I just wanted to tell my story somewhere where it might have effect.

I have had acne since I was about 12, I am 27 now and I still have acne. I have combination dry skin, emphasis on dry, especially in the winter. I also have psorrisis in my scalp.

In my teen years especially, but continuing today, I've have nodular acne on my face, neck, and back. Occassionally now, and especially back then, these nodes would be quite large and numerous especially on my upper back. Every shirt I owned was stained with blood from nodules draining. I also have/had a few blackheads and whiteheads, here and there, but with the painful nodes on my mind - I had/have better things to worry about.

I did go to the dermatologist regularly as a teen. I have used all of the following products:

1) Cetaphil

2) Benzoyl Peroxide

3) Retin A Micro (I think that's what it was)

4) Minoxyclin (oral)

5) Doxycyclin (oral)

6) Differin

7) Benzamycin

8) Salicyclic Acid

9) Tazarac

Every product, with the exception of doxycyclin, had a negative or null effect on my acne. At some point in my teen years I literally compiled data on the size and number of nodules I had on my body and made charts based on time. I don't have the data anymore but the bottom line is that it was not just my perception that the drugs weren't working, but objective fact. And I gave these drugs plenty of time to work (3 years), and applied everything religiously and per the doctors orders

My new dermatologist called me a "sophisticated patient" lol. I found a new dermo as an adult to check to see if there are any new miracle drugs for my condition. Unfortunately no, but I did end up getting a bottle of doxy which I never finished.

Living with this for so long I can tell you a lot about my particular condition and going caveman.

I have utilized the "caveman" technique for something like 12 years straight. The benefits were obvious and immediate after less than a week. Although I never knew it was a technique that anyone else employed until today. Any topically applied product or cleanser makes my acne worse, shaving with anything closer than a beard trimmer makes my acne worse and I get infected ingrown hairs, period. So instead of this I just run around with a 5 o' clock shadow everyday of my life. Any deviations from the caveman routine - which is rare - with the exception of tee tree oil masks, have yielded a NEGATIVE result.

For those suffering with neck and back acne, If the caveman method works for your face I'd suggest it will work for your other problem areas, as well. Basically just don't wash or put anything on those areas but of course water is just fine. You don't want to be the combination of dirty smelling and afflicted with back acne. It's not a good looki. The problem with the caveman method on the back and shoulders stems in my case from wearing shirts. My backne will regress substantially when I'm shirtless, and I have been so bold to employ this technique on some extended vacations. It works, amazing! but not very practical for day to day life.

As someone who had moderately-severe acne as a teen, then moderately-light acne as an adult, and as someone who has lived the caveman lifestyle for 12 years, I hope that this information is found to be of use to someone, you are not necessarily crazy if after two months OTC or perscription topical acne treatment, recommended by a dermatologist, your acne has gotten worse and your skin is falling off and dry as a bone. If the suggestion is ever more severe and drying acne treatments even if it works (didn't in my case) your life will be miserable. It used to literally hurt when I would speak, the skin around my mouth so dry, for darn near two years. I used to bury my face in a sweater or whatnot during class to find some relief. Ridiculous looking back on it! I trusted my dermotologist WAY too much! I was seeing a dermatologist and doing what he said religiously. To fix my acne the doc just kept giving me harsher and harsher topical meds, until I just GAVE UP.

GIVING UP WORKED! Doing nothing was 1000X better than any of the skin care routines given to me by the doc.

Skip the dermatologist says in that scenario, find another, or go back and simply refuse to mess with topical treatments and washes. Reintroduce topicals one by one in two month intervals if you think it will help. I think for most folks the recommended acne treatment will work just fine, I seem to be a special case, to my immense frustration. If that is true for you then I think it's totally reasonable to try out the caveman method and get yourself back to square one. You might be immensely surprised at how your life improves!

Today I have very light facial acne and light to moderate acne on my back. This can be cured completely with doxyclin, but I prefer not to ingest an antibiotic daily and just live with the problem. As I mentioned before my backne substantially improves (to pretty much no acne) just by removing the shirt (true caveman!), unforunately, thats just not practical everyday.

(P.S. I did order some hempseed oil today. I'm skeptical because I've tried just about every pharmaceutical solution - but this natural solution does have some good research and even a hokey patent on it)

PPS - as a teen I had a very low self esteem due to my acne. Luckily I did have a gf so whatever, I had a good time nonetheless. As an adult I have a healthy (huge ??) ego and this is no longer a problem for me to talk about... openly. At the end of the day acne makes you a better person, I would be totally different if I never had it. I worked hard on myself thinking that I'd be very attractive one day when my acne was better. That day came to pass, hooray!

Wanted to make an update post!

So I am now on day 10 of the caveman regimen... and I couldn't be more thrilled with the results. I'm looking at my face this morning, and parts of my forehead and skin remind me of the youthful smooth skin I had back when I didn't use ANY facial products.

A few things: from inspecting my skin up close, you would most likely say my skin has gotten worse since doing the caveman regimen. The reason you might say this is because I have gotten a lot more small bumpy whiteheads in my forehead, that can be more noticeable than say, the big red pimples I used to get on the sides of my face. However, I know there has been dramatic improvement because of the following

1. My scars are fading away, and new pimples aren't leaving any scars hardly at all.
2. My oiliness that I was complaining about earlier in this thread has almost entirely gone away and I don't feel gross anymore
3. The pimples that do form last very shortly and do not turn red or painful, just big whiteheads that disappear after about 2 days. (Vast improvement from the big red painful pimples I had that would last 5 days).
4. The big red pimples I used to get on the sides of my face (near my eyes and eyebrows) have almost vanished, and only faint bumpiness appears there now.
5. My skin doesn't feel overly dry or oily like it used to. My skin has naturally maintained a balance between the two.
6. Additional, minor improvement: my skin isn't nearly as sensitive when in the sunlight.

The regimen definitely isn't perfect, and isn't a dream come true. I'm still forming whiteheads, I'm still having pimples, and in the beginning stages of this regimen, I was scared to go outside in public (I highly recommend when/if you start this regimen, you start it when you know you'll have very minimal contact with other people, if you're a self-conscious person like I am). At some parts of the regimen, even as recently as 3 days ago, I wanted nothing more to do than just go on the Regimen and glob some 2.5 Benzoyl peroxide on my face. But I held strong, because I won't know for sure the success of this regimen if I don't hold out.

I'm still in the beginning stages of this regimen, and won't see fully-formed results probably by month 2. I'll keep popping in here to give updates, no matter how bad or how good my skin looks.

your scars arenot fading.. its just the dead skin hidin it.. once u remove it u will get to kno wat stupid thing you are doin with your face.... u will feeel its gr8 n ol but its not. understand your skin. giv it wat it needs.. rather than irritaing it with your sebum dirt and ol..

After trying this for 2 weeks around half a year ago, I came to the conclusion that it isn't really about how you externally treat your skin, it's definitely an internal problem. I could have not washed my face for years, but I would have still carried on getting acne.

I do however think over-washing your skin is unnecessary and may aggravate acne. Also using harsh products on your skin is dangerous because everything you apply to your skin is absorbed.

I wash once or twice a day, I don't make a huge ritual out of it like I used to. If I've ate something greasy/messy, I like to wash it for my own benefit, not really to prevent breakouts.

The quality of the water can play a huge role too. If you live in an area with harsh, chlorinated water, then washing your face fewer times or using bottled/filtered water will obviously have its benefits. If you stay home all day, there's no need to wash your face more than once a day. If you have oil built up and spend a lot of time outside, then twice a day would be more suitable. But the key is to strengthen your immune system by filtering out all the toxins so that there will be fewer breakouts to begin with.

After trying this for 2 weeks around half a year ago, I came to the conclusion that it isn't really about how you externally treat your skin, it's definitely an internal problem. I could have not washed my face for years, but I would have still carried on getting acne.

I do however think over-washing your skin is unnecessary and may aggravate acne. Also using harsh products on your skin is dangerous because everything you apply to your skin is absorbed.

I wash once or twice a day, I don't make a huge ritual out of it like I used to. If I've ate something greasy/messy, I like to wash it for my own benefit, not really to prevent breakouts.

It's both an internal and external problem. your sebum isn't a layer of dead grease on the surface of your skin. It's there for a reason and full of living cells and substances that do things. Amongst those things is make your skin a PH level that inhibits microbial growth, and allow enzymes (also produced by cells in your sebum) to dissolve the matrix holding skin cells together so that they exfoliate freely without clogging pores, and inhibit the conversion of T to DHT.

Hey yall! Okay, so Ive been on this regimine for 36 days..

Update: Im extremely dry and blotchy. I havent had any cysts pop up (other than one right at first that I have a feeling was already forming.. however never got terrible angry and inflamed and dried out pretty quick), but I have had alooooooot of white heads and black heads.

My question here is did you guys ever "help out" the white heads that were forming?? Or do you just have to full on let them bad boys shine. I have to admit, they're not very attractive up close

Hey yall! Okay, so Ive been on this regimine for 36 days..

Update: Im extremely dry and blotchy. I havent had any cysts pop up (other than one right at first that I have a feeling was already forming.. however never got terrible angry and inflamed and dried out pretty quick), but I have had alooooooot of white heads and black heads.

My question here is did you guys ever "help out" the white heads that were forming?? Or do you just have to full on let them bad boys shine. I have to admit, they're not very attractive up close

I have noticed this post on a few threads now so I thought I would reply. The caveman method is a tough one. I think if you're not willing to make a complete lifestyle change (diet and skincare) then it probably won't work out.

My opinion on this has changed a lot since I tried it out. Using nothing on your skin (OTC products) does help, but you must still keep your skin clean. This you can do without irritation and damaging the protective layer (acid mantle, layer of acidic sebum, whatever you want to call it) that wards off acne-causing bacteria.

If you have a nutrient dense diet (mainly vegan, plant-based with small amounts of meat), drink only water and exercise regularly you shouldn't need to wash your face with anything other than some tepid water. My belief is that to carry out a 'caveman' regimen, you need a 'caveman' (of sorts) diet.

Watch a documentary called 'Forks Over Knives' or another good one, 'Hungry for Change' - these really opened my eyes to how profoundly diet/internal factors affect your health both positively and negatively. Things I probably wouldn't have believed a few years ago.

Good luck,

Lewis

Just finishing up 2nd week of caveman, not extreme.

I'm 47. I am very fair skinned, with Rosacea, also acne since early highschool. Very bad allergies/sensitive, seem to be allergic/sensitive to everything, even water. I did the no wash before, and allowed only shower water to get on my face, with poor results. I would get a very thick dead skin layer and my pores would clog instantly, and I'd get cystic acne.

The difference this time:

• No showers. I am trying to avoid hard water and minerals at all costs, not even filtered water which has minerals. My body skin is so much better without taking showers, very smooth and hydrated.
• Minerals, in particular calcium, mixes with sebum and causes the oil to become hard, and can clog pores and cause acne.
• I only let distilled water touch my face, splashed on in the evening and some mornings, no rubbing.
• I do the same for my scalp maybe once per week, depends on how thick and itchy my dead skin layer is.
• The dead skin layer is thickening, but seems smooth and light, and my skin is able to breath - and that is saying something.
• Normally, with hard water, I'd be breaking out like mad.

I am still getting a few pimples, mainly around my upper forehead, and hairline area, but not a big deal, and overall it feels like things are headed in a positive direction.

My plan is to go another 2 weeks before attempting to carefully take the dead layer off. Would be awesome if I didn't have to, but not planning on that yet. I do not want to use a wash cloth, it's way to abrasive for my thin skin.

Will try to post results as I go.

Just thought I would add my experience on here since I was doing the caveman regimen for 3 months.

I'm 23 and had clear skin up until I turned 20. I had oily skin with mostly papules and pustules and an occasional cyst. I was using the Shiseido skincare kit since I was 13, but switched to acne products once my acne started to flare up. I'm fair skinned with sensitive skin and all my acne would pop up on my temples, cheeks, and chin. My forehead and nose have always been clear. I was mostly clear when I came across this regimen and thought it would help with the whiteheads and few papules that I had left.

In August, I came across acne.org and decided to start the caveman regimen because I wanted to try a more natural approach to my acne since I already live a very healthy lifestyle. I rarely drink any alcohol, cook my own meals, and record everything I eat, mostly because I am very into fitness. I sleep 8 hours a night and change my pilowcase every night. I exercise 6 times a week with weight training and cardio. I recorded day by day my progress with the caveman regimen, so I'll share the key points of my journey.

Day 1 of the regimen, I had tons of whiteheads along my cheeks and jawline and 1 pustule on my cheek.

After a month, I noticed that my face was getting extremely oily and itchy and I was getting more pustules and papules, EVEN on my forehead ): The areas where I would break out were dry and less red. I noticed the hyperpigmentation from the pustules and papules were fading and overall my skin looked better. I started splashing with cold water every few days.

After the second month, my skin was no longer oily or itchy and it seemed like my skin had found a natural balance of moisture which made me very happy! All my whiteheads had disappeared, but I still had the pustules.

After the third month, my skin was still balanced, no whiteheads or pustules! BUT, I started getting cysts ): I didn't change anything in my routine and the cysts would not go away. This was the reason I quit the caveman regimen. By the time I decided to quit I had 15 cysts on my face! I could not continue any longer because my face was in so much pain. During this whole process, I did not wear any make up.

I just started on Dan's Regimen this week and my cysts are starting to decrease in size. I also started drinking a Skin Detox tea from Yogi, taking probiotics, and taking zinc. Before I started the caveman I was taking a multi-vitamin, fish oil, iron, and Vitamin C. I also cut out dairy while doing the caveman regimen which I think helped a lot.

Even though I stopped doing the caveman regimen, my skin is still balanced in terms of moisture and am very happy that I still tried this routine.

Sorry for the long post!

Wow!!!

This thread really blew up since the last time I caroused these forums. If you'd like to ask me any questions on my experiences with the caveman regimen, please direct them over to my diary here:

Really excited with all the positive feedback I'm seeing on people giving this regimen a shot.

Just thought I would add my experience on here since I was doing the caveman regimen for 3 months.

I'm 23 and had clear skin up until I turned 20. I had oily skin with mostly papules and pustules and an occasional cyst. I was using the Shiseido skincare kit since I was 13, but switched to acne products once my acne started to flare up. I'm fair skinned with sensitive skin and all my acne would pop up on my temples, cheeks, and chin. My forehead and nose have always been clear. I was mostly clear when I came across this regimen and thought it would help with the whiteheads and few papules that I had left.

In August, I came across acne.org and decided to start the caveman regimen because I wanted to try a more natural approach to my acne since I already live a very healthy lifestyle. I rarely drink any alcohol, cook my own meals, and record everything I eat, mostly because I am very into fitness. I sleep 8 hours a night and change my pilowcase every night. I exercise 6 times a week with weight training and cardio. I recorded day by day my progress with the caveman regimen, so I'll share the key points of my journey.

Day 1 of the regimen, I had tons of whiteheads along my cheeks and jawline and 1 pustule on my cheek.

After a month, I noticed that my face was getting extremely oily and itchy and I was getting more pustules and papules, EVEN on my forehead The areas where I would break out were dry and less red. I noticed the hyperpigmentation from the pustules and papules were fading and overall my skin looked better. I started splashing with cold water every few days.

After the second month, my skin was no longer oily or itchy and it seemed like my skin had found a natural balance of moisture which made me very happy! All my whiteheads had disappeared, but I still had the pustules.

After the third month, my skin was still balanced, no whiteheads or pustules! BUT, I started getting cysts I didn't change anything in my routine and the cysts would not go away. This was the reason I quit the caveman regimen. By the time I decided to quit I had 15 cysts on my face! I could not continue any longer because my face was in so much pain. During this whole process, I did not wear any make up.

I just started on Dan's Regimen this week and my cysts are starting to decrease in size. I also started drinking a Skin Detox tea from Yogi, taking probiotics, and taking zinc. Before I started the caveman I was taking a multi-vitamin, fish oil, iron, and Vitamin C. I also cut out dairy while doing the caveman regimen which I think helped a lot.

Even though I stopped doing the caveman regimen, my skin is still balanced in terms of moisture and am very happy that I still tried this routine.

Sorry for the long post!

acne in thse places sound like a food intolerance. I got cysts in thse areas & they turned out to e a reaction to citrus. Try a methodical elimination diet to figure out what intolerances you might have

Also, while the 'caveman' regimen stuff about no water & dead skin masks is nonsense, not using cleansers & chemical filled products on your skin is still a very good thing. Save your money to spend on better food. And take a little step in saving the planet.

Wow!!!

This thread really blew up since the last time I caroused these forums. If you'd like to ask me any questions on my experiences with the caveman regimen, please direct them over to my diary here: http://www.acne.org/messageboard/topic/331552-do-nothing-at-all-regimen/

Really excited with all the positive feedback I'm seeing on people giving this regimen a shot.

Cool, thanks, I'll also try to blog my results. The more info the better for anyone thinking about trying this, anything to help.

Day 18

• Again, evening exercise and sweating. I exercise daily, doing at least core and cardio on rest days. I love it. Not only is it great for body, but for mind.
• Hour or so after at home, I splashed distilled water from a clean bowl onto my face, not scalp.
• Let air dry. So much dead skin, everywhere, worse on cheeks and temples, not as bad on forehead and sides of face. I used to get major dead skin build up upper portion of cheeks next to nose, but that area is less now it seems.
• The good thing, I can easily rub or roll much of the dead skin layer off it seems when it gets wet, especially after an exercise/sweat session.
• Again no shower, just rubbed some distilled water under arms etc.. no smell. My shirt is a different story.
• This morning, skin was a bit more itchy and flaky, so splashed distilled water on face from clean bowl, air dry.
• No pimples anywhere except a couple teenies at upper hair line that you couldn't see unless really zoomed in.
• Skin feels refreshed and moisturized after splashing distilled water and allowing to air dry.
• Dead Skin layer is thick, but pores breathable. Usually with all of this dead skin, and combined with hard thick oil in my pores and disrupted acid mantle, I would break out.
• Another thing I'm noticing, the acid mantle which is made up of oil, dead skin, and sweat is protecting my skin now much better from bacterial invasion. I'm finally realizing that I have destroyed my protection for all of these years with hard water, heated water, and chemical laden cleansers. It will take some time to regenerate my barrier. I just hope its not too far lost.

Things to keep in mind:

• Avoid hard water to face at all costs, and even any part of my body other than hands, hard to avoid that.
• Avoid hot showers especially. The chlorine and minerals from the hard water while opening my pores from the heated shower creates is way too much for my delicate skin to handle.

Just thought I would add my experience on here since I was doing the caveman regimen for 3 months.

I'm 23 and had clear skin up until I turned 20. I had oily skin with mostly papules and pustules and an occasional cyst. I was using the Shiseido skincare kit since I was 13, but switched to acne products once my acne started to flare up. I'm fair skinned with sensitive skin and all my acne would pop up on my temples, cheeks, and chin. My forehead and nose have always been clear. I was mostly clear when I came across this regimen and thought it would help with the whiteheads and few papules that I had left.

In August, I came across acne.org and decided to start the caveman regimen because I wanted to try a more natural approach to my acne since I already live a very healthy lifestyle. I rarely drink any alcohol, cook my own meals, and record everything I eat, mostly because I am very into fitness. I sleep 8 hours a night and change my pilowcase every night. I exercise 6 times a week with weight training and cardio. I recorded day by day my progress with the caveman regimen, so I'll share the key points of my journey.

Day 1 of the regimen, I had tons of whiteheads along my cheeks and jawline and 1 pustule on my cheek.

After a month, I noticed that my face was getting extremely oily and itchy and I was getting more pustules and papules, EVEN on my forehead The areas where I would break out were dry and less red. I noticed the hyperpigmentation from the pustules and papules were fading and overall my skin looked better. I started splashing with cold water every few days.

After the second month, my skin was no longer oily or itchy and it seemed like my skin had found a natural balance of moisture which made me very happy! All my whiteheads had disappeared, but I still had the pustules.

After the third month, my skin was still balanced, no whiteheads or pustules! BUT, I started getting cysts I didn't change anything in my routine and the cysts would not go away. This was the reason I quit the caveman regimen. By the time I decided to quit I had 15 cysts on my face! I could not continue any longer because my face was in so much pain. During this whole process, I did not wear any make up.

I just started on Dan's Regimen this week and my cysts are starting to decrease in size. I also started drinking a Skin Detox tea from Yogi, taking probiotics, and taking zinc. Before I started the caveman I was taking a multi-vitamin, fish oil, iron, and Vitamin C. I also cut out dairy while doing the caveman regimen which I think helped a lot.

Even though I stopped doing the caveman regimen, my skin is still balanced in terms of moisture and am very happy that I still tried this routine.

Sorry for the long post!

acne in thse places sound like a food intolerance. I got cysts in thse areas & they turned out to e a reaction to citrus. Try a methodical elimination diet to figure out what intolerances you might have

Also, while the 'caveman' regimen stuff about no water & dead skin masks is nonsense, not using cleansers & chemical filled products on your skin is still a very good thing. Save your money to spend on better food. And take a little step in saving the planet.

I know that dairy did cause me to breakout within hours. I want to try to solve my acne problems internally since I know that is where the root of the problem is, but I feel like I need to do something topically in the meanwhile so that I can have my skin under control. I will try eliminating other foods slowly! Thank you

Day 24

Took off much of the dead skin layer on Sat night from face and scalp. This was after 3 weeks of build up. It was so thick. On my scalp in particular, I was only able to get off the top layer, because I didn't want to dig too deep. I felt I had to before work this morning. After a work out, splashed distilled water on, and while wet, I used my finger nails as gently as I could. The dead skin was pretty loose due to my work out.

I've done this before, but never went this long before doing so. In the past when I would allow my skin to build up the dead skin from just the water cleansing, it was shower water allowed to run over my face. I would get major issues like clogged pores, a few cystic acne, much of that due to hard water aggravating my skin and the heat of the shower water certainly contributed.

This time around, using distilled water, minimal issues under the dead skin. Just a couple older pimples that were still healing so they were red and became slightly inflammed due to taking off their protective layer of dead skin. Overall skin red and on the raw side. Skin calmed down within a few hours turning mostly pinkish.

Now, skin mostly calm and we'll see how much dead skin I accumulate going forward. Will continue to post as time goes on, most likely weekly.

One thing I noticed which was nice, after my work out last night and allowing sweat to stay on, no burning at all, and actually quite soothing. I was debating whether or not to splash some distilled water on last night before bed, and did. Probably should have just done nothing. Did not splash any water on this morning.

Also I have noticed, oil production is much less and hardly noticeable at all, itching and sensitivitly has lessened. Of course, breakouts much much less.

Paul

Day 26

• Took much of dead skin layer off on Nov 30. Huge amounts from scalp.
• That night, skin was raw immediately after, red and irritated, one area that is always a problem spot (very sensitive with an enlarged sebaceous gland underneath), felt like a pimple was forming or even possible cystic, kind of scary. Another healing cystic pimple from weeks prior, now exposed as the dead skin layer above taken off, very red, basically new skin that is exposed and now will need some more time to heal over, no traces of old pimple activity though.
• Next day, itchy and red over much of face, sensitive, no flakes or dead skin apparent.
• Next day, starting to see skin heal over, less redness, more pink,, not as much itching.
• Yesterday, skin was getting a layer of thin and light oil as day progressed, no dead skin or flaking apparent, pink in color - good color for me.
• Today, off from work, cold this morning in Los Angeles, skin lighter, some dead skin film starting to form, in particular over areas where I didn't get all of the layer from Sat night off. Skin is nice light pink color. The area that I feared might get a cystic pimple never came out. I can still feel a slight pain under skin, but very small amt and only if I touch it, good sign for me that if anything, it should be a tiny one worst case scenario.
• I have been rinsing with distilled water on face night and morning since Saturday night. This morning, nothing. No oil present anywhere. Some in part to possible new dead skin layer forming, but not itching at all, no redness, nice light pink color, face not inflammed at the slightest. Some of this is in part due to the cold dry temp this morning, but no flaking and no oil are good signs.
• Old healing cystic acne continues to lighten and healing. General overall feel and appearance is good and I feel is progressing in a positive way.
• Right now, it feels like this is just the next cycle in the healing process. If things go as planned, the dead skin layer will be less than the first phase before coming off and skin acid mantle will continue to get better. My goal though is NOT to take off any dead skin, to allow it to come off on its own.

Right now, I'm happy. Saturday night and the next couple days, I was scared, but not completely unexpected. Thanks to past posters about their experiences after taking their first dead skin mask off, the raw exposed skin under would take a few days to heal up, and there might be some rough patches.

Paul

Day 31 / Mon / 12-9-13

Recap: Saturday night Nov 30, end of 3rd week of my Caveman skin care routine, is when I took off much of my dead skin mask, at least as much as I could get while trying to stay gentle, there was more that could have come off, in particular my scalp - huge amounts. It left my skin very red and tender, with a couple pimples - rising to surface that may have been covered by the dead skin layer. Until this time, they had not been noticed, probably because I had so much dead skin. They did not turn cystic, and cleared in a couple days. When my face gets irritated, I break out in that area of irritation, whether it be from something rubbing it like a hat along hair line, drying it out using a cleanser, or hard water. So many different ways my skin gets irritated, as a matter of fact, constant state of irritation is how I would describe my skin. Anything and everything aggravates it, weather (temperature, pollution, wind)., chemicals, stress, just touching it etc...

The next day, still very tender, less red.

Next day, again less red, more pinkish, less tender. One deep cystic type acne coming to surface, few very small pimples various areas, nothing alarming.

By Friday, that one that seemed to show signs of a cystic type acne (painful, red, no head forming, large surface area, deep under skin) basically gone, yes just went away. Amazing really and a very good sign. I can't remember a time when this has happened before. Always, these come out over days, and can take many weeks to heal, then end up possibly causing a scar because they are so deep. Not this time. Overall skin very nice and pink, dead skin layer reforming, but not as thick as when I started. My routine continues to be, distilled water from a bowl, room temp (which is pretty cold now a days), splashed on face and once in a while on scalp, evening and morning. No rubbing. On scalp, I do massage in. I have been lightly towel drying, very gently just dabbing, still leaving face fairly moist. Making sure the towel is clean, new towel each time. My skin likes it, feels refreshing and seems to drink in the water.

Another good sign. I sweat each evening from working out, and do dry sauna - 10 min tops, to really get a good sweat to get those toxins out. I do not pat dry it. I leave it on for at least a couple hours before splashing with my evening distilled water. During the first 3 weeks, sweat on my face would be close to painful. Now, the sweat feels comforting, and seems to sink in much better. In the past, the sweat would just sit atop irritated, red, swollen skin, with dead skin patches that were thick and flaky similar to a wound scabbing over trying to heal, but never would.

Saturday, again nice, didn't splash water on in the morning, barely any flaking or itchy areas. Dead skin layer is there, but fairly thin still. Skin is much less inflamed, and even sinking in a bit. That is a very good sign, normally my skin is swollen and red. Sinking in a bit around my bone structure is a good sign, this is more natural for me as I am lean from working out w/cardio daily. Usually my body is lean, but my face is red and swollen complete opposites.

Today, skin continues to be a nice pink color, only a couple very small pin prick sized pimples around my forehead area, and spread out, but so small, tomorrow they could be gone and you wouldn't know they were there. My skin will never be white unless the dead skin layer is thick enough to cover my thin rosacea skin. So the best I'll get is pink and this to me means healthy. The dead skin layer is there and getting thicker, but still overall much less compared to this time when I started.

So after 1 week when I first started, pretty thick dead skin, itchy, combination of dry/oily patches, flaky at times, sensitive, sweat would tend to burn if left on.

Now, after 1 week - post dead skin layer removal, skin overall pink and healthy color, dead skin layer less thick, less itching, less pimple prone, more even texture - barely any oil accumulation, barely any flaking patches. I feel I could go without splashing distilled water on in the AM, however I still will, as it seems my skin likes it, seems to get hydrated and absorbs it to a degree.

This is a positive report. I am happy. Although I will temper my enthusiasm because still early in the game. We all know about that emotional roller coaster, how early good results get dashed within a week or 2. I am still hoping to get less and less dead skin as I go forward and hope that I don't feel I have to take off the next layer, that it will just come off naturally on its own.

Things I must avoid and are being confirmed now:

Hard Water (I am so allergic)

Hot or even warm temp water

Cleansers

Rubbing

One last positive sign. I normally could not drink coffee pre-caveman. If I did, I would itch like crazy, my red flaky patches would get more inflamed. In the past one time, I even got hives when my immune system was low as I hadn't been feeling well that day. Now, I'm drinking black coffee in the morning, usually 1-2 cups max, but almost no itching at all, no skin inflammation. I do need to keep it to a minimum though as my stomach can't handle more than a couple cups.

I'll report again in a few days.

Day 34 / Thur, 12/12/13

Continued progress, I am happy to report.

I did get some breakout, small whiteheads, couple red larger, on my now most sensitive area - forehead to upper hair line. I am not getting any new pimples at all on my face which is amazing. Now, I did drink lots of coffee yesterday morning, and this seemed to aggravate those areas where I broke out, but I really am interested in testing how I do drinking my nemesis coffee and so far, still tolerate it very well overall. I only drink it in the am and no more than 2 cups. I have Rosacea, and coffee is bad for that as well, another reason I'm so sensitive to it. Rest of day, tea and water.

Dead skin is there and seemed to be more last night. After splashing face with distilled water and pat dry, I did brush off just a little of the dead skin that appeared loose around my cheeks. I was very gentle and did so very very lightly and no issues.

Today, my breakout areas pretty much gone, no itching, no discomfort at all, those bumps have greatly diminished or gone completely - again happily surprised. If I look really close, I can still see a few, but they are very small. You'd have to look close up. Normally, with a pimple I get an associated inflammation.

Skin overall looks healthy, no itching, dead skin build up is much less than when I started. I really can't see any excess oil anywhere. Skin is smoother and softer, but yet stronger, less sensitive and brittle than before starting this distilled water face rinse (no rubbing - except scalp). Also, no showers, just sit in tub and use distilled water from a bowl to cleanse body after nightly workouts. Normally, taking warm showers using hard water in the winter causes dry areas on lower legs.

I hope to do this for the rest of my life, it's definitely not difficult and only takes a couple minutes. I do daily night/am distilled water rinse because it feels like I get less dead skin build up. I hope to do less frequency if my skin continues to progress and heal up.

So far so good, long ways to go, but happy right now. I will continue to post.

Day 49 / Fri, Dec 27

Not a whole lot of difference. I'm trying to avoid any water touching my face, just to try to expedite the skin healing process and to allow it to become possibly stronger on its own.

Last time I splashed water on was Tue morning. Interesting, that night skin was somewhat oily, especially on nose and forehead, and dead skin film looked less noticeable. 3 days later, with no water contact, it's less oily, but dead skin is more noticeable. Still getting a few little pimples, but nothing major.

Dead skin is more of a film on scalp and hair line. On my forehead, temples, cheeks, it's more clumpy and uneven, more along the lines of what a scab might look like, uneven thickness. Last time I took off any dead skin was on day 21 I believe.

Still no showers during this whole process, just splash distilled water on private areas. Body skin is doing great, no dry skin at all, color is really natural and healthy.

So the dead skin remains the biggest pain, but all part of the healing process I hope, and I'm really going to try to not take it off, until I feel I really need to. If the dead skin can blend in, then I'm more likely to leave alone.

Day 80 Update / Spring Water instead of Distilled / Also mineral oil warning