Facial Hygiene & You!

[Jak]

For as long as I can remember I've had generally oily skin which leads to the occasional outbreak (1-2 bumps) on my face every other week or so. It's generally around the base of my neck or under the chin and rarely anywhere else.

I'm curious what people are using because everything I try just doesn't seem to help or over-dries my skin. The generic "Soap & Water" and "Lern2shower" cannot apply to me because I'm probably the cleanest person I know which maybe my problem, I may perhaps be over-cleaning my face.

Right now I use three things daily on my face in this order..

1) Olay "Refreshing Toner" with witch hazel.
2) Olay "Foaming Facial Pads"
3) Olay "Dual Action Cleanser+Pore Scrub"

along with Biore Pore Perfect nose strips once every 2-3 days.

I mean my skin feels super clean for 2-3 hours but my pores refuse to shrink, they refuse to look much cleaner, and I still break out especially after I shave. I just don't get what I'm doing wrong, especially for my face to be so bleh after 2-3 hours and oily feeling.

Also, seeking a dermatologist isn't recommended on my behalf either sadly. For one, I have no clue where one even is; even if I did I could not afford to go to one as my insurance doesn't cover it as a "cosmetic" thing.

Does anyone have my same issue and found a reasonable fix? Maybe a magical "snake potion" I've missed that's hiding under my nose? Because this oily shit and large pores just aren't working for me.

[Jotaru]

I rinse my face with just water whenever I shower, nothing more, nothing less. If I use any type of anything on my face, it breaks out. Otherwise, no pimples. I tend to get blackheads on my nose, but that's about it.

[archibaldcrane]

I use shampoo to clean my face in the shower. Seems to work pretty well - usually Suave or White Rain - whatever is $1 a bottle at the supermarket.

[Jak]

To be honest the only shampoo I even have is H&S for my scalp since, well, I don't have any hair.

And using just water actually makes my face feel sticky~ish if I don't use some form of a soap.

[Selamis]

Sometimes it's just genetics man. I just use soap when I shower, never had any problems. Skin's normal, no zits or pimples, or acne, just the occasional blackhead on the nose, and those are easy to get rid of.

[Jak]

Yah, I'm afraid it maybe genetics and I'm afraid it's thanks to dear old Dad. My mom has never had a zit or anything and uses nothing but generic dollar general store soap + water. My dad on the other hand was named "Crater Face" back in the 70s. (._.)

[Senji]

If you clean and wash too much, your skin overcompensates and youll end up breaking out. Also rotate/wash pillow cases often, many dont really think about that.

[Jak]

Hmm, how often is often? I rotate pillows every other night actually (wasn't b/c I was thinking of hygiene though) but I only wash my pillow cases.. and only maybe once every 2 weeks at the most (I wash my sheets + pillow cases twice a month and my cover once a month).

[Atreides]

It seems you fall into the same trap a lot of people with problem skin have-- overtreating, the equivalent of carpet bombing your face. You kill off the bacteria, but also the healthy/immune cells as well, and you dry your skin out which is very bad (see why below).

Okay first of all, you don't need a toner/astringent with witch hazel AND 2 products with salacylic acid. A lot of people are very sensitive to these, and overusing them will definitely dry you out.

Skip the scrub every day and go with a gentle cleanser instead. You can exfoliate your skin once a week or so, but chances are you won't even need to do that if you don't overdry it, unless it's like the dead of winter or something.

Your regimen should look like this:
A) A gentle cleanser, like Aveeno Positively Radiant or Cetaphil. You just need a simple surfactant to get rid of dirt and oil, anything more than that is a little unnecessary. If your skin can handle it, you can use a gentle cleanser with salacylic acid at the end of the day or if you take a shower after the gym, but otherwise stick with the gentle stuff.

B) A GOOD moisturizer, like Aveeno Ultra-Calming or Clinique. This is the most important part of your skincare regimen and even if you have oily skin, you need to use this multiple times a day.

The problem (even for people with oily skin) is that almost all cleansers wash away oil/bacteria, but leave your skin so dry that your skin actually overproduces oil to compensate. This can lead to more breakouts, and cracked/dry skin can let acne/bumps spread all over your face.

So yeah, you should be washing your face like 2 times a day at most, and use moisturizer EVERY time you do. Use like 2-3 pumps and put it all over your face.

C) If shaving is causing you irritation/bumps, get an alcohol based aftershave (the best is Bump Patrol, which you can also use as a spot treatment for blemishes). You should be shaving with shave gel, even if you have an electric. If your electric isn't waterproof, find one that is and use shave gel every time. Make sure you gently glide the razor over your face, instead of grinding it in to get a close shave.


A few other tips/tricks:
-Don't use Biore strips more than once a week. Overusing them (or squeezing nose blackheads too much) can actually increase the size of your pores, as well as dry your skin out and lead to breakouts.

-Resist the urge to use very hot water to wash your face. It'll kill off the bacteria, but also wash out the oils that keep your skin healthy, and damage your skin.

-If you're still having problems, get a 2.5% Benzoyl Peroxide (from either acne.org or Clearasil On-the-Spot, do NOT use anything higher than 2.5% BP under any circumstances or else you will burn your face) cream and use it at night, anywhere there's problems. Make sure you use moisturizer on top of it, or else you still might get dried out.

-Always pat your skin dry after washing it, do not rub it. Use a seperate towel for your crotch/butt and your face.

-Keep in mind some people are actually allergic to salacylic acid. For me personally, I can use it in cleansers once a day or so, but if there's a leave-on treatment it'll make me itchy and break out even more.

edit: yeah you should change your pillowcase, but you only really need to do it once a week or so. Doing it every night might even be causing your problem, if you're sensitive to your laundry detergent. Best bet is to use something Fragrance/Dye-free.

There's not a lot you can do to reduce the size of your pores in the short term. Take good care of your skin and keep it moisturized, and they'll shrink on their own over time.

[Jefe]

I have semidecent diet and maybe a decent exercising routine, but I think my skin is the least I take care of... I mean I just use oil of olay soap and that's it <_< Anyone wanna recommend a scrub? One is supposedly to use it once a week or w/e, I tried it once and got a bunch of acne the next day. I guess something softish so it won't irritate my delicate skin. Don't want it to get crazy w/ all sorts of creams and shit either. ;x

[Jak]

And this is why I wish to clone you (atreides) and have one of you at my side at all times. I'll re-read tomorrow morning and look into some of the products you named off. I actually used moisturizers for a bit but it felt like it made my skin way more oily. You're right though, as I thought myself, that I'm probably over-cleaning.

[Atreides]

And this is why I wish to clone you (atreides) and have one of you at my side at all times. I'll re-read tomorrow morning and look into some of the products you named off. I actually used moisturizers for a bit but it felt like it made my skin way more oily. You're right though, as I thought myself, that I'm probably over-cleaning.

You may have to experiment with moisturizers until you find one that doesn't make you break out. Aveeno works for me, but it might not for you. The only moisturizer that I know most people can use is Clinique, but it's very expensive. Keep in mind that most chain drug stores have nice return policies on cosmetic products-- if it makes you break out you can probably return it for something else.

I have semidecent diet and maybe a decent exercising routine, but I think my skin is the least I take care of... I mean I just use oil of olay soap and that's it <_< Anyone wanna recommend a scrub? One is supposedly to use it once a week or w/e, I tried it once and got a bunch of acne the next day. I guess something softish so it won't irritate my delicate skin. Don't want it to get crazy w/ all sorts of creams and shit either. ;x

You dont NEED to exfoliate/scrub once a week if you don't have a lot of dry/flaky skin. And if you do have dry skin, chances are you need to moisturize rather than exfoliate. If you're already moisturizing daily and you're still having lots of problems with dead skin buildup, I might consider a kaolin mask instead of an exfoliating scrub, but I'm guessing you don't even need that. What exactly is your skin issue?

[Jak]

Is this a decent moisturizer? Thinking of trying it..

http://www.lancome-usa.com/skincare/...sion-cream.htm
http://i38.tinypic.com/34686ee.jpg

There's also a Hydrix Moisturizing Balm for men but wasn't sure..

[Selamis]

Only moisturizer I use is the Curel unscented, or sometimes if we're out of that whatever is in the house, which is usually the cocoa butter. Gotta be careful what you use for your face, some thigns may give you an allergic reaction or make you break out worse.

[Tonko]

I never use soap other than to wash my hair. I don't use deodorant, and I don't use any products on my skin or face.

Works for me at least.

[Jak]

There's some shit I used last year.. neutrogena or whatever that absolutely fucking killed my face. It gave me a chemical burn all over my face and it looked like I had a peeling sunburn for a week.

[Jefe]

Lancome is ridiculously expensive. Eh, let them cornhole the chicks, I won't ever buy that shit lol.

[Jak]

I've never really heard bad things per se about them except the expensive part. I never really learned if it was a "good" expensive or "bad" expensive where it's just generic shit with a nice name, know what I mean?

[Atreides]

There's some shit I used last year.. neutrogena or whatever that absolutely fucking killed my face. It gave me a chemical burn all over my face and it looked like I had a peeling sunburn for a week.

if your moisturizer left your skin red/burned you were either allergic, or the moisturizer had salacylic acid in it. Try out Aveeno Ultra-Calming (NOT clear complexion), it's not greasy and it dries clear. (edit: yeah it appears most neutrogena moisturizers have acne-fighting medicine in them. That's probably what made you break out)

Skip the lancome. You don't need to spend more than 10-20 for your moisturizer.

[Jak]

Nah, it wasn't moisturizer that burned me. It was some face wash shit. Never trusted the product again. Gave it to my cousin and it burned her face too, lol. >_>

I'll see if my local wal-mart carries the aveeno stuff tomorrow. I always did like the aveeno body wash with oatmeal in it. Always smelled good!