How I Finally Cleared My Stubborn Acne

I have had acne since junior high, for almost 20 years. Cleanser, toner, lotions, cream, steaming, mask, peeling mask, exfoliation, diy natural alternatives, professional facials, and a needle into one pimple that was a recurring volcano for over a year at a doctors office. I have probably done all except oral pills. I just cant justify ingesting pills with absolutely nightmarish warnings over red marks on my face.

I don't have acne anymore.

And yes, I bet you have heard people telling you about this cream and that cleanser, and those regiment etc etc. I am not here to sell or preach, but merely to tell you about what seemd to have cured my skin.

Everyone's skin is different obviously, and it is often so easy for someone with good skin to tell you "you know. If you do this and that like I do, your skin would be perfect! " I had a "friend" in high school quite simply said to me "Do you know how to wash your face with a cleanser? Just wash it twice a day like me and you wont have those pimples. " Dear lord, if it was that easy no one would have pimples now would they?

But are their regiment the reason why their skin is clear? A lot of times I doubt it. They most likely started with very resilient, trouble free skin.

Anyway, back to my timeline to cleared skin.

I was a new mother with little help. I was busy, and too tired to manage those skin routines I used to follow religiously with little results. During pregnancy my acne was at an all time worst - probably partly due to hormones. After I gave birth however, I neglected my regiment. I could spend maybe 5 seconds to wash my face with nothing but plain water at the sink. I barely had time to shower. My baby girl is extremely clingy and will cry the moment she realizes she is not in mommy's arms.

After a few months... I was surprised to see my skin almost completely cleared up, for the first time in... almost 20 years? I thought I finally grew out of it, at age 3X.

As my baby grew up, I decided to return to my regiment of face wash, toner, and moisturizer. Hey, its all healthy now right?? Let's help it get even better looking! Big mistake. A few weeks later, my skin absolutely blew up all over again.

Shocked, I again tried the many new lotions, diy masks, etc etc. To no avail. And one day as I was looking after my daughter learning to sit upright... I sort of gave up. So what if my skin looks like crap... I should spend my time playing with her rather than stressing out over my face. I am a mom now. She should be my #1 priority. I brushed my teeth, skipped the lengthy skin routine, and rushed back to be by her side at night time.

And, you guessed it, a few months into my total neglect of skin regiment, it cleared up again.

I believe my issue was a mixture of removing too much of my natural skin oil. You know how minutes after you are finish with cleaning, you can SEE little globes of oil coming out of every one of your pores? I realized then... that was my skin, shocked and desperately trying to replace the oil that was stripped away. All those fancy cream were not helping either - I was "feeding" my skin with so much strange anti aging / etc. chemicals it just don't want or need. And it almost seemed like all those flareups were my skin purging those strange substances out straight through its pores.

Washing with plain water is usually all I do now. When I do feel the need to clean my skin (once a week usually), I spread generous amount of coconut oil over my face, rub it in to combine with the existing oil on my face, and wipe off the excess with a warm towel. (I chose coconut oil because it has the least "ingredients". Coconut oil contains one ingredient - coconut oil.) I see it as a form of merely "diluting" dusty or dirty facial oil with a cleaner compatible oil, as oppose to stripping off the entire layer of oil on the skin. You know how they say you shouldn't replace all the water in a fish tank at once because it may shock the fishes? Maybe it is something like that.

I have since stopped using all form of moisturizer on any part of my body. Sure, it got very dry, and somewhat painful for the first little while. But eventually the skin on my hands and legs seem to have adapted to the absence of moisturizers by producing natural oil to keep itself soft. Whatever this stuff is, it doesn't even wash away with hand soap now. The only thing that will strip it all off is a coating of flour when I knead dough, most likely because the flour has absorbed the oil. Then it gets so dry it hurts... but it recovers after a day or two.

Does diet have anything to do with it? Possible, but unlikely. I am not proud to say that I get maybe 3 glasses of liquids a day, most in the form of tea and soup. I still probably eat fastfood once or twice a week, and still love my chocolate and gummies. I eat less fruits now (kids taking them all!!!) and even less variety of veggies (they will only eat broccoli and cauliflower).

...my goal from here on will be to return to my healthier diet from years ago...