I started the no wash regimen 7 days ago, after I found a blog about in on Acne.org, I read a lot of blogs on acne because my skin has been horrible for the past 4 years. It wasnt as bad four years ago, but its been getting worse and worse and now its the worst its ever been. Over the four years, Ive been doing everything to try to get it better. Antibiotics, creams, diet changes, Dans (stupid) regimen, natural remedies (manuka honey, tea tree oil, aloe vera, apple cider vingar etc.). Everything kinda helped, but not really. Dans regimen helped with the acne but my face was flaky and always red. It looked like crap and I could see my skin dying. I decided I would rather have had the acne than continue using it. The regimen was wasting my time and energy, I couldnt be in the sun and all I thought about was my face, since I was starting at it in the mirror for more than an hour a day.
Unfortunately, after I stopped the regimen to try a more holistic approach, I broke out like crazy!!! Like crazy! I didnt know you couldnt stop benzyl peroxide cold turkey and I paid (and am still paying for the mistake). My skin has never been the same and I will never go back on anything that could do that to my face. I started having more cystic acne and there were only a few small areas on my face that didnt have acne or red scars from acne (spoiler alert its the places I never put the benzyl peroxide). (DO not quit cold turkey if youre using it. Wean yourself off slowly. Like start using it only once a day, then every other day then every other two day and so on until no more. Then do not wash your face at all!) But the solution still did not click. I thought I just now needed to work harder to clean my skin with natural products (like the honey and shiz), but honestly they didnt really help. Like kinda, but not really.
Ive been so frustrated with my skin that I would cry every day and pray that I could have normal skin one day. One day when I would not be insecure about how it look. I dreamed of a day I could have my future husband touch my cheek out of affection. Anywhooo, after googling things like I want to rip my skin off (out of frustration, dont worry Im not that crazy, well maybe acne made me a little crazy), I found the caveman regimen. The blog started with this guy who was just as frustrated (and kinda as crazy) as me saying how he hated his skin and he was going to punish it by not touching it, not cleaning it, not doing anything for a month. No water, nothing bc he was sick of it. The blog continued and everyone said their good lucks to him and told him to keep them updated. Over time he started blogging about how much better it was getting. He said his face was finally healing itself, like it was gross at first, bc the skin was super oily and the pored were filing up with sebum , but he saw that the pimples were healing. I kept reading the blog and did more research and saw that a lot of other people were saying how amazing it was. I was so angry and desperate at this point that I said eff it, I;m doing it.
I was extremely hesitant at first because I am a girl with lots of pimples and scars, so I have been wearing a lot of face makeup to hide it all. I couldnt imagine not wearing makeup, but I thought about it and decided wtv, I decided I would put on make up the first day and not wash it off, just keep it there. I knew my skin didnt break out to this makeup (Laura Mercier mineral powder), since I used to put it on areas where my skin was fine and pimples never formed.
The second day on the regimen, my face was sooo oily, but I kept going. I was at work all day so I didnt look at my face all day like I wouldve if I was at home, but Im sure my co-workers were like wtf and had the common decency not to ask, but wtv they were going to see it clear soon so I didnt care. Over the week my face looked gross, super oily, white stuff coming out of my pores, white heads everywhere (the pimples were healing), my face was flaky and I my face smelled a little funny, but I kept up my strength bc even though my face looked gross I knew it was bc it was healing and not like the bullshit healing that all those products say happen (the few of months where you break out like crazy and then magic it kicks in), but like actually healing. My cystic acne was going to the surface and drying out. All my pimples were becoming white heads, my smaller pimples were drying and falling off my face. Like one or two new pimples, but theyd dry off extremely fast (I used to get multiple new pimples a day). It was honestly crazy how fast it was healing (compared to before where Id have a cystic pimple for weeks).
On the third day I rinsed my face, but like hardly touched my face with the water. I did not let my hands rub my skin and I used cool water. My face felt really dry after that and my skin kept flaking off (dead skin cells). The next morning it was oily again and continued the oily, white coming out of pores, flaky thing. Again, this sounds bad, but I was so happy because I saw it was healing.
The one thing that annoyed me was that sometimes my eyes would start stinging and get really watery. I think that because my face was so acidic to combat how alkaline it was before, some of the acidic oil got in my eyes and made it this way. I just tried to blink it away and used a tissue. It looked like I was straight up crying (which was a little embarrassing during a meeting I had with a client at work!), but again healing =happiness.
Update; I am right now on day 8 and my face it drastically better. No more cystic acne. Hardly any active acne, just the dried up scabby pimples that were cysts but came to the surface. They should peel off any day now. Then I will have no pimples. Just a shit ton of scars, which makes me pretty angry, but then I just remember - holy crap! I have no pimples! I also stopped using makeup. Makeup plus all this crap makes it look even worse. Now my skin is dry (I used to have super oily skin!!!!!, and is flaking off the dead skin so you can see the makeup too easily on top of the flakiness). It looks better without it.
So guys, I am serious. If you have acne, and want it to go away and stop using that crap everyday that doesnt really work (some days you think it does and then you break out the next), please just try not washing your face for 3 day, lightly rinse it with cool water (try not to touch your face really), then dont wash again for another 3 days, and then again lightly rinse with cool water and repeat for the rest of your life. Also, try your hardest not to pick at your face. Youre going to be extremelyyyyyyyyy tempted to bc of all the stuff coming of your face, but you need that stuff to heal. Resist picking, itll just mean it will take longer to heal and your face will look like crap longer.
Im finally excited for my skin. I havent had this feeling ever. The idea of not having to think about my skin makes me so ridiculously happy. The idea of one day letting someone kiss my cheek makes me want to jump up and down out of glee. I know its corny, but I dont give a darn.
Good luck to anyone that decides to do this. I cant remember being so happy for trying something. And its the easiest thing! Just dont touch your face! And for the love of G-d, stop using Dan;s regimen, he mightve meant well but that stuff is horrible. It will only make you dependent on it and ruin your skins ability to heal itself.
PS - Also!! Just so you know I was on the macrobiotic diet (no glutten, dairy, sugar, hardly any meat, few fruits, less coffee, etc.) this entire time. I was on it for 7 month and it didnt really help, btu I stayed on bc I lost weight and honeslty felt that when I ate lots of sugar, my face got worse, but like just the diet did not help. Idk if it helped me heal faster or what, btu I think you dont need the diet for this to work. To be honest.
The understand the scientific reasoning behind this, read about the acid mantle and your skin's PH. Also, check out the blog I mentioned here that inspired me ( http://www.acne.org/... face__st__280)
