Acne at 25

Yup, you read it right.  I'm 25 years old, and I still have acne.  I know that I am not alone and that many other adults still suffer from it as well.  As I explained in my last post, I've been inundated with breakouts in the last couple months.  I finally decided to switch up my skin care routine (obviously, what I was doing before wasn't working for me).  I wanted to share what I've been using and doing to clear up my face.  It has been working for me, and though my skin still isn't perfectly clear, I've seen a drastic improvement in the last month.  I'd also like to preface this post by letting you know that this is just what has been working for me, and I can't guarantee that it will work for you.  We are all unique with our skin, and my needs aren't necessarily the same as yours (even if we have a similar skin type).  If you are completely unsure about what to use on your skin, please see your dermatologist!

So, without further ado, let's get into my new skin care routine!

The Products:

 The two most common active ingredients used for fighting acne are salicylic acid and benzoyl peroxixde.  In my research, I found that benzoyl peroxide is stronger but can leave behind more discoloration from blemishes.  Since I have dark skin, and post-blemish marks are a problem for me, I opted for a mostly salicylic acid routine (all of the products I mention are from the drugstore). 

I've been using Clean and Clear Daily Soothing Acne Cleanser.  Not all salicylic acid cleansers are created equally--they vary from about .5% to 2% in strength (at least the over the counter ones do--prescription products may be stronger).  I opted for this product because it's 2% but claims to be gentle on the skin.  I like that it's a foaming cleanser, and I started out by using it morning and night.  I have since cut back to only using it at night, and I use a gentle cleanser with no acne fighting ingredients from Aveeno in the mornings.

 

After cleansing my face, I use this toner by Equate (the Wal-Mart version of the Clean and Clear Essentials Deep Cleaning Toner for Sensitive Skin).  They have two variations--one with 2% and one with .5% salicylic acid.  This is the .5% for sensitive skin, and I got this one because with all the products I'm using, I didn't want to over-dry my skin.  I use it morning and night.

I let the toner dry, then apply my eye cream as usual.  The next step is moisturizer, and I've been using this one with .5% salicylic acid (the Target brand of the Clean and Clear Essentials Dual Action Moisturizer).

 The final step is one I only use at night to spot-treat blemishes after I give my moisturizer a few minutes to sink in.  It's the Clean and Clear Persa-Gel 10 Acne Medication. 

 Results and Final Thoughts:
I've only been using these products for one month, and my skin has definitely improved.  After about a week, my skin felt more dry, and I also noticed flaking.  I expected this to happen, as the salicylic acid helps skin cell turnover (the flaking comes from the ingredient working to slough off dead skin cells).  This makes it an effective acne treatment because you won't have as many dead skin cells clogging your pores.  However, you still need to exfoliate.  Twice/week, I swap out the Clean and Clear cleanser for a gentle exfoliant at night (I use the Aveeno Positively Radiant Daily Scrub).

If you already have drier skin, I would recommend only using all these products once/day.  You may also want to add something more moisturizing on top of the salicylic acid moisturizer.  Also, if you're going to be out in the sun, make sure you use sunscreen on your face.  I haven't been, but come summer, I'll be using a sunscreen over the moisturizer

The fact that I've also not been wearing makeup as often is worth mentioning.  I have basically stopped wearing liquid foundation (something I used to wear daily) except for special occasions or if I want my skin to look especially flawless.  Instead, I've been going with a naked face whenever I can to let my skin breathe (which is hard when you want to cover up your acne!).  When I still want some color on my face, I use a BB cream or a primer with light powder foundation over it (I recently re-discovered an old love, the Bare Minerals SPF 15 Foundation).  I like this product because it makes your skin look healthy and provides coverage--plus, it doesn't have all the heavy ingredients my liquid foundations have.  I plan on continuing with this routine and going light-handed with products on my face, and with any hope, I'll have clear skin one day!  To any of you out there going through the same thing, I hope this was helpful.  Thanks so much for reading!

xoxo,

CC