Skin issues and solutions

I'll share one thing that your post made me think of, but as your skin is so sensitive, it's probably hardly a suggestion!  And I guess I don't recommend it to anyone unless you are really sure of what you are doing, because you can apparently do more long-term harm than good if you're not careful.

One problem I had for the longest time was small blackheads, mostly around my lips and on my nose, which looked really horrible - dark-coloured pores.  I discovered glycolic acid about 4-5 years ago, just because I wanted to try a good exfoliator, and that cleared up the problem completely.  I think glycolic might be considered BHA but I'm not sure.  Lactic acid is a bit gentler and does leave the skin feeling well-exfoliated and clearer.  Although with all these types of skin peels, you've got to be SO careful to keep your face out of the sunlight and avoid any type of sunburning, probably for obvious reasons.

I still use glycolic peels every once in a while, but it does burn, and you've got to have your bicarb mixed with water ready to neutralise the solution and make sure you don't leave the solution on too long.

I too have scars from really bad acne as a teen - was put on antibiotics then tetracycline (I think) then they went straight for the Accutane, which cleared up the break-outs.  Never had breakouts like that since, but I have to live with some scarring, especially by the jawline, which is probably not terribly noticeable, but wearing makeup seems to make me think it looks better!

I think leaving your skin alone will help hugely. I get blackheads and spots and I used to constantly try and 'fix' them, it definitely made them worse. The best thing I ever did for my skin was throw away my magnifying mirror.
I found using as little product as possible on my skin was the way to go. I don't use bought cleansers or moisturisers, I just use all natural stuff, I like to gently exfoliate with coffee grounds, oats, nutmeg etc and moisturise with plain oils. (Argan is my fave) I often just wash my face with water these days. It is balanced now, I don't strip the oils with harsh products and need to replace them with heavy moisturisers.
What you put into your body has the biggest impact on your skin. So avoid processed foods, additives, smoking, alcohol. Eat real food, including plenty of good fats. (Nuts, seeds etc, they are great for your skin) Drink water, do some exercise and get plenty of sleep.It really isn't rocket science, but it works. If i am stressed, tired and have been eating takeout, my skin looks dreadful. When I was younger and constantly dieting, my skin also looked dreadful.  Skin needs to be nourished from the inside, eating a very low fat diet had a negative impact on my skin.

I have to agree with Wicked Pixie's suggestions of leave it to nature and work with it from the inside out.  I notice spots when I don't eat very well or hydrate well enough, and I used to work with someone who swore her really clear skin was down to the fact that she made a point to drink 2.5 litres of water a day.

The only products I use on my skin are sensitive face wipes and the Nivea Pure face cream (you may have seen other posts where I mention it; I love that stuff), and I only use them on days where I've worn make up (which I don't wear every day; maybe 3-4 days a week).  And for make up, I only use mineral based make up, which seems to agree with my skin the best.

These are the ingredients in the Nivea face cream for combination skin; I don't know if you would have sensitivies to any of them:

Aqua, Glycerin, Alcohol Denat., Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Cetearyl Alcohol, Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil, Octyldodecanol, Glyceryl Stearate Citrate, Methylpropanediol, Dicaprylyl Ether, Glyceryl Stearate, Propylene Glycol, Argania Spinosa Kernel Oil, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Tocopherol, Sodium Carbomer, Xanthan Gum, Methylisothiazolinone, Linalool, Limonene, Citronellol, Benzyl Alcohol, Butylphenyl Methylpropional, Alpha-Isomethyl Ionone, Geraniol, Parfum

Alexia, I feel like I tried a mario badescu glycollic wash and it didn't do anything! LOL! I wanted it so badly and ended up giving it away.  Unless it was something else. Yea I'd have to go very low on the %. Right now my cleanser is creamy but has 2% salicylic acid and I do have a 5% aha cream that I'm only using once a day on a specific spot but I'm not sure yet if it does much of anything. I also have an 8% AHA gel that idk, I feel like it may be too much. I tried a 10% once and my skin FLIPPED out on me.  I have a Vit C serum but with that I also just patch tested it continuously in one area (as opposed to all over) and didn't see much of a change other than some dryness. I wonder if I should try again....

Oh! Thanks for the ingrid list! I was going to look it up. Sometimes I do react to a certain ingrd like if it's too strong acid/citrus/specific vitamin, but more often I feel like maybe I don't as much and I just get bumps naturally and bug out and blame it on the product. Like, how crazy sensitive can I be!?

I agree with Pixie sooo much too. I don't always get to be healthy because my job is constant running around. I try to always bring food and water but some days I forget and it's brutal.  I do like to excersize but I'm way exhausted lately.  And as far as alcohol, idk if I can cut that out...after work all I want to do is drink wine and pass out -_- But I know it's not helping. I didn't find argan to help me much, I have tried  alot of oils and come back to them often but I think pure they are too much for me. But on the flip side, I used more 'natural' stuff ranging to store bought cleansers that stripped too much, such as black soap, even some 'sensitive' cleansers. Ditto with the Rx. So then I really think that's the worst because you're just messing up the skin balance. But I don't just want to strip it and then use a moisturizer especially since it's not the same as your natural oils (which is why I tried jojoba as one of the oils in my mix, and I do like it, but I can't do it all the time. I do find if you spot treat with jojoba oil it seems to heal up the open popped areas faster).

But again, not picking it is the BEST thing so far and I still haven't!  *1*  It's SO hard though, to see the bumps and just resit time and time again...  I also have some very strange issues still (not just pimples/blackheads but I had these odd red patches that I'm still waiting for them to heal). I think often it was overdoing it. That maybe one thing is ok, but not 3 or 4 harsh products at once. I'm keeping it simple now but I barely see a change. But I think it's better to have a slow change then one that's too fast and then goes the other direction. (like with the oil, I got moisturized quickly, but then I clogged, and things that dry the acne then over dry the skin around it)  I use a very little bit of tea tree on blemishes and sometimes a sulfur mix that has some alcohol but I use only a dab. (Plus as a teen I had a horrible diet, used alcohol and my skin was so much better -_-) I also have a mud mask which I don't think does much. I do like pure aloe and also egg as a face mask. That's one of my favorites.

You don't have to live like a saint lol. Just be aware that all the rubbish we put into our bodies affects our skin. The main issue with alcohol is it is so dehydrating, so if you are having wine make sure you drink extra water to compensate. Smoking is the worst thing for skin, not only are you filling your body with toxins, the smoke coats your skin as well. Plus you get wrinkles from all the puckering. It was the thought of mouth wrinkles that pushed me into finally giving up when I turned 40 lol. Pure vanity, nothing to do with cancer or death.
Not picking will have the biggest effect, and if you really must pick make sure your hands are spotlessly clean.
You just have to keep refining your routine until you find what works for you. It took me a long time to figure it out, but I generally have much better skin now in my forties than I ever did in my twenties. I feel so old and wise now lol.

Yea I hear that. But part of me gets soooooo mad that we still have issues as adults (and some of us, like me, didn't have it as teens!) I agree about the smoking. I did used to smoke but I stopped, but I have been a little lately 🙁

I *wish* I could just ask you guys what thing is a problem right now but I know it's impossible. But currently I'm using Olay blemish face wash. I used this in the past and it was pretty good but I was still picking. Right now I'm not so...we'll see. It's also creamy enough that I don't need a moisturizer so I hope that helps.  Then I added Burt's Bees rosewater toner which seems to shrink the bumps after I use it but I'm still having some. That's a bummer. I'm also taking fish oil which I heard was good for acne (but idk I do break out with suppliments) and apple cider vinegar, also good for breakouts (internally).  Sometimes I test things on one area, like I mentioned with the vitamin C serum and the 5%aha. And occasionally the egg, sulfur and mud but not often.  So that's it! Pretty basic.

But yea, like I said, slowly we're getting there. It's just sooo hard. Like quitting smoking! Each day isn't just a day, it's countless moments of thinking about smoking and trying to stop the urge, EVERY time, even one minute after you just conquered it. 😛 At least from far I look MUCH better. I was so bad at some points I wouldn't leave the house, all self inflicted 🙁

Cordula, I feel for you, how frustrating!  Especially if you've tried glycolic and saw no results.  Don't know if you've mentioned, but have you seen a dermatologist?

:-*

Stopping picking will be a huge help--I know it's hard.  Maybe get a little stress ball or something that you can squidge around when you get the urge to pick?  It'll give your hands/fingers something to do.

Also, make sure your phone is super-clean.  A lot of people get breakouts along their jaw line from dirty phones, so give yours a quick wipe down at night, and a couple of times during the day as well if you don't have a phone wallet/case/cover for it and it's just swinging around in your bag, picking up dust and things, or if you've used it and you're wearing make up.  Keep some little antibacterial wipes handy for your phone.

I find knitting helpful when i get the urge to pick skin from my lips (i have  mild dermatillomania) it keeps my hands busy and mind engaged.
Have you tried witch hazel? It is very good for drying out spots and removing inflammation. I make my own toner by mixing 1:1 rose water and witch hazel. Its very useful for bags under the eyes too. Just put it on a cotton pad and leave it on for 5-10 minutes on the desired area.
I recently read somewhere that a good way to stop smoking quickly is to go to a sauna 3 times a week as it gets all the nicotine toxins out quickly. And detoxing is also good for the skin.

Yes totally. I have dermatillomania too but I haven't picked in I think 9? days now. I think that's the longest ever. Not to be gross, but I did have one pimple that got bigger and one night it was like about to explode so I touched it and it came out lol but I didn't squeeze I swear! 😀  I had a few not-quite-cysts but not pimples either. Red, kind of sore, kind of patchy and it seems they form around other ones, around the hair line, so I assumed it was SD. So I'm trying to be gentle. I'm not a huge fan of witch hazel though. I was using that Burt's Bees and it has it in there but I think I'm going to stop for a bit and see if anything changes. I don't want to over dry.

And good advice on the steam/phone cleaning and other stuff. Including cleaning makeup brushes etc!

I did go to a derm once, I don't have insurance now so I can't go, but when I did they gave me samples of stuff that I thought was good but turned out to be WAY too strong and really messed with my skin! 🙁 So that was no fun.

Well done on not picking for 9 days, you should be proud of yourself. Dermatillomania is not easy to fight, one trick I used was an old feather pillow. The centre of the feathers (the quill part) sticks into the pillow casing and you can feel the sharp point and pull the feather out. I found it comforting as a picking replacement activity.

Hahaha! I'd have no feathers left in the pillow! >_< But yea I do that. Yesterday was especially difficult, they seemed to be so visible and I could feel them, but was hoping if I left them alone long enough they'd go away themselves (black and whiteheads, which take a very long time to disappear on their own if at all, some people have huge ones for years in the same spot!!) So that was really tough. It seems at night it's worse even though I use the same cleanser. I think just when you wake up you are nice and rested and by night your skin is tired. I also got a new cyst under the skin and a painful red spot that seems like it's going to turn into a pimple. ARG! I never know what's normal and what's sign for a change in routine. 🙁