acne...AAAH!
 

Just popped in to say thanks for making this thread and thanks for responding all of you....I've had trouble with acne since puberty (am almost 30) and have many scars. Think it might be a hormone problem....eh... I also pick at it... hate bumps like those. Thanks again!

I have been using Mario Badescu Drying Lotion for about a month now. If I even feel a spot coming I put it there as a spot treatment. It's amazing! I do it at night or during the day if I'm staying at home because it's pink. I haven't used it long term, but I have played with their scar fading treatment and I like it a lot too. I used to work at Ulta so I got to play with all the fun stuff.

I had acne at my 23 and it ends with more scars.my friends used dermalmd serum.i tried the same.simply super.

I had dermatillomania (compulsive picking) on my arms for most of my life (I'm 27 now) and finally (mostly) kicked that habit, so I've done a ton of scar research as well. I've been lucky not to have TOO much going on on my face, but I can't tell you how many people have reacted poorly to seeing my arms infected and scarred...wearing long sleeves in the south most of my life. BUT one thing that has seriously helped me is dermarolling, I haven't seen it mentioned yet on this thread, but I just got one off amazon that had good reviews, they're not expensive.

You can read a lot about it online, but I don't press hard at all, definitely not drawing blood, it just turns a little red. It just lightly pokes at the skin and I usually do it at night after cleaning everything thoroughly, rolling a small area, then covering it in oil, lotion, whatever. I alternate between using coconut oil and Peter Thomas Roth Mega-Rich body lotion (magic in a bottle). You can't use roll on broken or infected skin so just healed scars, but I find that doing a little spot, putting oil or lotion on it and letting skin do its thing for a few days makes a huge difference. It was less effective if I tried to do a large area all at once. Remember your skin has to regenerate collagen to heal so eating lots of veggies and healthy fats will help it out, but I've had good results regardless. It evens the skin tone, smoothes the scars out (I had a big problem with dents on my arms) and gave me great results really quickly.

Mederma and all the lotions you have to apply so much barely work for me, plus I don't love the feeling of being covered in lotion all day, and since my arms were COVERED in lotion, I was actually sleeping with plastic wrap wrapped around them to stop it from soaking into my clothes and sheets and making a mess (don't try this on your face lol).

I did have cystic acne on my face, chest and back for the longest time, and did an elimination diet, eventually figuring out that milk was causing it for me. No other dairy, just milk. Interestingly enough, I switched to organic milk and still no acne, so it's worth checking if something in your diet is a contributing factor.

I also have great luck using coconut oil at the end of each day (great makeup remover too!) and then I usually, but not always remove it with Clean and Clear or Clearasil, gentle foaming cleanser like that. Occasionally it feels like it dried too much so I skip it the next day and just use warm water to remove the coconut oil. I use this little silicone gently scrubber I got at Ross to foam the cleanser and omigosh my face feels SO SOFT and clean now! And I use witch hazel either on a cotton ball or spritz it on my face every morning and night, it removes dirt and seriously makes pores look smaller and less noticeable if you use it consistently. I swear by the stuff.

Again, everyone will have different results but thought I'd share since I didn't see any of this on the thread already. And don't be afraid of trying oil on oily skin (give it 2-3 weeks of consistent use), I had really bad oily skin before but now it's wonderfully clear, soft, and not oily or dry anywhere. Hope some of this helps! I'm very passionate about skincare and scarring issues, good luck to you!