Blackhead remover- do the sucky things work?

[Deedeedocket]

Dd has chronic stubborn blackheads, but very sensitive skin. I’ve tried helping her steam her face and extracting them with a blackhead stick thingy but they don’t come out.

I don’t want her to mess up and scratch her skin, but I’ve seen those blackhead suction things on Amazon. Do the work?

Or if not what is best thing to help get rid?

[quote QueenPaw]@Hamhockandmash yep!
Blackheads can be extracted, sebaceous filaments shouldn't be because they're well, natural skin
Some things help and reduce them like BHA, oil cleansing and tretinoin[/quote]
So what happens if you remove sebaceous filaments? Pretty sure i have been doing this for years! Oops

@Pob13 not much but they will just keep coming back and I think all the ripping out of them with pore strips etc makes it worse. I spent so long squeezing them as a teen and I think it enlarges the pore eventually

We used The Ordinary Glycolic Acid 7% Toning Solution which worked well for ds2.

Ds(17) blackheads are terrible on his nose, he had been using efficlar posay face wash and cream on his spots and they have worked well so have just bought another cleanser and a toner from the same range to work on his blackheads. Will let you know in 3-4 weeks of there is any difference.

[quote QueenPaw]@Pob13 not much but they will just keep coming back and I think all the ripping out of them with pore strips etc makes it worse. I spent so long squeezing them as a teen and I think it enlarges the pore eventually [/quote]
Thanks! Better stop squeezing then. Its just so satisfying!

Attractive close up showing sebaceous filaments on my nose. This was before I started using tretinoin which children obviously can't use but it's working miracles on me

@QueenPaw

Attractive close up showing sebaceous filaments on my nose. This was before I started using tretinoin which children obviously can't use but it's working miracles on me

What tretinoin product do you use? Your skin looks lovely anyway.

@Pob13 skin and me prescription

@QueenPaw your skin is stunning!

This was after 6 months of skin and me prescription, you can see it's shifting them on my nose (but the pores will always be there!!)

My teens all have great skin since I have started them with this regimen. (My 14 y/o boy is lazy, so his isn’t as great.) I would recommend a good routine of double-cleansing, starting with an oil cleanser in the evening to break everything up, removing makeup, sunscreen, breaking up sebaceous oils, etc. Then the Cerave foaming cleanser with salicylic acid. It’ll wash off the oils and the skin will be properly clean. Then I would get the Ordinary Niacinamide Powder and mix a little in with their hyaluronic acid serum. It won’t dry her skin out, but it’s very healing and helps refine the pores. Then Cerave moisturiser with salicylic acid. (Helps break up blackheads.) Also contains ceramides so won’t dry out skin.

I use Paulas Choice 2% BHA. AHAs are water soluble and not as good for oilier, clogged skins. Generally better for sensitive skins too. I havent had one for a while, but I use a metal blackhead remover, trick is not to go in there as if you’re digging for treasure. Be gentle, if it’s not budging leave it be for a while.

Like every other teen in the 80s I was using Clearasil, which was frankly only one step up from paint stripper! The horror.

@QueenPaw you have made my evening! I thought for years I had really stubborn black heads as no matter what I tried they do not budge! But they actually infact look like the filaments you described!!

@QueenPaw did not know that - oops! Have always thought they were blackheads AND have used the strips 😫

Another recommendation for Carbon Theory soap.

I was taking Roaccutane and when my skin was going through the purge stage it was disgusting.

One use of the CT soap and a muslin cloth and it was as if I'd washed the blackheads away.

I use the tonic afterwards as well now.