Acne Support Group
Having a bad skin day? Year? Life? Join the club. The most common form of acne is known as "acne vulgaris", meaning "common acne." Excessive secretion of oils from the sebaceous glands accompanies the plugging of the pores with naturally occurring dead skin cells (corneocytes) blocking hair follicles. Here you'll find how others are coping with their acne issues, plus new...
I've struggled with acne since I was in my early teens. Now 26, I think I've finally come up with a routine that works for me. The thing is, everyone's skin is different! So what may work for someone may not work for you. This first thing I can recommend is to be easy on yourself and your skin. It's easy to hate yourself. I definitely struggled with self-esteem for the longest time, and acne sure didn't help.
Stress and anxiety are a huge problem when it comes to acne. Hormones are already crazy and stress just makes it worse. It may takes some time, but try to just not worry about it. Everyone has their struggles. So you may see someone with perfect skin and immediately be jealous. Don't! They may be struggling with something else and would trade you in a minute. Remember you are unique (cliche I know, but it's very true).
Stronger isn't always better. If you are using products with benzoyl peroxide or salicylic acid and you aren't seeing results, or it's making it worse, you may need to tone it down. Try using sensitive skin products, even if you have normal skin. The harsher you are on your skin, the harder your skin works. Witch hazel, particularly T.N. Dickinson's can be very helpful. It's a natural astringent that cleans and tightens pores.
Find a natural and/or a simple cleanser. I use unscented sensitive skin Dove bars on my face and body. For some people, soap aggravates skin so if that's the case, try to find a soap-free cleanser without parabens if you can.
Moisture is key! If you have oily skin you may think skipping moisturizer is a good idea. This isn't the case! Without moisturizing, your skin produces more oil and you're right back where you started. I use Cetaphil face moisturizer which contains no parabens but has an alcohol that may irritate skin. Aveeno is also a good choice but it is a little expensive.
Home remedies that you can make yourself are in style. However you have to be smart about what you use. Honey and lemon are notoriously good for your skin. Try to find a natural honey that you can use as a mask. All you have to do is sweep it over your face and let it sit for about 15 minutes, feel free to add lemon juice as well to lighten skin. Be careful however, lemon can burn your skin.
Use sunscreen! While tanning can naturally even out your skin tone and hide scars and pimples for a while, throughout life tanning and burning can actually harm your skin, causing wrinkles and even more acne.
Just remember, it can take a long time for acne to finally disappear. Stressing about it will make it worse so learn to love yourself no matter what. It's not easy, but the sooner you learn it, the easier life will be. Always look for new ways to care for yourself and your skin and find what works for you!
Stress and anxiety are a huge problem when it comes to acne. Hormones are already crazy and stress just makes it worse. It may takes some time, but try to just not worry about it. Everyone has their struggles. So you may see someone with perfect skin and immediately be jealous. Don't! They may be struggling with something else and would trade you in a minute. Remember you are unique (cliche I know, but it's very true).
Stronger isn't always better. If you are using products with benzoyl peroxide or salicylic acid and you aren't seeing results, or it's making it worse, you may need to tone it down. Try using sensitive skin products, even if you have normal skin. The harsher you are on your skin, the harder your skin works. Witch hazel, particularly T.N. Dickinson's can be very helpful. It's a natural astringent that cleans and tightens pores.
Find a natural and/or a simple cleanser. I use unscented sensitive skin Dove bars on my face and body. For some people, soap aggravates skin so if that's the case, try to find a soap-free cleanser without parabens if you can.
Moisture is key! If you have oily skin you may think skipping moisturizer is a good idea. This isn't the case! Without moisturizing, your skin produces more oil and you're right back where you started. I use Cetaphil face moisturizer which contains no parabens but has an alcohol that may irritate skin. Aveeno is also a good choice but it is a little expensive.
Home remedies that you can make yourself are in style. However you have to be smart about what you use. Honey and lemon are notoriously good for your skin. Try to find a natural honey that you can use as a mask. All you have to do is sweep it over your face and let it sit for about 15 minutes, feel free to add lemon juice as well to lighten skin. Be careful however, lemon can burn your skin.
Use sunscreen! While tanning can naturally even out your skin tone and hide scars and pimples for a while, throughout life tanning and burning can actually harm your skin, causing wrinkles and even more acne.
Just remember, it can take a long time for acne to finally disappear. Stressing about it will make it worse so learn to love yourself no matter what. It's not easy, but the sooner you learn it, the easier life will be. Always look for new ways to care for yourself and your skin and find what works for you!
Thank you so, so much for writing this post. Reading it has helped me so much! I really appreciate the reminders to love yourself and be confident despite acne. It's always helpful to hear.
Also, thank you for your reply on my post about gentler skincare alternatives. I definitely think that a gentler routine will help me, but have been scared to cut back on the benzoyl peroxide and salicylic acid because I worry my acne will only get worse. But hearing that you have had success using a more minimal and gentler routine makes me feel a lot better. And even though I know everyone's skin is different, it makes me feel hopeful that maybe I, too, will benefit from a routine like yours.
Thank you so much for posting this. I think it will help a lot of people!
After reading this I am surely gonna give my skin some more time. Your thoughts inspired me a lot. I am 26 and didn't do anything for my skin. I have many pimples and very bad acne scares on my face. From now I will make a skincare routine and will follow it.