My Acne Journey 001

WARNING: PHOTOS USED MIGHT DISGUST YOU A BIT SO PLEASE BE READY

This will be the chapter one of my acne/acne scars/blemishes journey. I will be using products to remove these blemishes and update you guys if it do affects me. I will be posting my acne scars improvement after finishing the bottle/tube of the products that I am using. For this month, I am using 5 products on my face excluding the facial cleanser. So, 6 products all in all. Plus a natural method: Egg White Mask that I have reviewed on my first posts.

Here's how my face looks like: (photos taken 12/22/13)

left cheek

right cheek

front view

forehead

I have cleansed my face and have put egg white mask and washed it off before taking that photos. I have been suffering from those scars and acne breakouts for more than 5 years now. I think these photos have some improvements way before I started having those. It is much worse than that before. Hope it will be gone soon!
My main problems: oily face, large pores

Anyway, these are the products that I am currently using:

     

  

MY FACIAL CLEANSER: Garnier Light Complete Foam

MY TONER: Moringa O2 Malunggay Herbal Facial Toner

MY MOISTURIZER: iWhite Korea Aqua Moisturizing Cream

Others: Mederma Scar Gel & BL cream for acne scars, Dr S Wong's Bioderm Ointment for new pimples

Okay, here's how I use it all:

1. I wash my face with the cleanser and pat dry it with face towel.

2. I use the facial toner put in on a cotton ball and wipe all over my face twice. (2 cotton balls)

3. I let the toner dry first before using my moisturizer. I evenly put the moisturizer all over my face.

4. I let the moisturizer dry before putting bioderm ointment on new pimples and BL cream on scars. I use either Mederma scar gel or BL cream on my scars. I don't use them at the same time. If I use BL, I use only BL if I use Mederma, I use only Mederma.

(on weekends, I use egg white mask before steps 2-4)

And after that I sleep with all of those on my face. I use it twice a day, on morning and in evening. I will be posting product reviews for all of the product I am using. I have posted Bioderm ointment review on my first post. I hope you'll be with me throughout my whole acne journey. And I hope I can help you too by this reviews than I am doing. Feel free to interact with me. :)

Product: Garnier Anti-Imperfections Cooling Roll On

GARNIER PURE ACTIVE ANTI IMPERFECTIONS COOLING ROLL-ON

It is a small roll-on that you will roll over your pimples and the box said that it can dry out "imperfections" and it does fade marks "visibly"

active content: salicylic acid + herba repair

I tried this once and will never buy or try this product again. It costs almost a hundred peso and is really not worth it. Why? Because of the following reasons:

1. It does minimizes the size of the pimple but, your pimples will be permanently gone after a week or so, a long time of waiting for such a small pimple. The effect is not visible overnight. It can't even dry out pimples. It just minimizes its size. Worse of it, pimples get much more inflamed (looks more red) after use.

2. It is so expensive for the amount of its content. 

3. The message on its box that says "visibly fades marks" is SOOO UNTRUE. at the back of the box it is said that after 5 hours you will see that your pimple marks will fade. It took me almost half a day to see if its real but sadly, NO. IT DOES NOT VISIBLY FADES MARKS. It just makes it worse. More red, more inflamed.

4. Not worth buying

If I were to rate this product, my rate for it will be 6/10. yes, it is effective in minimizing the size of the pimples but, for its price, it is not worth it. 

Natural Remedy: Egg White Mask

Have you heard that egg whites can heal acne scars and can dry out acne? I learned that here in the internet and so I tried it out.

EGG WHITE AS FACIAL MASK?

This is my second week of using this natural method and so far I see no difference at all (from last last week). But I used it months ago and stopped using it and now I decided to use it again. From that months ago, I guess it has faded my acne scars a bit. It is way worse before I used this mask. I'm glad I remembered trying this again.

I've got a lot of acne scars that I need to be away of. I am suffering this acne problem since 2008.

Anyway, I use it every night, in 2 consecutive days a week (every Saturdays and Sundays) before going to bed. Well, the after feeling of this mask is quite refreshing.

How do I prepare the mask:

1. I crack the egg and separate the yolk from its white. One egg is enough for one night.

2. I whisk it with fork (you can use electric beater or wire whisk for better result) until foamy.

How do I use it:

1. I wash my face with my facial cleanser and pat dry it with a face towel

2. Once my face is dried, I apply the foamy egg whites on my face evenly

3. I let the egg whites be on my face for 30 mins or at least when it has fully dried.

4. I wash my face to get rid of the mask and pat dry it again.

During the time when the egg whites is still in my face, I feel like my face hardens and it feels like it stretches my skin out. Which I think is a good feeling. Because it is said that egg whites can minimize the appearance of large pores. Maybe the stretchy feeling is what makes the pores tighter. When it comes to drying out my pimples, egg whites dry it out a bit but not very well. I love it when the egg white makes my face smoother. 

I also read that it is more effective when you put a lemon juice in it. Next time i'll try an Egg White Mask w/ lemon juice. but for now here is my overall ratings for the egg white mask for its effectiveness with acne: 8/10 that's for now because I'm still on my second week. I hope it will soon fade my scars permanently.

Product: Bioderm Ointment

BIODERM OINTMENT

antibacterial/antifungal

My very first product review: Dr S Wong's Bioderm Ointment

Before anything else, let us discuss its product infos:

Content:	Zinc Oxide, Benzoic Acid, Sulfur, Salicylic Acid
Product category:	Dermatologicals/ Skin Protectants, Emollients, & Demulcents, Dermatologicals/ Acne Agents & Cell Stimulants & Proliferants, Dermatologicals/ Antifungals, Topical
Needs a prescription :	No
What is this product for(Indication):	Ringworm, eczema, blackheads, pimples, furunculosis, acne, skin itch, athlete's foot, boils, insect bites, prickly heat, mange, Hong Kong foot.
How to use it (Dosing):	Apply liberally morning and night.
Available forms:	Ointment: Plastic Flip-top container 5 g. Plastic jar 50 g. Collapsible tubes 5 g, 15 g, 30 g.
Company:	International Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

SOURCE: http://www.thefilipinodoctor.com/search-drug-details.php?keyword=Mouth%20blisters&keybrand=&id=20010584

I have been using this product maybe a year now for my acne. It is not daily but, I use it often. Most especially when new pimples arrive. It has sulfur in it that is said to dry pimples fast. Well, this product can minimize your pimple overnight! but the appearance of the pimple will not be invisible as soon as overnight. You need to use it on maybe 3-4 consecutive days before seeing the real effect.

How I use it:
1. I wash my face with my facial cleanser and pat dry it.
2. I apply Moisturizer on my face.
3. I apply Bioderm Ointment on new pimples or on the pimples that haven't completely dried out.
4. I leave it there and sleep.
5. Sometimes, I use it after taking a bath and leaving it there on my face and wipe it with wet tissue afterwards.

How often do I use it: once. every night (or every time I have new pimples)

What I like about this product:
- it has sulfur in it that can dry out pimples fast
- it can minimize the appearance of pimples
- it can dry out pimples as fast as 2 days of continuous use
- it is affordable (a tube may cost 30php and above)
- easy to find in markets (this product is available in every Mercury Drugs Store)
- it stings and itches meaning it really affects the bacteria inside the pimples

What I don't like about this product:
- It leaves white marks when applied. You will look like a dalmatian with white spots on your face when you apply it on your pimples (haha)
- A not so nice smell of it. Maybe because of its sulfur content
- This product cannot reduce the redness of the pimples perfectly
- Hard to wash it off. When you wash your face after using this, you will be having a hard time removing the ointment on your pimples. So goodluck XD I recommend you to wipe it off with wipes or with wet tissue then wash it afterwards with soap.

Overall, my product ratings for it when it comes to acne (or pimples) is: 8/10