LONGECITY

I am looking for solutions for my skin which still has acne popping up. I am pushing 23 and it is truly time for it to disappear.

The affected areas are my face and shoulders with very few ones on the back.

These are the following correlations of acne intensity that I observed:

1. Stress. There is nothing that worsens my acne more than stress. I am bad at dealing with important events in life like exams even when prepared well.

2. Junk food. When I indulge in junk food which happens rarely, there is definitely a little bit of effect on acne but not that much. I overall found that usual triggers

    like dairy, eggs and other foods cause me no effects on acne I have.

Here is what slightly improves situation. Intermittent fasting on 16/8 window. When I eat all my food in 8 hr window, there is clear different on the amount of oily skin

I get. While fasting, there is no oil or very little of it. After eating, 2-3 hrs after my skin somewhat oily.

Benzoyl peroxide. Took 6 weeks to do anything. It improves situation for lots of people but for me, there is something missing. It's as if my acne is not really caused by

skin bacteria but something internal.

Plenty of rest and relaxation. It prevents new acne formation but does not reduce existing spots.

I am looking for people with experience with this issue and what helped them. I was thinking about accutane for a while, cruising on a low dose for a few months. Having looked

at my diet and tried various topical solutions, I find it frustrating to still be plagued by this crappy looks and self-esteem killer. Also, the longer I have it, the more scars will form over time.

Also, advice on acne scars besides laser therapy is appreciated.

Daily topical glycolic acid at about 10% will help, have a time off after 30 days to see what happens and eventually start again when and if the issue returns.

If 10% is too strong dilute a bit, you really have to find your sweet spot with strength and time off.

Internal issue is likely hormonal, topical progesterone at about 30mg/day might help, checking DHEA, testosterone, cortisol, estradiol, etc... might reveal where the imbalance is.

I use exactly 10% glycolic acid face wash for around 2 weeks. Not sure if it helps but it certainly makes the skin feel very smooth after washing it off.

At that percentage you don't need to wash it off or buffer.

It should certainly help in keeping oil low therefore likely improving the acne issue.

It might not address the root of the problem, which is likely hormonal, but at least is easy and leads to a better life quality which is a nice first step in the right direction.