Last minute break outs- of course!

tia0314

With 3 weeks to go, my face is breaking out like no other. I am not stressed at all one bit so I don't know why they are coming all at once. I am taking good care of my skin, I wash it every morning with a panoxyl bar that is for acne and at night I make sure to wash my makeup off (Cold Cream by Ponds) and even use Proactive spot treatment. Any one else have any recc's for clearing up my skin?? Thanks!

kelklump

besides a good ole adult beverage to relax, realize that you can only do so much and you want to enjoy your day. I am currenly using the nutrogena system ( i use their deep pore scrub, their oil free astringent and a good moisturizer.) Good luck. My face always acts up at important events.

jiml

Have you been drinking plenty of water? Just make sure you don't "over treat" your break outs. I did that once and it ended up irritating the blemishes and they looked worse than they did in the beginning. You could always go and get a facial. Good Luck!

onlymels

Maybe you can try and see a dermatologist and get some rx cream to try and clear up your skin. Other than that I can't help.

centrefrenchie

Surprisingly, you know what always helps me the best? Neosporin or other antibiotic cream three times a day. I notice a difference when I wake up if I put it on before bed. I must mention that I have severe acne and haven't found much else that works/missed my derm appointment so it's going to be awhile before I get in again, and I'm getting married in 5.5 weeks.

jbifro

Centrefrenchie, it's interesting that you mentioned neosporin. My sister, who is 24, started getting really bad zits. Her friend told her that she used neosporin on her zits in college and my sister tried it and she said it helps a lot. (I'm talking about the big painful zits that are almost seem like they are ingrown or something because they don't pop). My sister doesnt have a knot account but she told me that she recommends it. I have a feeling I will break out as well for my wedding. I have been getting a weird rash on my chest that comes and goes and I really hope it doesn't appear for my wedding. I went to a dermatologist and she was wrong about the diagnosis (folliculitis) since the medicine didn't help at all. Good luck.

mindiosu

LOTS of water w/lemon and try to add smoothies to your diet for a week.  Clean it from the inside out. Also, make sure when you work out that you rinse the sweat off immediately after. You can also take liquid antacid and dab it on by qtip. Many breakouts are acidic based so this helps to balance. 

tia0314

I will try neosporin before bed tonight. Thanks for the advice. And I love smoothies so I'll just have a good excuse to go to smoothie king every day!

centrefrenchie

jbifro, that's exactly the kind of acne I have! I think technically it's a type of cyst that develops, but they are uber painful, and leave bad scars if you don't baby them a ton.

mindiosu

Hmm, not to dis smoothie king, but really you should try a more cleansing version made at home. Fresh or frozen berries and small amt of banana, ice, low fat milk, fat free yogurt.  It is kind of a detox/cleanse. You want to avoid processed sugar which I think is in the mix stuff that smoothie places use. Maybe I'm wrong though...either way they are better than a greasy burger! (Just not as tastey )

jeremy.teresa

Ashley - do you use the Proactive Refining Mask?  If so, I know for me it works the best.  Two-three times a week after I wash my face, I leave it wet.  Then I apply a coat (not too thin/thick) over my entire face and leave it on for about 10-15 mins.  Then wash it off and use the rest of your stuff.  That works pretty well and then I spot treat w/ the same stuff.  I have also started using Aveno Clear Complexion face lotion and it has made a difference as well.  GL!

emierenfeld

This may sound very weird, but this past winter my skin was breaking out like crazy, and I googled it and lots of people had said apple cider vinegar works. I've been using it for the past 6 months and it's amazing! It only took about a week to clean up my skin and I just put it on with a cotton ball at night before bed as an astringent. I saw it recommended twice a day but I don't want to smell like a salad all day long! But it's really really worked and I've been break out free ever since! Plus it's the cheapest thing you'll ever find!

stosha1

Using neosporin (while a good idea in theory) isn't the best option. It can actually make it worse. The main ingredient is petrolatum, which is also the main ingredient in vaseline, which we all know is a fatty base. I would recommend a good cleansing agent (what you're using) or a non-comedogenic (non-pore-clogging) agent like Neutrogena. Cold cream is just an emulsion of different fats (aka oils) that remove your makeup. The leave your face feeling soft because you're implanting a layer of oil on your face. Use with caution.Swab the zit with an alcohol swab after washing/drying (it kills bacteria!) and and make sure you use an oil-free (water based) moisturizer every day even if you're breaking out.

clearheavens

I have acne so I have some input because I've fought this battle all my life.  I hope I can help whether you have mild or severe acne like me.If you are going the non-Rx route, I would use at least two different creams: (1) 10% benxoyl peroxide and (2) a BHA (beta hydroxy) like 2% salycylic acid.  I recommend alternating these night and day.  The first is a bacteria killer and the second exfoliates your pores on a chemical level to expose the bacteria on the surface.  Together they're a team.For wash, I would use something very mild like Cetaphil.  I would avoid Clearasil products because they have alcohol and menthol in it, which give you that sqeaky or tingly clean feeling, but are actually sources of irritation that can only inhibit skin healing or make your skin slightly red after use.For diet, I agree with everyone, drink lots of water.  It hydrate your skin and well-nourished skin heals better than dry skin.  (This is the same reason why doctors recommend cocoa butter to prevent stretch marks.  It's not the cocoa or the butter itself specifically that prevent the stretch marks but the hydration that helps your skin deal better with stretching.  FYI, the only clinically proven ingredient that helps stretch marks is high doses of retinol such as tretinoin aka Retin-A, which happens to also treat acne and is only available through Rx.  You can check real medical sources online to back this information up; which leads to the next point...)If you are going the Rx route, listen to your doctor.  He or she can give you some mild oral antibiotics, which can help prevent any new ones from forming.  That's important when you have three weeks to go.  You should also mention your wedding date so that if you happen to get a giant pimple the day before your doctor can inject something into it that will make it shrink right away.  So don't worry!  This should help calm you down!I hope this helps!

tia0314

Teresa- yes I use the proactiv mask, but only as a spot treatment. Actually though, I tend to just rub it on my prone sopts before bed every night so I guess that's kinda like using it as a mask? I did try the whole proactiv kit and wasn't very satisfied os that's why I'm only using the spot treatment still.

jeremy.teresa

FI and I tried the whole Proactiv kit and also were not satisfied w/ the results.  What I do now is wash my face w/ the Proactiv cleanser.  I find that it works the best.  I do it for the full minute that it suggests.  Twice a week, I will wash my face, then put the refining mask on (not too thick, not too light) and leave it for 10-15 minutes.  I wash the mask off.  Then I use a non-alcohol astringent to wipe my face w/ a cotton round.  After that I use Aveeno clear complexion face lotion which has some salycilic acid in it to help clear face.  Then I rub in the refining mask on the pimples that are my face.  I don't rub it in all of the way; it leaves a little white tint, but I'm going to bed, so I don't mind.  You might try using the mask a few times a week as suggested above and see if that helps.  It seems to do pretty well for me.  GL!!