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How Should I Proceed With Acne Looking Like This?

MemberMember
0
(@randomjpkid)

Posted : 10/06/2013 11:44 am

Hey guys, I would really appreciate it if you guys can help me out here or just offer some words of wisdom because I am seriously at square one as to how I should treat my face.

Anyways, here's everything you need to know about me;

  • I am a 21 year old Asian and as a teenager I never really suffered from severe or even moderate acne but I would have the occasional pimple that would pop up here and there. But I think the fact that I had my acne under control was mostly because I have been going to a dermatologist since I was 13-14 and had been using Differin/Adapelene ever since. For my skincare back then, I would just use this tea tree soap that my dermatologist specially makes or I would use The Body Shop's Tea Tree Line along with my Differin.
  • I migrated to Japan like 3 years ago and that's when all hell broke loose. For starters, I was from a South East Asian country so I had to adjust to considering more things for my skincare regimen because of the seasonal changes. Around my first year over here I totally wasn't able to use Differin because I didn't know how to get my hands on them and apparently you can only get them through a doctor's prescription here. And all of a sudden, I can no longer use any tea tree oil product because it would dry my skin out too much and lead to more breakouts.
  • I have been using Differin every night again and although it keeps the acne from just popping out and staring right back at people somehow it just feels like it doesn't do anything to the ones that feel as if they are under my skin (if you get what I mean) nor does it prevent breakouts anymore as well as it used to. I just threw in Clindamycin into my morning routine since a couple of weeks ago and it did help flatten my skin a little bit, but just as I said with Differin, it feels like it's not working on those pimples that seemed to be underneath.
  • I don't wear makeup. I'd love to but I seriously want to just solve my acne problem first.
  • I do wear sunscreen (SPF 30) but I bike under the sun for like 15-20 minutes a day cause that's how I get to work. Other than that, I don't really get much sun exposure.
  • As for my current skincare, I have very basic stuff at the moment. I would cleanse my face with the DHC Deep Cleansing Oil (I've been very happy with this. For the past three years I have struggled with finding something to replace my tea tree oil soap that no longer works in this climate and I just found this like over a month ago and it works for me!), then I would use a toner (I literally just started using the Witch Hazel toner, so I still don't know what to say), then I would put my Differin (day) or Clindamycin (night) and top it off with this Olive Virgin Oil from DHC which has been pretty sufficient as a moisturizer so far but frankly, I'm looking for a better moisturizer.
  • I have Keratosis Pilaris. Fortunately, it's not on my face... yet. Just on my arms and a little on my thighs. I have not been doing anything to solve this at the moment but I used to use AHA lotion and that did help a little.

Anyways, my face right now is as you can see on the photo that I have attached to this post. I've been reading a lot and trying to figure out what the hell is wrong with my face but I guess it'll be easier if I show people so that I can just receive straight up advice. Right now my main concern is how I should get rid of those acne that feel like they are under my skin (what are they called?) and the, dun dun dun, acne scars.

Actually thanks to the lesser quality of the front camera of you probably can't see it but I do have some scars that are almost ice-pick type scars. (Boo!) But that's totally my fault. So yeah. Yeah, I have picked on them before and don't worry I have learned my lesson and I try to keep my OCD hands away from my face now other than when I have to apply stuff on it. And of course, hyperpigmentation!

Right now I'm looking into trying the Perfect Image Salicylic Acid 20% Gel Peel as I'm trying to find what is the best way to exfoliate and I just ordered one a while ago. Frankly, I am a bit scared trying a chemical peel. It would be my first chemical peel. And I'm also quite worried if I'm about to do something that sounds so drastic to a moderate acne-type face, so any advice on these chemical peels or suggestions on alternative exfoliants? So far, I think my facial skin is pretty resilient though.

Sorry if that was too long, but I would really really appreciate it if anyone can offer some advice. I know it's like I'm asking for everything to be solved, but really any piece of advice would help me complete the puzzle. biggrin.png

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MemberMember
26
(@quetzlcoatl)

Posted : 10/07/2013 1:32 am

Texture/tone-wise, your skin looks really nice, wow. I'm not sure I see the under-the-skin bumps you mentioned, unless you're talking about the red spots. Differin should be able to take care of under-the-skin comedones after a few months of applying it. Salicylic acid will help with comedones as well (but not so much with inflammatory acne).

About the inflammatory acne, have you looked into diet? Inflammatory acne is sometimes caused by food sensitivities, especially if it's somewhat random. Common offenders are wheat, citrus, and dairy. Sometimes, probiotic foods can break people out (those being things like yogurt, kimchi, kombucha, and sauerkraut). If food or probiotics are not the culprit, then you could think about birth control for hormonal acne.

Oh and it's also possible that the oils you're using are causing the problem.

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