Got Zits?
Sep 22 '00
The day I turned thirteen my life literally changed. My obsession with all things skin care began-You see,I woke up to sunshine,happiness, and my very first zit. In the following days I was introduced to his brothers,sisters,aunts,uncles, and distant cousins-all set to make their home on my face.
Being a teenager is hard,being a teenager with zits is nearly impossible. There are so many common misconceptions in our society about acne. Some say it is caused by a diet of greasy food and dairy products,while others maintain that to have pimples is to not have an acute awareness of ones own personal hygiene. All roads lead to blame of the sufferer. The fact is most good physicians will tell you-no one really understands the cause of acne. They can give you a laundry list of possible triggers but why one group has the problem and another group gets away scott free with the same lifestyle as the first clear skinned group baffles even the most scientific minds. Know that having pimples and large pores is in no way a reflection of you.
You can do some things to help clear up your skin. Most of my favorite things to do are home cures. You don't need to spend all your hard earned cash on a "miracle" cure that won't work for you. Over the counter products are great but they can not measure the oiliness or dryness of YOUR skin. So something that works wonders for your best friend may just cause you another eruption.
DO NOT over clean you face. This removes all oils from your skin causing more break outs. Wash once in the morning and once before bed. Unless you are working in the coal mines this should be plenty. I have found any clear face soap i.e. Neutrogena,etc. to work well.
Drink at least 8 glasses of water a day. I try to drink more. This flushes out your system and keeps your skin soft. Another suggestion is to add a teaspoon full of Apple Cider Vinegar and a little touch of honey to sweeten to one of your glasses of water a day. A good friend suggested this to help aid me in weight loss but I soon noticed many other benefits including clearer skin. I buy the cider from the local health food store because the kind at the supermarket is overprocessed and has lost many of its benefits. If you can get it down, it works.
Do not pick at your acne. You will scar after awhile and pits are by far a million times worse than a pimple that will eventually go away.
Before bed dab on a little toothpaste to your pimples. This takes the cyst-like ones down. I can't remember why but it does. Remember to only use the normal, old fashioned paste type of toothpaste. Gel or whitening will not work.
Those big red aching zits are the hardest to deal with. I dab on a little Visine eye drops-it will not remove the offending pimple but will remove the redness.
Give yourself an at home facial. Start with a good,gentle cleansing of your face. Use your regular cleaner. Next move on to steaming. Steaming helps with your pores and get rid of any gunk that may be hiding. Just heat up some water on the stove,once hot enough remove to another bowl place a towel over your head like a tent and let the steam do its work. Don't put your face to close to the bowl or your gonna burnt which is not attractive. Stay put for 5 to 10 minutes before we move on to washing. Washing and cleaning sound the same but are very different. This next step serves to "flush" away all the impurities you have loosened through steaming. You could just splash cool tap water over your face from the faucet but I prefer to mix a tablespoon of lemon juice with about 8 ounces of water in a spray bottle and then spray the mixture on my face. The lemon juice serves to "fade" any blemishes or spots that I have on my face at the time. It is not permanent but works well for a short time. Next comes the mask, this is really the big skin helper of the bunch. I use a product found in just about any store,Queen Helene's Mint Julep Masque. It serves to dry up acne pimples,rinse away blackheads, and help shrink large pores. With enough uses in my case this product has really helped. No product lives up to all its claims but this one comes close and is very inexpensive. You could also try a egg white mask-there are countless homemade masks to try listed on the internet now-you will find one that is right for you. For a complete listing go to www.stretcher.com and look under skincare. Allow the mask to dry and follow with a light commercially prepared moisturizer. This may seem silly to add oil back to your newly cleaned skin but it a must. Your skin needs some oil to function properly.
Take your vitamins. Some pharmacies and large chain stores offer vitamins designed for care of skin. This is worth a shot. They don't work for me but may work for you. Zinc has been offered as a solution in another epinion on skin care and although I have not tried this- I know many clear skinned people who swear by it.
Protect your skin in the sun. It may seem like a quick fix to dry your acne out in the warm sun. It actually may appear that way for a week or two but your face will probably ended up breaking out worse from abuse.
Nothing will completely remove skin problems in your life. Before you try serious medications such as Accutane explore all your options. And remember zits are not the end of the world although when they make their home on your face it seems that way.
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Epinions.com ID:
sparklesky
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Member: Melissa
Reviews written: 75
Trusted by: 324 members
About Me:
"My heart does not know from logic."
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