been walking around and it dries before I go to dry myself. This doesn't work for everyone. Maybe you need to wash every so often with a gentle cleanser like cetaphil. It's trial and error really.

I believe I've caused my own acne in the years after taking accutane. In over cleansed when I should have left well alone. I think I'll wash my face once a week after next week when the month is up. Other than that just use water .

I think you should be seeing Seeing an improvement by now?? I'd your acne better or worse ??

Also I thought my skin would be really rough at this stage. It surprisingly smooth. Thought there would be more dead skin on my problem area and forehead .

[ohnelly]

No my acne is worse.  I broke down and used a gentle cleanser today and plan on using one every day or every other day.  I also plan on doing a honey mask this weekend.  I don't have cystic acne (went away after the water only) just a TON of whiteheads, blackheads, and flesh colored bumps.  Every pore looks clogged.  Sorry, it's so gross but this is an acne message board so wth.  I think my mistake was that I got confident and went 5 days without washing.  I would just let it get a little wet in the shower but not a wash.  Anyway, I think it clogged my face and now I'm paying for it.  Maybe if I lived in cave somewhere I could just keep on with it but I don't.  My complexion looks better though, in the areas that aren't covered (my cheeks are THE worst). Chin and nose are fine, forehead has whiteheads but the cheeks look the worst.  I came off of using fenacia and washing with cetaphil twice a day, if not more.  Some BP spot treatment too and used a salicylic acid exfoliating scrub.  I destroyed my once shiny happy skin.  I literally don't recognize my pictures from 6 months ago.

 

Lesson learned--never ever scrub your face or overwash. I'll have to live with this for awhile now.

 

That's awesome that it worked for you.  I should've researched it better before diving in.  So you just spot treat with lemon juice? I think it's good for me though.  I have a new found respect for anyone suffering with this.  I think my brother did accutane before and didn't like it.  I think he mentioned not being able to drink on it and so he didn't want to deal with that.

 

It has been devastating for my social life .  Like for instance, you are wearing an Irish shirt in your photo and all I can think about is how all my friends will be going out this St. Pat's day and I'll probably call them last minute and cancel. I know they would like me with acne but I'm having self-esteem issues now about it.

[Thin Lizzy]

Fair play to you for trying this as long as you have. Especially going without make up. As I said above, this is an impossible routine for women. To be honest, I dunno if the lemon does anything. In the past if I ever felt a bump under the skin I'd pop it and put some bp on there. 70% of the time it would prevent the pimple from forming. Now I'm using lemon juice, I dunno if it's helping bit the bumps I have popped have not come back. My face is practically clear now besides from a few tiny blemishes, but for me that normal. Lost of people have the odd tiny blemish on their face no big deal. I'm not going to tell you to put this to the back of your mind and go out and enjoy yourself because when I got this month long breakout, I decided not to go out twice because of the amount of whiteheads and red marks on my face. It never stopped me in the past but this time it was too much. It's funny cuz if I see a person with acne, I don't really take much notice. But if I have a few pimples its the mountain molehill scenario. So when it's a bad one, I don't want to leave the house. It's sad really but what can I do. Maybe it's a lack of confidence or vanity, who knows. I'm also just pissed off that I've being using all those cleansers and they were doing nothing except Turning my face into an oil slick. Maybe you should go and get one of those facials. The ones where the remove all the gunk from your face?

[ohnelly]

Wow, that's amazing that you are clear now.  I originally tried this because the fenacia wasn't doing anything.  I had a few cystic bumps along my cheeks that would keep returning or form new spots when one would go down.  Going 30 days just water definitely got rid of them, 100%.  But as I said, it replaced them with a million tiny bumps, red marks and whiteheads.  Maybe eventually those will go away but I can't handle it anymore.    I'm too weak to stick it out for months no makeup.  It sounds like you, along with most people who do this, get pretty much clear (besides dry skin) after a month.  I just got worse and worse and worse.  And then I would obsess what I did wrong and feel sad and I don't want to feel that way anymore.

 

How long did you try this method until you got clear?  Did you purge at all or have the dead skin mask?  I just had lots of flaky dry skin. 

 

Yah, I don't really care or notice other people's acne.  But I feel like as a girl people really judge you on your looks.

 

I'm actually thinking of trying your lemon juice thing. I don't ever want to use BP, salicylic acid, or any harsh stuff ever again.  That or tea tree oil?

 

I don't want to mess with a facial or anything.  I know they could extract stuff but I think I'm done messing with it.  I'm just gonna stick to dove sensitive soap 5 seconds in the shower 1xday and hide for month.

[CrazyIceCream]

Hi~ 

I did the caveman regimen too. Not using facial cleanser, no moisturizer, just washing face with plain tap water.

I did this for a few months & the pimples were okay...not bad.. but I got whiteheads, red patches(maybe it was  eczema on my upper right cheek), flaky skin.

I decided to try Delna's regimen & considering the fact that I stopped using commercial products,

I just do the baking soda & apple cider vinegar in the morning.

Before I sleep, I use the egg white mask with lime juice (it's supposed to be lemon but i didn't have any lemon).

That's all. No moisturizer, no facial cleanser. Because I stayed at home all the way.

I'm in day 6 now & the red patches are gone, no more whiteheads, the scars are lightening too

but I don't like the fact that it made my forehead look shiny like plastic shiny. 

I'll still keep going though

[Thin Lizzy]

I was still getting white heads up to a week and a half maybe. But it was getting better everyday. Lat night I decided to pop a few pretty large black heads on my nose and the problem areas. These were left behind from the large whiteheads during the breakout. It's been about 3 and a half weeks so I said I'm going to was my face with cetaphil after doing this. After Taft input lemon juice on the areas where I removed the black heads. As I was washing my face its as smooth as when I was on Accutane. Couldn't believe it. And very little dead skin surprisingly, no dead skin mask. So this morning no pimples formed where I removed the blackheads. Maybe the lemon juice is working or I'm just not producing so much oil anymore . Who knows

Edited by Thin Lizzy, 07 March 2013 - 06:52 AM.