Oct

Problem Skin? That’s an Understatement!

Posted by Leeann at 8:05 am

I have always had bothersome blemishes; although it has improved over the years, there were many trips to the dermatologist back in the day.

I know it is “darkest before the dawn,” but I hate that when I try to adopt a skin care routine, the problem increases. Honestly, it makes me want to avoid washing my face altogether. To tell you the truth, I usually just remove my makeup and call it a night.

BUT, as a beauty editor, I am constantly receiving and trying out new products. Most of the time I do so apprehensively because I know that these tests will result in breakouts. However, I feel it my duty to give a fair review of the item in question so that readers can forgo buying products that don’t live up to their promises.

The latest skin care regimen? PCA Skin. The company has a pretty impressive resume. Their site claims that they have been the leaders in clinical skin care for over 20 years, and they are accredited as the originator of advanced blended chemical peel formulations.

So in other words, they know their stuff.

Despite PCA’s impressive list of accomplishments, I still felt overwhelmed as soon as I received these products. You see, each morning and night there are a series of washes and creams to apply to the face. Multiple steps + laziness= intimidation!

I literally had to force myself to take the time to use this routine. And I’m not even sure that I needed to use all the steps, but I did. As expected, the acne began to appear. Yuck! I will say though, the acne gel did do a pretty good job of reducing the unsightly bumps. But I think I prefer no washing and no pimples, rather than washing, pimples, then improvement with gel.

Maybe it just boils down to my face being too acne prone for this system. Perhaps, I needed to have tested PCA’s acne care specifically. It may very well be better suited for someone with more normal skin. In fact, this is probably the smart, correct way to achieve healthy skin.

Now that the two weeks of testing PCA Skin are over (that’s the amount of time Beauty Chatters take to review skin care products), I am face wash free again. I know it’s bad, I just prefer skipping the whole getting-worse-before-getting-better stage.

Please tell me I’m not alone in my skin care—sorry, lack of skincare—routine! Do any of you approach washing and caring for your face the same as I do?

Photo credits: Cool Beauty Tips and PCA Skin

Comments (8)

8 Comments »

Sara

October 2, 2008 at 8:32 am

I am totally on your side Leeann. The more products I use on my face, the worse it gets. Usually I just wash my face once a day and after I work out and I only use moisterizer at night otherwise my skin feels all greasy. I have sensitive skin as it is, so I definitely have to watch what I put on my face or else it gets dried out and I break out!
Mythbuster Beauty

October 2, 2008 at 8:44 am

You are not alone! One of the primary reasons for being so beauty obsessed is that I have very sensitive, blemish prone skin.

I found some good results while using PCA’s A & C Serum. I also go to a Dermatologist and have started receiving some regular superficial chemical peels, they seem to help tremendously.

Reviewing skincare lines is a mixed blessing. Sometimes I find that a line does great with my skin, and others, well, not so great. I want to give every line a fair shake, which is hard to do. I sometimes even will stop using a line for a period of time, and return to it again for another attempt. I do strongly believe that some lines are better suited for your particular skin type. What works well for me, may very well not work well for you.
My blogging partner Mo can use physical exfoliants, I cannot. She can tolerate certain skincare ingredients, while I can’t.

Here’s to finding a skin care line that works for you, and best wishes for great skin!
Leeann

October 2, 2008 at 9:33 am

Thanks for the comments ladies! It’s great to know I’m not alone =) Mythbuster Beauty: Thanks for your thoughts, they make perfect sense. I usually don’t go back and try a product out a second time, but I think I should. Great idea!
Stephanie

October 2, 2008 at 1:23 pm

Oh Leeann we do have that in common. I am the worst when it comes to following a skin routine, to be honest with you I sometimes don’t even bother removing my make-up.
steve*_*

October 2, 2008 at 5:36 pm

that sucks
Wendy

October 3, 2008 at 8:16 am

Hi Leann, Great article. Although I am passed the stage of having to work with a program such as yourself but I do recall in years past that when you try something new there may be some side effects before the program works. As with any other product they do state that within 4-6 weeks you will notice an improvement. A thought did come to mind with the washing. It seems that washing your face has brought the pimples to the surface which may have been awaiting to appear. Therefore using the gel took care of the end result of a problem waiting to surface. At my age, I would rather hae a blemish than a lifetime of wrinkles or shall I say character lines!
Leeann

October 3, 2008 at 10:16 am

Thanks for the comment Wendy–you’re absolutely right! This product made my skin worse, but was working to make it better in the long run. I need to get away from being so lazy and take better care of my skin! =)
Jami JoAnne Russell

October 5, 2008 at 11:32 am

I’ve found no products that really work. Of course, the doctor says my acne is actually caused by a continous blood infection so I usually have to take antibiotics. (Which then the germs get used to and stops working.) The closest I’ve come to an effective “acne treatment” is a combo of Olay’s microderm/mini-peel kit and a good mud mask. Of course all that does is draw the zits to white heads faster but once they’re out they heal up quicker. I finally bought a Zeno though. Used it for the first time yesterday and already see a big difference. And sure is a lot easier then “wash, tone, moisturize.”

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Problem Skin? That’s an Understatement!

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