I have been on a topical retinoid for the past 5 months. My face is 80-90% clearer than it was (in my head), but I am still getting new clogged pores. They are all really small and unnoticeable to others (says my husband)...I have a hard time telling what is "normal" or not and tend to freak out about every tiny new one cause I fear going back to the mess using the oil cleansing method caused me (worst breakout of my life when I had previously been clear for my entire life). Sometimes I wonder if the way I over exfoliate my face now (Differin and BHA and AHA) could be causing tiny clogs.
Does anyone know if never having any tiny bumps/clogged pores is achievable? After the trauma of the breakout I have been dealing with over the past 10 months, I have a hard time remembering what my face was like before. I never looked at it as closely or examined it every day like I do now...so I wonder if I just didn't ever notice the tiny clogs before or if I really do have more now...I think I lost site of what my actual goal should be. Any advise much appreciated.
I think this topic is very interesting. I often wonder whether I noticed my breakouts as much as i do now. I believe every acne sufferer becomes their worst critic and in the case of acne, only becomes more and more obsessed with it. However in saying that, you don't notice a problem until its a problem. I believe that when someone experiences a problem like acne it kind of reminds me of the donkey and the carrot, they focus so much on the carrot( their acne and imperfections) and don't see where they are going (in this case their goals and expectations or even how their skin once was). I am not saying that everyone is sidetracked, however i think if we concentrate less on the problem, and try to adopt the thought process that we had when we didn't have acne then i think that expectations in our skin will perhaps be not in the foreground but the background. It is this thought process that compels me to believe of positivity and less focus can really help minimise the angst, worry and sometimes impossible expectations that we can face.