Hey guys! This blog is gonna be a personal one! I am going to tell you my own acne story and how I’ve kept my skin completely clear for over 5 years. I say five but it’s probably more because I don’t remember the last time I had a zit or blemish.

So when I was 13 I started getting a lot of acne all over my face. It was ironic because when I was 12 I thought I was lucky since I had no troubles but 13 hit and FCKKK. Hello adolescence!! LOL.

I never had cystic or anything so severe that I had to have prescription acne medicine although my father asked if I wanted to go to the dermatologist.

So as I mentioned my acne started at 13 and was pretty bad until I was 16. I had incredibly dry, sensitive skin  and no skincare routine whatsoever. I washed my face with bar soap and moisturized my face with body lotion. The big red flag here that I never saw was that everytime I put something on my face IT STUNG. It stung soooo bad .. Putting any kind of lotion on my face really hurt and I wanted to itch it! I usually used whatever my mom had around the house which was Bath & Body Works. Bath & Body Works lotions are known for being mainly visually appealing products. They look and smell great but aren’t very moisturizing or good for you. You seeing where I went wrong? lol. I also have always had terrible eating habits and did not exercise at all so that contributed to it as well~

My acne was not cystic but it was not a simple matter either. Due to the sensitive and dry nature to my skin the acne would make my skin peel. My skin would be so flaky it would get all patchy and red. Needless to say I definitely got teased. I particularly remember one instance where my 8th grade classmate asked me ‘why the hell my face was flaking off’ . I don’t hold anything against him because he was right. My troubles didn’t look like normal acne. The redness was constant and every time I touched my cheek or shook my face little flakes would fall on my desk or my clothes.. It was like freaking dandruff! Except bigger clumps and it’s more obvious. Having bad skin really messes with you because you don’t want people looking at your face so you don’t leave the house. Skin troubles suck essentially.

I slowly started to realize that I was handling my skin wrong. I tackled my issue head-on. I decided to keep different towels for my hair, face, and body. I stopped freaking touching my face and picking at my acne. I stopped using body lotion and bar soap on my face. I did not wear makeup! Especially low quality makeup!! Trying to cover up your acne just elongates your problem!! Spare yourself the time and just learn a healthy routine in addition to being proud of your skin! When I googled the proper ways to wash your face is when I discovered my passion for skincare and cleansing ❤ I started to eat better and exercise and DRINKING WATER. Holy crap water is so so so important if you have dry skin. Moisturizer can only help so much from the skins surface. Drink water all day errday guys~

So after a few months of these changes I slowly got better skin. My acne and flakiness was usually centered around my cheeks and that went away! But then I hit 17 years old and hormonal acne was my next chapter..

Every month I would get breakouts around my chin the week before my period. It was really aggravating by this time because I was growing up and my friends didn’t have much acne anymore and I wanted to look grown! Obviously it is very common for adults to have acne but my high-school self did not know this 🙂 Thankfully I stayed on my skincare routine and stuck to quality products. I only liked to use Innisfree products for the bulk of my high school career because they are known for their really natural ingredients and no bullshit values. Even their packaging is recycled and printed with soy ink!! I love Innisfree<3

After about a year of hormonal acne popping up like clockwork this slowly dissipated as well. Overall I think I was very lucky my skin troubles did not follow me into adulthood. But my dedication to using good products and keeping my body in line also contributed to my ticket to clear skin~

So guys to sum up this is what I did and maybe consider if these are things you should do too:

1. Keep a separate towel for your face, hair and body. Maybe a soft flannel for your face!
2. Dry yourself off as soon as you step out of the shower.
3. Apply your skincare routine within one minute of getting out of the shower. Otherwise your skin will be parched begging for moisture.
4. Dont touch your face! Don’t pick at your acne! Don’t Don’t Don’t. Just don’t.
5. Start a skincare routine and stick to it!!!
6. Wash your pillows every week or two weeks! Blankets too!
7. Keep your hair away from your face. Tie it up, put it in a bun, wear a headband, whatever works 🙂
8. Don’t hold your phone up to your ear when talking on the phone. There is more bacteria and yuckiness on your cellphone than your freaking toilet seat.
9. Wash your face everynight before u sleep. That gunk transfers to your pillow which stays there till you sleep the next night! It’s and endless cycle of germs.
10. Drink lots of water!! Exercise!! All the generic healthy stuff that works!!
11. Please don’t wear too much makeup. The more you try to cover it up the more obvious it shows.
12. Use a facial cleanser instead of bar soap and moisturizer instead of body lotion. There is a reason it’s called body lotion even though I was too stupid to realize this at 13.. lol
13. Go see a dermatologist. This is the one thing I didn’t do but maybe it could’ve cleared my skin earlier. Professional help is always a good idea.

Let me know if you guys have/had acne and what you did about it in the comments below!

Until next time guys~ Thanks for reading!