No one can say for sure if by stopping product use your acne will subside. That would be likely if you've outgrown acne and products are irritating your skin. You could try diet changes and YES, sugar can make acne worse.

TL;DR. It's late.. But in short, I had severe acne. Used the regimen. Skin seemed to be clear, so stopped. Was clear for 5 months. Acne came back. Had to do accutane. Skin has not recovered.

Yes for sure acne all starts from within. 9/10 it a hormonal issue and your lifestyle affects your hormones.

A lot of success stories I see = using gentle skin care products & making changes to diet & lifestyle.

Thanks for the replies. The only anoying thing is I'm not sure if I should stop my current regimen and go 'cold turkey' as I don't want them to get worse. How do you know if you've outgrown acne? The only breakouts I seem to get are along the jawline and some on the cheeks but it's the god damn small flesh coloured bumps on my forehead that I can't stand, closed comedones I think?

Hi there,

I suddenly started to develop acne in my late 20's. I researched so much until it started to stress me out! Plus, I spent a ridiculous amount of money on products. Finally, I have it under control and have completely clear skin...as soon as I feel anything potential coming up, I blitz it and it works a treat. Basically, I found out (and this is a bit gross) that the same bacteria and/ or fungus that causes dandruff also causes pimples on your skin.

After finding this out, I decided to give one last attempt at yet agin something new. It worked- I simply washed my face, chest and back with Nizoral shampoo every morning and night, leaving on for a couple of minutes before rinsing. Within days I noticed a drastic improvement. To make sure- I also used a very small amount of Dalacin T Topical lotion (prescription) after washing (this alone did not work for me but combined with the shampoo...bingo!).

After 2 weeks clear skin for the first time in over a year. The Nizoral shouldn't be used ling term so once my acne cleared, I carried on for a week or so then stopped with the treatment. Simply using Avene Cleanance K gel after washing works well for me, along with this super light moisturiser when I really need it- La Roche Posay, Toleriane Fluide. As for what to wash with...seriously, just something gentle and foaming works best in my experience, no need to spend a fortune.

I spent 4 months clear, it has just started to rear it's ugly head again. Tried the same routine and it has worked. Just wanted to share this as I know what everyone is going through, how stressful it is having acne on many levels and how much money you end up spending...as you get to the point that you just don't care!

PS- I developed an allergic reaction to peroxide based washes and creams, plus they didn't work for me anyway. Makes sense why now!

Hope this helps someone!

I do believe that anytime your skin is out of balance from doing too much to it that can trigger acne. Be careful not to swing from one extreme to another (using too much to doing nothing). I used to use too many things on my skin too and finally realized I was doing more harm than good. I now just use a mild cleanser morning and night, a SMALL amount of moisturizing lotion on the driest areas if needed and a 2.5% BP gel at night underneath the moisturizer. No mater what you do it will take a while to see the full effects of your new routine.

I can pretty much guarantee you that if you cut out dairy and processed foods with added sugar it will help a lot. After this, you may not need topicals, but do not stop them right away. If you use glycolic acid you don't have to worry about the pH balance of your skin since the product is acidic and your skin functions optimally at an acidic pH. For now I would make sure you use a gentle facial cleanser like CeraVe's foaming facial cleanser, treat with glycolic acid, and and use a vitamin-enriched moisturizer. Hope this helps.

Thanks for the advice guys. I'm currently using a cleanser from Paulas Choice and a liquid exfoliant from Paulas choice too (2% Salicylic acid BHA) and sometimes a pore reducing toner, if you can actually reduce pores. I've also purchased a really good multi-vitamin and some Zinc picolinate to see if I have any kind of deficencies, plus Zinc is supposed to be good at balancing hormones which I reckon my acne is as I've had it since I was about 12. The only thing that anoys me is my closed comedones on my forehead tbh, I think thats what they are anyways; small skin coloured bumps that don't come to a head? Also when I use the regimen above my skins feels really tight and using the BHA/toner makes my skin shiny too, is that a sign they're doing more harm than good?

Thanks again!

You should look into the caveman regimen it seems to be working very well for me and I only started it for a few weeks ago. It's based on the idea of restoring your skins natural balance. I have tried all kinds of products and been to a few dermatologists for over 8 years now and this has been the best thing I have done for my skin. My acne is clearing up better than ever and my skin is no longer oily. I just wash with water nothing else.

cut out my cleanser completely but I'm still using the BHA 2% Salicylic Acid exfoliant and all thats changed is the closed comedones have started come to a head, not sure if this is a good sign or not. I have cut out dairy and almost all sugars and have seen a slight improvement, nothing significant though. Using the BHA makes my forehead go insanely shiny with oil too. The only reason I don't wanna try the cave man regime is I don't want to risk them getting worse again, they make me so self conscious.

I wouldn't recommend stopping cold turkey, but I think at the same time you should review your current lifestyle in terms of:

1. Sleep - are you getting enough? Sleeping early and waking up early

2. Water - Do you drink enough water to hydrate your skin - no moisturizer is going to help if you are super dehydrated from within.

3. Exercise - do you do enough exercise to release any stress and imgtprove you general health

4. Diet - like a lot of people already mentioned in this thread, start avoiding sugar, processed food, hard to digest stuff like deep fried or high calorie food, ice cream, less alcohol.

Continue with whatever is working for you and also look at solving any internal issues (e.g. imbalanced hormones, general health) by living a healthier lifestyle

Good luck!