I don't think you should use face scrubs because it is not gentle to your skin and it could damage your skin by tearing the surface.
This is my regimen and I highly recommend it:
First you use a gentle bar soap and you make sure you lather it good and rub your face for a good minute or two. I use cetyphil anti bacterial bar soap. Then after that you pat your face dry with a towel, make sure you are not rubbing your face with the towel which can be rough on your face and cause the bacterial from the towel to get into your face! Make sure your hair and your pillow are clean because oil from there can get into your face!
Then use a oil free lotion like cliniques gel (it's a yellow tube thing), it really works and only about a dime size is plenty for your face! Your face needs to be healthy to get rid of acne and you want it to be moisturized. too dry of a face and your face can over produce oil!
Now the third step is at night you want to use a benzoyl peroxide product. I use clean and clear 10%. Now you want to use it every other day first to make sure it is not over drying your face, then try it every night. Also remember to do this BEFORE butting the clinque gel on your face. this will keep your face moisturized (wait maybe 10 min after putting the benzoyl peroxide product on, then the gel so that the two products don't fight each other which will give your face a strange feeling).
I would not recommend washing your face with body wash, because some of them contain oils and that will cause your skin to break out more. You should consider products with an ingredient called salicylic acid. This will clear up the acne in a couple of days. Some good products I have used that are reasonably priced and work well are: Neutrogena Face Wash & Neutrogena on the spot acne treatment.
If these products don't work then possibly consider seeing a dermatologist. He/She can prescribe some oral topicals to eradicate the break outs. Some excellent meds are Retin-A and Differin.
NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER "scrub" your face if you have acne, you just spread the bacteria EVERYWHERE! You want to "wash" it, this may sound weird but it works for me", like you wash your genitals, hurts if you scrub so don't do it, that, and you tear away skin. What I recommend doing is getting tested to see if you have a high level of testosterone (I had it, got pills that made the acne subside A LOT!) if you have oily skin (I have it) you don't want to use ANYTHING that dries out your face. your body will just make even more oil to compensate. Wash at least twice (morning and night) but no more than three.
I personally use dove hand soap on my face and sleep on a clean towel every night and my acne is almost gone. I just have three white heads on my cheek (small mind you) that I keep touching but I will get over that. You can try this out for yourself. believe me, I tried EVERYTHING... well... not proactive, but that stuff's expensive.
You're doing it all wrong, like greeneyedgal1 said you shouldn't wash your face with a body wash, you should buy something like Nevia gel wash for the face (I swear I wrote nvidia at first haha) or neutrogena... then use it before going out and after getting in! this means twice a day and in your case I'd say three times a day, then like dr stan said, your medication revolves around benzoyl peroxide 2.5% and 5%, it does magic.
And here comes irritation, all the benzoyl peroxide and washing of the world stop acne if you were stressing out and lacking of sleep, the most irritating I've found is staying up all night using a computer with windows closed, you need oxygen and sleep.
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The girls are right. All of this helps to clear the acne that has already cropped up.
But, surprisingly, some people are allergic to nuts (almonds, etc) and chocolates. I myself am.
This allergy gives rise to acne because the fats in these nuts is what the body is allergic to. The body reacts by producing substances that try to fight these fats. Ironically, the fats produced in the sebacious glands (That's where the acne arises from) are structurally similar to these fats from nuts. And the body reacts against these glands giving rise to pus and acne.
Try keeping away from nuts, chocolates and sodas and you should be just fine.
Meanwhile clear of the acne already present on your face by washing at least twice a day, using Benzoyl peroxide (2.5% for starters and gradually go upto 5%).
Good luck!
Dr Stan
there's this line called acne free. they have different kinds based on your skin type. it's supposed to be a cheaper version of proactive. it has definitely worked for me and there's a friend of mine who had awful skin but this stuff completely cleared it up. but everyone's skin is different so all products were differently for different people. you could either go to a dermatologist to find out which cleansers would be best for you, or you could go try a bunch and figure out which one you like best. My doctor gave me a prescription for Benzaclin when I was younger. It worked but I hated how dried out it would make my face feel. My sister had Retin-A prescribed to her when she was in high school. My regular doctor prescribed me the Benzaclin so next time you go get a physical you could talk to them about a facial ointment prescription as well.
don't touch your face. serious, don't touch it with anything. I have really bad acne that won't go away and have tried all sorts of medication - it just doesn't work for me. I have really oily skin so that's the biggest part of it. Most of the bad stuff went age as I got older but I still have stubborn areas.
best thing to do is just wash with with a kleenex or cotton ball twice a day with water - only water. if you have sensitive skin like me certain products, or even switching between different items/brands will make you break out. water is all nature and will still clean your face with causing chemical reactions.
don't pick at your acne either. very bad habit and will spread the gooey white stuff to other pores when your pop it.
the main thing you want to do is make sure you don't irritate the skin. that's what the scrub seems to be doing so don't use that anymore.
It's a misconception that acne is always caused by poor hygiene ( ie. not washing your face enough, eating certain foods, etc). Scrubbing your face for long periods of time can cause long term damage, I wouldn't do that.
The reality is acne is caused by many different facts including genetics, stress, anxiety, or even hormonal issues. In this case, a simple face wash and scrub will not rid you of acne for a long period of time. If you find that normal washes and topical (facial) medication are not helping, you probably need an internal fix. I would suggest seeing a physician for this problem.
Well, the best way to get rid of acne is starting from the ground up:) I use to have terrible acne in high school, and still, sometimes get the occasional few. I've found that using natural shea butter soap, and dabbing either lavender or tea tree oil on the spots. Tea tree oil works better than lavender oil, and it feels really tingly and fresh on the skin. What kind of body wash are you using?
See link for causes, then see a doctor about what might be the right treatment for you if yours is particularly acute.
Acne sucks. Make sure you're drinking a lot of water.
Try Neutrogena or Clean & Clear acne face and body washes from the pharmacy. Those tend to get the best reviews and are relatively cheap.
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