Acne.org Products
First- reading everyone's personal accounts and reviews of products is so helpful!
I'm 32 and have always had skin issues. Just always one or two active pimples, then it got worse when I was in my early 20's. I discovered BP and it worked really well for several years. I started using BP in conjunction with Arbonne RE9 and my skin was probably the best it had ever been.
A few years ago, I moved form a moderately humid climate to a dry climate. I was also taking an anti depressant and my doctor changed it to Wellbutrin out of the blue. A few days later, went on a beach vacation and had very serious sun reaction with blisters and hives after being exposed to the sun for just a few hours (usually tan quite easily). Stopped the medication, stayed out of the sun and it went away, but my skin has never been the same since.
Right after the hives cleared, I started getting tons of closed comedones. From there, I tried anything and everything, tons of OTC products, all types of cleansing methods, just leaving it alone, you name it, I feel like I tried it. Even got a filtered shower head.
The derm had me on Acanya (BP/clindamycin) in the AM and Differin in the PM, along with Cetaphil cleanser and lotion. After about four weeks, switched from Differin to Tazorac .1% There was a lot of redness and peeling that went along with it, but after the check up she was pleased and said to continue on.
Now, two years later, there is improvement, but not all that significant and sometimes a cyst. Plus, lots of red marks and hyperpigmentation. She has me on a routine that seems kind of harsh, so I'm slowly incorporating all the new products. If anyone has experience with these products, please let me know, as I've read to be careful with HQ. Not a cheap routine...hope it works.
AM
Arbonne RE9 Cleanser
Skinceuticals Phloretin CF
Acanya (was using a spot treatment, she said to use more)
Zo Medical Obagi Melamin Hydroquinone 4% (starting slowly with this)
Arbonne RE9 Intensive Renewal Serum
Acure Eye Cream
Arbonne RE9 Night Moisturizer (yes, use the night for day...works better for me after lots of experimenting)
Skinceuticals SPF 50 (new product, liking it so far) and a hat!
PM
Arbonne RE9 Cleanser
Zo Medical Obagi Cebatrol Oil Control Pads (slowing integrating this, but did seem to dry some comedones right up)
Tazorac .1%
Zo Medical Obagi Melamin Hydroquinone 4% (haven't used in conjunction with the Cebatrol yet)
Arbonne RE9 Intensive Renewal Serum
Acure Eye Cream
Cetaphil Moisturizer
Sometimes: MSM toner, clay mask, steam about once a month, African black soap, Clarisonic
Other medication: Sprintec (generic Ortho Cyclen)
Makeup: MAC and sometimes Arbonne
Exercise at least 5 days a week, vegan, very little processed foods and sugar, homemade juice twice daily, homemade kombucha almost daily.
I haven't done the full AM and PM routine in the same day yet and really slowly putting it together to limit irritation. Don't want to speak too soon, but I feel there is very slight improvement with the closed comedones and it's probably my imagination, but my skin seems smoother- hopefully that means the uneven tone will be a thing of the past too.
I've always been weary of sunscreen because it seems to clog my pores, but the Skinceuticals is lovely. Both the Matte and Fusion are great and give you different looks. The Matte is very matte and the Fusion gives you a nice glow.
The Obagi Cebatrol really gets rid of bumps and inflamed pimples quickly. I want to attribute this product to physically smoother skin as well. They are medicated pads with a texture. It can sting just a little when first applied, but it feels so good- my face feels so clean and buffed after using. There is a little redness which subsides quickly.
The Skinceuticals Phloretin CF is really nice too. It seems to moisturize in a way or maybe just preps the skin really well to absorb moisture to even the texture and tone. Though it is expensive, a little goes a long way. It is supposed to protect skin on a deeper level than what sunscreen can do and also repair.
The HQ- I'm not sure if I can really tell a difference yet, and probably need to use it for a bit longer. It surprisingly doesn't sting. Maybe can see a slight improvement since I've been using everything in conjunction with each other.
Very, very light flaking but easily removed with Clarisonic on washcloth and doesn't continue to by dry through the day so makeup can be applied and look good. Goal: no makeup needed!
Liking it so far!
Last week, I decided to do some extractions. Terrible idea. My face looked way worse after than if I had just left it alone. I did see relief with icing the spots in the morning and night. After a few days it wasn't so bad, but still, don't do it!
I haven't been using the HQ in the morning because with everything prescribed for night, it has been peeling in the morning and even the Phloretin CF can sting a little. So, still working my way up to everything.
The peeling has left really nice, soft, glowy skin. The discoloration is looking better too. There's still much to be done, but I'm encouraged.
For a while, I used the Clarisonic daily then didn't use it all for months and now I'm using it again. It really helps to exfoliate with all of these products. This morning, my skin looked fine, but after the Clarisonic, the peeling really began and after using washcloth to gently get everything even, my skin actually looked good (at least for me).
All of the new stuff seems to be working.