Clear Skin Hacks

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Acne became a constant problem for me around the time I entered 6th grade. I can still hear the words of a girl in 6th grade telling the teacher’s aid on the way in from recess when she told her to let me hold the door, “You mean, Jessica? That pimply faced girl!” Yes, I’m closer to 40 these days, and I can still hear her mean words echoing in my ears like it was yesterday. As I became a teenager, it seemed like EVERY. SINGLE. THING. I did would only make it worse and not better. My mom always took the attitude that acne was just part of being a teenager, and there wasn’t really anything she could do about it. However, I secretly envied my friends whose mom’s would let them buy expensive creams at the drugstore to try and treat their acne.

Fast forward to adulthood where you typically think it would clear up, but it still didn’t. Instead, I developed cystic acne, which is when you develop a large, red, very painful breakout underneath your skin. My cystic acne would keep getting bigger and bigger, and it would last for months. Every time I would think I finally got a spot to go away, another spot would appear. My first grade students would always ask, “What’s that on your face?”, and I would quickly change the subject. Frustrating doesn’t even begin to describe how I felt. And once I had kids? It STILL didn’t get any better. Doctors told me it was just hormones, and that there wasn’t much they could do. Occasionally, my OBGYN would prescribe me a medicated cream after I had a baby, but it still didn’t help much. When my oldest started developing acne, I knew that I had to find a way to help him clear it up FAST so he didn’t experience the same frustrations I did, and with lots of trial and error I found a simple, cost effective way to do just that for the both of us.

3 Products to Eliminate Acne

The first thing I started using was Neutrogena’s Deep Clean Cream Cleanser. I started washing my face with this each morning and then again at night. I noticed that my face started to clear up some within the first week of using it.

The second thing I started using was Thayers Witch Hazel. This stuff was life changing and worth every single penny I spent!!! I started applying this to my face using a cotton ball in the morning after I washed my face with my Neutrogena Deep Clean Cream Cleanser and again at night after I washed my face with my Neutrogena. I immediately began to notice that any acne spots I might be developing would disappear within a day or two. I just couldn’t believe it! It’s important to note that I always, always, ALWAYS buy the unscented witch hazel. My skin is so crazy sensitive that I bought the lavender scented witch hazel one time, and my skin went nuts! It’s crazy how one small change can totally upset your skin.

The third thing I use on my face is saved for when I feel a cyst developing or when I get a pimple that just won’t go away (AKA that time of the month..ugh!). It is called Avarelle Acne Cover Patch. They make these patches in several different sizes so you can match them up to the size of the blemish on your face. Right now I get the most use out of this assorted pack of 40 patches.

But when I first started out, I discovered this pack of larger patches so that I could cover the larger areas around my jaw line and on my cheeks that had LOTS of breakouts. So now I keep both packs on hand (I need to order more of the larger patches at the moment, which is why you don’t see a picture), but I’ve found since my acne is controlled, I don’t use the larger patches as often. If you’re just starting out, you can save yourself 50 cents and buy this pack with both kinds of patches.

I went through a lot of these patches at first, but now I order about once every 3-4 months. I discovered these patches purely by accident when I was researching ways to help my acne online. It’s kind of gross, yet kind of fascinating, in how they work. You put them on your acne at night, and when you get up in the morning and take them off, it’s like these little patches have sucked all of the icky out of your blemish and to the top of the skin so it will come right out. I try to plan so that I can wear these for about 12 hours at a time. It seems like that’s when I have the most success with them. If you’re handy with make-up (I am NOT!), they are supposed to even blend seamlessly with your skin so that you can wear them all day if you like. I haven’t been that brave because I don’t trust myself with a make-up brush, but if you do, I’d love to know how you did it.

When my oldest son hit puberty, he took after his Mama, and his poor little face was covered in breakouts. But once I taught him my routine for keeping my face clear, it was like his face magically cleared up as well. You might not think boys would care a whole lot about skin care, but they care just as much as girls!

While I still get the occasional breakout, this routine has made such a difference in my life, that I HAD to share it! It beats spending tons of money on prescriptions or expensive department store acne solutions that I really can’t afford. For about $30 every 3-4 months, I can keep my skin looking great. And after all those years of suffering from acne, that my friends, is money I consider to be well spent.

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