My face is turning into a pizza. How do I get rid if these freaking zits!?

Factual Questions
1

Barring puberty, my face has always been smooth, clean, not very oily, and well kept. I’m not a metrosexual by any means, but I clean often and practice good hygene. I get zits on occasion, usually around my chin or right on the side of my nose. But breakouts? Never.

Until now. Sometimes starting around three to four weeks ago my forhead up and decided to explode…I’m sure I’m exaggerating, but I really don’t like these red little bastards taking up board without rent on my face.

So how do I get rid of them? So far I’ve taken to washing and scrubbing my face everynight for about ten minutes, washing and scrubbing with Noxzema, oil cleansing stuff my sister has, and I’ve been liberally applying Cetaphil over the past few days. It’s a little bit too early to speak for the Cetaphil, but nothing else is having much impact.

These zits are too small to actually come to a white head and be popped, otherwise I’d be all over them. They just pop up, small, red, and greasy, and stay there. there have been no major changes to my diet, and the only lifestyle change I’ve undergone that might make a difference is increasing the length of my jogs. I used to jog 2, and then 3, and then 4, and now I’m up to 5 miles a workout. I’m sweating more than ever before. But still, I’d hate to think breaking out in zits is the price to pay for staying in shape.

So…what’s the cure for the common zit breakout? A long nights rest? Is there a popular soup amongst motherley types I should be preparing for myself? Perhaps taking the day off from work?

2

Follow the regimen this guy has, it’s working like a charm for me. But when he says to start out with tiny doses of benzoyl peroxide, LISTEN TO THAT! I can’t stress this part enough, I started off too fast, ramping up the amount too quickly and my face started peeling like crazy.

But if you do it slowly over time, you’ll be clear most likely in 2 months, with constant progress over the last month. Use lots of moisturizer throughout, but start off slowly with any lactic acid moisturizer as well, that stuff burns like no tomorrow when your skin isn’t used to it.

Anyways, good luck with your acne!

3

Or you may have rosacea. Google it for a complete definition, and see a dermatologist for an accurate diagnosis, but your description is similar to my experience with the condition. Also, my breakouts seemed to coincide with periods of heavy sweating and the change in seasons.

4

Or you could have a host of other conditions. For someone who didn’t have much acne as a teen to suddenly be breaking out for no apparent reason is odd. You could have some other kind of bacterial infection like staph, or something else.

Overcleaning and scrubbing do not help acne, by the way. They can make it worse, by stimulating the oil glands to produce more oil to make up for the harshness. And, if you have another kind of infection you could be spreading it by scrubbing.

You should see a dermatologist and find out what’s going on.

5

Second the advice to ease off on the scrubbing and go see a professional to help with the sudden change.

I spent 4 years fighting with my acne until I realized that scrubbing was just drying it out, leading to overproduction of oils. Now, I rarely use any soap on my face, opting for plain water instead. Only occasionally get bad zits. Of course, in that same period of time, I also aged past puberty, changed latitudes, and started hormonal birth control. YMMV, which is why you should see a doctor.

6

[QUOTE=Alice The Goon]
For someone who didn’t have much acne as a teen to suddenly be breaking out for no apparent reason is odd.
[/QUOTE]

Actually, sudden onset of adult acne is not that odd. If you follow the above link to acne.org and read the message boards there you’ll meet dozens of others with onset acne. Those message boards are a wealth of information on acne; a great resource to start learning about your potential new condition.

Your best bet is to see your GP and discuss the situtation, however. There are mild topical drugs available that can do wonders for mild acne. Goodluck.

7

[QUOTE=JoeSki]
So how do I get rid of them? So far I’ve taken to washing and scrubbing my face everynight for about ten minutes, washing and scrubbing with Noxzema, oil cleansing stuff my sister has, and I’ve been liberally applying Cetaphil over the past few days. It’s a little bit too early to speak for the Cetaphil, but nothing else is having much impact.
[/QUOTE]

That sounds pretty hard-core. I find that Noxzema is too harsh on my face, and scrubbing for ten minutes can’t be helping (although I completely understand the instinct to do it!) Be gentle!

8

[QUOTE=gigi]
That sounds pretty hard-core. I find that Noxzema is too harsh on my face, and scrubbing for ten minutes can’t be helping (although I completely understand the instinct to do it!) Be gentle!
[/QUOTE]

Me too! Overscrubbing can make things a lot worse.

I had acne as a pre-teen/teen, but it went away for years. Came back recently though.

OTC meds like benzoyl peroxide & salycilic acid never helped me much, and most acne washes just made it worse, but tea tree oil (diluted) has helped immensly. So has easing up on the amount of scrubbing I did. Different treatments work well for different people, but almost nobody does well with really vigorous scrubbing like that.

I will also recommend you go see a derm, though. Many people mistake rosacea for adult acne, and make it worse by treating it like acne. And if it is acne, your doc can prescribe you something if OTC treatments aren’t working well for you.

9

See a dermatologist.

Have you made any unusual changes in your diet recently?

Try adding some Probiotics to your diet- sometimes they help rebalance your body.

10

The answer is zinc!

IANAD but I recommend zinc. When my teenage son started breaking out I did some research and learned that an oral zinc supplement taken daily will improve acne in males.( For reasons unknown, it doesn’t help females.) My son started taking a zinc tablet every day and his zits cleared up within three weeks. He still takes the zinc and they’ve never returned.

I run a Boy Scout troop, and I’ve passed this hint on to the parents of my Scouts who have bad skin and it’s helped every single one of the kids. It works on grown men, too. Try it.

11

[QUOTE=Sonia Montdore]
The answer is zinc!

IANAD but I recommend zinc. When my teenage son started breaking out I did some research and learned that an oral zinc supplement taken daily will improve acne in males.( For reasons unknown, it doesn’t help females.) My son started taking a zinc tablet every day and his zits cleared up within three weeks. He still takes the zinc and they’ve never returned.

[/QUOTE]

As long as you stay within safe limits, I suppose it can’t hurt.

12

Are you by any chance wearing a headband when you jog, or wiping sweat from your forehead? Touching your face can provoke breakouts. Also, how about your hair? Is it getting sweaty and plastered against your forehead? Are you washing your hair when you shower after your jog? The advice to see a doctor is good (and the advice about not over-scrubbing), but I wouldn’t be surprised if your breakout has a “mechanical” cause like this, since it is recent and concentrated in one area of your face.

13

[QUOTE=Harriet the Spry]
Are you by any chance wearing a headband when you jog, or wiping sweat from your forehead? Touching your face can provoke breakouts. Also, how about your hair? Is it getting sweaty and plastered against your forehead? Are you washing your hair when you shower after your jog? The advice to see a doctor is good (and the advice about not over-scrubbing), but I wouldn’t be surprised if your breakout has a “mechanical” cause like this, since it is recent and concentrated in one area of your face.
[/QUOTE]

This was the arguement my parents used for years, mostly because they disliked my hairstyle (long bangs parted so that they swooped across one side of my forehead to end level with or below my eyes). They constantly admonished me for “hiding my pretty face” :rolleyes: But, the pimples always seemed to be on the portion of my forehead that was uncovered, so I think they were full of crap. Opinions?

14

Well, since your parents were mad about your hair, I’m guessing you were a teenager at the time in question, Pullet. So maybe you just had teenage acne, which is of course pretty typical, and maybe didn’t have a mechanical cause. Or maybe you had a habit of touching that part of your forehead when you kept your hair out of your eyes? Something to thing about.

15

Thanks for the advice everyone!

Sorry for the late responses here. Trying to keep up with homework over here. The waters are calm for now…

[QUOTE=Lurker2006]

Follow the regimen this guy has, it’s working like a charm for me.

Anyways, good luck with your acne!
[/QUOTE]

Man, it this ever turning out to be an educational experience. I never knew zit outbreak = acne. I thought Acne was something some people got off in and on and needed expensive creams to battle.

I never imagined someone would suggest going to a doctor for a zit outbreak. Hundreds of tv commercials have convinced me that relief comes in the form of a $3 bottle at WalGreens. I was thinking this thread would amount to “Oh, buy a tube of Zit-B-Gone. should cost 'bout thee fitty.”

Anyways, I’m going to try this regime. I already have the Citaphel.

[QUOTE=Rhubarb]
Or you may have rosacea. Google it for a complete definition, and see a dermatologist for an accurate diagnosis, but your description is similar to my experience with the condition. Also, my breakouts seemed to coincide with periods of heavy sweating and the change in seasons.
[/QUOTE]

Nah, what I have is less red than it is bumpy and greasy. The bumps are red, but not so much that I would think it would be Rosacea.

[QUOTE=Alice The Goon]

You should see a dermatologist and find out what’s going on.
[/QUOTE]

This isn’t done unless I have a serious problem. Having unsightly skin doesn’t make the cut. This isn’t because of stubborness, or anything pigheaded like that mind you. It’s more because of the crushing poverty. Last time I went to to a doctor is was for an ingrown toe nail that I had waited about a year to have taken out. It was half the size of a dime by that point. I was working as a bussboy too.

Man, did those days ever suck.

[QUOTE=Pullet]

I spent 4 years fighting with my acne until I realized that scrubbing was just drying it out, leading to overproduction of oils.
[/QUOTE]

Overscrubbing causes an overproduction of oils? Well that would explain that! I thought the acne and disgustly greasy forhead were going hand in hand. I’m going to ease up on the face scrubbing. Thanks.

[QUOTE=Sonia Montdore]
The answer is zinc!

[/QUOTE]

I’ll look into that. Thanks.

[QUOTE=Harriet the Spry]
Are you by any chance wearing a headband when you jog, or wiping sweat from your forehead? Touching your face can provoke breakouts. Also, how about your hair? Is it getting sweaty and plastered against your forehead? Are you washing your hair when you shower after your jog? The advice to see a doctor is good (and the advice about not over-scrubbing), but I wouldn’t be surprised if your breakout has a “mechanical” cause like this, since it is recent and concentrated in one area of your face.
[/QUOTE]

No headband. My hair is usually pretty short and doesn’t bother my forhead much. When the sweat really starts coming down, I use my shir to wipe it up. I shampoo my hair once out of every two showers.

Maybe a headband would be a good thing.

16

my brother experienced the same, and I suggested he buy cotton makeup remover balls, dab rubbing alcohol on it and then dab his face… within a month, he cleared up. I guess it was hormonal?

17

You mentioned that your face is oily. If the shininess is bothering you, I highly recommend these. They absorb oil really well. If needed, you can also use tissue paper instead to soak up excess oil, but it’s not quite as effective.

18

[QUOTE=Spoleto]
my brother experienced the same, and I suggested he buy cotton makeup remover balls, dab rubbing alcohol on it and then dab his face… within a month, he cleared up. I guess it was hormonal?
[/QUOTE]
When I tried that, it made my skin much worse. The alcohol was too drying, it caused my skin to crack and get infections. I use cotton balls or cotton makeup remover squares and put astringent on the cotton, then wipe my face with that. Astringent usually has some alcohol, but it is not as harsh as straight alcohol.

19

i never had an acne problem, but have consistently suffered from a few zits here & there since puberty… like fifteen years now. one thing i have found to work a hunnert percent of the time is a little dab of toothpaste (just enough to cover the offender, and the brand seems to be inconsequential as well,) applied before crashing - by waking, after washing my face the pimples are gone. every time.

though, i gather your problem is more severe than a few dabs of toothpaste can cover. i suggest seeing a derm, like several others in this thread have recommended.

my sister had a severe acne problem in her late teens, which nothing seemed to have any effect on. finally, she saw a derm who prescribed the proactive™ treatment - within a couple weeks, she was completely clear skinned, and has been clear since; likely because she followed the full six month scrip, and didn’t just give it up after she got rid of the original roni’s.

so ya, see a derm, and follow their advice completely. prolly your best bet.

20

There’s a couple more things I thought of. First of all, use a clean washcloth EVERY time you wash your face. EVERY time. I’ve read advice to use a fresh washcloth for rinsing after washing, but I don’t go that far. You can use the cheap washcloths that you pick up for a pittance per dozen at a discount store, you don’t need to buy the luxurious ones at Bed Bath & Beyond. Second, change your pillowcases more often. I find that changing my pillowcases twice a week really helps keep my face cleaner.

I understand that you just don’t have the money to see a dermatologist right now. Still, if you have to see a doctor for any reason, bring up the subject of your zits, the doc might be able to give you a magic pill or something. Sometimes a course of antibiotics will clear up acne, and some antibiotics are very cheap.