I’ve found that cream moisturizers clog my pores because they have occlusives, which makes it difficult for my skin to express sebum. I tried my nice moisturizer last night just to see if I could start using it again, and I could feel my pores clogging within three hours. I got up, squeezed some that was bothering me to see if anything would come out (there was), and then immediately rewashed my face. Honestly, your soothing barrier serum might be moisturizing enough for your skin. Maybe try not using your regular moisturizer in the areas where you’re getting comedonal acne.
Welcome I’m newer to Reddit myself but let me tell you, you came to the right place! I’ve learned so much through this app and have gotten a lot of help in different areas of life. I also struggle with closed comedones. They come and go… But they appear when I use a thick moisturizer. I used Cerave for a while (doc recommended it since I get dermatitis from a lot of skincare products) and my skin tolerated it pretty well until after a couple of months I realized it was just too thick and greasy. If you have sensitive skin as I do. DO NOT use an exfoliator. Instead, use a gentle cleanser and lightly wash off in circles with a wash rag. (Cold water is best to help your pores close) ALSO! Homemade rice water. It did wonders not only for my comedones but also for my redness and reg acne. You can easily look up online how to make it. Super easy and quick. Closed comedones take a few days up to a couple of weeks to go away. But with consistency, you can get them to vanish
Can you elaborate on the rice water? Like what you do specifically application and prep-wise? It sounds like we have similar skin types and concerns. I’ve always been curious about rice water but everything I could find about it was posted by Tiktokers or some old random blog.
It’s typically used as a toner, but you can also do a mask with it! To make mine I just get plain white rice. 1 cup of it. Rinse it 2-3 times (gets all the icky stuff off of it) Then pour one cup of filtered water into the bowl of rice. Let it soak in the water for 30 seconds. And to get even more of the nutrients out of the rice and into water, you “granulate” it. (I think that’s the right word lol) like you get your hands into the rice, pick some of it up, and gently rub it back and forth. Do that for about 1 minute. The water will start to turn a cloudy color. Then I get my glass jar and strainer to dump the rice water in and boom. Rice water. You can leave it out for a couple days to ferment BUT with sensitive skin, I don’t suggest that. I will let it sit in room temp for at most 1 hour. You can store it in your fridge for up to 4 days. I use cotton pads to dab it on my skin. You can even put it in a spray bottle to spritz it on. Or to use as a mask, just get the round cotton pads soaked in it and place them on your problem areas for 10-15 mins. It did wonders for my skin. Acne wise, inflammation and redness… comedones, etc. it’s important to not use it after four days though. It starts to grow mold after that time frame. You can tell it’s fresh when it’s bubbly & has a nice rice smell to it. If you do this… only use it once a day at first. To allow your skin to get adjusted and within 3 days you should be able to tell a difference and decide if it’s something you wanna continue to do I know my skin loves it
Thank you! I really appreciate your experience. Would you describe it as a hydrating or exfoliating toner? I saw somewhere it’s an astringent, which doesn’t make me worried. I’m using bp and adapalene PM so I’m wondering if and where I could stick this in. I’m thinking AM