Hello, here's my story and a solution that seems to be working. Some time ago I found this website and promised myself that once I find my cure, I'll post. There is no cure for everyone but one might read each others methods and attempt, so here we go.
24 years old male, always was a late bloomer (genes), my acne started when I was 20 and remained until now. It started as hormonal and remained hormonal, however sometimes other factors made it worse. My condition was moderate, sometimes worse, but never extremely bad (which I consider to be face completely covered with zits). It usually concentrated in different parts, first in T-zone (basic for teenage acne) and later mostly chin, jawline (hormonal imbalances in adult life). My work with late night stays and lots of sitting in front of a computer (IT) didn't do any good to my skin.
So at first I used the basic things thinking it will go away but when I was 23 it started to drive me nuts that I have hormonal acne all the time. Even when I ate well (I never ate junk food) I still had acne when friends of my age and even younger could eat crappy food and be clear. Seemed unfair, and I always thought it's due to my work/lack of sleep. I started sleeping normally, but still didn't clear up. I had regular sex btw, didn't clear up. Then I've researched a lot about food and etc. but never really could keep it strict.
I learned to live with acne. And to those reading this, it actually benefited me in some ways: made me step my game up socially to still interact with women, I've learned to accept myself as I am, developed spiritually and I learned a lot about healthy food. Also I didn't go out and drink as much as my peers and concentrated on work and learning more, which I am thankful for now.
I concluded that my acne is hormonal because the break outs were sudden, perhaps when I ate something or when something caused a hormonal shift. Anyway there wasn't a day when I didn't have a pimple or a cyst. Sometimes I had 2-3, sometimes more, when most of them went out, new ones appeared. No masks, toppings, creams helped me. I am very much against harsh chemicals and tried to minimize them on my skin. When a cosmetologist I went to suggested accutane I immediately left her (she never did anything good anyway). Later I also learned that partially my acne was due to candida overgrowth.
Here's how it's changed. I've moved recently to study and started a new approach, a completely strict lifestyle, focusing on all aspects of life.
I wake up when the sun rises and go to bed at 10pm
I exercise daily: cycle wherever I need to go, occasionally jog, do yoga, pull-ups/push-ups etc., surf 2 times a week when time allows me to.
By the way before moving I did shank prakshalana - a yoga procedure to flush your system from mouth to anus with salt water which due to being saltier than what's inside you sucks out the toxins, remainings of food and bad bacteria. After the procedure I ate as prescribed and built up my good intestinal bacteria from scratch basically. It's a hard thing to do so I don't recommend it, but I believe it's important before changing your lifestyle both spiritually and physically. I've stopped eating meat at that point too (as I didn't digest it well before).
So now when I've moved, I eat only organic food, my diet is nearly completely the same every day (except 3-4 times a week I eat lunch on campus, eating some stuff that I may lack in nutrition at home). I add 1 tablespoon of organic virgin coconut oil in every meal (except those not at home), 2 in breakfast (as I need 4 a day for my weight).
My diet is:
Breakfast. Organic wheat free cereal with oatmeal and a little bit of sunflower seeds, almonds and raisins (the package has it all). I pour heated up coconut/almond milk in a bowl of it, add 5-6 table spoons of organic sheep milk yogurt and add local bananas (for they have no chemical coating to keep them fresh).
Lunch. When I cook my lunch it's a bit of greens (lettuce, rocket, kale etc.) with a porridge that I boil, made of quinoa, red kidney beans, lentils and adding pieces of beetroot, turmeric and sweet pumpkin there. No salt or anything, the only spice I use is turmeric.
Dinner. I have a rice cooker with steaming function, so I cook brown rain fed rice (with 1/2 t.s. of turmeric) while steaming a selection of veggies: zucchini, carrot, beetroot, broccoli and/or cauliflower, sweet pumpkin (it makes rice amazing), garlic. Sometimes I add eggplant or green bell pepper in there. I also have greens with dinner most of the time.
All ingredients that I cook with are organically grown. 99% of the time at least. It costs me more, but I don't use anything on my skin now except tea tree oil face wash (daily) and natural moisturizer once in a while, so I save there.
I never eat bread, sweets or anything like that, as it causes candida overgrowth.
So basically I have lots of vitamins and elements that my body needs throughout the day, I keep my blood circulating well with exercise and my liver has a lot of things that help it cleanse and detox my body.
Coconut oil is essential by the way and I believe has the greatest effect, as my thyroid seems to function normally (now I no longer have oily skin) excreting hormones in balance.
Within 2 months of doing this "routine" I started to have glowing skin (with no black spots and no cysts), black circles under my eyes disappeared, I have lots of energy and am productive. After 1 week I had my first day without a single new pimple. Then it just got better and better.
BUT my skin hasn't cleared up completely. Once in a while I get 1-2 whiteheads. This is nothing compared to cysts I had frequently on my jawline and chin. I have yet to understand what causes those whiteheads, but I do have acne prone skin, so this is the best it ever was since I was 19. My best guess is just dirt in university classrooms air and inevitable toxins that I get while cycling on the roads.
Anyway it's not 100% perfect yet so I can't brag, but it suits me to be honest, I'd stick to this rather than using a regimen with topical chemicals on my skin. I'd rather depend on healthy food and lifestyle than on burning my skin with BP.
But here's what happened 6 days ago (after nearly 3 months in on my routine) and why I came here to search for stuff and decided to post.
I slipped and had a seafood meal in a cafe (fish, squids and shrimp with potatoes which I didn't eat) which turned out to be a disaster for me. Due to excess iodine intake my thyroid went crazy and in 1 day I had a break out all over my jawline with those bumpy cysts. I also had abnormal increase of libido, very noticeable compared to normal. So now I know one cause of a break out for me. But here's a funny thing, the skin everywhere else is still glowing, soft and nice. Also I don't pick my zits anymore (life has taught me and I can see that those bumps seem to disappear without erupting. This is what confused me, at first I broke out, concluded why, got angry at myself and expected them to come out in a day or two. Most of them never came out, they are not painful anymore and not even red, but when I touch them with a finger (clean of course) I can feel a bump under skin and the bump is a little visible too, but the color is the same as the skin around. All I've been using is tea tree oil topically on those. I have no idea why they decided not to erupt and I'll update on that in a week or so.
It is early to conclude whether I've found my cure or not, it's been only 2.5 months, but from last week's experience I will make sure to stay on track and see how it is in another 3 months. I will make sure to update here.
Congratulations and great job!
This kind of healthy lifestyle is a process so with time you'll find out what works and what doesn't. Those 1-2 whiteheads could be caused by an intolerance. You could try eliminating some foods to see what happens (possible suspects could be oatmeal, rice, and garlic but that depends on you). For me, possible signs of an intolerance are things like bloating and slight fatigue - paying attention to your body will help you figure out what extra changes need to be made.
Since you eat dairy, why not eggs?
By the way, salt is an essential nutrient so I wouldn't cut it out entirely.
Keep us updated!
Congratulations and great job!
This kind of healthy lifestyle is a process so with time you'll find out what works and what doesn't. Those 1-2 whiteheads could be caused by an intolerance. You could try eliminating some foods to see what happens (possible suspects could be oatmeal, rice, and garlic but that depends on you). For me, possible signs of an intolerance are things like bloating and slight fatigue - paying attention to your body will help you figure out what extra changes need to be made.
Since you eat dairy, why not eggs?
By the way, salt is an essential nutrient so I wouldn't cut it out entirely.
Keep us updated!
Thanks,
Hmm interesting idea about intolerance, although I have absolutely no problem with digestion, quite the opposite I must say.
I might try a slight change when things get back to normal, I can't cut out oatmeal, but I'll try to replace brown rice with quinoa for dinner for a week and see.
Garlic seems to work wonders and I never have any problems with digesting it.
As for dairy, the only thing I eat is that sheep milk yogurt, which is pretty decent and it's also my only source of B12 and it's a good source of protein as well (I tend to build muscle). I would eat eggs, but don't feel the need to, do they contain anything essential that I lack?
I think I get sodium in some vegetables, so I don't need to add more.
All the best.
Congratulations and great job!
This kind of healthy lifestyle is a process so with time you'll find out what works and what doesn't. Those 1-2 whiteheads could be caused by an intolerance. You could try eliminating some foods to see what happens (possible suspects could be oatmeal, rice, and garlic but that depends on you). For me, possible signs of an intolerance are things like bloating and slight fatigue - paying attention to your body will help you figure out what extra changes need to be made.
Since you eat dairy, why not eggs?
By the way, salt is an essential nutrient so I wouldn't cut it out entirely.
Keep us updated!
garlic has anti-bacterial properties.
2 weeks since the excess iodine intake with a big seafood platter I ate (fish, shrimp, squid rings) in a restaurant, breaking my strict diet (for no reason actually other than boredom). As I posted earlier, cysts formed on jawline in 1-2 days, proceeded to be there for a week, not erupting for a while. Early this week all of them came out completely nearly at the same time, healed by the end of the week, healing the rest of them. No new formations, clearing out. Diet is still strict, skin is completely clear anywhere except the jawline. I conclude once again that the cause was that seafood platter. So everything is coming back to normal but I do blame myself for having several new post-acne spots now (they faded well before).
Made 2 adjustments also:
- Now instead of pouring hot almond/coconut milk in my breakfast muesli, I put muesli in the pot and keep it there for 3-4 mins, this makes oatmeal prepared better and I would think makes me digest it better. Not that I had any problems before.
- Introduced occasional apple 2-3 times a week (organic)
Cutting out the non-homemade lunches, you can't control what spices/dressings they put in the salads, so the experiment can be spoiled. Bought myself a bpa-free lunch box, going to make the quinoa porridge with greens, beans and etc. like I usually make for lunch during the weekend. Will see how it goes.
It's worth mentioning that I'm having zero black spots on my nose and don't have excessively oily skin anymore since I started my diet couple of months ago. It used to be the case. Also I feel and sleep amazingly well.
P.S. No fluoride in my water anymore.
Will not make any more changes for a month.
Yeah, if you have a strong will, it will work.
Update...
1 week passed, ALL the cysts I had 2 weeks ago are gone, 2 whiteheads left. Overall healthy glow of skin, not oily (not excessively, as much as needs to be), pores are clear.
I have to mention that I am practicing Pranayam now (5 days in). If you wish to know what it is and how it can help you in many ways watch this instruction by Baba Ramdev:
It's a very long video, however I highly recommend.
Here's a shorter version of the Pranayam explained by Baba Ramdev and more "skin related" [Removed] (start from 26:15 to skip all the herb recommendations).
I am in no way a religious person and practice it with energy and peace in mind. Physically I understand why those things help and I regret not doing it before. Basically I don't see myself not doing it now, since I noticed that I have more energy, overall feel better and all tensions from my constant physical exercises are gone. In just 5 days I'm doing it. However it's too early to say whether it helps my skin or not, that's why I'll update in a month. I will practice it every day for a month.
Can you post in the success compilation thread.
I will, but not now. Too early to conclude a success, I will post once most of the scars fade and when more time goes by.
okay.
but for me i guess names would have helped.
nevermind.
cheers
I'm sorry, I just can't be bothered to learn those names 
If you want to know what I do, just watch the video that I posted, I do remember the names you mentioned were there. It's not only breathing it's also some asanas for your gut, back, blood flow.
Haha yep ya sound a lot like me. I just turned 22, had acne since about 15 and cured 90=95% through healthy living when I was about 19-20, but have never 100% rid getting some whiteheads around my jaw/mouth. Dont know if its possible honestly, hoping it goes away with age. I eat very clean have for years as far as organic meats, lentils/sweet potatoes, sprouted sunflower/pumpkin seeds, chia seeds, have like 4 TBL coconut oil every day, hemp/fish oil, a lot of greens, juice every morning the whole nine yards. Taking some supplements that help a lot too like B5, Zinc, Vitamin A, Chromium and digestive enzymes. I'll be completely clear for like 2 months at a time and then get 1-3 breakouts, clear up, get some breakouts, so yeah it's completely mild and nothing to complain about with other people who have constant acne but it is still annoying being as healthy as I am. Just waiting for mine to 100% go away. I too started to just accept and it is a lot better to not stress over complete perfect skin.
Love meditation/yoga having a great state of mind, acne did change me as well and made me a better person I can say, as most people who go through psychological suffering come out more compassionate humble people. Good luck to you bro, namaste.