Hellobee Boards

I REALLY love Dermalogica and Murad kits. My skin does best if I go through all the steps - cleanser, moisturizer, toner, etc. and both brands sell 30 day kits. They last me more like 45 days, and the price is comparable to ProActiv. I just find them to be much gentler. I'm acne prone but also pretty sensitive to drying, peeling, flaking, etc.

I use Cetaphil once a day (usually in the evenings), and use St. Ive's Green Tea exfoliator once a week. It's a nice balance. I still have breakouts, but this routine seems to help maintain it.

Cetaphil. I wish I had known about it as a teenager.

My husband uses the products and follows the washing recommendations from http://www.acne.org/ with really good results. He never had luck the anything from the drugstore or the other brands mentioned above like Murad etc.

I had teenager acne that morphed in to adult acne and now pregnancy acne.

I was told by a dermatologist that all that harsh stuff was just drying out my face and making it worse. She suggested I use either Cetaphil face wash, or Purpose face wash. You can find either at Target or the drug store.

If you have or can get a Clarisonic or one of the similar things to that (I think Olay makes one, and a few others), dermatologists seem to recommend those. I use mine with the Purpose soap -- not the weird soap that comes with the product.

Then, moisturize with a good oil-free/fragrance-free/sunscreen moisturizer (I use one of those two brands of that, too).

Spot treat your zits with one of the OTC medicines. I like the Acne Free one with sulfur in it. It's actually a 'mask' but I just go to bed with the dots all over my face.

My face isn't zit free but it never has been, and I no longer experience the dryness and the 'chemical burn' feelings you get from the really harsh stuff. Also, who wants to be putting prescription-grade chemicals on their skin their whole life?

I use Cetaphil and also a Clarisonic with the delicate brush head. The clarisonic is a little pricey but I saw a HUGE change in my skin after I started using it. I only used it at night in the beginning to make sure I wasn't irritating my already irritated acne.