Spotty late 30's skin...

[Dickorydockwhatthe]

My skin is awful at the moment, fine lines are appearing and skin looks dull. I have hormonal acne along jaw line it's really getting me down. I was thinking of the ordinary but have no idea where to start 😐. My skin isn't greasing but probably not hydrated.

Same, but I'm nearly 50. Am following with interest

My skin majorly improved when I ditched nearly all products.

To remove make up & cleanse I use a hot, wet cloth & grapeseed oil. I just rub the oil all over my face and eyes then wipe off with the cloth.

I then use the ordinary retinol in squaline 3 times a week.

Occasionally I'll put very hot water in the sink with a few drops of tea tree oil, soak a cloth in it, squeeze out and lay it on my face.

That's it, no other products at all.

Make sure you use a clean face cloth every day

Wash twice, twice a day!
Use a spot cleaning lotion/toner with salicylic acid in (clearasil eg) followed by a moisturiser suitable for your skin.

I wash with effacleur la Roche posey. Wash rinse. Wash rinse. Morning and night. Always followed by a wipe over on double sided (the ridged side) cotton wool of above lotion.

Jaw line is usually hormonal acne. It just happens so keep clean to help keep on top of it.
If this doesn’t work maybe consider a GP visit

I use Aveeno blue moisturiser but I have dry & tight skin. Such a deep moisture makes no difference to my hormonal acne but sticking religiously to my cleansing routine does

Would just say be careful of tea tree oil if using is as a pure essential oil - it can be irritating to skin!

In addition to double cleansing with ingredients that don’t strip the skin, perhaps try Paula’s Choice 2% BHA or COSRX Power Liquid (whitehead or blackhead version depending on need) to control breakouts.

I too get hormonal breakouts and both PC and COSRX really keep it in check. Also, if you have money to spend on a hero product, Verso’s spot cream is just magic - I’m sure there are dupes out there but I’ve never used anything like it for drying out spots super quickly without irritation.

Would just say be careful of tea tree oil if using is as a pure essential oil - it can be irritating to skin!

Yes, it definitely needs to be a couple of drops in a sink of water. Don't use undiluted on the skin and only use occasionally.

I have suffered all my life, had roaccutane as a teen, took dianette as a contraceptive, I've stopped the dianette now as it was drying my skin out and I was still getting chin/jawline acne.

I am on a tight budget and can't afford expensive products. At the moment simple face wash, and simple micellar water morning and evening, the ordinary azelaic acid, morning (if I'm not wearing makeup) and evening. Simple anti wrinkle cream.

I am following with interest as I would love to see some suggestions for dull skin/open pores. Also think I need something a bit stronger for my eye area but every time I try an eye cream I get spots in my eyebrows?

I'm in my 40's now and had hoped this would have stopped now 😢

Drs, try prescription products instead of buying otc products.

The cosmetic industry have hijacked acne as a cosmetic “your not doing something right” problem when it’s a chronic infection in the skin.

I took roaccutane at 41, best thing I ever did.

@fluffycloudland77 did you take roaccutane when you were younger and then take it again?

I'm not sure if they would give it to me again as I currently take an antidepressant?

I had exactly the same problem and Paula's Choice fixed my adult acne. The most important product is the BHA liquid exfoliant in the turquoise blue bottle. The other products are great but the exfoliant is the most important for zapping the jaw spots.

@revelsandrose, no they offered it at 30 and I refused because I’m an idiot then after years of muddling along from persistent drug resistant acne it literally exploded into cystic acne that I battled on with for a good 9 months before seeing my dr.

My derm nurse said they hadn’t had mh problems with any of their patients. They still asked at every appt.

Thanks @fluffycloudland77 I've been putting it off for a while but I think I will go back to the gp and ask for a referral once all this is over, I blame pregnancy hormones for flaring it up and there will definitely be no more pregnancies now

revelsandrose my DS is currently taking roaccutane and they checked his blood before he could start taking the pills, and he has to fill in a questionnaire about his mental health at each appointment. I have a feeling as a woman you have to sign to agree to use contraception if you take it and be prepared to terminate if you do fall pregnant while taking it. They're very thorough. However, the Drs we saw also made it clear that if it's not the right drug for you it's not the end of the road so don't be disheartened if so, there are other options. We may be going down this route with DS as he's suffering with bad nosebleeds, even after having his nose cauterised and reducing to the lowest dose (he suffered with bad nosebleeds for years though, so this is a weakness for him). Good luck, I hope you find something that works.

I would suggest tretinoin. It's a long game but realistically one of the few topical things that will actually work for acne & anti ageing. It's prescription only in the U.K but not expensive from an online dermatologist. I use Dermatica and it's around £20 a month. Couple it with a good cleanser, mosituriser (Cerave is a good affordable brand) and very high spf (would recommend LRP) non of which are expensive. No need to spend a lot of money on expensive products and no need to buy lots of different things. Tretinoin will work but you have to take it slowly and build up the strength over a period of time.