Any ideas what is going on with my skin?

[BandeauSally]

I hope these pictures are clear enough. This has been getting gradually worse for around 2 months. I haven't worn make up in over a month to try and give my skin a break. I had been using coconut oil to moisturise and just water to clean my face. I changed to an olay moisturiser on Sunday to see if it made a difference as I suspected the coconut oil was the culprit but it hasn't.

You need to cleanse with something. La Roche posay dermo cleanser is v gentle

Watching with interest as mine is the same. Often gets worse at certain times of the month.

First post on this thread has links with a basic routine
http://www.mumsnet.com/Talk/styleandd_beauty/2939449-Fantastic-Skincare-Skin-almost-sorted-decent-fucking-summer-fucking-clothes-would-be-fucking-nice-Dont-ask-us-about-our-hair

Thanks ollivander

Ok....

Cleansing is the most important part of your skincare.

Water is not enough.

Your skin is getting spotty because you are not cleaning the oils/dirt properly with water and then trapping it all in with coconut oil.

Firstly, buy a decent cream cleanser. You need one that you massage in and then wipe off with a hot cloth/flannel.

Secondly, stop with the coconut oil. You need a moisturiser. Which one? Well it depends if your skin is dry or dehydrated. Yes there is a difference.

You can put chip fat on dehydrated skin and it will still be "dry". I say this as I think this is why you are using coconut oil.

You need an hyaluronic acid based moisturiser.

You can get products that do this from supermarkets/drugstores. You don't have to spend a fortune though you can if you want to.

Looks like mild perorial dermatitis:

www.healthline.com/health/perioral-dermatitis#overview1

www.xojane.com/beauty/skin/perioral-dermatitis

Try a toothpaste that is SLS and flouride free (JASON does one, available online, and it's pretty good on the whitening front too).
www.amazon.co.uk/Jason-Natural-Cosmetics-Powersmile-Toothpaste/dp/B000YDYWNE/ref=sr_1_1_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1497488430&sr=8-1&keywords=jason+toothpaste&tag=mumsnetforum-21

Also, try to avoid SLS-containing shampoos, or shampoos containing Methylisothiazolinone (MIT) and Methylchloroisothiazolinone (CMIT) ,avoid leave-in hair products.

Avoid coconut oil. Ty not to use water alone to cleanse, and don't use hot water to wash your face...PD reacts badly to hot water, use lukewarm. You might get on well with Kiehl's supremely gentle eye make up remover (gently massage a little onto dampened skin (whole face) but do chin area separately, and rinse. Use a water-based moisturiser. Jurlique do nice moisturisers and may be able to offer samples if you give them a ring (they've been great with me in the past).
Worth sampling in your case:
www.jurlique.co.uk/calendula-redness-rescue-soothing-moisturising-cream
www.jurlique.co.uk/soothing-day-care-lotion
Not cheap, which is why I say sample first. You can often buy Jurlique cheaper at naturisimo.com or lookfanstastic.com
Avoid coconut oil or heavy, water-free formulas as these usually make PD worse.

Hope you find relief.

Thanks everyone. I stopped using the coconut oil on Sunday as I think it was making my skin dryer. Also I don't use shampoo, I use silicone free conditioner because I'm doing the curly girl method of conditioner washing. Will get down to the shops today and see what I can pick up.

Don't use coconut oil on your face! It's really highly comedogenic (meaning it will block your pores).

This is perioral dermatitis.

You will most likely need antibiotics to get rid of it- either cream (I got metronidazole gel) or pills, whatever your doctor recommends. And to avoid anything irritating - use sensitive skin products only. I had good results with Dr Hauschka sensitive range.

Careful as many GPs have no idea about this and prescribe steroids - do not put steroid cream on this! Yes it will work temporarily but it will come back with vengeance.

Schmoo gives good advice. Those chemicals are avoid avoid. 15% of the population are allergic to them according to the allergy consultant I saw. They are in so many things from shampoo to washing powder. I had similar on my face but way worse and got the allergy testing done and it was the culprit.

Stop the coconut oil. As namechange says it can cause spots. It will probably take a month to recover.

Yep the coconut oil is gone! (Is it ok to still use it on the rest of my body?)

Looks like a visit to the GP is on the cards then. Are there any unpleasant side effects from the metronidazole cream?

I didn't have any side effects. Only thing was that it takes a little while to work, I think a week or so - and in my case, I had been stupidly using a steroid cream first. Having stopped that, the skin got worse before it got better. This should not be an issue for you though.

Thanks katharina