Oil cleansing + hot washcloth steaming: I've inherited my mother's adult acne, and my skin tends to be oily, but when using standard Retin-A generic, which cleared up my skin a ton, but I was ending up with these giant dry patches next to my nose. Then someone on DW told me about oil cleansing and A MIRACLE OCCURRED. Mostly clear skin and no more dry patches! I aim for ~2-3x a week, preferably in the shower, and a lot of holding a hot wash cloth on my face. I still get a lot of tiny spots, usually blackheads, but I rarely get any infected pimples anymore, and all the million of tiny bumps are mostly gone (unless I don't keep up with things). I use ~9:1 Jojoba oil:castor oil, mostly b/c that's what I had on hand at the time.
Acne.org moisturizer: The other thing that was suggested to me was that maybe I really do have sensitive skin. The moisturizer I was using was nice and light, but the SPF made it burn a little, and at the end of the day, my eyes would itch a lot. The Acne.org moisturizer is super-light and goes on really nicely, and doesn't leave an oily residue unless I'm really dry and add a little jojoba oil to it.
AHA: Does amazing things to smooth out my skin. I don't know how to describe it, but it's like the retinoids but with less drying. I also got it from Acne.org, and it has licochalcone in it, which the dude there is super-obsessed with. I don't know how much of a difference it makes, but my face is doing great.
Prescription retinoids/antibiotics: I still use these at least once a week, but usually not much more than that, and only on spots that are trying to break out. Combined with the AHA (not at the same time), they keep my face clear. I'm super fond of the new one that is a peroxide+retinoid mix, but it is balls expensive, so I use it sparingly.
I'm still looking for something(s) that would let me leave the prescription shit behind, but overall I'm happy with where I am.
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Acne.org moisturizer: The other thing that was suggested to me was that maybe I really do have sensitive skin. The moisturizer I was using was nice and light, but the SPF made it burn a little, and at the end of the day, my eyes would itch a lot. The Acne.org moisturizer is super-light and goes on really nicely, and doesn't leave an oily residue unless I'm really dry and add a little jojoba oil to it.
AHA: Does amazing things to smooth out my skin. I don't know how to describe it, but it's like the retinoids but with less drying. I also got it from Acne.org, and it has licochalcone in it, which the dude there is super-obsessed with. I don't know how much of a difference it makes, but my face is doing great.
Prescription retinoids/antibiotics: I still use these at least once a week, but usually not much more than that, and only on spots that are trying to break out. Combined with the AHA (not at the same time), they keep my face clear. I'm super fond of the new one that is a peroxide+retinoid mix, but it is balls expensive, so I use it sparingly.
I'm still looking for something(s) that would let me leave the prescription shit behind, but overall I'm happy with where I am.