Friday, August 12, 2011

Make them go away.

Somehow, I went through high school relatively unscathed when it came to acne. A zit here and there, nothing a little concealer couldn't ... conceal. I didn't realize how lucky I was.

This is me now, at 24 flipping years old.



Yep, that's my crater face, unedited and uncut. All for your viewing pleasure. But I already showed you my stretch marks, remember? This is child's play in comparison to that.

I've tried: going off the oil cleansing method, using a mild cleanser by Aveeno (made it worse), using an exfoliating cleanser, using a moisturizing cream, using a combination of all the above, going back on the oil cleansing method ... sigh.

It'll go away someday, right? Please bless that it happens soon.

The good news is I didn't have to endure this as an insecure teenager. The bad news is now people are wondering how the 14-year-old girl shopping at Wal-Mart has two children.

Question of the day: It's Fridayeeee! Doing anything fun this weekend? Dill and I are going to get sushi tonight. Tomorrow and Sunday, we get to hear from this guy. Can't wait.

29 comments:

  1. These are probably stress zits. When Women get stressed they get zits along their jaw line or around their forehead. If i get overly stressed i get Monster zits all along my jaw line and forehead. Mine always just go away after a while. Also maybe its something you are eating thats causing you to break out. My hubby breaks out if he eats food thats greasy or something he hasnt eaten in a long time.

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  2. I need to give you some of my goat's milk soap. I think it's cleared my skin up really good! I still get a few zits here and there but it's probably because I don't wash my face at night and I go to sleep with my makeup on.

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  3. I'm super sorry about your sits. But that comment about you being a 14yo with two kids totally made me laugh! Sorry to laugh in your demise. And I have no advice for you since I don't wash my face. I know...I'm bad.

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  4. My face didn't get bad until after I had kids as well. I always thought it was my hormones, they never did get regular again. Of course it doesn't help that I touch my face ALL the time! Bad habit.

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  5. Have you thought about using proactiv? I heard it's supposed to be really good!

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  6. I feel for you. I not only had bad acne as a teenager but I still do and I'm almost 26! I always thought that when I was an adult they would go away but no such luck. If you find a miracle solution let me know! Is Elder Bednar coming for your stake conference? That's so lucky! I love listing to his talks! He was the president of BYU-Idaho the 3 semesters that I was there and it was always amazing hearing him speak. My very first day at new student orientation as a freshman he came up to me and my mom and introduced himself and talked to us for a while. He was always so personable and friendly and made you feel like you were in a small group instead of a student body with thousands of students.

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  7. I'll see ya this weekend! So excited for stake conference!

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  8. Once I turned 30- I started getting these awful dry scaly patches along my nose and on my forehead... So yea skin doesn't always make sense

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  9. In no way is it natural...but the one thing that's worked for me lately is the "Acne-Free" 3 step system! I use the wash,toner & lotion in the morning and a make-up removing neutrogena cleanser at night with cetaphil lotion for a little extra moisture. Seriously cleared up my face in a couple days. Arizona is a lot more dry than Louisiana though, so I'm not sure how that would work for ya.

    If you are interested in trying it - I recommend buying it from Rite-aid because of the "beauty guarantee" I seriously LIVE off this guarantee. Buy a beauty product (shampoo, facewash, lotion, makeup) and then try it out. If you don't like it...no worries...bring the opened package back to the store with your receipt and you get a full refund IN CASH! (check out the riteaid website for full details) I would probably never try new products if it weren't for this safety net. Hope that helps!

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  10. oh its just a terrible thing. ugh..., zits. Although i have to mention, I love your sidebar pic and especially the part where you say "This is my face"...ha ha ha ha...its just so funny. "this is my face" ha ha...its a good funny. not making fun or anything of the sort. it just sounds quirky, i love it!

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  11. Forgot to mention. You'll probably spend $20 at Rite-aid on the Acne Free system. It lasts me 2 1/2 - 3 months though.

    It's also on sale at Walgreens this week for $14.99 or something too.

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  12. Okay, well whatever you're doing to cover them is seriously professional.(Remember how your face was super enlarged on my computer screen but I couldn't even see your PORES?!) Did you learn that while interning? Because THAT is a seriously useful skill to take you through life.

    At 31 I get to walk around Walmart with four kids and pimples. You are singing my song. I had amazing skin through my teens...then I went and had a bunch of kids and I think my hormones got pissed, because they like to air their grievances on my face.

    Bah.

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  13. Hey, 32 and i have skin problems I never had as a teenager. I hate it! I hope it goes away for you, and myself too!

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  14. I never had zits until a year after I had Owen, right around the time I weaned him. It's slowly getting better, but I still have a flare up now and then. Right now I'm doing pretty good.

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  15. Thanks for all the help, ladies! I used to use Proactive and Acne Free when I was younger (ya, back when I had virtually no acne -- why??). It was OK but I have very dry skin so I felt like I had to use way too much of the moisturizer. I might have to give it another go.

    @Anna, the weird thing about my acne is that it's only on the right half of my face and on my chest and back. In that ginormous picture you can mostly see only the left side and for good reason. Not to mention my forehead is basically flawless for some odd reason. And whatever zits were visible, I zapped away with Photoshop. ;)

    I'm honestly relieved to know I'm in good company. I think my hormones are angry at me. This did start about the same time I weaned my baby, maybe a few months after.

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  16. @Aubrey, yes! He's coming for our stake conference because our SP is being released. I'm so excited! I always enjoy his conference talks. He spoke at Dillon's convocation in 2007, and that was really neat.

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  17. I feel your pain!! I'm having the same exact problem right now. Tried oil cleansing and it didn't help and proactiv. My sister in law just told me about this amazing product called Arbonne. They have an acne line and a regular line. She uses it and her skin cleared right up and looks amazing. I just ordered some. It is a little more expensive than proactiv but to me it is SO worth it. I'm tired of feeling like a teenager with two kids! I already get enough stares having twins. Good luck!!

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  18. um, sorry, but that's nothin' compared to living with way more on my face for over 20 years (and no end in sight). i bet yours go away, and you'll be back to your gorgeous self in no time. end of my pity party and good luck!

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  19. Blame the weather! My OCM success story was just about to make it to the blog, but I've been getting a few more acne spells. Wash your sheets (maybe you sleep on your right side??) and think about your body and what it might be trying to tell you. Good luck. And yum, I'm 28 next week and don't have perfect skin. Maybe some day?

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  20. my mom still gets acne at age 55! I took accutane when I was 17 and haven't had many problems since then. i am a HUGE mary kay fan though. time wise makes my face feel great. try it! i'm pretty sure slim is a dealer.

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  21. Go to a dermatologist, I do and it works wonders.

    For years I only got acne sparingly on my hairline (due to crazy hair products that I love). Recently I get them on my chin (like you.) Here's what my dr told me: as you move into your mid twenties hormones cause the chin acne.

    The pill has worked well for me, but I've also heard great things about retin-a micro etc.

    Best of luck, it is no fun!

    You are still beautiful, though! Never second guess that.

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  22. @ACW I totally thought I might be sleeping on my right side, but I actually sleep on the left. That's the weirdest mystery of this whole thing. It has to be hormonal or it wouldn't be all over my back and chest, too.

    @Bethany, "Slim is a dealer." That cracked me up. I have used TimeWise before and thought it was good. I'm feeling sad that I can't just do the oil cleansing anymore. I really liked it.

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  23. acnefree is honestly the best thing ever.

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  24. Oh boy can I relate, sadly! My face looks terrible! I really think mine is hormonal, so I feel kind of "stuck" with it until I wean my baby next month and things get back to normal. I tried the OCM for a couple of months and really loved how the top half of my face felt. Then I finally went to the doctor (family doc) and she put me on some antibiotics and some topical medicine which made my face hurt like a mother and looks 20 times worse than it already did. I FINALLY sucked it up and went to a dermatologist last week and he put me on a different antibiotic and a topical antibiotic/retinoid cream and told me to just wash my face with dove soap. He said it'll take a couple of months before I notice drastic improvement, but just washing with the dove soap for the past few days has really calmed things down and made it so I don't want to scratch my face off. I hate that I'm 33 and have the skin of a 15 year old--especially when little kids ask me what happened to my face, which happens a lot since I'm in the primary at church. :( Wow--is this comment long enough?! My advice--go to a dermatologist. I wish I'd gone sooner. He reassured me that I won't have any scarring from my pizza face--I'm really hoping he's right! Good luck!

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  25. I hope you're having a fantastic weekend! I deal with acne too.. still... at age 25! I have found a few things that help, however... I use a benzoyl peroxide cream by neutrogena at night. That seems to help. I also have to remind myself not to rest my hands on my face at all. It's frustrating, but at the same time, I tell myself to appreciate my health & focus on that instead!

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  26. After high school I started breaking out SO bad! The only thing that worked was going to a dermatologist. It's actually not as expensive as you think. Every 4-6 weeks I would go in and it was $45 per visit. The prescription was free though, they loaded me down with samples so I never had to fill my prescription! I used Retin-A on the skin and then took a pill called ampicillin. Worked like a charm. And when they weened me off of it, the acne never came back!

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  27. Well, it's been ages for me, but I've seen the proactiv commercials and they sure sound good! Ha!
    This weekend is family time before school starts. Low-key things the kids like. :-)

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  28. Jenna
    Same thing happened to me when I did OCM, I loved how small my pores were but got monster zits.
    So I quit OCM, I use AcneFree, and took Vitex to help my hormones stabilize after weaning. My skin is so much better.

    I also have on hand for a breakout Eminence Spot Serum. It's SO expensive, but it works!!

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  29. Same here.
    I had my skin under control and then did OCM and two weeks into it had break outs all over my chin.
    We are still in the thick of it, my face and I...
    I'm sure some of it is hormones, as I too am weaning my baby. But seriously, what gives. I feel like a teenager. Just remember zits or no, you are still BEAUTIFUL!
    Let me know what you try and if you find anything that works!

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