Acne Checklist

I don't know about you but I am flat out exhausted of listening to stories of the woman who cleared her acne by sleeping on a fresh towel every night or the girl who cleared hers with proactive magical products within a matter of days. Or the person who stopped eating bread and her skin cleared up, and what about the one where you take roaccutane, a drug that has controversial issues as to whether it can make you commit suicide, to clear the condition. I mean, desperation is clearly out there in the world with this condition. How about when you wake up and immediately go to your concealer while your best friend dabs on a tiny bit of bb cream? This is most gut wrenching when you USED TO BE THE BB CREAM GIRL with the flawless skin. All those years of taking for granted my glowing youthful clear skin has come back to bite me on the behind. I'm 23 and have been suffering with acne for the past year and a half. At first it was one blemish during a family holiday to Italy and I can remember freaking out because I had never had any skin issues before, in fact I used to get compliments about how clear my skin was. It has slowly grown from mild to severe. If you're suffering like me, then I do hope you enjoy this little blog post and perhaps learn something new.



A little bit of encouragement...
Acne is very common with around 80% of people from the age of 11 to 30 affected at some point. Luckily, after the age of 25 this decreases and only 5% of males and 1% of females will continue to suffer. (These statistics are derived from the NHS choices website and I would highly recommend googling it if you are concerned about your skin.)

I wanted to make a little checklist for those who are suffering like me because I know I am not alone with this condition. I can't promise this will completely cure your acne but these are things that have dramatically cleared my skin, which is by no means perfect but is improving. I wish I had known about them a year ago so I could have controlled the infection more effectively. There are many more tips out there but these are the ten that have helped me the most.

(NB: I won't bore/patronise you by going into details about the obvious, but I'll list them here quickly:
-clean your makeup brushes
-cleanse your face morning and night
-do not sleep in your makeup
-no mineral oil based moisturisers
-tea tree oil is an inflammatory and should never be used on acne skins
-do not use beaded exfoliants as this spreads the infection, use glycolic acids)

1. Seek Medical Advice

Acne is a medical condition. This sounds obvious, but because so many people complain about having blemishes, many of us would feel a little dramatic seeking advice from a GP (I know I did). Your GP can provide you with all sorts of remedies from blood tests to check for the root cause such as polysystic ovaries and any kidney or liver abnormalities, to antibiotics and topical creams. If these do not work then your GP will likely refer you to a dermatologist who can provide further recommendations and therapies. Even if you do not agree with antibiotics, your GP can provide you with professional medical advice about how to control your condition. Book an appointment if your acne is becoming uncontrollable.

2. Check Your Diet

Foods that are inflammatory can make your acne worse than it needs to be. Such foods include: peppers, tomatoes, chilies and oranges. Any processed foods, fried foods and those containing high amounts of sugar such as white bread or chocolate and sweets. Cutting out dairy can also help as cow's milk products have lots of hormones in them that can alter your own. Try unsweetened almond milk or rice milk. Everybody is different and it may be useful to complete a food diary for around a month to see in black and white what you are consuming and try cutting various things out to see if it affects your skin.

3. Face Map Yourself

So, where are your blemishes? Are they mainly on one area of your face? Some people are sceptical of this but there are those out there who believe that each part of your face indicates a different root cause of your acne. This is a hybrid between modern dermatology and ancient Chinese medicine, worth a try right? I once discussed this with a herbalist who believed that the area you break out in can be a rough guide of what is going on internally.

Here is a helpful guide:

Forehead - Stress or sleep deprivation.
Above your eyebrows - Your heart and immune system.
Inbetween your eyebrows - linked to too many rich foods.
Nose - Blood Pressure.
Upper Cheeks - This can be your lungs or digestive system. (This one applies to me, it can be caused by eating too much junk food that has upset your intestines, I don't tend to ever eat junk but I do love chocolate so I have tried to cut down on this. I have taken natural digestion remedies such as marshmallow and aloe vera gel tablets to remedy this).
Lower Cheeks - Dental hygiene
Middle Chin- Digestion/Stomach.
Sides of Chin - Hormones and stress.
Near the Ears - Kidneys. (drink more water)

Once you are aware of what is causing your acne, you can take steps to remedy this.

4. Check Your Dental Hygiene

This one sounds a little strange, but if you suffer with acne around your mouth or your lower cheek, it can be connected to your dental hygiene. Increasing your trips to the dentist, mouthwashes and brushing as well as lowering your intake of acidic foods/drinks can help reduce this.

5. Change Your Pillowcases Frequently

If you have active acne you run the risk of blemishes opening during the night and spreading bacteria onto your pillow. When you toss and turn in the night this can spread from cheek to cheek and will continue night after night. In addition, if you sleep with wet hair or have a lot of product in your hair, this can transfer onto your pillow and then onto your skin. I like to sleep on one side of my pillow, flip it for the next night and then change it so that I am always sleeping on a clean surface.

6. Choose Your Makeup Carefully

Acne sufferers have a tendency to cake on as much makeup as possible to hide everything. I once watched a youtube tutorial of a girl who used mac pro longwear concealer as a foundation...now I have that stuff and I love it because it is waterproof and doesn't budge but it is very heavy and I cannot imagine that is good for all over your skin. I would suggest something non-comedogenic such as Chanel Vitalumier Aqua as this won't clog your pores and then go in with a concealer such as Nars creamy radiant concealer. Why shouldn't you have light glowy skin just because you have acne? Alternatively, use a highly pigmented foundation because this will require you to use less such as Laura Mercier Creme Silk foundation, I use a rice grain sized amount and don't even bother with concealer when I use this and my skin is very red! If you want to be even more careful, then mineral makeup is your best friend (I personally don't like how these look on my skin but are great for lazy days when I want my skin to breathe). I recommend any from Bare Minerals or Laura Mercier Mineral Foundation. Also! Make sure that you are using a primer before your makeup as this will help to separate the makeup from your skin and make it less likely that your pores will clog.

7. Go To A Skin Clinic/Get Facials Done By Professionals

There are many salons out there that provide wonderful facials with technical devices that feel amazing on your skin and leave you glowing. I recommend getting professional facials if you can afford to do so at least once a month, this will help keep your skin calm and controlled. I personally have been loving SK:N clinics as they provide special Acne treatments including isolaz laser therapy which I have recently begun (blog post on this coming once I have finished treatment). They also provide salicylic facial peels for any scarring and have their own range of products specially concocted by leading dermatologists.

8. Drink Lots of Water

Water is vital for optimum organ functioning and skin is no exception. The more you drink, the more hydrated you are and the calmer your skin will be. End of.

9. Look At Your Lifestyle

If you lead a very stressful lifestyle, whether you are a student embarking upon your dissertation (eek) or in a high powered job, or even going through some personal situations that are stressful. Your stress may be causing your acne. Try to make time for things that will help to de-stress your body and mind such as yoga, exercise classes or even meditation. Everyone is de-stressed by different things, but make sure you have a healthy outlet. This can be aided by choosing camomile tea over caffeinated drinks or listening to relaxing music instead of fast beats and getting as much sleep as possible. It may also help to talk to someone such as a family member or a colleague as this can make any stressful triggers seem smaller.

10. Go To A Herbalist

This one isn't for everyone but it certainly was for me. Even if you are on antibiotics or topical creams, a herbalist is a perfect remedy to take alongside these to treat the root cause. You have a chat and discuss your symptoms, you can include things other than skin such as tiredness or digestive problems. Your herbalist will suggest a variety of herbs and the concentration and will make a tincture for you to take home and consume daily. I personally noticed a huge difference since taking my herbal tincture twice daily, my moods are lifted and my skin has cleared significantly. Everyone will have different symptoms and will require different herbs but my herbalist included:

Marigold
Oregon Grape
Milkthistle
Viola
Echinacea
Chamomile
Rhodiola
Ginseng

As well as a probiotic.

So those are just a few helpful tips that I hope have helped you on your journey towards clear skin. The last thing I want to include here is to stay positive! You are not alone with the condition, don't let it rule your life. Our bodies are amazing and they do eventually regulate everything, hence why acne tends to clear up as we get older, so try to relax.