I am in my mid 20’s, and despite a typical short-lived bout with acne in my teens, have had a clear complexion since. But for the past 2 years, I have been at war with my face - never a week has gone by without some evil pimple (or three) marring my skin. I go through a daily gauntlet of (ineffective) treatment - benzoil peroxide, salicylic acid, antibiotics and antibacterials. They don’t seem to do jack shit. I eat well, exercise and keep my face and hands immaculately clean. My complexion is never oily, and I never touch or pick at my acne. Yet these problems persist.
I probably should see a dermotologist, but I keep proscrastinating because of high cost and some hope that my face will clear up on its own. I’ve also tried some of the prescription treatments (obtained without a doctor’s guidance), and they haven’t worked either. Only thing left is Accutane, and I really don’t want to get on that unless absolutely necessary.
So why won’t my acne go away? And what can I do to alleviate this problem?
I had the same problem. For me, what worked was thouroughly cleansing my face each evening with and then applying a lotion which was oil-free. Someone once told me that if your skin is too dry (which is what happens with many high-alcohol acne cleansers), it overcompensates by producing too much oil, which results in zits.
I use witch-hazel pads to scrub my face, because the Stridex-type acne pads actually made the problem worse. The ones I have are slightly abrasive to get off all of the dead skin. I wait until my face is dry, and then use the oil-free lotion, which you can get pretty cheaply. Price and brand doesn’t always matter with lotions, I’ve found.
Give it a try. In about two weeks, if you don’t see a difference, you might want to see a dermatologist.
Stress brings out acne in me, as does sleeplessness.
Acne could also be an allergic response (and not necessarily due to contact with the allergen by skin).
I was almost thinking of posting a question about why my skin is breaking out so bad. I’m stressed and not sleeping, so maybe I don’t need to look any further for an explanation.
Go see a dermatologist - with records from your regular doc in hand so the derm. can see exactly what’s been tried. There may be alternatives to Accutane that haven’t been tried.
That said, I don’t know what kind of acne you’re dealing with - at 29, I’m dealing with adult-onset cystic acne, and this crud hurts. It’s likely hormone related - but I don’t want to be on the pill right now, so it’s creams, and ointments (and I still don’t want to do Accutane).
I started seeing a dermatologist when I was twelve. One of the things he told me was not to wash my face too much. The cleanser he recommends is Cetaphil, a mild product which is great for removing make-up as well.
I was pretty annoyed when he told me I’d have acne until I was twenty-five. But not as annoyed as I am now at 29 and still suffering from it.
Not to sound like a pharmaceutical commercial, Lsura, but ask your dermatologist about minocyclene. It’s an antibiotic but also an anti-inflammatory. Worked wonders for me, though we might not have exactly the same problem.
You can get witch hazel pads at nearly any drugstore. You’ve probably just never noticed them, they’re usually stowed in some bizarre location. I used them in high school and never had a problem finding them. They look like this:
(although I’m 90% sure there’s a version without aloe as an added ingredient)
Beyond Salicylic Acid, I have heard that calamine lotion works for some people, but it didn’t for me.
Cetaphil is a mild daily cleanser & may not alleviate breakouts.
Prescriptive medications worked for me a lot better than anything over the counter.
Retin-A won’t eradicate your acne, but it will deflate what you have. It is also prescribed as a wrinkle cream, so it can make your skin feel tight, which is nice.
Primary care physicians have prescribed it for me when I’ve asked, so you may not necessarily have to see a dermatologist to get it.
Taking Tetracycline, in conjunction with applying Retin A lotion topically, worked great for me about ten years ago, but I don’t know if either are still considered treatments of choice.
There is some suggestion that hyperinsulinaemia can cause acne, though this is not (so far as I know) well established. Does your version of ‘eating well’ involve a diet high in carbohydrate?
Another thing is that women often find that their acne clears up when they start taking the Pill. Is that information any use to you?
None in particular. They’re all pretty much the same, when you get right down to it. If you don’t have any allergies that you know of, you can use most anything and get the same results.
I’m not one who will spend much on a lotion. $5 is pretty close to my limit. I’ve never found the need to buy the pricey high-end stuff sold in department stores. I’m pretty sure that one of my last brands was a Maybelline product, but I’m not sure.
If you’re not sure if allergies may be causing some of your skin woes, try to find a hypo-allergenic lotion to start with. If the process works for you, you could explore other brands until you find one which fits your skin and your budget.
If that were true then dryness would never be a problem for people with dry skin. All they’d have to do is put alcohol on their skin.
Oil alone doesn’t cause acne, the problem has a multitude of causes, and I’ve heard that if you put junk on your skin (oil free or not) you will exacerbate the problem because the lotion is just another thing that will block your pores. There are a lot of people with oily skin who don’t have acne.
I have a similar problem with chronic low- level acne, the only things that have worked even slightly over the years to clear my skin up have been antibiotics and Retin-A (and also a glycolic acid product called Azealex). I tried all the over the counter stuff and it never worked for me. The only bright side of all of this is that my skin looks ten years younger than I am. The erythromycin definitely caused more of an improvement than anything else, but I was unhappy about taking an antibiotic for so many months. I don’t know if doctors still prescribe it for acne.
My parents and grandparents (none of whom grew up in the U.S.) never had a problem with acne, but both I and my sibling do. Paradoxically, it wasn’t a problem in my teen years. A doctor once told me that our city is known as an “acne town” and no one knows why. Must be something in the water.
I suggest seeing a dermatologist. You don’t have to take Accutane, and most of them don’t recommend it unless the problem is severe, because Accutane has some permanent side effects, like increasing the dryness of your skin and mouth.
If you don’t want to go to the doctor, pick up some Retin-A the next time you go to Mexico. It’s sold over the counter there and is a lot cheaper than in the U.S. (It’s really stupid that you need a doctor’s prescription for Retin-A, how can it possibly be more dangerous than say, “Preparation-H”?) Maybe you can buy it over the Internet. The cream works better than the gel IMHO. Be prepared for redness and inflamation the first few weeks you use it. After a few weeks you will notice your skin doesn’t have any more of those subsurface bumps-waiting-to-become-pimples.
The way Retin-A works is to increase rate at which your skin sheds and produces new cells, and thins out your sebum (waxy substance which blocks pores).
The downside is that you have to use it consistently so it’s not a permanent cure.
I began an experiment in March that was intended to lower my cholesterol. It did, significantly, but also fixed my acne, often embarrassing because of its inappropriate location.
Should you be interested, I’ll be happy to give you some details.
I didn’t have acne as a teenager but after having children I developed it…but only at certain times of the month. It’s annoying and maybe twice a year it is cystic. Please share your suggestion.
OK. I know it’s somewhat radical, but it’s DEFINITELY worth it.
BTW: cholesterol went from 253 to 199, LDL from 192 to 126, HDL from 42 to 59. Can’t remember my tris, but really good.
Essentially, I cut out all sources of saturated fat and cholesterol, while upping my water and fruit/veggie intake. Also cut out most of my alcohol intake.
This is the hard part: no meats, no candy, no chocolate, no regular ice cream. Switch gradually to soy products before you jump in with both feet. It’s really easy and you’ll be surprised how much good stuff there is to eat if you try hard enough.
After one month, acne was nonexistent anywhere on my face (and absent from my legs and hindquarters, where I’ve been plagued all my adult life.)
The idea to the diet: it’s an experiment you’re undergoing for three months. Don’t deviate, and tell your friends and family you’re trying to see what impact diet has on your life. After you see results, start adding your regular foods, gradually, back into your diet. When you have a breakout, you’ll know your culprit.
Never eat more than 15% per day of your RDA of saturated fat.
Never eat more than 5% per day of RDA of cholesterol, maximum 15% if it’s from fish.
Eat loads of veggies.
Eat loads of fruit.
Eat plenty of oats, either in cereal or in bread.
Keep a concise food diary.
The hardest part is the first two weeks. I started by fasting for 2 days in order to get a “baseline.”
If you’re serious about this, I can give you many more details.
You really should see a derm. Some acne is the result of something the sufferer is or is not doing. Some acne is a medical condition. Period. If two years of trying over-the-counter solutions and some naughty episodes with prescription drugs have failed, then you obviously need medical care.
