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Not Washing My Face For A Month

 
MemberMember
68
(@jlopez)

Posted : 02/18/2015 5:29 am

Hello all.

Feel free to skip all this and just read my log, but I thought I would start with a bit about me and my acne story, as I have often found other peoples stories helpful on this site!

My Story

I have been keeping a log of my experiences with my skin on my computer, but as a long time lurker on this website I have decided to make my story public in the hopes of getting some understanding, and maybe even helping someone in a similar situation.

I am a 23 year old female who has suffered with severe acne for almost all of my life, getting progressively worse into my adult life. My acne has been truly debilitating. There have been periods of months when I would shake and couldn't leave the house for the fear of someone seeing my skin in broad daylight.

It sounds ridiculous when I write it down, but I know that some people on this website will understand that pain. And God, I would love to say that I am the kind of person who could just smile, get on with it, and be happy with what I've got, but the truth is that I would cry every day about my skin. As my acne continued to worsen into my 20s, I have struggled more and more every day just to look in the mirror. "It's not fair!" I would tell myself, "why me?"

Doctors

I have made many trips to the dermatologist, and spent a small fortune on products and treatments, none of which have worked for me. I have not been on Accutane, despite being encouraged again and again by my doctor that it would be the best thing for me. I have not always had very positive experiences with doctors, and I don't believe that they always know what's best for every person. I am well aware that Accutane has "cured" some people of their acne, and well done to them for beating it. But as a sufferer of depression and anxiety, it is not for me.

Some of the treatments I have tried include:
Antibiotics (doxycycline, oxytetracycline and lymecycline), benzoyl peroxide (5% and 10%), Dan's Regimen, various Retinol treatments including Differin and Epiduo, countless over the counter treatments and washes, apple cider vinegar, manuka honey, asprin masks, you name it.

My Acne

My problem areas are my cheeks, jawline and chin (typical hormonal areas,) this is where I get the most cysts and whiteheads. I also suffer with clogged pores and congestion on my forehead and temples. I have also had fairly mild back acne for my whole life, it tends to flare up around that time of the month, whereas my face just flares up whenever it feels like it.

Something New

Recently (perhaps over the last month or so) I have been doing a pretty serious health overhall. This includes transforming my diet from (what I assumed was) a relatively healthy vegan diet, to a plant based, low glycemic diet which avoids gluten and limits sugar and dairy. I still eat fruits and occasionally I will eat a little organic butter for the good fats or some bio-live organic yoghurt for the probiotics.

I had begun to see my acne as a window into my body, and if my body is making my face look like this, something is out of balance.

"No Wash" Regimen

Acne treatments have not worked for me. Any that have worked have only done so temporarily and my acne has come raging back with a vengeance.

I have come to a decision that I am not going to wash my face for a month. Not even with water. I am not going to wear makeup, which is a huge decision for me as not wearing makeup makes me feel incredibly uncomfortable but I have had enough of caring what other people think about my skin. "Those who mint don't matter and those who matter don't mind." (I think that's Dr. Seuss? Very apt.)

My logic on this is that if my acne is coming from the inside (toxins in my body and hormonal imbalances) then a clean healthy lifestyle should set me on the way to clear skin, and if nothing is irritating my face or upsetting my pH balance, I should become clear. It just seems odd that as more and more acne treatment products hit the market, and our diets become less and less natural and nutritious, more and more people are suffering with acne. Acne is a big money business, and it's the sufferers who are left out of pocket.

So I have decided to keep an online log of my progress. Good or bad. With the intention of posting photo updates when I have the courage to. And if this helps even one person, as I know so many of these forum posts have helped me, I will be thrilled to bits.

Thanks for reading and don't hesitate to get in touch with any advice or questions!

Day 3

I would say the state of my skin is quite dry, surprising as I have always thought that I was oily. I have only had one new pimple, not cystic thankfully, which is quite amazing for me as I would usually wake up with a new pimple every day! It's safe to say I have not been magically cured in 3 days, but I will say that waking up, getting dressed and not standing in front of the mirror for half an hour has been wonderful for my self confidence. I have a tendency to stand an inch away from the mirror and assess every pore in my face before I start the day. Not good. I have yet to go out without my makeup on, but I will be forced to over the next few days. Scary, but bring it on!

I have also found that every time I am tempted to pick, and my fingers are poised around a pimple, if i breathe, take my hands away from my face, and go and make a green tea or chug a glass of water it kills the urge.

I have even found that telling my brain "do it later, you don't have time now" means I will go off and forget about it.

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MemberMember
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(@jlopez)

Posted : 02/19/2015 9:10 am

I've got a backlog of updates stored on my computer so I'm just going to go ahead and post them here:

Day 5

Kind of a low point today. My skin hasn't changed much only I have a few new pimples, one pretty nasty one on my cheek, hoping it's not going to become a cyst. Trying to remember that any pimples that come up now (and over the next few weeks) could be the result of irritation from the weeks before I started this regimen. One good thing is that my hyperpigmentation seems to be lightening. My marks aren't quite as red and are blending into my skin much better. I still haven't picked at my face which is a pretty big deal for me. Usually at least once a week I have a lapse in judgement and pick the hell out of it. Just have to keep this up!

Day 7

The potential cyst has flattened out which is amazing, and the couple of new pimples I had actually came to a head pretty much over night. It's difficult to resist the urge to pop them now that they are little whiteheads but I'm determined! If I pop one pimple and it bleeds and goes red I'm going to want to slather it with BP and I don't want to ruin the experiment. The only spot I am really worried about at the moment is a monster on my chin that has been hanging around since day one of the regimen, deciding what to do with itself. I'm hoping that drinking a lot of water and keeping my diet nice and clean will cancel out any possible inflammation.

Day 10

Okay so, this is going to sound like a setback but it's 2 days away from "that time of the month," so i'm hoping that the new little lurker on each of my cheek is something to do with that! (Why is it that I always get symmetrical acne?) Only time will tell. The spot on my chin shrunk down and dried up! Now it has a kind of purpley dry scab over the top which I am going to try so hard to leave along!

I have found that not wearing makeup when I go out has been alright. I have got upset on occassion when I have had to go to the bathroom and see my bare skin in day light. I think I have developed a real anxiety about my skin being seen, but that's something I am hoping to conquer the more that I adjust to people seeing it without makeup. I am still finding it best that I just avoid mirrors when I'm out and about. But when I'm not looking at my skin I'm fairly comfortable. I think my mind is subconsciously reassured by the thought that this is an experiment. The term "experiment" allows me to detach myself from the emotional side of it somewhat. I have a pretty important social event tomorrow and I am so determined not to wear makeup, just to see how well I handle it. But we will see what tomorrow brings!

Day 12
I didn't wear any makeup at my social event! And no one cared! (I mean of course they didn't say anything to my face, but so what if they said it behind my back, that's petty and it shouldn't effect me.) I am also finding that the more people see me without makeup on, the less I have to worry about it. Say for example I bump into someone in the street, and they haven't seen my makeup-free face before, I would say my initial anxiety is like a 9 on the scale, but if they have already seen me makeup-free on another day, the anxiety goes down to like a 4 because it's nothing new to them anyway. Does that make sense?
Anyway! In terms of my skin it is surprisingly good considering I drank last night. The chin scab fell off by itself (possibly while I was socialising, attractive.) And since my "time of the month" so graciously arrived, the little lurkers on my cheeks have started to go down by themselves.
I would say my most problem areas right now are my chin and my forehead, since the chin scab fell off it looks a little better but I have a lot of congestion and clogged pores. I gently brushed the back of my hand across my face this morning to feel the texture and it's quite a mixed bag. I can feel that it is dry and quite rough, almost sandpaper-y, but it doesn't have that loaded, bumpy feeling that it used to have, as though there was loads of congestion bubbling just below the surface waiting to pounce.
Mentally this experiment has been pretty great. Despite the fact that my skin is far from clear, with not looking at my face twice a day, and realising that people don't care if I don't have makeup on, I have had a strange boost in confidence. Bring on week 3!

Day 14

I would say that right now I have 3 spots on my face that I am bothered about. Only 3!!! And they arent even that bad at all compared to the persistent cysts I was getting a few weeks ago. I need to resist the urge to pick at dry areas. I am starting to touch my skin more because I am so curious about the changing texture, but I really need to stop. I did slip last night and pick at a funny dried up scab on my temple and it (really quite satisfyingly) came away from my face, dragging a clogged pore with it! (Ew sorry I know that's disgustingly graphic but whatever, it was satisfying.) But now that area looks inflamed, of course, which is enough to encourage me to keep my filthy mitts off.

I am definitely developing the dreaded "dead skin mask." When I get up close in the mirror, especially in the mornings, I can see all sorts of flakes and bumps, but for some reason I just get the feeling that it's a healing thing, and not clogged pores. I think you come to know your skin so ridiculously well when you are an acne sufferer, that you can almost FEEL the difference without even looking at your face.

Not too long ago I was crying about my skin every day. Tomorrow I am going to stay the night at a friends, and for the first time in years I am not worried about finding a half an hour to sneak away to the bathroom and do my skincare routine (thank YOU caveman regimen.) I am mostly just dealing with congested pores and scars right now. Any pimples I am getting are quite small and tend to disappear in a day or two, which is leaps and bounds from where I was before. I am still accidentally picking at my forehead out of habbit, and I would say my chin is looking quite clogged but I think this is normal at this stage.

Day 18

Going to go into some gory detail now, even if it's just for me to look back on as I go further into this regimen:
My forehead is congested, but I think I am making it worse by picking away at it while I'm on the computer. The congestion is not inflamed and I am pretty certain that if I leave it along it will go away by itself (also I have bangs so it's covered and I'm not too worried about it, it's never been much of a problem area)
My temples are almost completely clear, there is hyperpigmentation but it's fading.
My cheeks (which are the worst area for me in terms of inflammation and long- term hyperpigmentation are virtually clear, in that I have no cysts and no really active pimples. When I am stood in daylight I can see that the texture of my cheeks is rough and a little flakey and I definitely have some idented scars. But I'm trying not to worry about that for now. There are also a number of tiny scabs where old pimples have dried up and I have not picked them away but there should be nice new skin under there so that's fine!
My jawline is pretty perfectly clear, bar hyperpigmentation.
My neck is clear.
My chin and just under my chin are fairly clear, the clearest they have been in a while, however my chin is definately still congested, and if I stretch out the skin I can see little bumps and clogged pores, but when it's not stretched it doesn't look too bad at all.
In terms of active pimples. I have two, very little hard clogs on my chin which I am ignoring as they should just go away by themselves, and two very simmilar little hard clogs on my upper lip. None of these are cystic or particularly inflamed and all of them have a tiny whitehead, which is reassuring as hopefully they will just fall away by themselves.

Maybe day 16 or so I was thinking holy crap my face is so dry, am I doing the wrong thing? Is my skin going to explode? Basically I had a little tiny freak out about the concept of not washing my face (I suppose that was due though, since I have been washing my face since I had the ability to.) But I left it alone, went over to a friends, had a good laugh and slept on it, and the next day my face didn't feel so dry and the world didn't feel so gloomy and I got on with it. And I don't think I have been able to do that in the history of my acne "story." Every time I have had a freakout like that I have washed my face with 3 different washes and piled on face masks and treatments to try to remedy the feeling, only to make my skin much, much worse. Mentally, the caveman regimen remains a breath of fresh air.

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MemberMember
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(@jlopez)

Posted : 02/19/2015 12:36 pm

ps. Day 18

Grr I picked off a scab on my cheek before it was ready. Why do my hands always end up picking at my face! Damn it.

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MemberMember
68
(@jlopez)

Posted : 02/20/2015 8:59 am

Day 19

So I went to bed panicking about that scab on my cheek, but I woke up this morning and it was completely fine. It's a little more red than I would like it to be but it doesn't look inflamed or infected. Just thought it might be important to mention that. I don't know if it's to do with it not being further irritated by spot treatments, but we'll see how that plays out over the next few days.

On a separate note, I had a chat with my boyfriend about my skin last night (the only person who regularly sees me in the light without any makeup on apart from myself, and, I might add, pretty honest with me about my skin. We have been together for 3 years and he tells me how it looks if I ask him.) He said that he thinks that where I used to get about 1-2 new spots a day I am now getting 1 or 2 a week. He also said that it looks like the majority of my "acne" is scabs and scarring. I nearly, NEARLY wanted to wash my face last night. But he said no, keep at it, it looks better than it did before and that's as much as you can expect at this point. Nice and logical!

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(@jlopez)

Posted : 02/22/2015 4:27 am

Day 21

So I woke up after quite a heavy night of drinking with a tiny little uninflamed whitehead on one cheek and a flat spot that looks like a heat bump on my left cheek (that symmetrical acne again.) I don't feel particularly down about it, since it's really my own fault for drinking lots of sugary alcohol. But I'm not going to beat myself up because I had a great time so it was good for the soul, even if not for the skin!
I'm quite interested to see how these new pimples play out as I've not had new ones for a while, and they both seem like a different kind of spot, so we shall see which one dies the quickest!

My hyper pigmentation and scarring continues to fade, and I would go so far as to say that the congestion (particularly on my chin) seems much better. About a week ago when I stretched my skin and saw the kind of clogged pores (ones that would be a dream for popping fanatics like me to squeeze out) I thought there was no way they would go anywhere by themselves, but I was wrong and some of them have either dried up and fallen off on their own, or just naturally receded .

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MemberMember
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(@jlopez)

Posted : 02/24/2015 11:23 am

Day 23

Good news! The little whitehead on my cheek went away by itself pretty much overnight!
The flat pimple on my other cheek has stuck around for a little longer but it has absolutely no redness anymore, it's just a little bump that's fading by the hour. I'm pretty thrilled, I was so worried that they were going to turn really nasty.
The rest of my skin is becoming less and less congested, and my hyperpigmentation is looking the best it has in months. I have much less dryness and the itching sensation I was having at the start is almost none existent. Think I'm going to up my water intake a little to try and keep my skin hydrated from the inside. Overall I am so (cautiously) pleased with my progress so far.

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MemberMember
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(@jlopez)

Posted : 02/26/2015 6:36 am

Day 25

Having kind of a low day today. Mainly because it's sunny (!?) Isn't it funny how acne can make you hate bright sunny days? What a bastard. Anyway, my bathroom mirror is right next to a window where the sun beams through, even with the blind down. Which, theoretically, is a nice thing. But when I'm stood in front of the mirror brushing my teeth, it drives me crazy analysing my skin. So I picked at a scab on my temple, which came off to leave a red mark underneath, well done me.
Skin is super dry today. I have had no new breakouts, which is amazing, and I need to keep remembering that I am just going through this awkward healing stage. The fact I have had only 2 new pimples in the past week, and neither of them cystic, is amazing for me!
So although I still have dry skin and congestion, and occasional breakouts, the positive side is my skin tone is even, hyperpigmentation fading and my old pimples are drying to scabs and falling off.
I'm just crawling along at a snails pace!

Maybe the guilt I feel when I pick at scabs on my face now is kind of a good thing? Hopefully it will deter me from doing it in the future.

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MemberMember
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(@jlopez)

Posted : 02/28/2015 6:16 am

Day 27

Good day today! I got a spot on my chin yesterday, quite a nasty one it seemed. But it has gone down by itself this morning! My skin texture looks so much better than it was. All my congestion has reduced a ton and even my scarring is fading. I am starting to wonder if I even want to wash my face at day 30. I may carry on til day 40 if this progress keeps up. I have also found that the amount of stress I get from having a new stop pop up has been massively reduced. I am beginning to trust my body to heal itself. I haven't been blaming myself for my skin as much as I used to.
When the time does come to wash my face, I think I am going to buy some purified mineral water and splash my face with it, cold, and then gently rub with my fingers in my flaky areas.

If anyone has any alternative advice please let me know!

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(@jlopez)

Posted : 03/01/2015 8:11 am

I'm just going to jump back in time for a sec.

About a week before I started the caveman regimen, I remember daring myself one day to look in the mirror, at the worst parts of my skin, next to an open window on a sunny day.
I don't know what made me do it, I was all ready to leave the house, makeup on and everything.

But I did it. I approached the mirror really slowly and pulled back my hair.
What resulted was one of the worst panic attacks I have ever experienced. I was home alone at the time and I was terrified, I ended up having to call my mum. I have had panic attacks before (about 10 since my acne started) but this just went on and on and came in waves and I was so distraught.

So today I looked in my bathroom mirror, without really thinking, the daylight beaming onto my most problem area. And I thought that doesn't look so great, I can't wait for that scarring to get better and I hope those clogged pores would go away.
For whatever reason I saw this as a setback, because I didn't have perfect, glowing skin when I looked in the mirror.
But it is not a setback. It is so important for my mental stability for me to document this journey so that I can look back and say, "I may be upset about those scars and those clogged pores today, but a month ago I was having a panic attack from looking at my own face, and two months before that I couldn't walk out of my own front door."

The caveman regimen may be making baby steps, but I am making progress, and that is what matters.

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(@jlopez)

Posted : 03/04/2015 7:39 am

Day 31

Okay so, I haven't washed my face yet!
I have friends visiting today and I just felt like I didn't want to risk mucking up my skin yesterday.
Still considering the best way to go about it, with the least amount of physical irritation.
I would say that my success so far has been pretty fantastic. Dare I say, I have achieved the same results that I achieved with 2 months of Dans Regimen.
I can't attribute this entirely to the caveman regimen, as I believe that going gluten free has played a big part in the reduction of my cystic acne. But currently my skin texture is improving (although I am flakey, with dead skin mask intact.) My clogged pores are lessening and I am down to about one pimple a week, which deals with itself pretty quickly!
My scars are quite awful. They make it look like I still have bad skin. But hey! That's a damn sight better than the cystic acne I was waking up to every morning. And I wonder, if maybe they aren't as bad as I think they are. Trying to stay positive and think about how much better they will look in another month!
I have found this log so helpful, and even though I haven't had any replies, I have had quite a few views, so maybe it's helping someone out there!

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(@jlopez)

Posted : 03/05/2015 8:44 am

Day 32

Just wanted to post because a couple of good things are happening.
Clogs under my skin are drying out and surfacing, very similar to when I used benzoyl peroxide for the first time, but without the irritation. My skin is not oily at all, if anything it is dry in my problem areas. But this has resulted in clogs forcing themselves out. I just gently wiped at a little dry clogged pore on my chin with a tissue and it just came away by itself, leaving no redness or hole. Ideally I would let these clogs fall off by themselves but sometimes it's so hard to resist! Anyway, it's a week before "that time of the month" and I currently have no active acne on my face (bar a few little red dot kind of pimples on my temples/cheeks) but nothing too extreme. Hoping that that congestion will just continue to clear.
Happy happy happy!

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(@canucklehead12)

Posted : 03/05/2015 9:41 pm

Thanks for keeping up with the logs! I'm on day #8 of a modified caveman (water only) and it's great to hear about some success out there.

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(@jlopez)

Posted : 03/06/2015 12:49 pm

Hey Canucklehead 12,
No problem! How is the modified caveman going for you so far?
Good luck, I really hope it clears you up!

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(@jlopez)

Posted : 03/09/2015 3:57 am

Day 36

I still haven't washed my whole face, but 2 days ago I gently massaged a little manuka honey (the brand is Rowse. NPA rating 10+) mixed with some water onto my forehead as an experiment. (I always experiment with any skincare products on my forehead because I have long bangs.) I left the honey on while I took a shower, being careful not to get any water on my skin. Then when I got out I just rinsed the honey away with cool water from the tap.

It really feels like the honey did a good job of nourishing my skin and gently rubbing away some of the dead skin. I could even feel some little clogs coming out as I gently massaged it.

Because the rest of my face is doing so well at the moment I still haven't felt the need to wash it. But I plan to over the next week.

Currently my face is looking the best it has in years. My skin is dry but it is no longer congested. I have scars but they are fading by the day. I suffer the occasional pimple (usually on my chin.) But it tends to be after a night of heavy drinking, or not drinking enough water. And those spots come to a head and are gone within a day or two, leaving very minimal hyperpigmentaion.

Dare I say the right side of my face is becoming smooth! Whereas, the left is still a little bumpy from scabs and dry skin, but I am not complaining!

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(@rudy23)

Posted : 03/09/2015 5:24 am

What a coincidence. . . :) I take the same supplements, don't wash my face (I just spray some diluted ACV on my face after shower) and my face is 99% clear.

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(@jlopez)

Posted : 03/09/2015 8:25 am

What a coincidence. . . I take the same supplements, don't wash my face (I just spray some diluted ACV on my face after shower) and my face is 99% clear.

Hey Rudy23,

I used to use ACV as a toner too!

It's great stuff. I'm sure I'll incorporate it into my routine again if I ever get back into skincare. The caveman is going well for me so far though!

Do you find your face ever gets dry from the ACV?

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(@rudy23)

Posted : 03/09/2015 8:37 am

No, ACV gives my skin that shiny healthy glow. It never dried my skin. Showering actually dries my skin a little but it goes back to normal a few minutes after applying ACV.

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(@canucklehead12)

Posted : 03/09/2015 1:59 pm

Hey JLopez,

So far so good! I've been easing into this "water only" caveman. My first week I just used water in the morning, regular routine at night. My face was extremely dry without morning moisturizer and I broke out huge.

Week #2 I started purely washing with water, and my skin improved dramatically. I've been moisturizing at night with jojoba oil, and have even skipped washing in the morning to help my skin heal. I haven't seen any breakouts in about 5 days. Using jojoba oil has really helped remove some of the dry skin / flakiness. I might even start cleansing with it!

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(@jlopez)

Posted : 03/09/2015 3:06 pm

Hey JLopez,

So far so good! I've been easing into this "water only" caveman. My first week I just used water in the morning, regular routine at night. My face was extremely dry without morning moisturizer and I broke out huge.

Week #2 I started purely washing with water, and my skin improved dramatically. I've been moisturizing at night with jojoba oil, and have even skipped washing in the morning to help my skin heal. I haven't seen any breakouts in about 5 days. Using jojoba oil has really helped remove some of the dry skin / flakiness. I might even start cleansing with it!

Brilliant!

 

Yeah I had to ease in too. I was using soo much skincare before the caveman, I can't imagine going back to it now.

Great news about the jojoba, can I ask what brand you are using?

I have had some success with oils before. Never tried jojoba though, I would love to try it one day but I'm always so scared of breaking out!

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MemberMember
113
(@canucklehead12)

Posted : 03/09/2015 8:41 pm

Yeah there's no way I'm going back! I can't believe I never thought of doing this way before....letting your body heal itself, like it does with so many other things.

I use Desert Essence 100% jojoba, seems to be working alright for me. You can find it in most grocery stores. I definitely leaned towards jojoba instead of other oils since it has anti-bacterial / anti-fungal properties!

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(@jlopez)

Posted : 03/10/2015 4:18 am

Yeah there's no way I'm going back! I can't believe I never thought of doing this way before....letting your body heal itself, like it does with so many other things.

I use Desert Essence 100% jojoba, seems to be working alright for me. You can find it in most grocery stores. I definitely leaned towards jojoba instead of other oils since it has anti-bacterial / anti-fungal properties!

It's crazy how simple it seems now. I'm starting to wish I hadn't wasted so many years on all that skincare.

Even the amount of time this routine saves me in the day is incredible. I used to have to plan everything I did around access to a bathroom so I could perform my half hour skincare regimen. The caveman has been a very freeing experience. It feels good to trust your body too.

 

Thanks for the tip on the jojoba! I'm definately going to look into it.

 

 

Day 37

Everything is much the same at this point. My skin is still quite dry and I still have a little congestion on my cheeks which were my most problem area. But, my skin is calm and even toned. It's 2 days 'til "that time of the month" and I haven't had a pimple which is absolutely amazing for me as this is usually my most breakout prone time.

 

One thing that I am really pleased with is the congestion on my chin is completely gone. Even when I stretch the skin there I have almost no clogged pores. Maybe one or two but I trust that they will fade with time. A few weeks ago I could see a bunch of little blackheads in that area and I was thinking they would never come out by themselves (I have always thought that blackhead just HAVE to be extracted or they will never go away.) Lo and behold they have done their own thing and disappeared.

 

Feeling positive enough about this experiment that I may post a photo update soon. Scary! I am still a little unsettled about my scars as they appear quite dark in some lights but I have to have confidence that with time they will fade.

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(@jlopez)

Posted : 03/12/2015 3:29 am

Day 39

I've had a pretty "rough" few days, quite literally. The dead skin mask is pretty thick and nasty now, if I gently run my nail over my skin it will come away with a bunch of skin flakes underneath (lovely.) It's difficult not to obsess over sometimes, the past few days I have found myself standing in the mirror and wanting to pick at my left cheek. However, when I run the back of my hand over my right cheek it feels pretty smooth. A lot smoother than it was in the first 30 days.

My logic on having not washed my skin yet is this:

Water on the skin can be very drying to me, and my skin is already dry. There is the risk that washing with water now, and washing away the dead skin mask, will leave me with dry skin that needs moisturising, and then I am back at square one. I have faith that day by day the dead skin mask is shedding by itself, and my skin cell turnover rate will return to normal.
After all, the very essence of this skincare experiment is that the cavemen didn't need a 2x a day chemical exfoliant, so why would we!
(Also I can't help but notice that most, if not all of the flakiness is on my most problematic area, my cheeks, which is where I slathered BP for years, no doubt they will take the longest to heal.)

I must say that this routine has lead me to a love for simplicity. Having a simple makeup routine and simple removal has been the first step into craving a more minimal lifestyle. For example, my wardrobe is overrun with crappy clothes that don't fit that I keep "just incase," and now I can't wait to get rid of them! I'm even considering quitting washing my hair!

Anyway rant over, back to my skin, I have absolutely no spots at the moment, which is fantastic.

 

 

Ps. A fact I spotted today that made me think: "The global acne market is estimated to reach revenues of $3.02 billion by 2015."

 

 

Source: [Edited link out]
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(@jlopez)

Posted : 03/17/2015 4:48 am

Day 44

My progress this past few days has been great. I had a totally normal "time of the month" spot on my upper lip that went away in 2 days. That doesn't sound very exciting but that's the first time in years that I have had a completely predictable monthly spot that has disappeared as soon as I started my period. The rest of my skin looks great. I am only dealing with scars. The dryness/flakiness improves by the day and I still haven't washed my face.

I've even had a few bingey nights out drinking wine and excessively sugary alcoholic drinks and suffered little to no consequences (a hangover, yes, but no pimples.)

My forehead and chin (which were the most congested areas) are only getting better and more smooth. If someone had said to me last year, "Maybe you should just stop washing your face." I think I might have screamed; who would have thought this experiment would yield the best results I have ever had with my skin. Keeping my fingers crossed for even more good progress!

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(@arts)

Posted : 03/17/2015 5:40 am

Thank you for the update, it makes me happy to read about your successes, I feel like I'm your understudy or something :)

JLopez liked
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(@canucklehead12)

Posted : 03/17/2015 11:58 am

That's great you're progressing so well! Throughout the caveman regimen did you see breakouts in areas you wouldn't normally see them?

I'm experiencing some minor breakouts along my jawline and underneath my chin. Before starting the caveman I'd rarely get anything in that area, so it's a bit frustrating. I wouldn't apply BP to these areas either, just cleansing and moisturizing. The rest of my face is doing awesome though, so we'll see how this continues!

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