Thanks, veganocity! I had a great birthday. I figured out that my boyfriend had planned a surprise party. And he forgot that he gave me keys to his place so when I got to the door and turned the lock, I heard him say, "He's here!" I laughed. In the hallway, I had also smelled the risotto that he made for us. I'm so spoiled from dating a trained chef.
My skin is pretty well in a holding pattern, it seems. The small spot on my jaw is pretty well gone. I slathered the BP on it, and that stopped it in its tracks. I had one blackhead-type spot on my nose (rare) that I tried to get rid of, and that made it red and inflamed a bit. It was kind of gunky this morning, but that should be good by tomorrow, too. Those spots that I got from my initial break-out were strange, and they had resolved down to tiny lumps under my skin. Well, this morning, one of them had worked its way to the surface so I dealt with that, too. It didn't even leave a mark, though, which is nice. Maybe the other little lumps will do the same thing soon. If not, no biggie because they're totally invisible.
It sounds like, from what I just wrote, I have a lot of spots. But even close up, most people would say that I'm totally clear. I have no complaints. Onwards.
Cam >B)
That inflamed blackhead-turned-spot thing on my nose was being annoying again so I cleaned it out with some hydrogen peroxide. I don't make a habit of using that, but it really stopped that spot dead in its tracks. It's now just a small scabby thing. The other half-active spot on my jaw is gone. Love that.
Cam >B)
My nose spot is completely history, but my jaw spot has been replaced by another spot (dealt with this morning). I also have a miniscule spot just left of my chin. It's not visible, even on close inspection, but I can feel a little twinge of something under my skin.
Since starting Diacneal, my spots have been a little odd. The weird nodules at the beginning are gone, but I now get very superficial but often angry-looking spots. They are very easily resolved, but they appear out of nowhere and go back into nowhere very quickly. I wonder if that has something to do with the increased skin renewal from the retinoid. Any guesses?
Cam >B)
The spots have cleared. However, I managed to let myself run out of shaving cream so I was working a lather up with my cleanser to shave. For the most part, this seemed to work fine, except I got a strange shaving-related bump on my neck. I absolutely never get spots there so it's definitely a shaving-related bump. I haven't been gentle with it (bad me), but it's easy enough to disguise with a high collar and some well-blended concealer.
I'm still applying the BP during the day and the Diacneal at night. Not suprisingly, my skin doesn't look as bright and moist during the day, even with a generous layer of moisturizer. Still I'm quite satisfied with the regimen overall.
I've got my first advanced French conversation class tonight at Alliance FranAaise. I'm nervous; wish me luck.
Cam >B)
I have been using about half the amount of BP that I used to on the DKR, and I'm using it only once a day, and I'm still getting great results with my regimen. As a result of using less BP, my skin is less dry. Combine that with the great texture that Diacneal is giving me, and I'm one happy camper. That and it's Friday.
I keep raving about the status of my skin because I've struggled with it for so long (19 years now!), have at times been so frustrated and defeated, and have never had such consistently good results. It's just a huge relief.
Now I wish that there were a regimen that would make it a little warmer outside. Brr!
Cam >B)
Oh for heaven's sake. I had a small, closed comedone on my left temple. It had been there since just before Christmas and was nearly invisible. Last night, it looked a little closer to the surface so I dealt with it. I touched a Q-tip with some rubbing alcohol and dabbed a bit of BP on it. This morning, it's a little red, but there is no inflammation so I think I just have to wait for a day for the redness to fade. This morning, I blended a bit of concealer over it so all looks good. Other than that tiny red mark, everything is clear and smooth.
Also, last night was the first night that I didn't use any moisturizer after the Diacneal. I usually wait a good half hour before putting any on so that it doesn't interfere with Diacneal's effects, but I decided to see if my skin could handle not using any at all. This morning, I didn't wake up dry at all, even though it's kind of chilly here recently. But as part of my morning routine, I put some jojoba in with my moisturizer after my BP just to make sure that I'm well hydrated throughout the day.
I know that summer is a long, long way off, but I've been thinking about using a higher SPF sunblock in the summer as a moisturizer. I'd mix in some jojoba with it to make it more moisturizing. Most sunscreens leave a bit of a sheen so I've been thinking about Neutrogena Dry Touch with SPF 45 (or something like that), which has some mattifying ingredients in it. Any thoughts?
Cam >B)
Sometime at work yesterday, I developed a bit of a spot on my left cheek. I recognize it as the kind that I get when a beard hair gets a bit impacted. These usually resolve themselves without incident within a couple of days...as long as I don't mess with them. They're not pimples as much as irritated follicles. So today, it's hidden with a bit of concealer. All is well.
Cam >B)
Hi Cam,
re: the sunscreen, I was going to recommend the one I use because it totally dries matte, but the I reread and realized you wanted something higher than SPF 15. I know that higher SPFs are going to have a more greasy feel and shiny look, so if you find something higher that works for you that would be a real find. Remember, though, you can always reapply since the number of the sunscreen only refers to how long you can be in the sun without damage so if you reapply often, or even once, you double the protection. Just a thought, since finding a sunscreen can be such a Holy Grail type search.
Anyway, here are the ingredients of the sunscreen I use: Distilled Water, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Coco-Caprylate/Caprate,Titanium Dioxide, Hexadecyl D-glucoside, Octadecyl D-glucoside, Vegetable Glycerine, Glyceryl Stearate, Zinc Oxide, Aloe Vera Extract, Xanthan Gum, Zirconium Oxide, Benzyl Alcohol
HTH
Thanks for the advice, veganocity.
That spot on my cheek was really getting on my nerves. I don't think that it was quite ready, but I dealt with it this morning. Then I doused it with rubbing alcohol and piled on the BP so I'm hoping that it takes a turn for the better and not that I've aggravated it and made it worse. I think I'll pick up some hydrogen peroxide. I wouldn't use it often, but it seems to do a much better job at cleaning out those facial surgery experiment wounds much better than rubbing alcohol. At least it bubbles in a satisfying masochistic kind of way.
Cam >B)
Hi Cam,
re: the sunscreen, I was going to recommend the one I use because it totally dries matte, but the I reread and realized you wanted something higher than SPF 15. I know that higher SPFs are going to have a more greasy feel and shiny look, so if you find something higher that works for you that would be a real find. Remember, though, you can always reapply since the number of the sunscreen only refers to how long you can be in the sun without damage so if you reapply often, or even once, you double the protection. Just a thought, since finding a sunscreen can be such a Holy Grail type search.
Anyway, here are the ingredients of the sunscreen I use: Distilled Water, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Coco-Caprylate/Caprate,Titanium Dioxide, Hexadecyl D-glucoside, Octadecyl D-glucoside, Vegetable Glycerine, Glyceryl Stearate, Zinc Oxide, Aloe Vera Extract, Xanthan Gum, Zirconium Oxide, Benzyl Alcohol
HTH
I've picked up (and been using) the hydrogen peroxide on the spot. It definitely killed whatever was brewing underneath, but it's also made the skin kind of rough and a little scabby. It's the kind of superficial scabbing that sloughs off a bit with the sugar scrub but that stays rough during the day. It looks kind of red still, even though there's no activity going on under there any more. I'm just counting on the revved-up skin cycle to do its thing so that I can look normal by work on Monday.
Cam >B)
Those two spots on my cheek on neck were definitely ingrown hairs. Darn, those things are stubborn. I'm pretty careful about shaving, but with my natural tendency toward inflammatory acne, it doesn't take much to make one of those spots look pretty nasty. They're well in hand now, and I doubt that they'll rear their ugly heads again, but I'm sure looking forward to renewed clarity.
I shouldn't complain. There is no more swelling or activity in the spots. I'm just left with a bit of a red mark. And with the Diacneal, those red marks sure do fade quickly. With just a dab of well-blended concealer, you can't even tell that the spot is reddish.
I can't believe how long its been since I've had an inflammatory spot on my forehead. I used to have dozens on it at a time. It's un-freaking-believable.
Cam >B)
It's strange. I've got two or three slightly pinkish spots on my forehead. They're not inflamed. They're not clogged pores. They're just slightly pinkish. They look like red marks from old spots, but I haven't had spots there. I'll take those over full-fledged spots any day.
I've been moisturizing right after putting on the BP in the morning, but I think that's buffering its effects. So I'm going to wait for a bit from now on before moisturizing, like 15 or 20 minutes. I don't moisturize at all any more after putting on Diacneal.
Right now, I have no active spots, but there are a couple of flaky, scabby ex-spots hanging around. Be gone!
Cam >B)
I've stopped using the white sugar scrub, mostly because I'm too lazy to do it. And I don't think that I'm being gentle enough with it. I'll just do the chemical exfoliation with BHAs (Spectro AcneCare Pads), AHAs (glycolic acid in the Diacneal), and retinoids (retinaldehyde in the Diacneal) instead of manual exfoliation.
I haven't really taken the time to thank everyone who posts here. The information you guys/gals give is so valuable. I don't know what I'd be doing now if it weren't for all of you. Thanks!
My unusual mini-spots have calmed down since eliminating the manual exfoliation. I think that it was probably too irritating when combined with the other parts of my regimen. I've never had good results from it so I'm not sure why I wanted to try it again. Live and learn. So now my skin is totally clear.
It's kind of chilly here recently in Vancouver so I've been waking up a little drier than normal. So in my morning routine, I've been adding a few drops of jojoba to my moisturizer. That's enough to keep me going through the day. I'm still not moisturizing at night. I definitely don't want to buffer the effects of the Diacneal.
I'd like to be able to give up the BP because, even with the (less-and-less) amount I put on my face, I still get kind of dry. Not surface dry (which appears moist), but deep-down dry, if you know what I mean. But as long as it keeps my inflammatory acne at bay, I'll keep using it. If my family history is any indication, I'll need to keep on the stuff for, oh, another 10 or 15 years. That's all. 
Cam >B)
Well, I should know by now to leave well enough alone. I got a couple of tiny, tiny, tiny spots that I figured I would deal with. And now they're not inflamed like normal spots, but they're definitely swollen and red and look awful. Drat. Now I just play the waiting game for them to fade away.
Cam >B)
One of the spots "activated" at work yesterday, as did the other last night. Phooey. I think that I've successfully beaten them into submission. They're not scabby or too raised so they're pretty easy to conceal.
On a completely different note, yoga kicked the crap out of me yesterday.
Cam >B)