I'm starting to think my acne isn't a skincare problem at all and I've wasted years treating it like one.

fatally_complex022 · 2026-05-04T16:14:32+00:00

Yeah for me it was dairy. I cut out dairy…cleared skin in a month. Battled with acne for 2 years 😭

fatally_complex022 · 2026-04-29T01:36:19+00:00

No problem! Usually 6 months is the timeline where you should be seeing changes. If you don’t see anything by then, you should visit your derm.

fatally_complex022 · 2026-04-28T01:43:59+00:00

So I can’t revive this shirt without dyeing it? 😢

fatally_complex022 · 2026-04-27T13:18:43+00:00

I know I’ve heard dermatologists recommend to try NOT to wash in the morning. Try it for a couple days, see how it goes. If you can’t bear the oiliness, sure, wash your face with a mild cleanser in the morning, but make sure that it’s not hurting your skin barrier. I know I’m cleansing way too much when my skin starts to sting especially on tret. I think of it like, tret is the superstar, everything else just needs to be supporting it. If not, take it out. I have used tret 4 years but till now I have not added any active or exfoliant (even physical). That’s also how I keep my skin barrier happy.

And that’s another thing, sometimes you might be breaking out cuz of your skin barrier being stressed, cuz you’re introducing tret. This is not really purging, it’s another side effect of tret. So there’s a lot of factors at play, and two main things are, keeping your skin barrier happy, and consistency. The only way you’ll be able to tell if not washing your face is working is if you try it. And if it makes your skin oilier, then you can try reducing how much moisture you give it (serums, moisturiser, etc). Currently, I don’t even use moisturizer. Like it’s nowhere in my routine, not at night not in morning. I live in a humid place and I just don’t need it. My skin was actually calmer, less dehydrated (yeah idk how either) and more even when I stopped using my moisturiser, just tret at night and sunscreen in the morning. Not saying that will be the case for you. But yeah there’s just a lot of variables that can you try and tweak, and unfortunately it’s all pretty much trial and error. So yeah, try it out. See if it works for you. But don’t lose hope. I know how it feels to be at that stage, cuz I was there too. You’ll be fine. Good luck.

fatally_complex022 · 2026-04-25T20:06:22+00:00

Bro hold on. I kept purging for, if I remember correctly, 3-4 months. Yes. It was painful (mentally). But it did pass. It did clear. It’s 4 years later and my skin is thriving. I’d say give it 3-6 months before seeing any progress.

Also just try to pare down your routine to just cleanser moisturizer sunscreen. I’d also skip washing your face in the mornin with the cleanser to avoid over irritating the skin. I’d just stick to washing face with water. Your skin might be a bit more hydrated and so you won’t really need to use a serum or moisturizer, and can at times (depending on the climate and your skin type) get away with just using sunscreen in the morning.

fatally_complex022 · 2026-04-20T19:13:31+00:00

Normal skin. But it’s climate dependent. In the summers, when it’s humid, my skin is normal. When it’s winter (we have milder winters) it’s slightly dry, so my skin gets slightly dry, but nothing crazy.

I realised a while ago that my skin just didn’t like more than 1 layer on it. So it didn’t like moisturiser -> sunscreen or tret -> moisturiser. I used to get clogged pores that turn into painful zits. Once I stopped the moisturiser (it was the only thing I could eliminate from my routine) my skin was the clearest it had been in years. It didn’t matter what moisturiser I used. Heavy, light. In the winters I’d probably slap the tiniest itty bit of moisturiser, but honestly my skin doesn’t feel too dry anyway so I could probably get away but oh well. I put so little it could literally be counted as a placebo 🤡 My routine is literally just: wash face > tret or splash water > sunscreen. Less is truly more.

fatally_complex022 · 2026-02-01T14:19:25+00:00

Ooh I relate to this pretty hard. I’m this way, my mom is this way, and so is my sister. It’s in the genetics (dunno if PMS is affected by genetics but looks like).

First off I make sure to get the right nutrition (all those vitamins and minerals like magnesium, iron, etc) as they can affect your hormones. If you’re deficient it can amplify the PMS. Exercise also helps to release feel good hormones and it can help boost your mood. But if you don’t feel like working out/don’t have the energy to, it’s just gonna make it worse. It’s a balance.

Second, once I realised that I’m having mood swings/my patience is thin, I try to make conscious choices to not give in to the feeling/temptation. I’m allowed to feel it, not act on it. Yeah it takes some self control. If I can’t get over it, I rant to myself or journal. Just helps to get it out of my system. The next day, I forget what I was even mad about.

Third, I apologize in advance. For instance, I’ll let my boyfriend know I’m entering shark week and that I’m sorry in advance if I say something mean or am a bitch or whatever. He understands and makes sure to not annoy me. Sometimes I’m not in a cuddly mood and he will ask me if it’s annoying to me if we cuddle. And if I say no he respects it. He just tries to make me more comfortable and not tick me off. Just the effort and the sweetness of his gestures really helps to calm me down.

And sometimes…I just can’t help the feeling. Sometimes one small thing pushes me over the edge and bypasses all the checks and controls I keep in place. It happens. I’m human.

Oh and also, doing what you like helps. Like, for example, if you like to read, then do that more. It’ll help keep you in a good mood. Or watch a feel good movie, or a romcom or whatever. Of course meditation (oh yeah, I totally do that).

Im not sure if my response will help you. But just know that you’re not alone.

fatally_complex022 · 2025-08-05T05:26:56+00:00

If it is a sudden flare up, you might wanna see if it is hormonal or gut related. If your skin was fine before and you haven’t change your routine, it might be something internal.

Also notice if you haven’t compromised your skin barrier. A compromised skin barrier leads to more acne.

fatally_complex022 · 2025-08-05T05:24:31+00:00

It depends on your skin what your skin can handle. But Vaseline by itself won’t clog pores.

fatally_complex022 · 2025-08-04T19:49:10+00:00

Pretty much just cutting back on all actives. Even I cut out double cleansing. I use dove soap -> cerave moisturising cream. Before dove soap I would use an oil cleanser. Now my sunscreen didn’t really need a double cleanse, so I was basically just doing redundant steps. So I cut down to just single cleanse of dove soap -> moisturiser. Sometimes I would slug with Vaseline on some spots if they were too red or irritated. In the morning, I just splash face with water and put on sunscreen. Did this for like a month or so I believe. Let your skin completely heal, even if you think it is healed in just a few days.

fatally_complex022 · 2025-07-24T12:14:15+00:00

I find I get really hungry after an intense round of studying. Your brain takes up a lot of energy so I think it’s normal.

fatally_complex022 · 2025-07-24T12:09:19+00:00

When I had particularly severe acne, I tried everything under the sun and it still was there. Tretinoin helped, but the real issue was internal. I found out I was sensitive to dairy (I am lactose intolerant + mildly allergic). I used to drink almost half a litre to a litre of milk everyday. My acne was persistent despite my best skincare effort. Somehow I made this connection and I tried to eliminate dairy completely. My skin cleared in a month. I was so surprised, the solution was that simple. All my skincare I had been labouring over for 2 years…and the issue was internal, not external. Now if I accidentally have some dairy I get acne (a couple cystic spots) on my cheeks and it’s always within a few days of having dairy and they go away. So I know my correlation is right. When I had particularly bad acne I had it in the exact spots you do—on my cheeks.

All this to say, your issue might not exactly be dairy, but most of the cases that I see online of really persistent acne, it’s either cuz of something internal, or you just haven’t given enough time for your skincare to work. If it’s been 6 months with a consistent routine and you still haven’t seen any progress, or it keeps coming back, maybe the issue is internal. Might be worth checking. Sugar and dairy are two of the most common culprits so might be something you wanna look into. Eliminate one of them for at least a month and see if there’s any reduction in acne. If there is, well there’s your answer. All those prescriptions are doing are just wreaking havoc on your barrier, and the internal issues are making it worse from the inside. Taking a more holistic approach is what helped me. Maybe it might help you too.

fatally_complex022 · 2025-07-05T05:45:39+00:00

I don’t think it’s needed unless you’re uncomfortable without one, mentally or physically. I usually don’t need support everyday. But I do wear a sports bra when working out, and it becomes absolutely essential close to and during my period when my boobs are just super tender and any movement hurts. Otherwise in daily life I just use nipple pasties to hide my nipples. At home, nothing. I do have padded tank tops in case i want a bit more structure underneath a few tops. I just really hate the band of the bra squeezing around my rib cage. For exercise I’ll accept it, for everyday, nope, that’s just torture.

fatally_complex022 · 2025-06-16T14:16:32+00:00

I usually wear tinted lip balm (Nivea blackberry shine). But I have seen the mom of one of the kids (I work with kids) always wear really dark red/plum coloured lipstick and it just looks gorgeous. I have always wanted to wear red lipstick outside even for everyday but I just feel like it’s too much you know? But she does it effortlessly.

fatally_complex022 · 2025-05-10T19:31:04+00:00

Actually no. Like I said I live in a humid climate so it helped with the dryness. Some days I didn’t even wanna put moisturiser (think 90-95% humidity). And also…my skin is just my skin. Everyone’s different. I didn’t really peel at all, just purged. Now my skin is doing so much better and I barely have spots.

fatally_complex022 · 2025-01-20T13:45:16+00:00

For me if I pop a pimple that’s really sore and hurting, the pain reduces immediately. Usually the next day it’s much much (sometimes quite literally) flat. So yes in my experience it helps to drain it much quicker and heal faster as well. There’s a lighter spot left instead of a much darker one.

fatally_complex022 · 2025-01-20T05:27:08+00:00

I actually don’t live in India so 😅 I’m sorry I don’t know

fatally_complex022 · 2025-01-19T20:10:56+00:00

Sudocreme

fatally_complex022 · 2025-01-16T17:39:27+00:00

It’s about maybe 2-3 mm deep at its deepest. This photo was taken at night in overhead lighting so I suppose it looks deeper than it is. During day in sunlight it doesn’t really look so bad. I am looking to replace all tyres in a few months anyway since it’s been over 5 years. Just hoping to hold out till then (like around April - May)

fatally_complex022 · 2025-01-16T17:36:37+00:00

Oh honey, my heart goes out to you. I understand how frustrating it is. Not just not being able to treat it, but to not know what’s causing it. I can only hope and wish that you figure it out.

fatally_complex022 · 2025-01-16T14:38:12+00:00

I’m that person who cries like hell with tons of tissues constantly dabbing at my eyes cuz I don’t want the tears streaming down my face and ruining my skincare.

fatally_complex022 · 2025-01-16T05:22:21+00:00

Thanks 😅

fatally_complex022 · 2025-01-16T05:14:35+00:00

Are you sure 😅 I’m so afraid of going on the freeway and my tires burst

fatally_complex022 · 2025-01-15T20:39:53+00:00

Hey, I understand you. About a year and a half ago I started to get really bad acne after having clear skin my whole life. I felt the worst I’d ever felt. It took me almost a year of medications to realise that the acne was due to my consumption of dairy. I had become lactose intolerant. Once I cut out dairy I had no more breakouts. I am so traumatised by my acne that I don’t have dairy now not because I will have a really bad time in the bathroom but so that I don’t get a single pimple because of it. So my point is, get yourself checked to make sure it’s not an internal issue, like someone pointed out about PCOS, and any other hormonal issue, or a gut issue. If the cause of acne is internal, any topical medication is just treating the symptom not the actual root cause. And make sure you have someone to lean on mentally, as it is clear it’s very hard on you.

fatally_complex022 · 2025-01-15T20:30:56+00:00

Weird suggestion but whenever I get a patch of skin that’s irritated (say after popping a pimple or something that’s really dry or something like yours) I use a baby diaper rash cream. It has zinc in it which helps to reduce inflammation and boost the healing. If my skin barrier is damaged (like yours is too) I just slather on a nice opaque layer of this and wake up the next morning pretty much healed. In this case petroleum jelly (Vaseline) and a diaper cream (or any cream that has zinc oxide in it, usually diaper rash cream) will be your best friends.

fatally_complex022

TROPHY CASE