I also very oily skin, prone to breakouts. (My dermatologist said it was actually clogged pores caused by my excessively oily skin, and I didn't have much "true" acne which requires the presence of a certain bacteria.) Honestly I would recommend seeing a dermatologist -- he can give you prescription creams that work better than anything you can find in the drugstore! When I use only cleansers and a 2% salicylic acid treatment (Stridex Maximum Strength) which is supposed to be good for acne, my face is COVERED with clogged pores -- I will get clusters of 10-20 little pimples on my forehead that were impossible to hide and looked like a rash, plus random pimples all over my cheeks and chin... definitely not a pretty sight!
I used to go to a dermatologist, and while I still had pretty oily skin with the prescriptions, I had almost NO pimples -- often none, and never more than one or two at once. After some experimenting with different medications, this was the treatment that worked the best for me:
Morning:
Wash face with Dove or Cetaphil soap
Clindagel (Rx)
Evening:
Cleanse and exfoliate with Buf Puf sponge and Cetaphil or Dove soap
Clindagel (Rx)
Tazorac Cream (Rx -- this is what made all the difference for me!)
I quit using prescriptions a while back thinking I could save money and that surely I had grown out of my acne since I was in my mid-20's :icon_roll yeah right.... Right now, the best drugstore product I've tried BY FAR is Neutrogenia's On-The-Spot treatment. It is 2.5% benzoyl peroxide, which is just as effective as all the other brands' 10% creams, but it does not dry out your skin like the 10%! Now I still usually have one or two small pimples (so it's not quite as good as the Rx but still not bad!), but I can normally hide them with mu and you'd never know
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[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" /> So this my current routine:
Morning:
Wash face with Dove or Cetaphil soap
Stridex Maximum Strength (I really don't know if this helps.... but it does always cleanse away the last bit of mu my cleansers leave behind so I keep using it!)
Evening:
Wash and exfoliate with Buf Puf and Dove or Cetaphil
Stridex Maximum Strength
Neutrogenia On-The-Spot (all over my acne-prone areas as a preventative measure. I skip my nose since strangely that is my least oily skin!)
(I have experienced with some different cleansers but never noticed a difference between any of them, so I just stick to my dermatologist recommended Dove and Cetaphil!)
I also use a new washcloth each time I wash my face, and keep a clean towel around that I use only on my freshly-washed face. I also started using the Queen Helene Mint Julep mask a few weeks ago, but really haven't noticed much of a difference yet, in either oil production or acne. I think it slows down the oil production for a few hours after I use it but I certainly haven't noticed a difference on the day after or anything... I have also heard clay masks are good for slowing oil production, so I might look into those someday.
For mu and shine control, I have discovered that CoverGirl Professional Loose Powder actually keeps my face matte longer than any drugstore or department store powder I've tried! But it's still not perfect, so I have recently started touching up with blotting sheets once or twice a day and WOW, those things are awesome! Soaks up all the oil and shine without messing up your mu! I use Clean and Clear which you can find in drugstores.
Finally, I have more information from my dermatologist about preventing acne (including such things as what mu to use, hair products, etc.), and links to several articles on acne and oily skin in my notepad!
Hope that helps!
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