Acne as a kid sucked because there was nothing I could do about it. I knew that there were OTC products that weren’t working, and I thought for sure that I’d be cursed. I even used prescription drugs and THOSE did not work. As I got older, a lot of this stuff calmed down. After all, acne is hormonal, and sometimes will fade, right? Well, sometimes, it just freaking won’t go away.
Two summers ago, I had the worst breakout of my life. My skin looked so terrible that I almost became agoraphobic. I even lost touch with some friends because I didn’t want them to look at me, and pictures of my face are nonexistent. This breakout period lasted a full year and a half, and I still don’t know the true root cause of what caused it. Salicylic acid and benzoyl peroxide weren’t working for me, so I decided to become a hippy and give natural remedies a try. Then I did things like change my diet and buy different pillow cases and became patient. It got weird, but everything worked. Even better, it all still works and I have clear skin now.
Before I go into what I did to get a clear complexion, I want to make it clear that all of this is very subjective. One solution will not work for everyone. Approach everything with a skeptical mindset. Most of all, listen to your body, don’t do anything stupid, and talk to your doctor.
Now without further ado…
Let me tell you about what skin troubles I run into.
My skin-type: Awful. I have an oil t-zone (and every zone) with some dry spots on my chin. My skin is sensitive, which makes it worse. If I use a drying product, it makes my face less oily but then my skin is red. If use something for sensitive skin, but it makes it oily and so I break out…. Yep. I live in a southern humid and hot climate that has wet and mild winters. Dry days are during the fall and spring that are both short lived.
Typical troubles: I get ugly darker-than-dark sebaceous filaments (if you think you have blackheads on your nose, then you are wrong. They are sebaceous filaments), white heads anywhere, pimples anywhere (especially on my chin), hard spots on my forehead, and the occasional cystic acne on the bottom half of my face when my body feels like giving me hell (which is all the time).
So How Have I Been Lately?
Still oily, but controllable! There’s the rare zit along my hairline from time to time, but I’m mostly free! My hard spots are minimal! Big pores are at an all-time low! And my face isn’t red!
HOW DID I GIVE MY ACNE THE MIDDLE FINGER?
Well, I'm glad that you asked...
I Started Using Better Cleansing Products
My skin is sensitive (and oily). For this reason, I need something that can balance skin without irritating it. Surprisingly, I saw better results when I decided that I’d stop stripping the natural oils of my skin. If your current regimen calls for you to soak up all of the oil in your face, then you’ll probably notice that the oils are going to come back with a vengeance. Look at your cleanser to see what it’s doing.
Lush helped fix trouble issues in the beginning. I used Angels on Bare Skin and then Herbalism from LUSH which helped clear my skin a lot in the summer. At some point, I switched to an AHA-based cleanser and then the Polished Rice Enzyme Powder by Tatcha. When I made that switch to an enzyme-based cleanser, I noticed better things for my skin.
You can also choose to fight fire with fire… Or oil with oil. A lot of people find success in the oil-cleansing-method. Oils like castor oil, hemp seed oil, camellia seed oil and sunflower seed oil do well by dissolving the gunk that’s deep in pores of oily skin. I tried cleansing my face with hemp seed oil when my skin was dry in the summer, but the results weren’t life-changing for me. Many acne sufferers, however, swear by this method. So give a shot and see where it gets you.
I Used Natural Medication
You know those giant-cactus leaves that you see in the produce section of your local grocery store? Those are called Aloe Vera leaves. Take one home (after you pay for it at the cash register, of course), cut it open, and rub that gel that comes out… Onto the inside of your arm. If you don’t break out with an allergic reaction within the next 24 hours, then you’re good to go! Slather that all over your face. Moan while you do it. It feels like... Well, stuff, so get dramatic. Get loud. Make the neighbors think that you're a total freak.
(If you do get an allergic reaction, then throw that out because you'll only ever get sadness and woe from it. Sadness and woe look like redness and itching. It also looks like swelling and burning sensations. If you didn't listen to me and you experience these symptoms on your face, then talk to your doctor. Your doctor will tell you that you should have listened to me.)
Aloe has a lot of vitamin C and other properties that refresh skin. It’s amazing for acne-prone skin, so you may notice that your acne will heal up rather quickly. Just make sure to use it right after you cleanse skin.
Tea Tree Oil is something that many people swear by. I’d gently dab it on problem areas and then press a drop into a bigger pimple to clear it up. Just make sure to dilute it with water, because it can be a bit of an irritant.
Aloe and Tea Tree oil can also flaky skin if you aren’t careful, so make sure to use juuuust enough and only use it in the morning and in the evening. Oh, and moisturize after you rub then all over your face. On that topic…
I Got the Right Kind of Moisturizer
Moisturizer is really important in making sure that skin is balanced. If you don’t use a moisturizer, then you’ll notice that you skin may get really oily to compensate for the oils that you stripped from your skin. Plus, if you’re in your twenties, you can probably find something anti-aging that will be well-suited for acne-prone skin.
Make sure to find the one that’s right for you. I used an expensive one for a full year that gave me okay results before I found a cheaper one that cleared up my skin within a week. Keep that in mind the next time you guy an expensive moisturizer every three months because the internet said you should. If you face ain’t happy with it, then don’t use it. (Or, you know, waste your money. I don’t make your life choices for you).
I Listened to My Mom and Got Sunscreen
Get the kind made for your face. Keeping the sun off of your skin will help prevent those post-acne scars from getting darker (and the sun just kind of sucks anyway). If you melt and burn in the sun, you may notice that this will help keep your baby sensitive skin from becoming inflamed, too.
Neutrogena is a good brand that you can find at any drug store. I’ve heard great things about the fancy expensive ones like La Roche Posay (if you laughed at the name, then you lose). I like the Tatcha-brand one because it doesn’t run into my eyes when I’m sweaty, it acts as a great primer, and it makes my pores look smaller (the biggest drawback is that it’s super expensive… And it has ruined all other sunscreens for me).
I Cleaned My Phone EVERY DAY
Get a pack of $1 alcohol swabs at your local drugstore and wipe down your phone every day. Do it. Trust me. YOUR PHONE IS GERMY AND GROSS. DO IT! And hey, you. The one that’s reading this article on their phone with their gross hands. If you’re breaking out where ever you’re putting your phone on your face, then do as I say. See where it gets you.
I Maintained a Better Diet
My skin especially got better when I (mostly) cut out soda and processed foods. Replaced refined sugars with raw honey for my tea and oatmeal. I also made an effort to eat a lot of fruits and veggies. It can get expensive, but I stick with whatever the local farmers are selling that month. When you get natural honey and buy seasonal produce from farmers markets, you can say things like "I care about bees" or "I support local farmers," so congrats! Also, I make an avocado spread instead of using mayo on sandwiches. When I cut the junk out of my diet, I noticed my face wasn’t as greasy and I didn’t get little hard spots on my forehead.
While I was at it, I cut out dairy completely. As it turns out, dairy causes different types of hormonal acne. The acne that I would get all along the bottom parts of my face and jaw were all caused by hormonal flare ups. Once I went cold turkey, all of those painful spots and pimples went away. A lot of dermatologists say that only one study showed a link, and diet is a very individual and subjective thing. To be honest, though, it’s what made the biggest difference for me.
(Note: My diet didn’t help me lose weight or anything, but I’ve built better muscle and I have more energy for my martial arts workouts!)
I Drank Water
I try to drink water throughout the day to stay hydrated. People will say “drink water until your pee is clear!” but just drink enough of it. Like, two or three glasses and then a bottle of water when you work out. Of course, the way that I made this work was by replacing my juices and sodas with water only. Yeah, don’t drink something if it has sugar in it. Just don’t. I’ll drink a sports drink if I have a heavy workout, but I focus mostly on hydration.
I Took Supplements…
I take evening primrose oil, vitamin C and vitamin E (both C and E together also help with anti-aging), calcium (for my lady needs), niacin, and iron. I don’t have a preferred brand, but I do check to see what’s more natural and what isn’t made with gelatin.
… And I Took Probiotics
As it turns out, your digestive system needs healthy germs. Apparently there are germs in our system that assassinate the meaner germs that make us sick (who knew, right?!). When I started taking acidophilus, a lot of my acne cleared up within a week. If an antibiotic supplement like zinc isn’t working for you, ask your doctor about taking a probiotic for your acne-related woes.
I Got Weird and Invested in Better Pillow Cases
I started switching out my pillow cases with silk pillowcases that I got on Amazon daily. If I didn’t put on a new pillowcase, I just flipped over one end. I’ve heard people say that this works better than using any other item on the market. I was changing my pillowcases daily before I got silk ones, but I noticed that the inflammation that I typically saw disappeared when I put my face on something softer than cotton.
I Kept in Mind That I Had to Find a Life-Change, Not A Quick Fix
There’s no way that you can get perfect skin overnight and then be done with it. Let me say that again: There is NO way that you can get PERFECT skin overnight and then never have to maintain your results. For every solution that I found, I had to consider whether or not that it’d a quick fix or something that I could use every day. The things that I do on a daily basis are what keep my skin clear.
It’s rough to change everything you know for something that’s truly uncertain, but anything that is worth doing will take time. All of these things worked for me, and they may not work for you or other people. That’s why you have to find the things that work better for you in the long run. You may find small solutions that give you bigger and better results, so go out and find what will keep nasty pimples from popping up. You may be surprised.