Tips for Taking Care of Your Acne Prone Skin

One of the worse parts of high school for me (apart from, um, everything) was that my skin was a ranging, hormonal mess.

My best friend and I both suffered acne together. Though it was considered mild acne, we were plagued by blemishes, ranging from blackheads, whiteheads, pimples and the occasional painful cystic pimples.

I am extremely glad to report that both of our skin has settled down immensely from our hormonal teenage years, though the practices for clean, clear skin is always on our minds. Even after my skin began to get better, I’ve always tried my best to take care of my skin. I think anyone who has experienced some sort of acne would know how awful it feels, and try their best to prevent it from happening again! Here are some of my tips to keeping your skin in tip top condition and hopefully preventing new breakouts.

Remove all makeup at night.

This is the #1 makeup tip and I really cannot stress it enough: Do. Not. Sleep. With. Your. Makeup. On… EVER! Remember, before bed, remove every trace of makeup and cleanse thoroughly. I do a double-cleanse that I talked about here and would definitely recommend doing that.

Keep hair out of your face.

In my experience, acne and bangs do not go well together. However, you might be a bit lucky. Eitherway, hair can trap a lot of grime, dirt and oil, and it can spread it to your face, causing breakouts. The best advice I can give is to wash your hair regularly, and if you’re hanging out at home, wear hairband to make sure not a single strand of hair is in your face.

Use the correct products.

• Skincare products: I know what it’s like to go a little overboard with skincare products. For example, I once tried the Proactiv skincare line in hopes that because it was so powerful, my light acne will be banished faster and never come back. Wrong. Proactiv burned my skin, made me breakout even more, and my skin could not tolerate it and all sorts of reactions occurred. Lesson learned: stick to what your skin actually is. Don’t go overboard! If it’s just a little pimple here and there, don’t go overboard with acne washes and medication. For moisturizers, try to find an oil-free, non-comedogenic formula and ones that are marked for acne-prone skin. And yes, even though your skin is still oily, you still need moisturizer!

• Makeup: For liquid foundation makeup, use non-comedogenic (doesn’t clog pores) and oil-free products. I would highly recommend mineral makeup, especially in its power form for oily skin. Mineral makeup is amazing for acne-prone skin and gives flawless coverage. (Check out the other pros and cons of mineral makeup here.)

Be gentle on your skin.

Keeping the above tips in mind, when applying these products on your face, be gentle. Aggressive applying of makeup and scrubbing your face can aggravate your breakouts and make them worse. Be gentle by applying light pressure from your fingertips to your skin when rubbing on your skincare products. (Check out my post, How to: Cleanse Your Skin Properly for more tips.) For makeup, keep a light hand when using a brush.

Don’t touch your face!

Whether it’s popping a pimple or leaning your palm on your chin at a boring day of work, do not touch your face. Also, avoid leaning your face on objects where residue lingers, like the window of a bus, or your cellphone. Sebum and residue can spread on your face and cause breakouts.

Keep oily, greasy food to the bare minimum.

Some doctors say food plays a big part in your skin. Some doctors swear that it doesn’t. But judging from our discussion on the topic, it seems like the majority of you (and myself!) find that diet does have a role in your skin. If it’s like that for you, try to keep greasy, nasty, oily fried junk food to a minimum.

Keep it clean.

Pillowcases can cause breakouts, and so can your glasses, sunglasses and makeup brushes. Anything that regularly comes in contact to your face, I would recommend to clean regularly.

I hope these tips have been helpful. These practices have helped my skin drastically and I’d love to hear if they work for you. Do you have any other tips for taking care of acne-prone skin?