Minimalist Skincare Saved My Skin

Throughout my teenage years, I struggled consistently with cystic acne. My whole face was covered in deep, painful cysts that wouldn't go away. Even when one spot cleared up, dark marks were left behind that took months to fade, so even on good skin days my face was still red and blemished, and I couldn't face going outside without makeup.

I've tried so many different techniques to get my skin clear. The main thing I've found out is that your skin probably isn't going to start to get better until it wants to, at least while you're going through puberty. When I finally finished puberty, I thought my struggle would be over, but it wasn't. I could sense a change, somehow, though. My skin was a lot easier to look after—when I did things to it, it actually responded. I was surprised, since during my previous years of acne I'd tried so many different things, and nothing much seemed to have an impact. The best I could do was make my skin a bit softer for a few hours at best.

So I started fresh with my skincare routine. I was going to be dedicated and do everything I needed to do to finally clear up my skin. I used organic face wash, exfoliator, toner, moisturiser, and spot serum every day. I used charcoal masks, tea tree, and a variety of different things. My skin didn't get worse, but it reached a plateau where nothing seemed to change other than to get worse around my period.

Eventually, I changed up my skincare routine when I was on holiday in Greece. I didn't have the space to pack all of my products, so I reduced it down to the necessities. I decided that, for the ten days I would be away, I wouldn't wear any makeup. For an avid makeup wearer, and someone who barely has the confidence to leave the house with any less than a full face of foundation, it was difficult. I avoided looking in the mirror before I left the room, and it eventually got easier.

On the first day, I had a look at some of the shops near my hotel, including an all-natural, all-organic skincare shop. I found a "clarifying" anti-acne serum, and a night oil for spots. I decided to buy them and try using just those two products for the entire holiday. I also vowed to stop picking at my spots anytime I got a whitehead (a very bad habit that was hard to break).

Truthfully, my spots got worse at first. The sun brought them all out and I had a lot of whiteheads (though I couldn't tell if I had more than normal, or if, just because I didn't pop them the moment they appeared, that I noticed them more). But the products worked a lot better than my long, extensive regular routine. I had six or seven big and small whiteheads when I went to bed, and I woke up, after putting the spot oil on, with none. It felt like a miracle, and I finally started to feel more comfortable in my skin.

When I got back from holiday, my skin continued to improve. I've been trying to wear no makeup as often as possible, to let my skin breath. And it's working. I've started using a sulphur face soap that I used to use in addition to the other two products, as well as a moisturiser in the morning. I've cut out exfoliation almost entirely because I was obsessive about having my face smooth (hence the picking), so I would scrub at my face far too much just to get rid of any sharp bumps. Instead, I massage an anti-acne moisturiser in to soften the bump, instead of scrubbing them off.

I still have spots that flare up occasionally, but a few days ago, for the first time in years, I had zero spots on my face. It was hard to tell, as I still have scarring and hyperpigmentation marks. But my skin was clear. Albeit, it lasted about a day. But it's progress.