I'm posting this for those of you on here who have either had:
1) no success with the regimen.
2) had success with the regimen, but do not like the quality of your skin, or still have redness/inflammation, and so on.
3) had success with the regimen, but do not like the idea of using BP in the long term, even inspite of there being no "evidence" to suggest that long term use may be harmful.
My experience with the regimen
-It got me 95-100% clear of acne, which is better than <50%, but I still had poor quality skin, redness/inflammation, and so on.
-And of course, as soon as I stopped using BP or tried to taper off, my acne/inflammation would come back in full force within a few days, or a week or so if lucky.
-I eventually came to the point where I wasn't comfortable with using BP every day for the rest of my life, and did not like how bad my skin looked inspite of being 95%+ clear.
Before I reveal my own regimen, I want to describe my skin type. For the most part I have slightly dry skin (though not to the degree where you can see that it's dry, and definitely not eczema-dry). If I wash my face frequently, my skin's oil production goes out of wack and is all over the place, so my skin can often be dry but sometimes oily, depending on the time of day and how frequently I wash my face (no matter how carefully or how much I moisturise). My acne in the past would best be described as moderate-severe and the inflammatory type.
I've been doing my own regimen for quite a while now, and my skin is 95-100% clear (like it was with BP) AND the quality of my skin is basically restored back to normal. Inflammation/redness has dropped considerably. And most importantly, I don't have to "depend" on BP to stay clear, something I've hated the idea of for the longest time.
My alternative regimen
-I wash my face and neck every 3-4 days (yes, you heard it, 3-4 days). Even if I'm exercising/sweating (which I often am), I still wait 3-4 days. If I'm sweating, I'll gently wipe it off with a cloth/towel, but that's all.
-I moisturise my whole face and neck 3x per day (when I wake up, half way through the day, and just before I sleep). I personally use a cheap vaseline moisturiser.
-Other than this, I make sure I don't touch my face at all.
That's all there is to it. Most people, and definitely including myself beforehand, will be thinking that every 3-4 days is not enough, or is unhygienic etc. etc. But in my experience it's been the total opposite and a life-saver. I can't really convince people through words, though, because most of us have pre-existing beliefs in society about how frequently we should wash etc. All you can do is genuinely try it out.
I can safely confirm, at least in my case (and possibly in the case of quite a handful of acne sufferers), that washing the face twice (hell, even once in my experience) a day is way too much.
Also, this is not related to the possibility that I could've been washing too harshly or not moisturising before I started this new regimen, because it's not - I've always been OCD-careful about this stuff, and to no avail. In fact, I can say with high confidence that I'll start breaking out again (and approach moderate/severe breakouts within a few weeks) if I restart washing my face 2x a day, EVEN IF I'm washing OCD-carefully as well as moisturising generously afterwards.
I feel like, this whole time I've been using BP (over a year in a row at one point), I've been going against my skin's natural health and oil levels.
It really is a miracle that my skin is equally as clear now as it was when using BP to the max, but without that leathery/low-quality, red/inflamed/sunburnt look. I was so close to resorting to antibiotics, but am glad I didn't now.
For those who have not much else to try, I'd recommend you put aside these cookie-cutter general recommendations of "wash 2x per day with a light cleanser blah blah" and give this, or something similar, a genuine shot!
its said that vaseline isnt comedogenic bt is it rly moisturising? nd does it anyhow improve or decrease collagen growth in scars or does nothing at all? what exactly is its effects on skin?what abt redmarks?
i use zinc cream (zinc oxide, vaseline) mask overnight to reduce redness from picking and it does feel like its moisturising but idk for sure
Wow, this sounds so much like my own situation! I too have sensitive, acne-prone but not overly oily skin, and I've also been thinking lately that the products I've been using just haven't been working. I won't hijack your thread (I detailed my own regimen in another thread) but I'm also now focussing on moisturising and not over washing with good results.
I'm thinking now, I've had the same sort of results with my hair. Until recently, I washed my hair with a lot of shampoo and conditioner every 3-4 days, and it was dry and unhealthy. On a hairdresser's recommendation, I changed things up. I now wash my hair with only a 5c coin's worth of shampoo twice, then condition with the same amount of conditioner, and I only wash it every 6-7 days, using dry shampoo if I need to. My hair is in MUCH better condition now from much less washing, because the natural oils are much more in balance.
Thanks so much for posting this! I think you're completely right.
its said that vaseline isnt comedogenic bt is it rly moisturising? nd does it anyhow improve or decrease collagen growth in scars or does nothing at all? what exactly is its effects on skin?what abt redmarks?
i use zinc cream (zinc oxide, vaseline) mask overnight to reduce redness from picking and it does feel like its moisturising but idk for sure
Hey, the vaseline I bought says "moisture locking", "accelerates dry skin's ability to restore itself" etc. It definitely feels moisturising for me. I have no idea how it deals with scars, but I have a huge decrease in redness compared to when I was using Benzoyl Peroxide every day. My skin back then would be clear, but still look "off" because of the redness/inflammation
Though I don't think the moisturiser I'm using is what was the key here (I just bought that one because it was cheap and on offer). I just think that my skin is more naturally suited to washing every 3-4 days and moisturising as much as 3x a day has really helped get my skin back to normal, especially after over a year of using BP 🙂
Wow, this sounds so much like my own situation! I too have sensitive, acne-prone but not overly oily skin, and I've also been thinking lately that the products I've been using just haven't been working. I won't hijack your thread (I detailed my own regimen in another thread) but I'm also now focussing on moisturising and not over washing with good results.
I'm thinking now, I've had the same sort of results with my hair. Until recently, I washed my hair with a lot of shampoo and conditioner every 3-4 days, and it was dry and unhealthy. On a hairdresser's recommendation, I changed things up. I now wash my hair with only a 5c coin's worth of shampoo twice, then condition with the same amount of conditioner, and I only wash it every 6-7 days, using dry shampoo if I need to. My hair is in MUCH better condition now from much less washing, because the natural oils are much more in balance.
Thanks so much for posting this! I think you're completely right.
Good to hear that something similar has been helping you! It's been a huge thing for me. For the last 2 years it's felt like there's been no way of getting around the fact that my acne would return in full force if I stopped using BP. There just wasn't any other way (except maybe accutane, which I didn't want to go down). And now, I just wash my face every few days and moisturise a lot, and now my skin is basically back to normal!
Your hair situation makes sense and is actually similar to what I experienced with my own hair. If I wash my hair frequently, it will look dry and unhealthy but also become oiler/smellier much faster (similar to my face's skin when I wash 2x a day, even if I'm careful washing/moisturising). Now that I wash my hair @ a similar frequency to you, everything is back to normal. My hair stays a more natural/constant oiliness, doesn't smell, and is just fine as it is with this frequency
It seems as though some of our body's are adapted to this kind of frequency of washing, though with these general recommendations for everybody (of 2x per day washing etc.) a lot of us may never figure it out.
I'll have a look at your own thread 🙂