Sensitive Skin and Roscea With Cystic Acne

Hi,

I have been trying to manage my roscea and cystic acne for over twenty years. Their are times I got it under control and than it flares up for months. Recently, I used apple cider vinegar, baking soda, and yogurt and honey on my face and that seemed to work and than again it flared up so bad, not so much the redness but the cystic pimples, all over my right side of cheek. I use natural ingredients and good make up and clean my face twice a day and a good moisturizer and eat whole foods. I am so frustrated. I spent a lot of money on my face and now just trying to feed my face with nutrients instead of all those chemicals found in face products.

Help
Lucy

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My reply

Hi Lucy, I understand your frustration! You are doing great by taking care to avoid harsh chemicals on your skin, and by eating well and using a moisturizer. Also, by using simple ingredients on your face (one or two or three at the most) you minimize the chance that you will react to any one of them.

Have you tried keeping a daily diary for your rosacea outbreaks?

This takes a little work to get started, but once you get into the habit, it could be very enlightening.

A skincare diary can help you to discover exactly what is causing those annoying and embarrassing flare ups, that happen just when you think everything is going great with your skin!

In your diary, you would make note of literally EVERYTHING that you put on your skin...

AND everything you eat and drink....

AND any NEW exposures that your body may have had that day...

For example, going to a new place that you've never been before,

Getting a new piece of clothing...

Drinking a new type of tea...

Driving or riding in a different car ...

Using a new cleaning product ...

You will also keep track of any unusual STRESSES that you experienced that day.

The Benefit of Keeping a Skincare Diary

This takes a little extra time, but the benefit is that as SOON as you get a rosacea outbreak, or you begin to see more cystic acne or other rashes, you can look back in your diary and see exactly what may be different that you may be reaction to!

Now this isn't a perfect science because

1. You may forget to record things

2. Some things that are also POSITIVE can be stresses that you might not realize are stressful!

3. Our bodies can change so that something that did not bother us yesterday, can trigger a skin rash outbreak today!

4. Some of us are very sensitive to non-physical stresses that we may experience from others. For example, if you are at work and you are dealing with several angry customers in a row, some people have been known to break out from this kind of stress.