Stumbling upon old photos of myself, I realized my skin has literally transformed. Even during my period, I no longer get hormonal breakouts. I never thought that day would come, and I’m keeping my fingers crossed that it stays this way. If you’re on the brink of despair like I was a few years ago, here are some leads that might possibly help you. Before, during my teenage years, I had breakouts concentrated on my T-zone. My cheeks were spared. After dealing with it for about ten years, I went to see a dermatologist who wanted to prescribe Roaccutane, which I refused. Instead, I got 3 months of antibiotics – which helped me a lot. However, I still suffered once a month. During my round-the-world trip, I started getting more and more pimples on my cheeks (whereas I didn’t before). After asking several estheticians from various countries (I was traveling at the same time and went to the best spas in each country), I understood that if it was always the same area, it had to be hormonal – and that there was an excess of sebum in that area, linked to both dehydrated skin and also an overproduction of sebum due to hormones. Not to mention my bad habit of touching my pimples. So I started a routine 100% Dr. Hauschka which satisfied me in Europe, but as soon as I went to Asia, it flared up again. After a lot of trial and error, I found the routine that works for me, no matter the continent 😀 Note: I’ve included links to trusted sites. Some links are affiliated, so those with ad blockers won’t see them. But I always put the product names next to them. You’re by no means obligated to use my links, buy wherever you want. My products come from all corners of the world because I’m lucky enough to travel a lot and find THE miracle product in each country I visit Attention, for mask-induced acne, the products are a bit different. This article is for hormonal acne.For acne caused by barrier masks, read my dedicated article on “maskne” hereFor for body acne, read my dedicated article For cases of very severe acne OR acne after stopping the pill OR childbirth, consult a naturopath and/or a dermatologist. I have no advice to give as I only have acne due to normal hormonal fluctuations. Sensitive skin is not my specialty, I don’t know much about it, test these products at your own risk. Sulfur and zinc are my friends My Spanish teacher in Nicaragua told me, when I asked her about local cosmetics, that a Canadian student had a very bad acne flare-up when coming to Nicaragua. At first, she suffered in silence, then one day, this student expressed her despair at seeing her skin worsen day by day. My teacher took her to buy a sulfur-based soap during a trip to Masaya (there are many volcanoes in Nicaragua and sulfur, coming from volcanic soil, is an easy-to-get ingredient), and that’s how she was cured, and she bought about ten sulfur-based soaps before returning to Canada hehehe I can confirm that sulfur is a miracle ingredient for acne-prone skin, although it doesn’t smell like roses and dries the skin out a bit (but we’ll talk about hydration later). By drying the skin, it reduces excess sebum (which especially increases before your period); and with its disinfecting action, it effectively eliminates p.acnes bacteria, which are responsible for the proliferation of pimples on the skin. Another key ingredient against hormonal acne is zinc : As menstruation approaches, hormones fluctuate, sebaceous glands go wild, and sebum production goes into overdrive. zinc, through its sebum-regulating action, rebalances it and prevents the formation of acne. Here are the products I use and recommend: Proper facial cleansing I’ve mentioned it before. Acne-prone skin is not dirty. They have acne because of inappropriate cleansing. People tend to over-cleanse their skin actually. If you use a sunscreen but don’t wear makeup, you still need to remove it in the evening. I use the reusable cleansing pads from Face Halo, I’ve used other brands but this one is truly the best and most durable (Lookfantastic link) with a special texture that catches sunscreen and dust (and makeup if you wear any). Just wet the pad with water, then wipe it over your face. Alternatively, go for a micellar water. I recommend the Simple brand (Amazon link) which is specially formulated for sensitive skin (because I can’t stand BioDerma’s). Don’t overuse micellar waters either. If possible, use them for eye makeup removal, but for the skin, cleansing pads are more than enough. Note: I do NOT have any other makeup remover products to recommend. If you need something stronger, use whatever you like, test them yourself, I have no opinion on that. I don’t recommend oil cleansing because my skin absolutely hates it, but if it works for you, great. After removing makeup and especially after micellar water, you need to finish with a cleanser. It’s the basis of double cleansing Asian style: (1) makeup removal (2) cleansing I use the facial cleanser from Rosette (YesStyle link, or Amazon link or Stylevana link) based on sulfur, which I mentioned earlier. There is a “family” size, larger for absolute fans of this cleanser (Amazon link). Be careful, the odor is not great because it contains sulfur, but the scent doesn’t linger on your face, don’t worry. If your pores are completely clogged, go for this magical cleanser Sanskrit Saponins by Niod (my before/after photos below & detailed review here). Use it every other evening, otherwise it might dry out your skin way too much. Pores go missing from the first uses. Next, in the morning, you do NOT need a cleanser. I repeat, NO CLEANSER IN THE MORNING!! A spritz of thermal water is enough. Don’t over-cleanse your face. I think that when the environment is particularly polluted, we don’t clean our face well enough with our hands. So, I use a machine that, thanks to its micro-vibrations, brings out the dirt hidden in pores. But this only applies to highly polluted areas (Asia, Latin America…) where micro-dust can settle in pores, clog them, and turn into pimples. Before, I used Mia 2 by Clarisonic, but when it gave up the ghost, I switched to Foreo Mini 3, much gentler and suitable for acne-prone skin (detailed review here, Amazon link here, Sephora link here). If you’re in Europe, buy a cleansing device only if you have congested skin with lots of microcysts. Good hydration Excess sebum is caused or worsened by dehydrated skin. When the skin is dehydrated, our body tries to hydrate it and compensate by producing sebum (oil). But that’s not what we want => pimples. So, to prevent excess sebum, you absolutely must hydrate the skin, bring water: Don’t pick at your pimples With facial cleansing devices, at some point during the cleansing, the pimples will come out on their own and go away on their own. But the stubborn ones still deserve a little attention. For that, I use the following products: Note: EPIDUO and CUTACNYL – Benzoyl peroxide is a double-edged sword. I’m in a love/hate relationship with this ingredient. If your doctor prescribes it, here is my detailed review Repair the skin barrier Any skin that has just come out of an acne breakout is necessarily damaged (there are different levels, ranging from tightness to increased sensitivity, to no symptoms, but you can see it with a skin analysis (by zooming in on the skin), so repairing the skin barrier is essential. I know you all want to get rid of spots, but damaged skin can’t handle anti-spot products right away. Think long term! Healthy skin is priority #1. 2020 Note: Right now, the trend in Korea is to use centella asiatica (tiger grass) to repair the skin barrier and reduce inflammation. I tell you don’t recommend, acne-prone skin, so very damaged skin, needs B5 or copper peptides, stronger stuff. Centella asiatica is an active that takes way too long to show effects. I wrote a post about my routine for rebuilding the skin barrier here and skincare adapted to maskne here Morning routine: Skin barrier Evening routine: Skin barrier Uriage Thermal Water Makeup removal Face Halo pads Hydrating serum: Buffet + Copper Peptides 1% from The OrdinaryOR B5 Serum from SkinceuticalsOR Alpha H Vitamin B Serum AND Face cleansing: Rosette Blue cleanser Uriage Thermal Water Moisturizing cream with SPF Nuxe Fluide Expert Anti-spot SPF20 for normal skinto use if it’s too greasy for you, with 1 to 2 drops of No-Sun from Esthederm (SPF50) OR Moisturizing cream: Benton Steam Cream AND SPF: NIOD S30 Hydrating mask: Aura by Antipodes Sunscreen for the eyes: Mineral Eye UV Defense SPF 30 Hydrating serum: or NIOD CAIS 2 AND NIOD MMHC 2or Buffet + Copper Peptides 1% from The Ordinary AND Niacinamide 10% + 1% Zinc from The Ordinary Moisturizing cream: Benton Steam CreamEye contour: Melchior & Balthazar argan oil roll-on Suitable products to treat spots It’s only when acne is stabilized and gone, part skin barrier repaired and healthy, that you can start treating the spots left by your hormonal acne. Treating spots With a strong skin barrier, we can treat spots. We start with: Update November 2021: I no longer recommend exfoliating acids because most of you aren’t careful You jump on them, damage your skin barrier even more, and then ask me why. To learn more about acids, maybe this article will help you a bit more? Makeup Since I hadn’t found suitable products, I didn’t wear much makeup. But now, I’ve just tested with success a tinted moisturizer that doesn’t cause breakoutsIt’s the Face Cream with Lemon and Cucumber for Oily and Blemished Skin from L’erbolario, an Italian brand I discovered during my travels. It’s mattifying and gives a smooth and even look to the skin. The cream is not moisturizing, so apply a moisturizer underneath. Know that if your acne is hormonal in origin, you need to continue regulating excess sebum.Don’t NOT switch to normal products as soon as you have your first period without a pimple. Okay, I hope I haven’t overwhelmed you; it’s a lot of info all at once, I know, I know. To recap, here’s the routine I recommend: Don’t skip any step, please! And respect the recommended order. The routine is designed to work in synergy. If the tables display weirdly, disable your adblock! The “skin barrier” routine is not shown here because I’m short on space, but check these routines here MORNING ANTI-ACNE ROUTINE You still have breakouts You no longer have breakouts and your skin barrier is in top shape Step 1: Thermal Water Uriage Step 1: Thermal Water Uriage Step 2: Hydrating Serum : Clarins Anti-SoifOr Goku-Jyun Hada Labo Hyaluronic Acid Lotion (light version, green color)Or MMHC 2 from Niod Step 2: Treatment/Antioxidant Serum : SkinCeuticals Phloretin C F all over the faceor Drunk Elephant C-Firma Day Serum Step 3: Treatment Product : Niacinamide 10% + 1% Zinc from The Ordinary on problem areas Step 3: Hydrating Serum : Clarins Anti-Soifor Goku-Jyun Hada Labo Hyaluronic Acid Lotionor MMHC 2 from Niod Step 4: Moisturizing cream with SPF : Nuxe Fluide Expert Anti-spot SPF20 for normal skinto use if it’s too greasy for you, with 1 to 2 drops of No-Sun from Esthederm (SPF50) Step 4: Moisturizing cream with SPF : Nuxe Fluide Expert Anti-spot SPF20 for normal skinto use if it’s too greasy for you, with 1 to 2 drops of No-Sun from Esthederm (SPF50) Note: notice that I don’t have you use niacinamide or copper peptides with vitamin C at the same time Here are tips for optimal application: EVENING ANTI-ACNE ROUTINE You still have breakouts You no longer have breakouts and your skin barrier is in top shape Step 1:  Makeup removal : Face Halo pads OR Simple micellar cleansing waterStep 2: AND Face cleansing : Rosette Blue … Continue reading Adult Acne: How I got rid of it. Before/After Photos (The Ordinary, Mario Badescu, SkinCeuticals, Uriage, Benton, Drunk Elephant, COSRX, Rosette)