My battle with acne is not an easy one. I think it does not apply only to me but to everybody who suffers from this debilitating skin condition. A lot of people think that acne is insignificant and that one can grow out of it. Let me tell you this:
1. You can never grow out of acne unless you do something about it
2. Acne can affect your psychological as well as physical well-being.
Thus, acne is not insignificant.
I used to think that I will never get to the point where I would have horrible skin. To be honest, this had never come across my mind before. I mean, there was a point I had really perfect skin - my face looked like white porcelain. And I can say now that there was a point when my face was filled with pustules that hurt so badly, I could not even touch or move my face. It wrecked my self-esteem completely and at some point, I did not want to go anywhere at all.
I was fortunate because my parents gave me free reign to do whatever I want to do with my skin. The problem is, what do I do? It was easier if I were to be in Kuala Lumpur because I had an aesthetician I could trust. She would extract every single thing without leaving me battered and bruised. At Melbourne, things were different. I had several facials and none left me satisfied until I discovered Allison Browning Therapiesseven months after my journey of battling acne. I'll talk more about that later.
Point is, I did not know what to do. I've tried many skin products. Done many skin procedures. Got tricked by several nasty people and came to the point where I finally found the IT solution for my skin. Since I found the solution, I will share this piece of information with you readers with acne.
I hope that with this infor! mation, you can make use of it well enough and hopefully, you will not need to slather any foundation to hide your acne.
Steps to battling acne:
1. Research
I personally feel that research is important. People often confuse pustules, whiteheads and cysts. The best place to start researching about acne is to head to acne.org. Acne.org is a site by Dan Kern, who is famous for his acne regime that involves heavy use of benzoyl peroxide. I do not advocate using three pumps of benzoyl peroxide per day but the site houses some really good information on the types of acne, acne solutions and anything acne-related.
Another site I highly recommend is derm tv. Derm TV is a video blog like sort of thing by New York dermatologist, Neal B. Schultz. He offers tips that are offered by my cosmetic physician and the videos are really resourceful.
Apart from researching into acne, you should also conduct research on skin care products that you may use. Try Make Up Alley, Vogue Beauty and Adore Beauty forums for reviews on skin products. Do not blindly take advice from a random sales person aesthetician and buy whatever products you were told to just because they claim it is good for your skin. BEEN THERE, DONE THAT, REGRET THAT. It is a waste of money and waste of time. Research is the key to getting good products, high quality information about acne and access to good dermatologists and aestheticians in your locale!
2. Products
At the moment, I am using skin care products from Rationale. My skin is pretty horrible not because it has acne. It is because it is so stubborn to the point that average products do not work on me. Rationale produ! cts, in my opinion, are the best because they are really potent and therefore, deliver what is claimed. Many products just claim that they will transform your skin over night and etc. I've heard a lot of that, tried a lot of that and cried over my poor wallet because of that.
Rationale products are not the cheapest in the lot. Most of them are over a 100 dollars per bottle but when it comes to skin care, do not skimp. You want to go for the results, not the money. If you are not getting the results, you end up wasting more money because you keep switching products.
If you are interested in my regime, it is as follow:
AM:
-1/2 pea size of prep cleanser (The prep cleanser 200ml, costs 68 AUD only 1/4 is used)
-1 drop of Clear 03 (Clear 03 - 15 ml, 62 AUD, only 1/8 of the bottle is used)
-3-4 drops of Niacinamide serum (25ml, 148 AUD, only 1/2 the bottle is used)
-2-3 pumps of Reflect RX (120 ml, 99 AUD)
PM:
-1/2 pea size of prep cleanser
-1-2 drop of Retinaldehyde (15ml, 165 AUD - Not even 1/8 of the bottle is used)
OR
-1-2 drop of Unclog 02 (15 ml, 59 AUD - 1/2 the bottle used)
-2 drops of Niacinimide serum
Description of products:
I've used these products for 3 months and I am really happy with my skin. The prep cleanser is a gentle cleanser that cleans the skin without robbing your skin from its moisture. I have used many types of gentle cleansers from various brands and the prep cleanser is the best. Even my sister, who has dry skin, is using it! The Clear 03 is 5 percent benzoyl peroxide with 2 percent niacinamide.
Benzoyl peroxide is a famous anti-acne agent because it delivers oxygen to the skin. With oxygen, acne cannot grow because it kills the bacteria that leads to acne formation. The niacinamide serum is an anti-pigmentation serum that also doubles as an acne-killer.Niacinamideregulates oil production of the skin as well as reduces the appearance of red marks. It also soothes skin and gives it a nice glow. I cannot! live wi thout this product!!
Like retinols and Retin-A, retinaldehyde is a vitamin A derivative. In terms of strength, retinaldehyde is a step below Retin-A. Therefore, it is potent but it is not as harsh as Retin-A. Retinaldehyderepairs skin function and allows it to behave normally. Usually, people with acne have weird skin behavior. For instance, the skin cannot shed off properly or too much oil is being produced. Retinaldehyde will help normalize skin shedding and normalizes oil flow. However, the thing is, you cannot stop using Retinaldehyde. Once you stop, your skin will just go back to its normal acneic self. I'm serious about this because I did this and I had congested skin!
Unclog 02 is a serum that has 13 percent AHA and 5 percent BHA. Compared to most AHA and BHA serums that I have used, Unclog 02 is the strongest I've came across. Hence, you are meant to use only 1-2 drops. Despite its scary strength, it is not harsh on the skin. The AHA constituents are lactic acid, malic acid, citric acid and glycolic acid. These acids resurfaces the skin and help reduces the apperance of brown spots left my acne aka macular pigmentation. The BHA is none other thansalicylicacid (SA). SA is good for unclogging pores. Due to the unclogging properties of the SA, you may experience a series of breakouts before achieving clear skin because the gunk needs to come out. However, there is a way to speed things up. :)
3. Speeding things up: Extractions and peels.
There are many methods to get rid of acne apart from using products. These methods are, in my opinion, important. However, which method should you use? I've tried IPL, microdermabrasion (only 1 session), chemical peels and extractions. I can tell you, IPL is useless for acne because it only makes the skin look fairer and nicer but does nothing to the pre-existing acne. Microdermabrasion, like IPL, is good for skin resurfacing. It does little to acne and if you have active acne, you cannot use microdermabrasion because it ca! n worsen breakouts. Also, microdermabrasion is harsher on the skin than chemical peels. After on session of microdermabrasion, lines start forming on my skin. I hate the appearance of the lines so I will not vouch for microdermabrasion.
This leaves chemical peels and extractions. Which is better? Well, the best is: Do both. I've did some experiment on myself and I realized that, if i do peels alone without any extractions, the gunk will be brought up to the surface but it will just stay there (unless the peel is strong enough to get rid of it once in for all). However, if I were to go for facial extractions one week prior to a peel and two weeks after a peel, my skin will look really clean and nice. Almost acne-free. Currently, I am doing 16 percent BHA peels at the Victorian Cosmetic Institute and facial extractions one week prior to the peel and two weeks after my peel.
Oh, and do get your extractions and peels done at a reputable place. Just don't randomly pop into one after seeing the promises they write on the webpage. Sift through blogs and reviews! Moreover, when having your first consultation, ask a lot of questions! Communication is very important.
The one session of extraction at Jillian Wright Clinical Skin Spa in New Yorkdramatically cleared up 75 percent of my acne! So extractions are really,
really important! Your skin cannot get out the gunk itself!
Extractions can sound really scary but if done correctly, it is rewarding
for you and your skin.
4. Lifestyle
Most sites will tell you that food and lifestyle has nothing to do with acne. However, after talking to Jillian Wright, who is a renowned facialist at New York, and Allison Browing, one of the bestfacialistsI've came across in Melbourne, food and lifestyle has everything to do with acne. Stress, wayward hormones, poor diet, lack of exercise, lack of sleep, poor environment and poor hygiene can exacerbate acne. Some factors do not immediately give you acne. Let me give you a snapshot of each factor:
a. Stress: Last year, I had a lot of assignments and reading to do. Also, there was this pressure to get at good grades to secure my entry into psychology honours program. There was one semester where I had 10 essays to do and most of these essays are over 1500 words. During the second semester, I was stressed out by my tedious exchange application to Hong Kong as well as the problems that my faculty was giving me in regards to exchange.The lack of me-time and the increasing workload last year left me feeling really depressed. I was crying almost everyday and there a some point in which I lost motivation to continue university. I really plan to just quit uni (blasphemy!). To counter depression, I started taking Vitamin D and fish oil. Not sure how both of them works but ever since Vitamin D came into my life, I became less depressed and anxious about my work. In fact, my performance has improved since.
b. Hormones: I had really bad PMS towards the end of last year. It was so bad that it was driving me nuts. Two weeks before my menstruation, I will feel like the whole world owes me money. Two weeks of PMS means that I can only enjoy one week of normality. In order to combat this, I decided to google up information on controlling PMS. Many sources have claimed that EPO can help regulate hormones and control PMS. Thus, I started taking EPO. I realized that with EPO, I get zero cramps, zero PMS and better skin.
c. Diet: Dairy products can worsen acne. I can testify this because when I was in the States, I kept drinking low fat Mocha and mocha contains low fat milk. Somehow, I've got new bum! ps when I came back to Melbourne. Generally, it is ideal to eat more greens, fruits and adopt a balanced diet. Of course, don't deprive yourself off some sweets but then again, it is best to avoid them!
d. Exercise: I am not sure how this ward off my acne but I have been exercising since I was 9 because my parents would force me. Nowadays, I exercise on my own volition. I exercise three times per day, 35 minutes per session. I would spend half of each session doing the hula with a huge rattan hoop and another half skipping rope. I also walk a lot and do a hell lot of housework - i.e. vacuuming the house, handmopping the kitchen floors and cleaning the furniture. As I cook almost everyday, I move a lot in the kitchen too.
e. Sleep: My skin always look better if I get 8 hours of sleep. Dark marks will be less prominent and acne feels less painful. So I guess sleep has something to do with nice skin!
f. Environment: When I was at Boston, my skin felt pretty nice. As soon as I got into polluted New York, my skin went haywire!! Then, at Washington, my skin went back to its "feel good" state again. Thus, environment can play a role in exacerbating or reducing acne.
g. Hygiene: I change my pillow case once every week and wash my towels twice a week with hot water. I also sleep facing upwards and do not allow any form of clothing to rub again my face. I also do not touch my face or let my hair touch my face. Remember, bacteria can contribute to acne!
5. Patience
You may think "Oh my god! How am I going to do all this?". However, once you have experienced bad skin, you will try all ways to fix it but the most important thing to fixing it, is patience.
Here are some pictures to give you an idea, how long does it take to clear up skin:
Week 0:
Uneven skin tone and tonnes of clogged pores!Week 2:
Two weeks after using Rationale products, my skin started uncloggingitself. Thus, the appearance of zits.
Week 8:
Purging at its worst. This is me after 8 weeks of using Rationale products and one 12percent BHA peel. The BHA peel brought up so much of gunk to the point
I started doubting whether I should continue on with my products. Thank god I did!
Week 11:
This is after one extraction session at Jillian Wright and one 16 percent BHA peel.This is 11 weeks after using Rationale products. This picture is taken 5 days after my BHA peel.
This might give you an idea on how your skin should look like after a peel.
It will appear a little brown!Week 13:
This picture is taken one week after having a fa! cial ext raction at Allison Browing Therapies. Sorry if my sucky photo booth cut off my forehead but there are less bumps on my forehead and my forehead is free from brown spots! YAY!
Nearly clear.I have a facial extraction session coming up and one more 16 percent BHA peel to go. Hopefully, I will achieve that porcelain skin again:
No, I did not use any foundation or makeup. This is how I look like without make up.P.S: In case you're wondering, my nose is real.
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