I am 15 and have "acne vulgaris" or atleast that is what my dermatologist calls it. I know my siblings also had acne during my age but not as severe. I am having extreme problems with the psychological effects of acne. All I think about is my face and trying to hide it as best as I can. I eat fairly healthy not much processed foods and I workout and lift 6 days of the week. My dermatologist has prescribed me doxycycline, erythromycin benzoyl peroxide topical gel, and clindamycin topical lotion. I also use neutrogena oil free acne wash twice daily and use neutrogena oil free moisturizer for sensitive skin. I have fairly severe acne on my cheeks and my skin gets extremely dry and flaky from the prescriptions and such. Please help me with tips and any recommendations. Have had this problem for about 2 years and its quickly diminishing what is left of the confidence I once had. Going out daily is becoming such a struggle and I feel depressed and embarrassed
Hi Kbreezy,
I feel your pain my friend, as do so many other members on this site. Here is a great place to start in your journey to understanding your acne.
Also, did you start getting severe acne before you began washing your face, or after? Or did it get worse once you started the topicals? I will never again in my life advise anyone to use anything but 100% natural ingredients on their face. When you strip away the surface oil/acid mantle, your skin is going to try to reach a balance again, and this means even greater oil production, and skin irritation/tightness. I have experienced this first hand and it has always lead to acne.
The first thing i'd do, is get rid of any crap foods in your life. Try to eat as much produce and whole foods as you can. Organic is best, however it's more expensive. And i'd start cleansing your liver. You can purchase detox teas at most stores. I'd drink the tea throughout the day, every day for a couple weeks. Just store it in a water bottle and take it to school with you. Apple Cider Vinegar is also great for acne internally, as it's loaded with nutrients and is great for cleansing the liver. The easiest way i've found to consume it, is to mix 8 oz of water with 8oz of apple juice. And then add one or two tablespoons of the ACV to this. You can add a little stevia or agave nectar to sweeten it. But again, this is great for flushing out any build up of crap in your body. I use distilled water that i purchase by the gallon for dirt cheap. This way most of the contaminates are not present. The chlorine that is left in the water should evaporate very quickly if the water is set out for a couple minutes. Then you'll be left with the purest source of water you can find
My acne has actually become very flat and my face has become very smooth from the wash, topicals, and antibiotics. now I'm just worried about the redness that is left behind. I have lots of red marks where it used to be and the skin seems irritated possibly from topicals. I will def take the advice on the ACV tea. However I'm not so sure on the only natural products, although I think unnatural can remove natural occurrences from the skin I also think it really helps clear acne with sources not found in nature. Thanks for advice though
