Acne?

[Lindsey]

Does anyone here successfully manage acne?

I've had acne since the beginning of the college semester.. I feel like when it first started it was stress related but I'm not sure anymore since it's been an entire semester and I still have it.

I use Neutrogina Ultra Daily Face Wash and Ultra Cleansing Pads - both on my face twice a day, and the cleansing pads on my body once a day. It's completely cleared up any acne on my body, but I still have it on my face; it'll clear up for a couple days then come right back. The active ingredient in both products is 2% salicylic acid.

I've been on the pill since November (Solia), dunno if that should be making a difference or not. It's not crippling or particularly disfiguring acne, but it's just present enough to bother me a little and I'd love to get rid of it.

Anyone have ideas that worked for them?

[blas]

I've been fighting The War On Acne for almost 4 years now. I've been losing since day 1.

It all started at age 20, my skin type just changed from normal to completely oily. Within a matter of a couple of hours, my whole face is shiny and wet (if I don't wear makeup, I can squeeze in an extra hour).

I have spent so much money on everything you can imagine. I have used home-made remedies. Nothing works forever.

But, topical stuff isn't really the answer, because acne is an internal problem. I'm not sure if it's all genetics (dad had bad acne and oily skin from age 20-25) or if it's also from the Depo shot, but the first 3 years I was on it, my skin was normal.

Usually I just have the annoying painfully red hot baby zits, but occasionally I get really big ones. My entire chin has been full of them at times. I have acne scars, despite popping them the "right" way.

What's even grosser than the oil itself is that my zits turn into big whiteheads. Even if they are just little raging zits, the whitehead that forms is just enormous. They are so gross and painful.

I started Lybrel (the Pill) last Friday, but my shot won't start leaving my body until Monday, so I'm still actively breaking out.

I'm hoping when my body is Depo-free, the Pill will help. Otherwise I'm just stuck.

Wearing makeup sucks. I have to keep those oil sheets with me and after the shine starts breaking through, at least once per hour I have to go to the bathroom and wipe my face off. Makeup doesn't last very well, my skin ends up looking just horrid from all the oil slicks.

I tried Neutrogena's new shine-free wash, supposedly cleans out and prevents oil all day. Yeah right.

[Plaidman]

Best way to fight it, is to find out HOW you got it. There are a many ways to get it, from drug type, to the type of make up you use, to stress, even diet. (Though chocolate doesn't give you it), and yeah even genetics though its more rare.

It's mostly from clogging of sebum in your hair follicles, but other stuff can effect it.

[Taboo]

Are you using makeup regularly? If you've cleared up the body acne fine but not the stuff on your face, you may actually be making it worse. The mineral powder stuff works better for some people since it doesn't clog pores as much.

Anyway, if you're on health insurance and it's just a $20 copay or something, then get thee to a dermatologist. Might as well if it's cheap.

[KiaKat]

My sister has severe acne. Has had it since she was in her teens, and thanks to a change in her body chemistry when she went to college, it got more severe.

Two things that have helped her:

1. A round of Cipro prescribed by her dermatologist. Acne is due to a buildup of bacteria in the pores, and it was so out of control for her that the only way of managing it was a 2-week course. This is a last resort if nothing else works.

2. Switching to mineral makeup. The powder covers better than cream makeups, doesn't clog pores, and washes off more cleanly than most cover-ups and foundations. It also absorbs oil, so you don't get a slick on your face every few hours.

Some BC pills will help, but it's dependent on body chemistry and pill chemistry. Finding the right one can take time, and it's not a guarantee.

Look locally, to see if there's a reputable dermatologist with a specialty in acne. They're becoming more common these days.

For me, the acne is related to the particular type of eczema I have, so my treatment is... weird, to say the least.

[RecoveringKinkoid]

Medicated scrubs work well for me. Also...and this is bizarre...toothpaste. Tartar control toothpast as a facial mask. Put it on in the shower and leave it on as long as you can stand it. Then rinse it off. Do NOT get this in your eyes. Works wonders for me.

But really, it does depend on what's causing it.

[Amusement Gal]

Washing your face every day with a (gentle!) soap and wash cloth helps keeping it at bay. I use Burt's Bees Rosemary Peppermint soap and it works wonders since Rosemary is antibacterial. Tea Tree Oil is also something good to use on your face. Then there's also destressing, assorted facial masks (Mint Julep mask is what I use, and it's the best I've tried), and cleaning your pillow case more than usual. Keep in mind when you use any type of mask that your face will get very dry afterwards. Put on a light moisturizer or even splash a bit of water on your face and leave it on, or else you're going to be rather red in the face until you do. Also, the best way to keep it off after all that is to not touch your face a lot. The oil on your fingers goes to your face, and starts it all over again.

Best of luck and I hope this is of some use to you!

Medicated scrubs work well for me. Also...and this is bizarre...toothpaste. Tartar control toothpast as a facial mask. Put it on in the shower and leave it on as long as you can stand it. Then rinse it off. Do NOT get this in your eyes. Works wonders for me.

I've heard of that myself, but never tried it. Isn't it because it dries out the face? I know toothpaste is also good for cleaning jewelry.

[AdminAssistant]

cleaning your pillow case more than usual.

This helps a lot. I wash my pillowcases every time I do laundry.

[Squeaksmyalias]

Also...and this is bizarre...toothpaste. Tartar control toothpaste as a facial mask.

I've used that, and also used it for spot treatments, I have found that using honey and cinnamon for spot treatments works out well if you just notice a red spot starting. I've gotten rid of them before they really got bad since honey kills germs and helps with inflammation. I think it's a spoonful of honey to little less then a spoonful of cinnamon, (it's not exact so don't worry too much) then you take a bit and put it on the spot. Some people say to put it on over night, which is messy so I try to leave it on for at least three hours, you can also do a mask with it which is weird but feels nice. You can even used just honey as a face mask too. Warm water washes it right off so you don't need soap.

I get worse break outs when I use soaps on my face, even the stuff made for acne so I avoid it at all costs. I wash my face with water only, so far using the honey or the honey mixture hasn't caused breakouts right after.

[Taboo]

This helps a lot. I wash my pillowcases every time I do laundry.

Yeah, this does help a lot. I actually own a lot more pillowcases than I own sheets, so I flip the pillow over and then switch out the pillowcase at least once or twice at week.

[Bright_Star]

When I was a teen, I used clearasil. It was the only thing I found that worked for me. Ok, this may sound disgusting but when a zit breaks or you pop it, just what is that stuff anyway that comes out?

[42_42_42]

Mine finally cleared up when I had my ovaries removed...but then I had PCOS and ovarian tumors, so that probably won't work for you.

I've heard a lot of people have had success with using morning urine as an astringent, but it's not something I was ever able to bring myself to try.

[trailerparkmedic]

I had good success with Proactive. It was a bit pricey but worth it for me. Clean pillowcases are very good tip.

What is inside zits? If you're popping a big nasty whitehead it is (mostly) oil, dead skin cells, bacteria and white blood cells. Mostly you're seeing the white blood cells. What happens is that your oil and dead skin cells combine and clog up your pore. Bacteria gets trapped in the pore, and your white blood cells arrive to fight the bacteria.

[zibmai]

It took me many years to find my solution. I try to go the most gentle, natural route when it comes to what I put on my face. I will NOT use anything with a long list of chemicals, especially anything with benzoyl peroxide or salicyc acid. Both chemicals cause me more harm than good and actually caused most of my breakouts.
I now use a very gentle cleanser (St Ives sensitive skin makeup remover and cleanser is amazing) and a face exfoliator pad for sensitive skin twice a day. The thing that made the biggest difference was using apple cider vinegar as an astringent. That stinky stuff prety much solved most of my skin issues, no exaggeration. I will not go a day without it. For moisterizer I use a fruit based anti oxidant lotion that works great without makng my skin greasy or breakout.
I also took some time to figure out what foods affected my skin negatively too. A lot of the time, dairy will cause breakouts as well as a lot of sugar. Water intake is crucial to healthy skin too, so I make sure I get in 60 oz a day. It took me way too long to finally find my skin solution. Ugh.

[Lindsey]

Are you using makeup regularly? If you've cleared up the body acne fine but not the stuff on your face, you may actually be making it worse.

That's the thing, I haven't worn makeup even once in five years or so. I wore it briefly and stopped around age thirteen. That's why I'm so baffled about why my facial acne isn't responding the way my body acne did, because I don't treat my face any differently.

Anyway, if you're on health insurance and it's just a $20 copay or something, then get thee to a dermatologist. Might as well if it's cheap.

Would love to, but can't even afford that.. all my health center moneys go toward birth control right now, which is frankly a little more important. Hopefully in the near future, though, if I don't get this cleared up.

Also...and this is bizarre...toothpaste. Tartar control toothpast as a facial mask. Put it on in the shower and leave it on as long as you can stand it. Then rinse it off. Do NOT get this in your eyes. Works wonders for me.

Tried this in the shower last night, then again this morning. How often do you recommend? Every time you shower, or..? I didn't get it anywhere near my eyes but WOW the mintiness actually hurt my eyes like crazy the first time. The second time it was actually kind of pleasant haha. I could get used to it.

Thanks for the responses everyone!