I’ve been plagued by bad skin pretty much since I started puberty, and my face shows it. Apart from my inability to tan naturally and my supernatural ability to burn horribly, I have a pretty bad acne problem that I can’t seem to get rid of. I’ve tried a lot of stuff, from those single-use Stridex facial cleanser pads to a variety of creams. I’ve heard that a common acne-cream ingredient, Benzoyl Peroxide, actually wreaks havoc on the skin, and shouldn’t be used. Is this true?
Has anyone else had bad acne and now has a triumphant story to tell? Any general advice as far as this goes? It’s starting to get really annoying.
My skin isn’t a story of triumph, but I do have less of a problem now than i did before. I use two prescription gel/cream/goops (one in the morning, one at night), and facewash with Triclosan. it works pretty well for me.
Try a tretinoin cream. There is also a bar soap called Panoxyl that is pretty good. Its 10% Benzoyl. There is also a few pills out there to take. Stay away from Acutane, as its horrid, and has horrible side effects, like balding, and stuff. But there are other kinds with little to no side effects, and might work for you.
You should go to a doctor and have them check your face out, and they can prescribe something to you, then you can just get the generic so its cheaper. Retin-A is expensive! lol
Whats ive noticed, they main way to get rid of acne, is to dry your skin, and thats what a lot of the ingredients do. I can see its harmful, because it makes your skin more sensitive to light, but after using acne medicine, put on some sun cream stuff and you should be fine.
Have you have just tried a regular bar of soap? Very clean, and very dry.
Also, what is your diet? A lot of what you eat can make your acne worse, and there’s also a lot of what you can eat tat will help take it away.
Well, the one cream stuff has 5% benzoyl Peroxide and 1% clindamycin, and the gel stuff is .1% apapalene… so i dunno if it’s possible to find that stuff OTC, but if so, that’s the stuff that’s in my stuff. Benzoyl Peroxide is like a godsend if you know how to use it. Once a day is plenty, or it will dry your skin out and itch like hell. Don’t go more than 5%, and if you use it at all, use a face lotion at night. I have some adidas after shave balm that I use when my skin is tight and scratchy.
I do use soap, yeah. It has helped some. As far as my diet, eh, it’s not all that good I guess. I’ve been getting more fast food (a few times a week instead of just once every 2 weeks or so) since I started working, and been eating more ice cream because of my job, dunno if that makes a difference.
Been more stressed too lately, cause of school and work. That might be part of it.
The general consensus so far seems to be ‘see a dermatologist’. Guess I should look into that…
I read somewhere ( a proactiv brochure I think…propaganda? maybe) that the food you eat doesn’t matter… unless you rub it on your face prior to consumption.
I think I am quite fortionate, My skin seems to be genraly pretty good. At points it gets bad and in the past I have used creams and facial washes but they have never seemed to have great effect.
The main thing I notece with my skin is as soon as I start eating sweets or chocolate I come up in a rash of spots, pretty much the next day. It has a similar effect when I dont get enough sleep for a few nights, just not as bad.
Throughout the week I dont realy wash my face much, when it looks/gets dirty I wash it but I dont rutinly wash it like every day.
I heard that washing your face with soap washes off the natural oils that protect it, I dont know how true that is though.
Maybe if your diets not that great you should try and eat better. Thats the best advice I can give, stay healthy, eat well and get enough sleep and your body will do its best to sort everything out.
Wow, the postings here are going up faster than George Michael at a rest stop. I guess the issue is close to home.
IMHO get a proper prescription. Over the counter stuff can be too harsh or not effective at all, and you may end up bouncing around from one product to another trying to find one that works…assuming you allow enough time to see if it really works (about 8-10 days). I had it bad when I was young, and now my 16 and 19 year old sons have it. What is working best for them (after trying a few different things) is a daily prescription wash (like a Phisohex) and a daily dose of Minocyn. It took two visits to get the dose right ( not too harsh/not ineffective). Some people have (non-fatal) side effect like with any drug but ya don’t know until ya try!
The bad news is you may have to wait it out. The good news is it doesn’t affect your riding.
Edit: I also heard that acne comes from within so cleansers that strip all the surface oil off the surface skin might not be the way to go. I think the idea is to reduce the amount of secretions from the inside so the pores don’t clog in the first place.
My friend, Dawn, has a lot of health books about what foods will do what. It seems kidna crazy, but ive seen her skin, and ive tried it and followed some of the advice in them and it really works.
Stress is always a factor, not just for acne, but for everything. Its best to try and get everything solved and stay as relaxed as you can. Stress is a killer. lol
A dermatologist would be the best bet.
OTC drugs really can work, but its different for everyone. My face takes a lot to dry out, so I use some of the higher doses of things to get the same results. Like when the bottle says use once a day or something, ill sometimes have to use it 3-4 times a day.
Also, a lot of the bottles say results in two days or something, but honestly, give the product a month before judging it. Pictures really can help compare. One picture at the first day, and another after 30 days. You just gotta get a strict schedule for it.
Salicylic acid is a common chemical that is found in most acne medications.
Aspirin is Acetylsalicylic acid.
If you crush an Aspirin tablet into a fine powder and mix it with a bit of Witch Hazel (a good natural topical astringent) to form a paste, it works as a good/cheap/homemade/effective acne cream.
Sometimes I mix baking soda with Witch Hazel to form a cream that I can use to smear on irritated/pimply parts of my face. When the baking soda dries up and starts to crack & fall off my face, I know it’s time to wash it all off.
Toothpaste also works very well for drying out facial skin and soothing, especially if its a paste instead of a gel. The whiter creamy toothpaste works the best for your face.
I don’t even spend any money on acne remedies. Everything can be done with preexisting home goods.
As long as you remember to rinse your face with cold water to close your pores, you should be fine. I used to have pretty bad acne & pimples all over, but now that I’ve figured this acne science out, I’m doing much better.
Roaccutane. I believe it’s been banned in this country but you can probably still get it in the US. After years of taking various stuff, various over the counter creams and then prescription drugs such as tetracycline and oxytetracycline, i tried it, it had noticeable effects in less than a day. Trouble is it’s expensive, had bad side effects and is quite dangerous. You need to have blood tests before you start and every month or so when you take it. I did a 3 month course and after that the acne never really came back.