Message to reader: You don't have to read this blog post, it's just for my reference.
Background on my skin: I have had acne since I was at the age of 14. Around the end of grade 7 to grade 8. Mainly hormonal acne. As a child I barely drank water, my go to drink was milk. To treat my acne, I would use a prescriptive topical cream that contained benzoyl peroxide. I used those drugstore cleansers such as Spectro Gel, Clean & Clear, St. Ives. After that I wouldn't use toner or moisturizer. My acne was not cystic/ drastic/ super severe, it was moderate as I can remember. As a young person I didn't care about my appearance, even though at that age when hormones start raging, people changing, I just never took notice. I did a bunch of bad things like scrubbing my skin, letting my skin 'air-dry' after cleansing, using towel paper instead of a towel, taking long showers, picking at my acne, squeezing it, applying too much of the benzoyl peroxide cream, and not throughly rinsing off the cleanser. My acne was mainly on my forehead at that time.
As I grew up, my skin became more oily at parts so my skin type became combination, oily on the forehead and nose. I really started taking notice in my skin in gr. 10. I had acne scars, and pimples were growing on other parts of my face besides the forehead. I started reading product reviews from makeupalley. Doing research on what products were effective. Despite reading these reviews, I didn't buy them, I found a fulfillment when reading reviews. I did buy a toner from H2O~ because it looked very promising. Somehow I became more interested in the ingredients that were put into products. Leading me to have interest in organic products because they contained less manufactured/ man made chemicals. While I was at an Exhibition, my friend and I came upon this booth where they sold organic skin care products, the line is called Earth to Body. They provided very useful information when talking about there products. I was not forced to buy anything. However I came by a second time and bought a clay mask. Earth to Body didn't have a store, they only sell during special events so I was determined to find stores that carried organic products. My friends told me about these health stores that do carry organic products along with food. So one day we spent the evening browsing in these health stores. They had testers so we started using them. I did not buy anything that day but will surely come back.
I came back to the health food store and purchased an oil-free moisturizer from Alba organics. My mind was still set to oil-free products. I thought that since my face was oily enough, then why put on more oil? I didn't manage to use up the moisturizer, there was a strong fragrance and I later learned that fragrances can be irritating to the skin. While researching through Google, I was led to the Oil Cleansing Method. I didn't look into it that much so I let it slide.
A few years later I came upon the OCM again and decided to give it a shot. I began using half and half jojoba oil and castor oil in the first week of December. I steamed/ opened my pores with a hot towel that I bought to use only for OCM. Then I would apply the oil mixture and massage my entire face for a good 3 minutes, I read about OCM more and it was recommended that I massage for about 10 minutes. People have said that it literally removed the impurities and blackheads. Part of the reason why I was using this method was to remove the blackheads on my nose. I was using it every single night. Little did I know that by exposing my face to excessive heat led my skin to function weaker (as in less effective with fighting off bacteria, weakening of the acid mantle). The oil cleansing method was effective with getting out the impurities I have on my skin, while massaging I would feel grainy bits come out. However it did not help with the blackheads on my nose. I'm assuming that since my blackheads have been there for many years, ocm will not be able to budge them out. During the winter break, my face has been in the worse condition it has ever been, well I think my skin was worse before but back then I didn't take notice. I was developing cystic acne, that were inflamed and red and itchy on the sides of my cheeks and jaw area. Part of the reason why this was happening could be because of the stress I was holding in. I was afraid of showing my face once school resumed. However as the weeks past my skin became co-operating. I looked into home remedies and ways of healing my skin again. I started using aloe gel from this aloe plant I bought, it did prevent my acne from being itchy but it did not calm it completely. I stopped OCM completely and resorted to this mask called the green bean starch-yogurt drink mask. Which I found out about from a girl on soompi (asian forum), she posted pictures and she became clear of acne after months of using this mask that her grandma concocted. I decided to give it a chance. There were no immediate results however my acne did become a little bit less.
In February, my cystic like acne was still present so my mom booked me an appointment to a dermatologist. I read up about the dermatologist before going in and they prescribed me with antibiotic pills which I should take for a month and then come back to see how my acne progressed. I took two pills in the morning and two
at night, I found taking 4 pills a day was too much but I went with it. And yes my acne subsided, they were becoming less. The only things left on my face were acne scars. Of course I get about 3-4 little pimples each week, but it was not as bad. My skin stopped becoming irritating, itchy, red. I was happy. However I stopped taking the pills one week before I was suppose to. I stopped because I did not like the fact of having to rely on
pills/ medicine and I read that taking the antibiotics could be drying to your internal organs. Right now my skin is not clear but my acne is at bay now. I might go back to the oil cleansing method, but if I were to do that I would only do it about once or twice a week. Instead of every night like I did before.
At the moment I have been reading books, they are
At the moment I have been reading books, they are
very informative. I do not agree with the first book 100%, remember what you read may not be always true, take in the information with a grain of salt. (I don't remember how that quote goes, fail).
I learned that there is no cure for acne, sometimes it leaves other times it could stay with you. We can only manage it.
Link to forum topic about mask: http://www.soompi.com/forums/topic/329526-my-acne-journey/
Credits to pictures: http://maryselikes.com/books/the-new-science-of-perfect-skin/
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