I am so desperate to have clear, nice skin.
I've been dealing with acne and other skin issues for the past 4 years. I'm 15 and I have tried almost everything, but I've never been able to have clear skin. I have no idea what I'm doing wrong and I really hope someone can point out what I'm doing wrong.
- Acne: I have tons of little red dots all across my face, but mostly on my chin (chin is my biggest problem area) and right cheek. I also have some in between/above my eyebrows, but it really is everywhere on my face. I have bigger bumps on my shoulders/neck area. I would consider it mild-moderate, I don't have anything that serious and it's probably pretty average for my age but it really bothers me.
- Skin type: I'm not really sure, my skin always feels really tight and dry if I don't use moisturizer, so I always use a bit, but then my face is always VERY shiny/oily looking all day. I don't know if it's oily without moisturizer, as I'm too scared to see what happens if I don't use moisturizer.
- My skin is always really red looking, doesn't match the color of the rest of my skin.
- My pores are quite large and my face just always looks dirty.
- I've been to the dermatologist and I am currently taking two minocycline pills a day, once in the morning and once at night. I was also given Clindagel (clindamycin phosphate topical gel, 1% clindamycin) which I put on in the morning, and at night I use a pea sized amount of Epiduo (0.1% adapalene and 2.5% benzoyl peroxide) that I mix in with moisturizer. All of these were given to me by my dermatologist.
- I use Cetaphil Gentle Skin Cleanser for all skin types twice a day, once in the shower in the morning and once at night. After I shower in the morning, I put on Cetaphil Moisturizing Lotion, and then use the Clindagel. At night, I wash my face with the cleanser and add the Epiduo with moisturizer.
- I use St. Ives Fresh Skin Apricot Cleanser as an exfoliant about twice a week. Not really sure about this product?
- I limit my intake of dairy, though I'm not sure if it's affect on acne is a myth or not.
- I exercise (run) 2-3 times a week in the morning and then shower afterwards.
- I wash my face with the Cetaphil before I shave in the shower.
- I take somewhat hot showers and they end up being longer sometimes.
- I usually get around 8 hours of sleep, but I stay up/wake up later.
- I have an anxiety disorder and always feel at least somewhat stressed.
- I drink tea usually once a day, switching between spearmint/peppermint herbal tea, green tea, and chamomile. I just recently started drinking the Yogi detox tea once a day as well.
In short, my skin has lots of little red acne spots all over, especially on my chin, its really shiny looking, red, and big pores, and I use medication given to me by my dermatologist.
Please tell me if you can identify what I might be doing wrong or things I should start/stop doing and if there's any other information I could give to help point out what I'm doing wrong because this honestly affects my self esteem so much. I constantly feel anxious that people are looking at my skin and never feel comfortable going out because I hate it so much.
Thanks!
Sorry this is so long, I've tried out different things for the past two years and can't ever figure out what it is I'm doing wrong so I just tried to list everything I thought might have an impact. Also a few things I forgot:
My skin's a little flakey, especially around my chin/cheeks
I rarely go in the sun and never use sunscreen