All I ever wanted for Christmas was clear skin
Acne and I: inseparable since 7th grade. It requires pages to explain the myriad of treatments, lotions, potions and prescriptions under my belt. Basically, I’ve tried every prescription besides Acutane and birth control pills (and I will never touch those). Everything from drugstore cleansers to $90 serums have graced my medicine cabinet. I’ve even invested in at-home peel chemical peels, a Clarisonic, and laser treatments
1. Oil Cleansing in the Evening
I was apprehensive about smothering my face with oil, since my face has always been veritable oil slick one hour after I wash it. So it took a big dose of courage to throw out my face wash and try . I love it! It removes all traces of makeup and leaves my skin soft.
Most importantly, my face’s oil production is normalizing. This is because–in conjunction with the facial oil I’ll talk about–it does not need to overcompensate with oil production like it did when I cleansed with soap
2. Honey Cleansing in the Morning
In the mornings, I wash my face with honey With slightly dampened fingers, I massage about 1/2 teaspoon of raw honey over my dry face and then rinse. The antibacterial properties of honey work to inhibit breakouts. Additionally, it removes excess oil but leaves skin moisturized.
3. Apple Cider Vinegar Toner
Mornings and evenings, I spray my face with a mixture of 2/3 alcohol free which hazel and 1/3 raw apple cider vinegar. The apple cider contains gentle exfoliating acids to calm acne and it balances the skin’s pH. It also allows my homemade facial oil to absorb quickly and evenly.
4. Homemade Acne Facial Oil
Yep, here we are again putting oil on acne. Counterintuitive, no? But it works. It took maybe a week or two of extra oiliness for my skin to adjust, but then it suddenly became way less oily, with less breakouts, too!
My recipe is: 2/3 Jojoba Oil, (which doesn’t clog pores), 1/3 of this Tea Tree and Vitamin E Oil, plus a few drops of rosemary essential oil (which is very antibacterial). I just moisten my face with the toner, warm a few drops of this oil mixture between my fingertips and massage lightly onto my face. As a bonus, it feels like a quick aromatherapy treatment.
5. Honey, Cinnamon and Nutmeg Spot Treatment
If you ever visit my house without giving me prior warning, you might just see me walking around with dots of gooey cinnamon on my zits. This is my normal routine ever since discovering that this mask makes a super effective spot treatment.
I mix raw honey with enough cinnamon to form a paste, add some freshly grated nutmeg, and store it in a small container in my bathroom. I’ll leave this spot treatment on for a couple of hours. If you want to use it as a full face mask, leave it on for only 10-15 minutes
6. Baking Soda Exfoliant
A couple times a week, I mix up a paste of baking soda and water and apply it to my face, chest, and back. I leave it on for a few minutes before my bath or shower. It provides gentle chemical exfoliation to even skin tone, dry up breakouts, and eliminate blackheads. As a bonus, this effective treatment is simple and economical!
7. Acupuncture
Before starting the GAPS diet, my health was so poor that I rarely got periods. GAPS brought my cycle back, but also delivered intense PMS. I’m talking nausea, headaches, and doubling over in pain from cramps. Desperate for a solution, I gave acupuncture a try. After two months of weekly treatment, my periods are getting better and bette
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