Hi there, short background first: I'm 18 and got acne when I was 15, started using some really harsh cleansers and products and my skin got really dried out and sensitive. My cheeks got it the worst. I quit the harsh products last year and tried to heal my face with just gentle moisturizers, but that didn't work either, my acne and sensitivity just wasn't going away.
SO 3 months ago I started the caveman regimen to let my skin heal and rebalance on it's own. About a month and a half into it my acne completely stopped, and my forehead and and jawline are now looking great and almost totally clear, except for a few old flat marks that are still fading.
My cheeks are a different story though. After doing the caveman for a couple of weeks, my cheeks built up this insanely thick dead skin mask. It got to the point where my cheeks were so covered in this gross dead skin that I couldn't even see the skin underneath. I left it on for a while because I figured it was good for healing, but I inevitably caved and took it off yesterday cause I couldn't stand how disgusting it looked, I could hardly even look people in the eye with that thing on my cheeks.
Now I'm starting to wonder if that was a mistake though. The skin underneath looks pretty red and raw today (much moreso than before I started this). And the acne marks I had on my cheeks are a lot better, but they still haven't fully healed. I know most of that redness is just temporary irritation from removing the dead skin, but I'm still worried I may have interrupted the process.
I know some people on this board have done or are doing the caveman now. Does anyone know if taking the dead skin off before it comes off on it's own is a mistake? I left it on for almost 3 months but I'm still worried my skin won't heal now without it
P.S. I highly recommend the caveman for anyone with skin that's been very stripped and dried out from product use, since like I said, all my acne completely stopped.
No. It's not a mistake. It serves no purpose. Just like the not letting any water touch your face thing serves no purpose. Unless you are hyper sensitive to the minerals or chlorine in your water, but most people won't be. The only issue is that you let it build up in the first place, and then possibly irritated your skin with what you had to do to get it off. Try Wiping your face with a clean damp cloth every day instead.
Not stripping away your acid mantle with alkaline cleansers or using harsh topicals s a good thing. That part is true.
No. It's not a mistake. It serves no purpose. Just like the not letting any water touch your face thing serves no purpose. Unless you are hyper sensitive to the minerals or chlorine in your water, but most people won't be. The only issue is that you let it build up in the first place, and then possibly irritated your skin with what you had to do to get it off. Try Wiping your face with a clean damp cloth every day instead.
Not stripping away your acid mantle with alkaline cleansers or using harsh topicals s a good thing. That part is true.
Well I was kind of buying into this theory that it served no purpose, which is why I took it off, but what;s bugging me is that my skin underneath does look a lot better in many ways. All my PIH marks look twice as good as they did before, and my skin looks more hydrated, so I believe now that it was a mistake to remove it since it was hydrating and protecting my skin as it renewed itself. I only pray now that if I continue not washing my face the dead skin will return
Hey all, got a similar question.
Today is my 28th day on the regimen, and Im not sure where to go from here. Im splashing with water once every other day. Before the regimen, my skin was clear but oily and slightly red. I was using Cetaphil wash and gentle moisturizer twice a day prior to the regimen. Years of bp/Retin-A/Accutane before that.
Anyway, my skin has not really improved on the caveman yet. Its as red and oily as ever. My cheeks and forehead are covered in dead skin and brown patches, but its not really visible except after a shower. My face is mostly clear, but I do have a lot of little red bumps on my forehead, which is new for me.
Any opinions? Not sure if I should exfoliate, give it another couple weeks, or just go back to my old method. Diet is about 80% paleo.
Thanks!
Hey Caveox,
I am on day 20 of the water only regimen. I just let warm water run down my face for a few seconds in the shower everyday and then towel dry.
My face looks worse than it ever has in my life. I have whiteheads and red splotches all over. I'm really starting to lose hope.
I didn't get the skin mask, just flaky skin here and there. A lot of flaky skin the first week but not as much any more.
Also, seroyal, did you go through a purging period or worsening period? I'm trying to gauge whether or not this water only is working for me. My skin is worse than ever and I'm only 20 days in. No cysts though.
Hi seroyal, am wondering how it has been going so far on the regimen? Since its been a year +
I started about a month ago with washing my face only with water, still have pimples and dry skin on my forehead . I have this continuous pimples emerging next to my left eye problem. So 2 weeks ago, I officially started the caveman regimen by not letting water touch my face. First week have lots of whiteheads near my mouth ( the area which is not acne prone , I rarely get pimples this area before I started all thing ) but these whiteheads come to head very fast . So today is the 13th day. My face is super greasy with oil build up. I'm not sure whether is this called the dead skin? Because itS all these white things sticking out from my face, I think it's sebum. I have lots of it and when I try to exfoliate and put it on a tissue paper; i can see that it is really oily because the tissue turns transparent .The dry skin is still on my forehead.Yesterday I removed some underneath my nose and near my mouth because I feel it's getting too much and I felt so uncomfortable with it. That area is red now and it's a lil paintful . Did I did the right thing removing it? I have other areas on my cheek with these sebum / dried up oils pilling up and not sure whether I should remove it? Good thing is there isn't any new pimples that appear near my left eye. Bad things are my face is still oily , I have whiteheads popping up BUT going away faster and lots of sebum / dried up oils building it . What do I do? 
((
The "the dead skin mask" isn't doing anything. So why live with it? don't worry about wiping it away daily. Or about washing with water unless your skin is particularly sensitive to the minerals or chlorine your water. In which case try buying filtered water.
reneehps, how old are you?
Hi All,
I see this topic is almost 4 years old.... so i want to check is cavemen work for any of you guys??
Also, I am stuck in similar situation right now.. dead skin all over the face , woke up with tons of whiteheads , flaky skin and all. I am just washing my face with water every alternate day. I can see improvement but the dead skin struggle is gross. Tried everything from accutane to birth control and numerous face wash nothing works.
So , here I am any suggestion will help.
Btw, FYI I am working on my diet too, take multivitamins with more zinc , Omega 3 (4 mg through walnuts) , protein shake with nutrients and no sugar or processed food. I took my meal (mostlywheat and vegetables) is my staple food. Make sure to take 2 fruits daily.
Not sure what else I can add?
Thanks
Shital
@shitalsol hey its been a few years but wondering if you had a update? going throught the same thing and would love some help. thanks!
@shitalsol hey its been a few years but wondering if you had a update? going throught the same thing and would love some help. thanks!
Hello,
It's the same for me, I started the caveman regimen 2 years ago, I had this mask of dead skin on my face and neck and after 2 months I removed it all with water and by scraping my skin with the tips of my fingernails. Since then, after returning to a normal skin routine (cleansing once a day and moisturizing), the dead skin has never completely gone and I can't get rid of it. I'm desperate to get back to the way I was before, with normal skin that doesn't flake all the time. Do you have a similar experience or something that could help?..
Thanks.