This isn't a crisis at all but just wondering what can be causing my daughters breakout. She will be 17 on Saturday and her skin has been clear all through the Middle School years until now. The only thing she has changed was she started using that mineral makeup from Sephora about a year ago. Could this be clogging her pores? She of course hates that I try and figure out what it could be because I know it bothers her to have the breakout. Yes her life is stressfull. She is taking AP courses and trying to keep her class rank in the top 10%. She is running track and a competitive cheerleader. I bought her a Neutragena kit for acne and it looks like its getting better but I hate asking her about it. I told her to drink lots of water and not to touch her face and to let her face breathe as much as possible without makeup but it looks really bad if she doesn't cover it up and that's why she wears makeup all day. She never should have started wearing all over makeup in the first place she had the best skin.
Well turns out she hasn't been washing her brush -- it's filled with bacteria and this may be the root of her problem. I loved all the recommendations on skin care products that have helped everyone. I also told her to put a clean towel on her pillow to sleep on or change her pillow case. I forgot to tell everyone that her break out was on her lower forehead right above nose and eye area - not all over.
she might need to stop wearing that kind of make-up, I am un able to wear it because it use to break me out. I had to let my face heal up before I used any other products because I didnt want to transfer anything over to the new make up.
Let her know that she need to stop the make up for now and after her face heals then she can start wearing make up again just use a different kind. Also try cleaning with anti bacteria soap for a few days.
Make-up could be the culprit. If she wears it everday and does not wash it out at night makes it worse. The pores have to be cleaned and allowed to breathe. She may be used to wearing the makeup and now all the more to hide but explain to her that if she doesn't take an extended break, like weeks or a couple of months and try a 2-3 times per day cleansing regimen, it will get worst. Tell her its like holding your breath without taking breaks to breathe.
I have found that any regimen is better than none at all as it pertains to products. I have used $2 ambi or neutrogena followed by a moisturizer from one of these lines or another and that worked-but I had to be consistent. So whatever product you choose, tell her lock the makeup up until she can improve her skin and don't worry about what people think or say.
I suggest taking her a dermatologist as soon as you can. Skin issues with teenagers can cause long time self esteem issues and the over the counter medications just are not effective. My daughter is a senior, very active and involved like yours - AP classes, basketball, newspaper, etc. She is on her second round of Accutane and her self esteem has risen dramatically. It's all in the body's internal chemistry and that needs to be addressed. Hopefully your daughter's condition can be cleared up with medication that is not as serious as accutane, but the dermatologist will help you with that.
My nephew used to get breakouts all the time at about that age. This is going to sound strange, but my sister bought him some toothpaste for his face. She bought the cheap (.99) toothpaste, (pepsodent)and he would dot it on his pimples at night, then wash his face in the morning. He cleared up. It's worth a try.
Good luck & God Bless!
Hi Melissa,
I wouldn't fuss too much over it. This sounds like plain old teenage acne. There's some really good face washes out there. I personally had really bad acne in high school and it still lingers but not nearly as bad. I used proactiv for awhile and it worked wonders, so there's one suggestion. About the make-up, I use that stuff called Sheer Cover and I LOVE it. It's everything they say it is. It doesn't clog my pores or make me breakout. Here's their website: www.sheercover.com You should try it.
All the stress that goes along with high school is a HUGE part of it. I should know, I just graduated last year (I'm 18). Tell her about the sheer cover stuff and also, I use the Morning Burst with Shine Control face wash from Clean&Clear. It works pretty good.
Hope it all works out! Good luck!
L. D.
www.just4mylittlegirl.com
Hi melissa,
I just thought I would mention that if your daughter doesn't have great success with the Neutragena kit there is an excellent acne system which can be ordered online called Exposed Acne Treatment System (www.exposedskincare.com).
After YEARS of trying everything (I'm 35 and have been dealing with acne since I was 11), this kit has made a huge difference. It's great for all ages. I found it in an unbiased acne skincare review which included many of the most well known acne treatment regimens (Proactive, Murad, etc.) Exposed was rated highest, and each of the judges had seen improvement from it - that's why I gave it a shot. I've used it for over a year now.
Other than that, I would say put your "mommy detective hat" away. They hate when we do too much of that, you know? For many people acne is just part of life at one stage or another and it's probably not the mineral makeup causing the blemishes. If you order her the kit and tell her to ease into it at first (don't use too much in the beginning and let her skin adjust to it) and just say you heard it was good - maybe she'll give it a try. With any skin care regimen, you have to give it time (months) to make a change to the complection. There are not usually immediate results. The kit she's using now may be enough to do the trick for her if she sticks with it.
Is she washing the brushes often? With the mineral make up this is a must. The skin cells that you are buffing away end up in the brush and grow bacteria. Uck! They recommend once a week I believe. I was just using shampoo, then got grossed out after thinking about it and began using antibacterial hand soap. I also never have any breakouts until my first child. I then switched to Bare Minerals and began using Proactive. I highly recommend both products. I also change my pillow case daily and keep my hair pulled back at night.
I would insist on using a onetime use credit card number when ordering the Proactive. They apparently thought that it was ok to just begin charging me for random products they thought I might like. Both companies automatically sign you up for a "club" so they will send it to you and charge you every month. So do be careful of the charges, but that is not as big of a deal now that so many banks offer one time use numbers for online orders. I hope this helps.
Congrats to her so working so hard. That sounds like a pretty good kid you have there.
I have a makeup artist friend, and she told me to use Witch Hazel(next to alcohol in grocery) as an astringent. It takes the redness out and reduces swelling.
Also diaper rash cream at night on pimple. Usually gone by morning.
Another suggestions is colliodal silver(SP?) You get it at the vitamin shop. It's a liquid, and you can use it straight on your skin like astringent also. My mom teaches high school, and she's passed it on to several students. One student had horrible acne. It was cleared up in less than a week.
I've had acne on and off since college. Weird right? Never in high school or middle school. I have thyroid problems which blows my hormones this way or that.
A.
I don't know if she would want to try this but I use Biore with the beads in it because I break out alot. Change her pillow cases at least once a week. Change make up brushes often and don't let anyone else use them. I use natural acne astringent like lemon juice, aloe vera and such. There are great recipes online and they really do work you just have to find the best one for your skin type, and the best thing is that they are natural and do not have the chemicals that they have in store bought acne systems.
Hope this helps! Good luck.
What a good Mom you are! It would help for her to keep her hair off her face at night. I would tell her to change her p case every night and clean all phones everytime she goes to use them and gets off of them. Also it's possible that the makeup she is using has mineral oil in it.
It will clog poors.
Right around this age I started getting acne too. It was very frustrating after having none at all ever.
I use the ARBONNE acne system and it's great...
~pure, safe & beneficial...
Let me know if you would like to try it, I can help you get your hands on some. I am an ARBONNE consultant.
Peace Mama,
A. R.
I use the Arbonne system for acne and it's great. No strange side effects either. I had been going to the dermatologist for creams, washes and pills... my face felt like I had the worst sunburn and was so red. Also if you touched my face it would start to bleed. When I switched to Arbonne all of that went away. I don't even have to use it every day anymore. Also have her wash her brushes once a week (Sat. would be a good day) Mine usually dry by the time I'm home from work. Good luck!
