I haven't heard of anyone successfully stopping The Regimen and staying clear even when he/she should have traditionally outgrown acne after adolescence has ended.
I propose this question because I used The Regimen for 5 years and got 100% clear. I'm currently a 26-year old male.
At the end of October of 2013, I decided to stop The Regimen cold turkey to see if I outgrew acne (I'm 26 and have dealt with moderate acne since I was 16!). I just cleansed and moisturized twice per day.
5 weeks later I could literally feel tiny bumps (clogged pores) all over my face! I started breaking out a week later and it was more severe than ever.
Has my skin become addicted to The Regimen? Will my body be unable to outgrow acne naturally because my skin is so dependent on the oxygen provided by the BP?
I'm back on The Regimen and confident I will be clear again. I tried Proactiv Plus and saw great results but not as good as I experienced on the Regimen (my skin was more irritated despite being clear).
No, BP has no effect on whether you outgrow your acne. Last summer I decided to stop using BP and see do I get acne still, yup, acne started to creep up again, BUT my forehead, mustache area and center of jaw stayed clear and those areas has been clear since then and I don't even use BP in those parts of my face anymore. Even my nose has become better, but I still use BP on my nose because it isn't perfect yet without BP.
When I first started to get acne, my problem areas were mostly my forehead and nose. Now I get acne mostly on the sides of my jaw and inner parts of my cheeks. Forehead, center of face and outer cheeks are pretty much perfect, how weird is that?
I haven't heard of anyone successfully stopping The Regimen and staying clear even when he/she should have traditionally outgrown acne after adolescence has ended.
I propose this question because I used The Regimen for 5 years and got 100% clear. I'm currently a 26-year old male.
At the end of October of 2013, I decided to stop The Regimen cold turkey to see if I outgrew acne (I'm 26 and have dealt with moderate acne since I was 16!). I just cleansed and moisturized twice per day.
5 weeks later I could literally feel tiny bumps (clogged pores) all over my face! I started breaking out a week later and it was more severe than ever.
Has my skin become addicted to The Regimen? Will my body be unable to outgrow acne naturally because my skin is so dependent on the oxygen provided by the BP?
I'm back on The Regimen and confident I will be clear again. I tried Proactiv Plus and saw great results but not as good as I experienced on the Regimen (my skin was more irritated despite being clear).
BP is just the sort of treatment you have to continue using to continue to see good results. Your skin isn't addicted, it's just how BP works. For majority of people, if they stop using BP, their acne will start to come back because they've stopped application of the ingredient that was stopping the development of acne. As far as I know, majority of people don't just outgrow acne unfortunately. Unless maybe they're acne is definitely just caused by teenage hormones and once out of their teen years they may have been lucky to outgrow it.
If people do want to stop BP, I think it is best to gradually reduce the amount rather than quit cold turkey (which I've done before too). Supposedly makes the initial breakout from coming off the BP less severe I think.
The Regimen is still great if it works for you and it fits with your lifestyle. If you have no issues using it and it's what keeps you clear, then go for it - keep using it.
Most people do outgrow their acne naturally. I have a feeling your skin DOES become addicted to the oxygen provided by the Benzoyl Peroxide. This is why people are not able to successfully stop The Regimen and maintain clear skin. Their body does not have the ability to naturally release sebum to the pores surface (what normally happens in people without acne) unless the p. acnes bacteria is killed through excessive oxygen (provided by the Benzoyl Peroxide).
The Regimen might be a double-edged sword. It will keep you clear, but once you're on it, there's no going back. Your body's ability to naturally release sebum to the pore's surface is gone.
