Facial Equilibrium
I don't think that anyone should find a way to incorporate acne into their personal style. I've never met a person who liked their acne. I had bad acne at trying times - middle school and early high school. I did go to a dermatologist and when I went to college, I stopped using medication because my dermatologist had died and our health insurance gave us a more complex process for getting a new dermatologist so I gave that up. I had heard of the process -wash, astringent, moisturizer. I never really liked moisturizer, since it always made my skin feel more oily. Yes...it didn't occur to me that you have to let your moisturizer set. After recommendations from beauty books and my sister who is a cosmetologist, I gave the routine a try again. After weeks of doing the routine, other people started noticing the quality of my skin improving and I only noticed it after I felt how smooth my skin was one day. My sister, the cosmetologist, was rather irritated because she was following the routine as well and had not received the same results. This is the best recommendation I can give to anyone. I may not be a dermatologist, but I do know something about equilibrium.
Skin & Oil
I'm beginning to think that oil production is an inherent constant within our biology. Yes, I'm saying it's genetic. While I don't have any sources, I'm pretty sure that there is a genetic predisposition for acne and that if at least one parent had it, the kids will be likely to have it too. What does oil have to do with this? When dead skin cells and other matter accumulate on the skin, the oil provides that flow that pushes the matter into pores so that the clogged pore will develop into some skin blemish. If genetics dictates that skin remains at a certain lubricated level, if you wash your face with hot water, use the most drying astringent, and strip the oil off of your skin, the sebaceous glands will only increase production to reach the original level of oiliness - equilibrium is met.
Bear in mind, I'm not a skin doctor, I just observe patterns and since my assumption is that skin oil production is dictated by some kind of equilibrium, let's introduce Le Chatlier's Principle. When conditions are changed, how is equilibrium affected. For the sake of skin, here are some examples.
(mid-day, hours after face washing)
oil production (sebaceous glands) = oil on face
(after face washing)
oil production (increases) = oil on face (decreased due to washing)
oil production (sebaceous glands) = oil on face
(after face washing)
oil production (increases) = oil on face (decreased due to washing)
Decreased oil on face due to a strong astringent only makes oil production increase more to compensate for the dryness. I'm assuming that there is a moisture level that has to be maintained and this is that importance of moisturizer.
(after face washing)
oil production (decreased) = oil on face (decreased due to washing) + moisturizer
oil production (decreased) = oil on face (decreased due to washing) + moisturizer
If the skin is moisturized, there's no need to produce more oil because of the level of moisture on the skin. And you can still deep clean with an astringent as long as you use moisturizer.
What to Use
Chances are, if you have acne, your skin might be sensitive already. When you put something like Oxy on that stings, you'd like to feel that it's killing the bacteria and killing the acne, but I personally believe you're not doing yourself any favors. You're only further irritating your skin. So try to be gentle with your skin and be patient. I start with: Cetaphil Gentle Cleanser
It's non comodegenic (doesn't clog pores), you can use it without water, I even sometimes use it as an emollient before I go to sleep.
I follow with: Burt's Bees Garden Tomato Toner. Astringents are a bit of a tricky thing. They're usually always going to sting a little and stinging pain tolerance is not a good way to decide on a toner. I try for something light and low in alcohol. My sister, who is the cosmetologist, went to the Aveda Institute, so she is really into natural products. Generally, the more natural your products, the less likely they are to sting and they'll feel more soothing - at least in my experience. My sister bought me a toner for my birthday and I really liked it, but retail, it is about $25. At my grocery store, they sell Burt's Bees Tomato Toner and I thought it would work better as a cheaper alternative ($10). I've been using it ever since. I only recently tried Clean and Clear, their cooling toner, but it stings my skin to where it is really red, even moisturizer couldn't soothe it.
I follow my toner with: Cetaphil Moisturizer. As you can tell, I really trust Cetaphil. I like that they're moisturizer is oil free and noncomodegenic. It is also good that is has some sun protection. When I'm stressed, it shows in my skin. During my days of little sleep, my skin would get drier especially around my lips. I started using more moisturizer (2 pumps instead of one) and despite the stress on my body, my skin was doing really well. This also keeps your skin from drying out because of the toner.
At night before I sleep, I wash with the gentle cleanser and then I go over with a light alcohol free toner. Neutrogena makes some good ones. So there you have it. Some insight into skin care from someone with oily skin. You really just have to find a routine that sounds like it'll work for you and stick to it. It's a bit of a lifestyle change, but you have to take care of yourself.
What to Use
Chances are, if you have acne, your skin might be sensitive already. When you put something like Oxy on that stings, you'd like to feel that it's killing the bacteria and killing the acne, but I personally believe you're not doing yourself any favors. You're only further irritating your skin. So try to be gentle with your skin and be patient. I start with: Cetaphil Gentle Cleanser
It's non comodegenic (doesn't clog pores), you can use it without water, I even sometimes use it as an emollient before I go to sleep.
I follow with: Burt's Bees Garden Tomato Toner. Astringents are a bit of a tricky thing. They're usually always going to sting a little and stinging pain tolerance is not a good way to decide on a toner. I try for something light and low in alcohol. My sister, who is the cosmetologist, went to the Aveda Institute, so she is really into natural products. Generally, the more natural your products, the less likely they are to sting and they'll feel more soothing - at least in my experience. My sister bought me a toner for my birthday and I really liked it, but retail, it is about $25. At my grocery store, they sell Burt's Bees Tomato Toner and I thought it would work better as a cheaper alternative ($10). I've been using it ever since. I only recently tried Clean and Clear, their cooling toner, but it stings my skin to where it is really red, even moisturizer couldn't soothe it.
I follow my toner with: Cetaphil Moisturizer. As you can tell, I really trust Cetaphil. I like that they're moisturizer is oil free and noncomodegenic. It is also good that is has some sun protection. When I'm stressed, it shows in my skin. During my days of little sleep, my skin would get drier especially around my lips. I started using more moisturizer (2 pumps instead of one) and despite the stress on my body, my skin was doing really well. This also keeps your skin from drying out because of the toner.
At night before I sleep, I wash with the gentle cleanser and then I go over with a light alcohol free toner. Neutrogena makes some good ones. So there you have it. Some insight into skin care from someone with oily skin. You really just have to find a routine that sounds like it'll work for you and stick to it. It's a bit of a lifestyle change, but you have to take care of yourself.
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