In need of some urgent skincare help.

Aug 14, 2014

Regan N.

I'm getting desperate for clear skin.
I've been breaking out a TON lately and I can't figure out why! Usually, I only struggle with scarring and maybe one or two active zits. But recently I have been breaking out across my forehead (which I haven't done for years) and between my eyebrows, as well as on the upper left side of the bridge of my nose. I'm also breaking out near my mouth. When I first started using the Acne Free sulfur mask as a spot treatment, it worked well. It still works, but it's drying out my skin to the point where I can't put on ANY face makeup with out it caking into all of the dry spots. Luckily (note the sarcasm) I ran out of my favorite moisturizer and can't repurchase it for a while. And silly me, I started using multiple new products at once, so now I'm not so sure what's breaking me out, if it is makeup. Here are the new products I've recently used;
•Rimmel 25 hour foundation (which I thought was the culprit but after I stopped using it its even worse)
•the benefit sample face collection, which consists of Hello Oxygen Wow foundation, the Boing concealer, the Porefessional, and a face powder
Do you think any of this could be the culprit? I wash my face nightly, although I have been guilty of using an olay makeup face wipe twice in the past two weeks (which is also a new product, ughhhhh!).
So this is a multitude of questions.
1) do you have any idea what's breaking me out?
2) what do you suggest I do?
3) do you have any skincare recommendations? I currently use the cetaphil cleanser on a clarisonic, and the acne free sulfur mask as a spot treatment. I need a new moisturizer that is preferably under ten to fifteen dollars, and anything else you'd recommend, such as a toner or anything else. I think I have combo skin, as I get dry spots easily but my face can get pretty oily sometimes. I struggle with acne (much more so lately!) and scarring, so products to combat both would be well appreciated.
4) Is the makeup I'm using okay (if its not breaking me out), or should I switch to something else, like talc free makeup?
5) lastly, how do I prevent my makeup from settling into dry spots? What is the best way to exfoliate dry, flaky skin, and what products do you recommend?
Thank you ladies, I'm desperate!

Aug 14, 2014

katie s.

I'm not great with skin care because I rarely break out and when I do it's nothing bad or difficult. I'd recommend asking someone who knows a lot about skin care. Maybe Jacquelyn (:

Aug 14, 2014

katie s.

I agree with Alexis (: if you must wear makeup I'd wear concealer instead of foundation (: & stick with the products you've been using!

Aug 14, 2014

Emily W.

Stop using all of the new things and focus on clearing your skin. Try to be gentle with it, don't overload it with treatments. Use a gentle cleanser and moisturizer that you are familiar with. Wash your pillowcase and disinfect your phone.

After it starts to clear, start introducing new products one at a time over the course of a few weeks. You should be able to determine the culprit then.

Aug 14, 2014

Regan N.

Thank you all! If it was still summer than I could definitely go without makeup, but since its now the school year, and my face is covered in angry red face demons, it's not really an option. I'll save up for my go to moisturizer, but it's pretty expensive and I still have to pay for school stuff, like passes and ID cards and textbooks. Thanks a lot ladies. (:

Aug 14, 2014

Liv I.

Leave your face be haha I know it's hard. But go a day or two without using face wash and just use water. I find that really helps when I'm breaking out. Another good face wash is CeraVe and a good fairly inexpensive moisturizer is Aveno. Or go to Walmart and they have like a up and up brand of it which is like a dupe for it and it's pretty inexpensive. :)

Aug 14, 2014

Mara S.

1) it could be the new products you've tried. I would stop using those products and go back to old ones or even better just stop wearing makeup for a little while
2) what I said above. Also your skin may have gotten used to the mask and products you were using so try something new and that's specifically for your skin type. If none of this works maybe try the no poo method?!
3) I also have combo skin and I use the cetaphil cleanser also. I love neutrogena's moisturizer if you want one with SPF and clean and clear morning burst gel
moisturizer is my favorite (no SPF). I'm recently begun trying the lush tea tree toner and it works well!
4) I already mentioned makeup (:
5) use a exfoliater meant for the face. Again clean and clear has a good one make sure to moisturize and if you need to put a little but of Vaseline over the dry areas and then apply make up. However only do this if necessary bc it's not great for the skin

Aug 14, 2014

Breeze T.

I'm thinking it could be your diet. Increase your water intake, if you eat fried foods then start avoiding them, as well as alcohol (but I assume you are not drinking age since you go to school). Up your dose of vegetables. If I were you, I'd make lots of green juices (if you don't have a juicer, smoothies will work but you'll want to drink less because there's more fiber). This, in addition to what everyone else is saying. I believe in taking care of your skin from the inside out.

Aug 14, 2014

G S.

You should get Bio-oil it's really good for dry skin and it takes scars and stretch marks away , and it does more stuff too. You could get it I think at any drug store. I go to ride aid

Aug 14, 2014

Maggie F.

Your skin sounds kinda like mine before I took Accutane years ago. I don't know specifically about Rimmel, but everything you use on your face should be oil-free and non-comodegenic so it won't clog pores. If all of your products meet this criteria, they shouldn't be causing breakouts.I recently bought the Benefit BB cream and powder (which I LOVE and does not cause breakouts) and they told me it was all their products were noncomedogenic, but I would check the website. I think the Cetaphil cleanser and clarisonic should be fine, but you may want to try a cleanser with acne fighting ingredients like Neutrogena. I use the Proactiv toner as it's not drying at all, actually moisturizing. I'd also suggest a spot treatment at night with benzoyl peroxide. The Proactiv Repairing Lotion is really good too. I put on a lot of moisturizer after this so my face doesn't dry out too much. I use Cetaphil Moisture Cream for moisturizer (in the tub, not the one in the pump).

Aug 15, 2014

Regan N.

Thank you ladies! You're all so helpful! I stopped using all my new products and just used a concealer that my skin has never had problems with it. It seems to be helping a little.
@Breeze; thanks for the tips. I rarely eat fried food; my meals mostly consist of vegetables or fruit (I'm a vegetarian, and don't eat dairy often). Fried foods actually make me ill, I threw up at the fair after trying a fried Oreo (seriously, such a mistake!). It was not fun, haha. I think you're right about water intake, I haven't been drinking as much lately due to a no water bottle rule in my school. Thanks again for everything!
@Maggie; thanks for listing products! I couldn't find non-comodegenic nor oil free listed on the Rimmel foundation, so that might've been the culprit. Thank you!

Aug 15, 2014

Kitty K.

Too much silicone based products are being used in your routine. All of these products are high in silicones so I can see why you would begin to break out. Listing your skin care routine helps as well, but for now I recommend limiting so much silicone especially since skin can be prone to comedogenic break outs because of silicone. Try a water based primer instead and foundations that are not silicone based.

Aug 15, 2014

Regan N.

I didn't even consider that! Does the maybelline fit me concealer have any silicones? As for my skincare routine, it goes as follows.
-Wash face with the clarisonic and cetaphil cleanser
-moisturize with a Peter Thomas Roth moisturizer (which I'm out of now)
-spot treat with the Acne Free Sulfuf mask. If my skin I flaky, I'll exfoliate it with a warm wet washcloth and put the Tarte mariujaca oil on it. Thanks for the response!

Aug 15, 2014

Meg T.

When your skin starts acting out, the best thing to do is take it easy. Don't over wash, don't over exfoliate. Keep moisturizing. Stripping your skin can cause more problems. I have really oily skin. Prone to breakouts. Some of the best products I have ever used are mario badescu. I use the enzyme cleanser with my clarasonic and the special cucumber lotion as my toner. I keep it super simple. Since I have cut out all extra skincare my skin has been sooooo incredible. Clinique moisturizing plus lotion has been my go to day lotion for as long as I can remember and a GREAT product that helped clear up my skin was the Clinique moisture surge overnight mask. It helped counteract any drying effects of acne clearing products I was using. I think it's around 28 bucks. It lasts forever though. A little goes a long way.

Aug 16, 2014

Regan N.

That's really helpful, Meg! My face is similar, using a lot of skincare products seems to overload my face and make it worse. My sister loves the Clinique lotion and I've used it once before and enjoyed it, so I might have to go buy it. Thank you for the help!