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Acv, Green Tea, Essential Oils & Diet Log

MemberMember
8
(@tea-rex)

Posted : 04/21/2015 11:28 pm

Howdy, folks.

I am a 28-year-old female. I am 5'7" and 120 lbs. And healthy (for the most part). I have mild-moderate acne, but to me, its severe! My skin is both oily and dry, and I have hundreds of tiny bumps, with a few whiteheads, and blackheads that I cannot seem to get rid of for the life of me. I™ve struggled with acne since I was a child. The only thing that rids me completely of acne is Amoxicillan. This clears me entirely in a matter of days! But once I finish, my skin is quick to revert back to its bumpy state. Three years ago, I was diagnosed with GERD (acid reflux), but my acne was happening long before that occurred. And so, I™m led to believe that whatever is causing my acne could possibly be internal. I think once I™ve weeded out all my trigger foods that causes me pain, and get on a steady diet along with gentle acne treatments then I hope to see some clear skin (hopefully sooner than later!).

My goal is to treat my acne as naturally as possible both internal and external. If anyone has experienced a case similar and has had luck with their treatment, please share your secret! I have tried so many products”including Accutane (which helped but once I stopped taking them, I broke out again).

My current regimen that I will be modifying soon: Edited as of 4/23/15

AM

-Wash face with Cerave Hydrating Cream Cleanser

-Moisturize with 1-2 drops of argan oil

-Origin™s Silk Screen Powder 15 SPF

-Drink 1 tbsp ACV diluted in water (Bragg's w/ the "mother")

Starting tomorrow, I am going to incorporate more green tea into my diet (which should be easy enough. I love the stuff). I am aiming for 5-6 cups a day. The tea I drink is called Gyokuro Ureshinocha. Also, I plan to drop my Cerave and Simple moisturizers and replace them with Argan oil as I have heard great things about it. I will be sure to update tomorrow and tell everyone my experience with Argan oil. I am actually very excited!

As for my eating, I am just going to start from scratch and eat very simply since almost everything upsets my stomach. By the way, I've been seeing a gastroenterologist for years, and the best advice they can give me is take 40mg of Nexium and weed out trigger foods from my diet. So here's what I ate today (and I know cake should be like a don't-eat-no-brainer, but it was my birthday!).

Food Diary

Okay Food

Almonds
Almond milk

Apples
Asparagus

Bananas
Beef
Blackberries
Cashews

Chex Mix

Cucumbers

Eggs

Fish (Salmon, Swai)

Granola bars w/ yogurt bottoms
Greek Yogurt (plain)

Green Tea

Honey Wheat Bread
McDonald's Hamburger
Orange juice

PB & J

Potatoes

Raspberries

Rice Krispy Treats

Strawberries
Turkey (lunch meat)

BAD Food

ACV (non-organic & processed. Bleh!)
Chocolate cake (just don™t!)

Chocolate chip cookies

Doughnuts :(

Lettuce

Poptarts (Aw, man. I love those)

Sodas (any carbonated drinks)

White rice

And that's about all I can take today because I totally ate chocolate cake and hate myself. Oh! One last thing worth mentioning, I recently developed seasonal allergies, and I've had insomnia since I was 19 years old. I don't know why. I'm not even that stressed. I simply can't sleep. The doc has me on 25 mg of Seroquel as a sedative, 10 mg Loratadine and nasal spray (allergies), Melatonin + (200 mg L-theanine), and on some nights when I simply can't get to bed, I take 0.25 mg of Clonazepam (I highly do NOT recommend people taking Benzo drugs. I am actually trying to wean myself off them now which is why the doc prescribed me Seroquel), probiotic, and last, I take a women's multivitamin.

Well, folks, that's it for tonight. Please, if you have any suggestions, comments, or questions, do not hesitate to post. I'll happily answer them.

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MemberMember
8
(@tea-rex)

Posted : 04/22/2015 9:07 pm

Good evening, everyone!

Today, I exfoliated with Epsom salt, and I am loving the way it makes my skin feel! Soft and fresh! As I mentioned before, I'm trying to go about this as holistically as possible so the Epsom salts sounded like a good option (cheap too!). Next, I applied a small amount of argan oil. I like that it makes my face feel smooth, however, I recently read this article that actually broke down which oils are best for your skin type. I thought it was very helpful. [removed]

So now I'm contemplating on whether or not I should invest in hemp seed oil instead of argan since hemp seed is higher in linoleic acid (which sounds like something my skin lacks). I have tried grape seed oil in the past which is high in linoleic acid, according to the list on the site, but it really dried out my skin.

I do not plan on integrating lavender oil for my acne. I simply got it because it was on sale at the store and I want to try it to help me sleep. :)

Skin update: Acne still looks the same but Epsom salt and argan oil has softened it some.

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MemberMember
8
(@tea-rex)

Posted : 04/23/2015 9:40 pm

Day 3

 

Not much difference. My skin's softened a little and some bumps are less pronounced. I hope I'm doing something right!

 

My roommate used up the rest of the ACV and I tried what was left over. Some generic Winn-Dixie brand. It made me throw up. I now know only to go with Bragg's.

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MemberMember
8
(@tea-rex)

Posted : 04/25/2015 11:34 pm

Day 5

 

Flesh-colored bumps are still present. Some whiteheads are shrinking; a couple new ones appearing. Gr. I'm actually developing a pretty deep blemish on my chin--ya know the ones that are painful and don't come to a head right away? I hope it goes away. It's a little painful. :(

 

EDIT: I'm noticing that processed and heavily sugary foods upset my stomach even when eaten in small amounts. I'm going to make it a good habit to limit my intake of processed sweets. Tonight I had a gluten-free/paleo dinner and had no problems :) ... D:< If only gluten-free and paleo weren't so difficult to stick to!

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MemberMember
8
(@tea-rex)

Posted : 04/27/2015 11:36 pm

Day 8

 

Deep zit never came to a head, and it is now almost completely gone. Ha! Winning! Skin seems to be improving. I am staying consistent with ACV toner and drink, along with application of argan oil. When I rub it in, I do till it is completely absorbed. It does leave my face a liiiittle bit greasy, so I may try hemp seed oil soon. I don't have any pictures to show but my acne is the closed comedonal type. Like all over! It's terrible. Makeup makes it look worse too. But I don't like going to work without make up. I have no problem going out in public on my days off but work is another story.

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MemberMember
8
(@tea-rex)

Posted : 04/29/2015 7:52 pm

Day 9

 

Skins slowly healing, but still have a lot of congested pustules. :s I'm gonna try a natural mask of turmeric and Greek yogurt later.I hear good things about it...and also not so great things (like yellow skin! S'all good though.)

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MemberMember
58
(@noche)

Posted : 04/30/2015 12:10 am

Ok , since you want to use oils, then probably this could be a good reading.

Google this ,what kind of oils can I use for acne prone skin, this will take you to this...How to choose the right oils for acne prone skin.

My daughter has been trying different oils , but she's finding out that oils can only help to a extent ,she isn't using the recipe suggested on the site, though, to tell you the truth , I think she gets lazy with treatments.

I think for us women, acne is kind of complicated , because of hormonal imbalances.

There is a forum here that talks about holistic approach, I think that would be good for you.

There are so many good things that you could learn, it doesn't mean that you have to do what other people are doing or use what they are using, but maybe you could find things that relate to you.

Always be careful with anything that you put internally or external, do some research first .

I think green tea can increase testosterone levels.

Take care.

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MemberMember
8
(@tea-rex)

Posted : 05/01/2015 1:46 am

Ok , since you want to use oils, then probably this could be a good reading.

Google this ,what kind of oils can I use for acne prone skin, this will take you to this...How to choose the right oils for acne prone skin.

My daughter has been trying different oils , but she's finding out that oils can only help to a extent ,she isn't using the recipe suggested on the site, though, to tell you the truth , I think she gets lazy with treatments.

I think for us women, acne is kind of complicated , because of hormonal imbalances.

There is a forum here that talks about holistic approach, I think that would be good for you.

There are so many good things that you could learn, it doesn't mean that you have to do what other people are doing or use what they are using, but maybe you could find things that relate to you.

Always be careful with anything that you put internally or external, do some research first .

I think green tea can increase testosterone levels.

Take care.

Thank you very much for the comment. I've actually read that article :) That's actually what encouraged me to try grape seed oil but it proved to be very drying and I had to stop. I'll try digging around more on the holistic forum. I appreciate the green tea comment. I looked it up and sure enough I found articles that say drinking 5 cups can mess with your testosterone :o Wowee! I would've never figured that without looking. Thanks a lot! I really appreciate your information.

 

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Day 11

 

I think my skin is sloughing off the old acne. My pores seem smaller in some areas and I have some dry patches. I think this is a good thing. :) Cutting down my green tea intake thanks to noche. :)

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MemberMember
8
(@tea-rex)

Posted : 05/07/2015 10:35 am

I haven't been able to post the last few days because I've been having a lot of issues with my stomach. I went to see a dermatologist and they put me on epiduo and some other stuff so I'm gonna try that because I'm very frustrated with my skin right now. :( Also, I've gone gluten-free as my doctor suggested for my GI tract. I'm hoping that by going gluten-free I'll solve both of my problems: acne and reflux.

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