You saw the commercial on TV - Miracle Acne Treatment X - apply it tonight, your acne disappears tomorrow. You were desperate, you bought it, you used it, but your pimple did not go away! Were you surprised? If you are like me, probably not. Disappointed, yes, surprised, no. Face it, politicians, Madison Avenue, Wall Street and use car salesmen all have one thing in common. You know it, I know it.
So, is there anything that can help you? That depends on what you want to do. Are you trying to get rid of acne permanently? Or just trying to remove this lone pimple on your forehead ASAP? For the latter case, you do not need any special formula. Make sure you wash your face twice a day with a cleanser. Any cleanser will do, as long as it is not soap-based. After that, pat your face dry with a clean towel. Two things to note here: the towel must be clean. Hygiene is very important in getting rid of acne. The second point is not to rub the towel against your skin. Why? For one thing, rubbing irritates your skin, and could cause more pimples to erupt. Next, rubbing is more likely to break your existing pimples. Once that happens, the pus will spread the infection to other areas of your skin and cause more pimples to pop up. So, be careful and be gentle when drying your skin.
Just patting your face with a towel will not dry it completely. That is alright. Let it dry in the air for the next 10 or 15 minutes. After that, apply a dilute benzoyl peroxide gel. Something like 2.5% works well for many people. The 5% and 10% benzoyl peroxide tends to be too strong and irritates the skin. Once your skin gets irritated, there is an increased possibility of blackheads and whiteheads forming. From there, it is just a short step away from acne. So you want to use something mild. Why does something as simple as a weak benzoyl peroxide solution like Oxy or Clearasil work? Number one: it helps to kill the bacteria inside your pimples. While this bacteria may or may not be the cause of your original pimple, it does make your pimple worse. And if it spreads, then it can cause even more pimples. Number two: benzoyl peroxide has a drying action. It helps to dry out your pimple. That helps to get rid of your acne faster. It also helps to prevent the damned pimple from popping on its own and spreading the pus.
Once the benzoyl peroxide dries, it is time to apply the moisturizer. A good moisturizer will help to soothe your skin and prevent skin irritation. Just to remind you, skin irritation increases your chances of getting acne. Keep this in mind when you use moisturizer. Some formulations feel uncomfortable. If this is the case, you may want to change brands. Just because it works for 10 of your friends does not guarantee that it will work for you. Everyone's skin is unique.
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