Hello,
I'm sure tons of people are always on here asking what to do about their acne, so I apologize for using this platform to reach out for help, but I badly need it. I am a 20 year old male and my acne problems have only been getting worse and worse for the past 3-4 years. I have tried nearly everything, over-the-counter creams, peels, proactiv, aczone, progesterone, antibiotics, washes, you name it. Nothing has worked, or they have worked very temporarily and then suddenly stopped. What makes it rough is that every so often my acne will clear up for a couple days (sometimes only one), and I cannot seem to figure out what causes this pattern. My acne constantly fluctuates. I have done some testing to see if I could narrow it down and have not managed to get any idea. I workout about 6 times a week (have tried decreasing this, does not make a difference), my diet is extremely clean (and free of saturated fats, oils, sugary carbs), I live in a warm climate, but have also lived in cold climates in the last few years (hasn't seemed to make any difference). I am getting desperate and have a visit will another dermatologist later next month to see if they can take a guess what is wrong, but it is still far away and in the mean time I am looking for any help I can get. If you took the time to read this thank you, I have attached a picture of my acne if it helps any.
p.s. the pictures are from today which is has been one of the clearer days for my skin, it is usually at least 25% worse than this
Sun damaged skin requires exfoliation. Anytime you suffer from acne it's because area is not exfoliated enough. Avoid the sun and foods that increase your oil production. For me, it's onions!, dairy, nuts, shellfish, gluten protein, etc. Notice that these are rather unsuspecting healthy foods. Onions are the worst for me. Also, wash hands often and occasionally use isopropyl alcohol to clean finger tips, under nails, phone, etc., to rid of bacteria load. Finally, throw your pillowcase in with your weekly wash.
To treat your skin, alternate between exfoliating with Bragg's acv (natural AHA) and isopropyl alcohol (read review on makeupalley). When you use acv, let it dry then rinse off and wash with a oil control cleanser and moisturize. If you see your skin become oily in a few hours as a result of the acv then wipe with isopropyl alcohol then rinse with water and moisturize again. Don't believe what they say about how bad isopropyl is. Use it when needed to control oil or dissolve blackheads. You should alternate between different washes/scrubs depending upon how your skin looks that day. When cleansing, relax your face instead of stretching your skin. This allows for the cleanser to penetrate deeper into the pore.
@Triumphant, thank you for responding. I have since realized that I was severely over treating my skin, I have stopped using washes and creams that dry it out, and when you said to use ACV & Isopropyl I was skeptic until I did some more research. Didn't realize how many benefits they both can have to your skin, am going to start with your recommendation today, and will let you know how it works. Again, thank you so much for taking the time to respond.
Hi gonzobc,
Your skin actually looks rather good! You mention that the severity fluctuates a lot. Do you think this could be due to stress? Are any particular days during the week more stressful than others?
I also agree that using too many different products can actually have a negative effect. Choose one wash and one cream, and stick with it for a while. You have to be patient. Chopping and changing the whole time, from my experience, can be disastrous.
I hope this helps. Feel free to message me if you need any advice.