How to deal with Oily skin , breakouts and many more - A thread :

I was blessed with oily skin but it was certainly a BIG struggle learning how to cope with it. I have seen dermatologists, GP doctors etc which have helped me learn how to control this. If your interested in how I have learnt to control it VERY WELL - follow along!

Also, you can NOT GET RID OF OILY SKIN! It is your skin type. But you can learn to control it very well (if you are consistent). So, oily skin is caused by an over secretion of sebum.

A bit of background : Sebum is a substance that is secreted not only for your skin but also for your hair and it helps keep your hair and skin moisturised. So, people have dry skin because there may be an under secretion of sebum so the skin does not have enough moisture.

This over production of sebum can make you more prone to breakouts like spots , condones , malassezia ( small bumps on your skin which are so annoying! ) , enlarged pores etc. Also having oily skin can cause your makeup to wear off very easily.

ONE OF THE BIGGEST MISTAKES I MADE: 1) Over Cleansing and 2) Over exfoliating. You would think that this way you would get rid of this excess oil. Lol. No way! 1) + 2) will just cause more damage to your skin + will produce more oil than needed + you'll BE MORE PRONE TO BREAKOUTS

How I deal with Oily skin : Skincare. These products can also be used on different skin types. I have been through a TONNE of skincare products and really researched this topic and this is what I feel works best.

Skincare: I personally have an AM and PM routine.

My AM Routine: 1) Cleanser - Neutrogena Clear and Defend Facial Wash. This will cleanse your pores to help get and maintain clear skin. This contains Salicylic Acid which will help reduce and regulate sebum secretion.

2) Toner - The Body Shop Tea Tree Toner - helps reduce irritation and soothes the skin due to the antimicrobial properties of the tea tree oil. The whole Tea Tree line at the Body Shop is just amazing and affordable!

Another toner which is amazing is the La Roche Posay Clarifying Lotion (overall the La Roche Posay is just an amazing skincare brand . This will help remove oil and reduce the size of your pores aswell as unblocking them. It also makes your skin feel firm and tight w/o drying it.

++++ Tea Tree Oil and Salicylic Acid are known to be one of the best pairings because they work on different levels.

3) Moisturiser - I have 2 that I like to use: 1) Clinique Moisture Surge 72hr which is gel based so it will not add any extra oil to your skin and so you will not shine! 2) La Roche Posay Effaclar Mat - this is mattifying and its lightweight + controls sebum to reduce shine.

The Clinque moisturiser can be a bit expensive so a dupe is the Neutrogena Hydro Boost Gel cream. I think it is very similar to the Clinique and it is SO much cheaper. They both contain hyaluronic acid which attracts and locks in moisture.

People will wonder why I use a moisturiser if I have oily skin. When I talk about moisturisers I mean hydration. Just because you have excess oils doesnt mean you have enough water in your skin and the role moisturisers is to improve your skins hydration - so do NOT skip this.

5) Lastly, during the day YOU SHOULD ALWAYS HAVE SUNSCREEN ON. It doesn't matter if its winter or summer you will still be exposed to light. But boyyy some sunscreens gave me a greasy t-zone and we do NOT want that. My favourite is the La Roche Posay Ultra light facial sun cream.

It is mattifying and water resistant.

My PM Routine: 1) I will use the same cleanser as AM but once a week I will exfoliate my skin with the Neutrogena Clear and Defend Facial Scrub and this helps defend skin from blemishes as well as maintaining the skins balance

2) I will use either one of the toners from above.

3) I will moisturise my skin. 4) APPLY EPIDUO - This is one of the things that WILL MAKE A MASSIVE DIFFERENCE! Epiduo is a cream that contains 0.1% Adapalene and 2.5% Benzoyl Peroxide. I have had this prescribed by my GP and it is amazing!

Epiduo will help with moderate to severe acne breakouts and will help control skin texture, stops spots, controls inflammation. Its consistency is gel like and it is very lightweight. It can dry up your skin and you will need to be patient with results - after 2 weeks you'll see.

If you have acne scarring you may also want to add azelaic acid which I do at times when needed to help brighten the skin ( for hyperpigmentation ) and it will improve your skin texture. The Ordinary Azelaic Suspension 10% is really good and affordable.

I sometimes choose to use masks but you need to look for masks that will help with specific areas like blemishes , pores , oil control.

One mask that I think is amazing is the La Roche Posay Clay Mask which helps to unclog pores and oil control.

If you have any questions please don't hesitate to ask.