Weddingbee Blog

Let’s start out by saying that if you are one of those people who have impeccable, baby-smooth, blemish free skin, this post is not for you. And…we can’t be friends. Only kidding.

I know that I wasn’t the only bride out there struggling with acne. Acne is no new thang for me. I have fought a losing battle with acne for many years. I even joke to Mr. Dolphin that I don’t know how he ever fell in love with my crater face (over 8 years ago!). He always tells me that it’s what was on the inside that counts for him…and that he liked my booty. MEN!

So what did I do to get my skin looking like this?

photo by Starks Photography

It’s been a long, tearful journey, my friends.

Throughout high school I was constantly plagued with painful, red pimples and all over (relatively minor, considering others’) acne. My junior year of high school I was prescribed tetracycline (relatively inexpensive, even without insurance) which seemed to help CONSIDERABLY. Having clearer skin gave me a new found confidence I didn’t have before. Eventually, I had to stop taking tetracycline (as it’s an antibiotic) due to its interference with BC (birth control).

I was bummed. I tried a few different BCs that were FDA approved to treat acne. Every half-year I would change to a different brand (wreaking havoc on my system), trying to find the perfect combination of over the counter products, Rx products, and BC brand for my skin. 6 years later, I think I’ve finally figured it out.

Now, I don’t contend to be a professional at acne prevention, but I thought maybe sharing my regimen (and the regimen of others), and what I did to prepare my skin for our wedding, may help y’all. As always, please consult your doctor/dermatologist before beginning any treatment plan.

Here are a few other tips (that worked for me!) in preparing your skin for your wedding day:

• Drink TONS of water. Seriously people, water is the KEY. Instead of reaching for that soda or coffee, reach for some water. It totally cleanses your system and your skin.
• DON’T TOUCH your face. Restrict all need to touch your face. Don’t rest your chin on your palm, don’t rub your face, just don’t touch it at all. Trust me.
• Wear little to no make-up leading up to your wedding. I went several weeks sans makeup leading up to our wedding. There was no way I was going to let something clog up my pores and cause a crazy breakout on our wedding day!
• Break a sweat, if you can. Working out and sweating is another way to pull all that junk out of your pores. Just make sure to follow up with a mild cleanser afterwards.
• Alter your cycle*. I altered my monthly cycle (via BC) so that our wedding fell during the time of the month when I had the least amount of breakouts.
• Don’t pick at your face! If you have a pimple, resist the urge to pick at it. Picking at pimples and acne will only make the problem worse and can lead to an infection and scarring. Leave it alone and let your body do the magic, and before you know it the pimple will be gone.

*I am not a doctor. This is just what I did in preparing for our wedding day. As always, PLEASE consult a physician.

Products I currently use:

• Estrostep BC (Pretty much DOES the job of protecting you against unplanned pregnancy and acne. For me, the brand runs around $90, and the generic around $35. I know, it’s expensive, but it’s been my little miracle and I’m going to pay for it as long as I can!)
• Differin Gel (Can be very expensive without insurance, as I discovered. But, many dermatologists will give you a discount card to use on your first few tubes of gel. This often brought it down to a more reasonable price. Once I had a better control of my acne, I only needed about 1 tube a year.)
• St. Ives Apricot Scrub (2-3 times a week. All the other days I use a mild cleanser like Clean and Clear’s Morning Burst)

Now that I’ve regained control of my skin, I am looking into reducing the amount of products I use. Which got me thinking, what does everyone else use? So I posed the question to my Twitter posse on what they’ve found works best for them to control acne and break outs.

ShelikesRuffles - “Proactiv. Used it since age 13! Love. I also moisturize with oil of Olay lotion. Awesome.”

LandlockedBride - “I don’t have one set thing, but I tend to use organic and natural products. My skin responds really well to them.”

obxwife - “Just started Proactiv a few months ago and love it. I used to use Aveeno a lot and it worked great.”

Laurenetc - “Murad products are fantastic and anything with sulfur. Benzoyl peroxide causes scarring. I use a retinol cream at night and it has worked wonders to fade old acne scars.”

dianalapoint - “Anything from BeFine, especially their brown sugar face scrub.”

jesstagirl - “For me, the only way my skin stays clear is by NOT washing it daily. True story. Only once, every other day in the shower.” Mr. Dolphin swears by this too, and he hardly EVER has break-outs. I think he just has good skin genes, but him and Jesstagirl could be on to something. Maybe we poke at our skin too much with products which causes it to freak the F out. Who knows.

OMGmomBLOG - “Drink lots of water and use a thick, oil free night creme. That’s what I’ve done and now I don’t even wear makeup anymore. Aveline night creme. $$ but worth it! Spent 15 years with bad products of every $ range and this is best for me.”

If you have more than just a breakout here and there, and want to make SURE your skin is at its best on your Wedding day… consult a Dermatologist. But don’t wait too long. Make sure to do so 6 month+ leading up to your  wedding as many products and suggestions they give you take a little while to kick in (often up to 3 months, but give yourself a little wiggle room with 6 months).

My dermatologist also said that if I did have a terrible, hard, painful pimple leading up to our wedding, that I could come into the office for an injection (which would cause the pimple to go down, considerably, overnight). Have any of y’all tried that?

Don’t think you can afford to go to a dermatologist? Call around and see what kind of prices for consultations dermatologists are charging in your area. Mine was about $30-40 for visit (and I didn’t have the best insurance at the time).

Not ready to take the plunge with a dermatologist? There are plenty of great over-the-counter products to try (listed above via Twitter Posse). Make sure to give yourself a few months of using the product before moving on to another product. Acne doesn’t clear up overnight and it often takes a few months of a strict regimen to regain control.

As for me, I’m thinking of trying Mrs Dumpling’s Aveline Night Cream. In the past I have used RA Cream (equivalent to Retin A), and my skin was super glow-y. Not hyperactive glow-y, just the “I have super fabulous skin” glow-y.   I’ll be sure to update y’all in a few months with my results and how I feel about the product. Plus, it’s a cream that helps combat the effects of aging on your skin, SCORE! I know I’m only 24, but as Seminole Bridesmaid always says “It’s never too early.”

Today, I’m so thankful for my skin. I have worked hard to get it where it is today. I know y’all probably want to see a “before” picture. When I have the balls to post it, I will. I’m not there yet.

Sure, I have my moments where I feel a pimple beneath the surface and I don’t want to leave the house, but in the end I know that it could be a lot worse.

How do y’all deal with breakouts? What products do you swear by? And for those struggling with bad acne, hang in there! You’ll eventually find the regimen that works for you!