Please help me!
Let me start off by giving you all a background and then explaining what products I am currently using, so that someone can possibly help me out.
I am a 17 year old female. I'm thankful I can at least wear full coverage foundation to cover my scarring and acne when I go to school every day but you can still see bumps and scars through it...
I've been breaking out since I was 13. It has been an uphill battle since middle school. Of course it was never this bad. I would still get pimples but there weren't this many and my scars weren't this deep.
You see, I don't really pick at my skin THAT much. But some of my acne is cystic like, so even when I wash my face... they pop and leave a deep scar just because of how big of a pimple it is.
Last August I went to the dermatologist. My skin looked fairly similar to this, just not as bad. He put me on medication, as well as using Epiduo as a topical gel. and by Christmas my skin was almost 100% cleared up with only minimal scarring. After it cleared, I stopped going because It was very expensive. Around May of this year, my pimples started popping up again in clusters and they were hurting.. big and red.
Now I cannot afford to go back so I'm just trying to deal with it on my own.
I DO have active acne but majority of this is just deep scars. When you run your fingers across my face it's very smooth but I just have these very red scars that are deep like craters.
I've tried proactive, I've tried murad...
Right now I am using Lush products and the Young Living Essential Oils.
The oils I'm using are : Tea Tree, Frankincense, and Lavender.
I'm also using a tea tree bar soap from that brand.
The Lush products I'm using are:
Grease Lighting Spot Treatment
Coal Face bar soap
Dark Angels cleanser
Mask of Magnaminty face mask
I've also kinda been using Apple cider vinegar as a toner.
There's a Murad acne pill I take as well.
Kat Von D Lock It foundation is what I use for makeup.
I've been doing this routine for almost 2 weeks and haven't seen a change yet. I'm just wondering if possibly I should keep doing this and if it will clear up these deep, red, scars or if I should add something. I'm trying not to invest any more money into this because I just keep buying stuff, use the whole bottle, and then it doesn't work. I've been trying everything since May.
I am so ashamed, I just want this redness to disappear. These scars wouldn't be so bad if they weren't so deep and red.
Abruptly quitting BP like Epiduo can cause an acne flare big time. You probably need to get back on it ASAP. Also, I'd ask your derm for something to calm down the redness. Maybe antibiotics if those work for you, or a topical like Metrogel, which is used for rosacea sufferers but is also good for healing redness/calming acne due to its anti-bacterial properties. Definitely bring that one up. Tea tree oil is not a godsend for everyone, in fact oil cleansing can make thing worse, so be careful.
With all due respect, you seem like you could benefit from a low-dose course of Accutane as well...it's a big decision and requires research, but it's an option to heal the acne from ever coming back this intensely again. You also have to go on birth control while using Accutane, and since you get cheek acne [which often can be hormonal] using the BCP could also prevent acne from returning after you're done. Just an idea. 
Take care.
Hey! Without seeing a dermatologist you can do many things to clear your acne and this will in turn reduce the inflammation. Like many, many people, cutting out dairy and foods that are high in fat, could be all you need. I would recommend doing this. Drinking lots of water, and sleeping right is also great. I would also reckoned using fragrance free soaps and moisturisers. I would also recommend taking some from of oral medicine. Birth control pills on their own can help a lot if your acne is caused by your hormones.
I have never tried the things you are doing to reduce the redness, however, I will say that two weeks is probably not long enough to see results from anything that you try. Keep with something and you will see results. Good luck, and enjoy your studies! You are very young and very pretty and this phase will be over before you know it. I hope you are full of confidence in a few months when this could all be over.
On 12/2/2016 at 8:35 PM, ariunbold said:Doxy is antibiotic.Doxycyclin. Im taking it 3 months.
I used to be on that when I would go to the dermatologist.
On 12/2/2016 at 4:14 PM, cloudydreamer said:Abruptly quitting BP like Epiduo can cause an acne flare big time. You probably need to get back on it ASAP. Also, I'd ask your derm for something to calm down the redness. Maybe antibiotics if those work for you, or a topical like Metrogel, which is used for rosacea sufferers but is also good for healing redness/calming acne due to its anti-bacterial properties. Definitely bring that one up. Tea tree oil is not a godsend for everyone, in fact oil cleansing can make thing worse, so be careful.
With all due respect, you seem like you could benefit from a low-dose course of Accutane as well...it's a big decision and requires research, but it's an option to heal the acne from ever coming back this intensely again. You also have to go on birth control while using Accutane, and since you get cheek acne [which often can be hormonal] using the BCP could also prevent acne from returning after you're done. Just an idea.
For personal reasons, I cannot go back to a dermatologist for quite some time so that's why I'm asking for some at-home things I can do to clear my skin up until I can go back.
But thank you.
23 hours ago, ShyINFJ said:Hey! Without seeing a dermatologist you can do many things to clear your acne and this will in turn reduce the inflammation. Like many, many people, cutting out dairy and foods that are high in fat, could be all you need. I would recommend doing this. Drinking lots of water, and sleeping right is also great. I would also reckoned using fragrance free soaps and moisturisers. I would also recommend taking some from of oral medicine. Birth control pills on their own can help a lot if your acne is caused by your hormones.
I have never tried the things you are doing to reduce the redness, however, I will say that two weeks is probably not long enough to see results from anything that you try. Keep with something and you will see results. Good luck, and enjoy your studies! You are very young and very pretty and this phase will be over before you know it. I hope you are full of confidence in a few months when this could all be over.
Thank you!
I have been trying to do the dairy cut thing but haven't been the best at it. I am going to definitely take control and do that more effectively. I drink a lot of water so I'll stick to that as well.
My Lush products have "fragrance" in them but they claim they're just essential oils so I'm hoping that that's not a problem? I asked the Lush employees and they said it shouldn't break me out further.
I can't afford to go to a doctor and get birth control either so I'm just waiting it out. I'm taking a Murad acne pill atm. 2 in the morning, 2 at night as stated.
With respect to the Lush employees, I doubt they know whether or not it would make you break out. They also probably just want to make sales ( although you do get some really nice employees, but still they are no dermatologists ). I would recommend finding a fragrance free moisturiser and for other things too.
Further, even if a thousand people on this forum say that a certain moisturiser is great, it may not work for you. If this moisturiser causes you to break out, then stop using it. There is no moisturiser that is perfect for everyone. Just experiment until you fine the one that is great for you! Usually this will be fragrance free, I would think.
If I think of more things I will be sure to tell you!
Lush is a hit or miss for many people. Their products contain some potential irritants...not everyone responds well to oils or oil cleansing. I would try something simple like Neutrogena's oil-free SA cleanser and scrub to prevent new acne lesions. I agree with ShyINFJ - take every positive review with a grain of salt. Some foundations I've tried that people have loved have left me with actual cystic acne that's disappeared after I stopped using it. You have to be careful and patch test on the neck/jawline area for 1 week.
I like Neutrogena's pore clear clay mask/cleanser. I've been using it as a mask only and it really helped calm down a cyst on my face overnight.