I am so frustrated!! I can't control my skin ):

Sep 25, 2014

Kat A.

maybe ask Traci?

Sep 25, 2014

Samantha H.

This may sound strange.. but my skin improved when I started applying raw honey as a mask onto my skin. leave it on for 20 minutes to an hour then just wash off with water and apply moisture. That and nettle tea. drinking and pressing the tea bag after a cup on to the sore parts of skin and letting the tea dry on then applying moisture. Hope this helps in anyway.

Sep 25, 2014

Samantha H.

Sorry forgot to say that I apply honey every night. sometimes morning too if I have time.

Sep 25, 2014

Breeze T.

Make sure you patch test with honey as it can cause allergies. I'd say stop using products, just use water, then one by one introduce new products until you find the culprit. it could be a mixture of two products or more causing this only when they react together. Maybe your skin is just saying "stop putting stuff on me!". I'd also try using EVERYTHING fragrance-free, as even natural essential oils can be irritants (my dermatologist said so).
Anyway, just give your skin a break, don't wear makeup and use only water. See how it goes from then on. That's all I can suggest. BTW, can you call your derm at all? I can call mine anytime if I have an issue.

Sep 25, 2014

Breeze T.

(I know you switched to perfume-free skincare but maybe just smell your makeup and check that too. if it has a scent, it goes.)

Sep 25, 2014

Breeze T.

*it has to go.

Sep 25, 2014

Breeze T.

Also, could it be the sun? I get rashes from the first sunny days in spring, I don't really know what the weather is like in Denmark right now but in Italy we've been having beautiful super sunny but cold days. A good sunscreen is Avene for sun intolerant skin types.

Sep 25, 2014

Jack B.

It sounds like you're having a reaction to something in the Melissa cleansing milk, so I'd cut that out of the routine. I agree with breeze, going cold-turkey on products and slowly reintroducing them one by one will help you find what works and what doesn't. Since your skin tends to be dry, I would introduce a moisturizer first, then try to find a cleanser, spot treatment, exfoliant, etc. I don't have an actual scientific reason, but I think just using a cleanser could make your skin even drier and more likely to crack and get rashy dry patches. I'm sure someone more experienced can give better advice on the order you should reintroduce products.

Product recommendations:
-boscia cleansers are super gentle and organic and have worked well for me in the past
-jojoba oil for moisturizing. Coconut can be comedogenic for some people.
-tea tree line from the body shop, especially the spot treatment (I use the face mask as a spot treatment bc it's cheaper and it works pretty well, so I imagine the actual spot treatment is amazing)
-Konjac sponge for exfoliating. They're a manual exfoliating sponge so there's no worry about reacting to ingredients, and they're super gentle and cheap (like $4 on amazon, lasts a couple months)

Sep 25, 2014

Jack B.

Wow that was long! Also, since your acne is mostly hormonal, you might resolve it by starting birth control (or switching to a pill that's verified to improve skin if you're already on it) and avoiding dairy and soy products as they contain high hormone levels that can negatively affect the skin.

Sep 26, 2014

Brittany O.

Jack is right, you should try stopping everything and re introduce one product at a time, to be honest when I get a client in for a facial in a similar situation as you I tell them the same thing, I think that instead of trying all of these different products try a gentle ph neutral cleanser, like Spectro gel, cetaphil or cerave they can all be bought at the drug store and are extremely gentle and non drying, remember to moisturize with something gentle as well and keep it to twice a day. To fix dehydration I would look into getting hyaluronic acid (this is my most FAVOURITE product ever) you apply it before you moisturize and it holds 1000x it's own weight in water so it'll make anything you put on top of it more effective, my skin was so dry and dehydrated before I started to use it that it was literally peeling off and now I have no issue! I wouldn't treat the acne you have right now until you get some moisture back into your skin I was in the same boat dry and broken out and it's best to just focus on one issue at a time and let your skin heal! Keep in mind it can take up to 6 weeks to see a change in your skin so be patient and allow yourself the proper time to heal.

Sep 26, 2014

Ame S.

Ah, hormonal acne. *sighs sadly* I've been a sufferer since 7 years now. I cannot emphasise enough on using strictly no cosmetic products because they will end up ruining your skin. Plus, another most important thing is to make sure that whatever products you use are entirely non comedogenic, this is a verrrrry important step thar most acne prone people skip. You should be able to find a list of comedogenic products online, there are some websites that will let you scan the ingredients in the products you are using for comedogenic ingredients (comedogenic=pore clogging/acne causing). Even mildly comedogenic ingredients wreck havoc for acne prone skin. Dermalogica, The Body Shop, Neutrogena, Simple are horrible fir acne prone people, to name a few. I highly recommend the Sebamed cleanser though, it is medicated and especially designed for acne prone skin, its mild and soap free. Try using a 2 percent salicylic acid gel overnight for your skin. And avoiding makeup, it helps a lot, trust me.

Sep 26, 2014

Breeze T.

You could also try making a soothing oatmeal mask with ground oats and water to form a paste. It calms down irritated skin and makes it feel super soft too :)

Sep 26, 2014

Jocelyn S.

I would look into Murad products. I use the redness therapy cleansing gel and the Essential C day moisturizer and it does t break me out, very gentle. You might consider switching birth control methods. Or maybe stop BC for a month to get back on track and "re-boot". I know with my BC I get those painful bumps around my chin area and I've been off BC for a month and haven't had those bumps...but I would suggest looking into Murad. They have very gentle cleansers and I've had really good luck with them. You might need like a steroid injection to get rid of the rash...,

Sep 26, 2014

Jack B.

I think using just super sensitive makeup remover wipes instead of cutting out all products would be okay. Do that for a while, and if you seem to be having a reaction to them try switching brands.

Also, I would look up online whether acne is a side-effect of the birth control you're on and see if your doctor can switch you.

For makeup, I would try to keep to concealer and foundation (no blush, highlight or contour) just to avoid the possibility that one of those products is contributing to your acne - especially while you don't have a cleanser.

Sep 27, 2014

Jack B.

Oh, you're already using a Konjac sponge! A thing I noticed with mine: if I used it to wash my face (with moisturizer) I got smatterings of whiteheads the next day. I found removing makeup, exfoliating with the sponge and then cleanish worked much better for me!

Sep 27, 2014

Jack B.

(With cleanser)* not moisturizer, sorry!!