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If you’ve been following me on Instagram, you might already know that the past few years I’ve been dealing with breakouts. Like baaaad ones. All along my chin I would deal with so much acne, and it got to the point where I realized I had to actively do something about it.
I have been trying to clear my skin for a long time, and finally feel like I figured out the two products that totally CHANGED the game when it came to my breakouts. Sharing them here incase you also know the struggle!
I was extremely lucky and never really dealt with breakouts during my teen years or college. Once I went on hormonal birth control, I started getting breakouts, mainly on my chin. I truly thought it was due to the birth control, and once I got off of hormonal birth control, I waited and waited for my skin to finally clear up like I thought it would. But no luck.
I didn’t truly start trying to treat it till about a year ago, because I thought eventually it would go away once the hormonal birth control was out of my system – not the case. In November of last year, I finally purchased some products that I hoped would help in curing these skin issues that I’ve been dealing with for far TOO LONG.
I got kinda lucky because one of the products I decided to try ended up being my holy-grail and helped SO so so much in clearing my skin. That gem of a product is the Murad Time Release Acne Cleanser.
(BTW – I wrote a more thorough review on the cleanser on my cruelty free blog.)
The Murad Cleanser has made such a difference in my skin. I have far less breakouts, but there are still some. However, they heal so much quicker now. Before when I would get a breakout, it would go from one to a whole cluster and take weeks to months in order to heal and finally be gone off of my chin. Now, when I do get one, it’s much smaller, doesn’t turn into a cluster, and goes away so much faster.
I’ve gone through periods where I’ve gotten a bit more lazy with my skincare routine, and notice such a difference! Breakouts always start to return, but when I’m back on it and using this cleanser they are way more under control.
I honestly didn’t even fully realize just how bad my skin was until looking back at pictures but MAN was it rough. I hate showing before and afters, but I will because it’s truly a testament to how much the Murad Time Release Acne Cleanser healed my skin.
Alright, the dreaded before and after…….cue the nerves!!!
I do want to be completely honest and say that it took me a LONG time to see real results with this cleanser. I don’t think that speaks to the effectiveness of the cleanser, but rather that my skin needed a long time to properly heal and clean itself. I was dealing with these breakouts for 3+ years, so it makes sense that it wouldn’t clear right up in a few days, or even weeks.
I also was using this cleanser and testing its effectiveness during the holiday season when schedules are a mess and diets are all crazy, which I definitely think contributed to the delay in seeing that real progress.
It took me using up the entire tube for me to be fully convinced that this was my miracle product. I know that’s probably not what you want to hear, but unfortunately with skincare it takes some real time for products to work for your skin. Stick with it – it will ultimately be worth it! (I hope!!)
The Murad Time Release Acne Cleanser also has been great at removing my makeup. I try not to use it too often for that just because I’d rather limit the amount of harsher chemicals around my eyes as much as possible, but it does work well. It’s a bit cooling + tingly too, which I don’t love in a product, but it goes away after you rinse it off.
During the winter I realized that the cleanser was a bit too drying for my skin though. I have severely dry skin, and most of the time the cleanser doesn’t over dry me, but during the winter it would now and then. I knew that my skin was responding well to the salicylic acid within the product. So, I decided to try some other products that contained salicylic acid that I could use more as a spot treatment for when I wanted to swap out the Murad Cleanser for a less drying one.
I decided to grab the Tula Acne Clearing + Tone Correcting Gel because I had heard rave reviews, and it definitely lived up to the hype!
(Here is the review on the Tula Acne Clearing + Tone Correcting Gel from my cruelty free blog.)
So when I want to use a different cleanser, I will make sure I swipe some of the Tula Acne Gel along my chin, and wherever else I may be breaking out, and it totally takes care of it. Even when I do use my Murad Cleanser, I will still spot treat any breakouts with the Tula Gel. Definitely has helped even further with healing time!
Although the Tula Acne Gel is a newer product to me, I’ve been super impressed so far, and can already tell it’s made even more of a difference in helping to clear up my skin.
Also FYI, Tula changed the packaging so the new one doesn’t look like the one I have now, but it’s the same amazing product on the inside!
(PS – if you’re looking to try the Tula Acne Gel or any other Tula products the code IVYROSE will get you 15% off your entire order!)
In addition to these two products, I’ve also tried to be more mindful of my habits. I’ve been working on making a really big effort to touch my face less. I always touch my face, and if I have a breakout I’m always messing with it. Gross, I know, but it’s usually pretty mindless and I barely even realize I’m doing it! So, it’s hard to stop.
But, I’ve been really trying to not mess with my face, and especially, not mess with any breakouts. Meaning not touching them, popping, or picking at them while they’re healing. I really think I’m seeing a difference with this as well. Especially when it comes to limiting if they spread, and healing time.
Before, I’d have one breakout, mess with it constantly, and a few more would pop up right in the same area. Now it seems like if I get one breakout, it’s relatively contained to just that one.
I haven’t started doing this because #lazy, but plan on being a lot better about washing my makeup brushes, to see if that helps at all. I use one brush in particular every day to cover up my breakouts, and I don’t wash it nearly as often as I should. Who knows what kind of bacteria and nastiness is hiding within that brush!! Why am I like this????
This is my current favorite makeup brush cleanser, super affordable too!
Another habit I’ve heard is helpful is regularly washing your pillowcase, something I probably don’t do often enough either. But, plan on doing this more from now on.
Honestly this blog post is just grossing me out to write, so sorry if any of you are feeling that way! ?
Also wanted to share that if you deal with acne too and need some great concealers to help cover them up, this one has worked really well for me.
My skin is still far from perfect. I still deal with breakouts but that is okay because now they are SO so so much more manageable. It’s no longer my entire chin covered in redness and bumps, but now the occasional single breakout, that goes away within a day or two. SUCH AN IMPROVEMENT! I can’t stress this enough.
The next area I need to tackle is hydration because the desert ain’t got nothing on this skin! That probably also contributes to some breakouts.
Anyways, if you deal with breakouts and are looking for a product to try, I highly recommend trying either or both the Murad Time Release Acne Cleanser or the Tula Acne Clearing + Tone Correcting Gel. Remember to stick with it, because results take time! Really hope these work for you the way they did for me!!
I must say that all the tips for healthy as well as beautiful skins are natural and without any side effect. One should must try it since there are easily manageable at home. Thanks for sharing it with all of us.
Thank you for reading!