Acne Sucks.
Combat Acne One Step at a Time
There is no way around it, acne sucks and unfortunately, it is different for everyone. It is the reason for many visits to estheticians, dermatologists, and skincare aisles in tears. I have been dealing with my own acne struggles since esthetics school (great timing, right?!) and I have tried every single product, ingredient, and tip for acne so you don’t have to! Here are some of my best insights for treating acne:
FREE Tips and Tricks
Double cleanse at night. - If you aren’t already, double cleansing at night is a game changer for skin routines. It is best to start by washing your face with a creamy cleanser to remove all the dirt, grime, makeup, and oil. Then, going in with a second cleanser with active ingredients will treat the skin much more effectively with a clean canvas from the first cleanse. For acne, some of the best active ingredients are salicylic acid and mandelic acid. When you first add active ingredients into your routine, it is best to work them in slowly. Start by using the second cleanser every other night and work up to every night. If your skin starts to dry out, dial it back to every other night again.
Check all of your products for pore-clogging ingredients. - It is important to know exactly what is going on your face, especially when dealing with acne. Every cleanser, moisturizer, foundation, bronzer, primer, highlighter, and concealer should be checked to make sure it is not setting you back on a daily basis. A tool that I use is linked here. Scroll down to the acne checker, copy and paste all of the ingredients from the product into the checker, and it will tell you if there is anything to worry about. Savannah Boda Esthetics has done a whole social media series on acne safe makeup products and can be a great resource in making educated skin decisions!
Change your pillowcase as often as possible.- If you can change your underwear everyday, you can change your pillowcase every day! You can buy a whole pack of silk pillowcases on Amazon and the results are worth it! Even overnight, pillowcases can accumulate dead skin cells, dirt, dust mites, and bacteria. This is a breeding ground for acne triggers and is terrible for your skin to be exposed to for hours every night. Changing your pillowcase as often as possible is another way to give your skin the best chance to heal and overcome acne.
Wash all of your makeup tools. - Just like pillowcases, makeup brushes, beauty blenders, and other applicators hold onto acne causing bacteria and can spread acne around the face. Washing your makeup tools on a weekly basis is also an important step to keeping acne under control.
Ice your breakouts. - After washing your face at night and before you apply serums, moisturizers, and creams, icing inflamed acne will bring down redness and shorten the lifespan of breakouts. It feels amazing and is such a simple way to keep acne under control. You can use an ice cube or an ice roller. If you use an ice roller, make sure it is sanitized!
Don’t touch your face! - Our hands are icky and dirty, even if we wash them all the time! Picking and touching blemishes spreads bacteria and can be such a hard habit to break. Nothing is more satisfying than popping a big pimple (I get it), but the after effects, possible scarring, and germs are not worth it in the long run. Be extra aware of your habits, get rid of the close up mirror, and find a way to redirect your hands when they reach for your face. I keep a travel size spot treatment on me to put on blemishes when I need to do SOMETHING to try to take care of it.
Tips and Tricks Worth the $$
LED Lights. - LED therapy for the skin has been gaining popularity and a buzz around it these last few years. I tell ya what - the science behind it is astounding and I am 100% onboard with its effectiveness. It boosts collagen and elastin production, stimulates oxygen production in the skin (which then kills bacteria), and calms down inflammation. I personally have a small hand-held device that is a spot treatment, but I will do several rounds of it all over my face so it is all exposed to the light. My device can be found here and is $80. Eventually, I would like to get a full-face device, but have to budget it in since it is a chunk of change. The full-face mask I would like to get is about $400. I would be wary about cheaper products because most of the time, they won’t have the right bulbs to be effective. When using devices, try not to touch them to your face, and if you do, make sure they are sanitized!
It is one of the easiest steps in a skincare routine because whether you read a book, watch TV, or scroll on your phone before bed, the LED light can be used at the same time and doesn’t require any extra attention. I do it for about 10 minutes or so!
Monthly or bi-monthly treatments. - Seeing a professional once a month or once every other month is great to get a deeper exfoliation, clean extractions, targeted treatments, and another set of eyes on your skin and how it is progressing. Although 80% of skincare results come from your home routine, the other 20% of visits to your esthetician is valuable to bring your skin to its full potential!
Antibacterial toner. - Let me tell ya, we as humans are absolute germ collectors and our face is no exception. To combat acne causing bacteria throughout the day, I carry a spray/toner with hypochlorous acid in it to spray after I touch my face, go to the gym, or just feel a little grimy. It has helped my skin A TON and can also be used as an antibacterial spray anywhere on the body. It is incredibly gentle and doesn’t have a strong smell. I highly recommend the one linked here and it is worth the $!
Professional Products. - It is so hard to wade through all of the recommendations floating round Tik Tok, Instagram, YouTube, you name it. It can be overwhelming to find a person and advice you can trust and disappointing when you have to go out and spend even more money on another product. What I can say is to make sure you are starting from the beginning. Go through all of the free tips from above first and make sure you are being honest with yourself about sticking to a routine. More than half of skincare is just washing and moisturizing your face. If you have normal to mild skin concerns, sometimes you can get away with products at Target or Ulta. However, if you are dealing with more moderate to severe skin concerns, it is well worth it to invest in professional products. Medical and professional products contain 99% pure ingredients without any fluff or fillers, making them more effective and better for your skin. Drugstore products (and yes, even Ulta) don’t have to meet the same 99% standard and are made in very large batches, therefore not being able to use the highest quality ingredients.
I have decided to carry GlyMed Plus products here at Lupanar Esthetics due to their commitment to effective products, customer service, and fair prices. I have found that many of the recommendations I make are comparable or even less in price than the “high-end” products found on the shelves in stores. GlyMed also carries a wide array of products to create a truly custom skin routine for every person. At the very least, switching to professional products with active ingredients, like your second cleanser, spot treatments, and serums, will help boost your results immensely!
All of these tips have been tested and I stand behind them 100%! Try to slowly work one or two of them into your routine and build up from there!
Luckily, my acne is starting to heal and diminish. It is not perfect, but very soon I will be shifting from acne management to treating hyperpigmentation left over from acne scars. I have a plan for them, too, and am looking forward to walking through it with all of you!
Questions? Shoot me a message!
Thanks so much for reading!
~Reb