life: acne. the cure.

**disclaimer: i am not claiming for ANY of this stuff to be miracle water passed to me by the Almighty. i am not saying that this stuff works miracles on that sad little face that needs to be "fixed". this is just what, from my experience, works. give it a try, and give it some time.**

THE KEY IS A THREE-STEP REGIMEN. pro-activ has it. clinique has it. clean&clear has it. the key is the three-step program. make sure you get a good face wash, a good toner, and a nice moisturizer to make sure you don't dry out your skin (even if you have oily skin, it's important to keep your skin from drying out and making more oil, causing you to break out)


to do all of this, you have to see what skin you have:

to determine your skin type, go here or here.

if you have sensitive skin (allergic to ingredients), look for the "sensitive" lines of washes and products. they're always displayed on the front of products.

if you have dry skin, make sure that you get a good moisturizer. if you have oily or combo, just follow the stuff below.

DO THIS 2-3x A DAY, EVERYDAY.

......................ONE..................WASH.........................................................


KEY: 2% SALICYLIC ACID (or benzoyl peroxide) 2% is the normal dosage. for all-over face use, like washes, toners, or moisturizers. ($6-8)

tip: flip the bottle over, and it should be the first thing, listed as
"active ingredient: Salicylic Acid 2%.............................................. Acne Medication"

don't see it? put it back on the shelf.



my personal fave is neutrogena b/c their scrubs are to die for. (i would recommend the grapefruit one; pictured--it foams, which i love, AND it has enough scrubbing beads to clean, but not too many so that it's hard to wash off.)

johnson+johnson's washes are really creamy, which i don't really like b/c of the lack of scrubbing beads that neutrogena scrubs have.

clean&clear: i've used their acne kit, and i honestly have to say that it's horrid.

........................TWO............TONE.......................................................

















KEY: 2% SALICYLIC ACID

it's the salicylic acid that does the trick. THAT'S what fights acne. all the toners pictured above all have salylic acid. ($6-8 @ drugstores)

for all the first-timers: you want to drip some on a piece of cotton (squares or circles are best; cotton balls are too fluffy for me, but you can always try)

and scrub your face with it. (dermatologists say to do it in circles, but i don't really see a difference)

if you see that your skin is peeling or flaking, or if you have dry/sensitive skin skip over them, or use toner on that area less often.

.........................TWO. POINT FIVE.............................CREME......................




KEY: 10% BENZOYL PEROXIDE 

you want to up the acne medication because this stuff you're gonna only use it on the spots you have acne/feel a pimple coming.


if you do use it on your entire face, you will probably dry it out.

again: if you have dry areas, you want to avoid them, but if you break out, just apply some on there, just less often.

RECOMMENDATIONS: CLEARASIL ULTRA'S ACNE CREAM.

the only other option i know of out there is NEUTROGENA'S RAPID CLEAR (also has 10%)

dermatologists recommend that you use a variety of ingredients, and since face wash+toner had salicylic acid, this should help. (i've very rarely seen a face wash w. benzoyl peroxide, never seen a toner w. it either.)

....................................THREE.......................MOISTURIZE!...................................
















KEY: OIL-FREE or NON-COMEDOGENIC (it will not clog your pores or cause breakouts)

SPF IS A HUGE PLUS b/c skin protection is important to reduce scar appearances and to prevent early aging. 

I just saw this on Allure magazine: you can just substitute sunscreen for a moisturizer so you don't have to wear both. nice! 


if you have dry skin, you're in a hard place: oil-free will sort of skim you of your needed moisture b/c it's the oils in moisturizers that make them rich; but if you get the oil, then you risk clogging your pores...figure out what works for you and e-mail me! (fongyukyuu[at]gmail[.]com)

i've only tried three moisturizers: ~H2O+, neutrogena and clinique.

(~H20+ and Clinique are higher-end moisturizers, but i love them b/c they're gel --much lighter--great for summer. but if you have dry skin, opt for the heavier lotion-like moisturizers, like neutrogena)

w. clinique, i use the GEL b/c i have oily skin. if you have dry skin and want to use clinique, go for the lotion, which isn't oil-free, but allergy tested, fragrance free, dye-free. that's why i like clinique. ALL of their products are good for sensitive-skin people.

w. ~H2O+, i really LOVE their face oasis moisturizer. now they have a mattifying one that reduces shine!! (AWESOME FOR OILY SKINNED PEOPLE LIKE ME! i would still be using H20 if not for the fact that the h20 store @ my local mall closed) the picture of it is not above, but go here to order/see it.

w. neutrogena: i love their face-wash and toner to death, but their moisturizer is too creamy for me. it's really thick. but i guess it's good if you have dry skin. and neutrogena is the only company i know of that has SPF.

......................................................MISC....................................................















BIORE PORE STRIPS ARE TO DIE FOR. they work miracles!! if you have oily skin, it's a MUST have!! They unclog even your worst backed-up pores. ($9-11)


if you MUST WEAR MAKE-UP, WEAR THIS. This is neutrogena's salicylic-acid (2%) concealer, which would help w. your breakouts, but i would probably not recommend this if you have sensitive or dry skin. ($11-14)

if you have oily skin, CLEAN&CLEAR'S OIL SHEETS ARE A MUST B/C THEY ARE INEXPENSIVE, and INSTANTLY ABSORB SHINE! they are just life-savers. ($5-7)


i have not used the acne kits before besides Clean&Clear's, and i HATE it. pro-activ is $20 (+8 shipping), which lasts for about a month. but this will last you waaay longer than a month. i've used the same bottle of toner for more than a year. the facewash & moisturizer will last you about a few months.

i HAVE used toothpaste before, and it dried out my skin completely. but maybe that was b/c i used it over-night. made my skin peel from dryness for days.

life: acne.

my dearest friends, mis-guided miserable souls of the world, i know that this entry is long. but i also know that every single word is important. i thank you SO much for reading, and please, please finish it.


i'm sure you've been on the beach before, hon.


you've seen those obese women on the beach. the ones you ignore because they don't belong there. so you avert your eyes.


but u know what?

they don't give a f*ck what you think about them.


they don't give a d*mn what their stupid little scale reads, they don't count every single french fry they eat, and they couldn't be happier.


while you're stuck here. counting every, single, miserable calorie in that non-existent salad you just forced yourself to eat.


which you will burn off running like a lunatic on the treadmill AFTER you've calculated in your little shallow brain how long it will take to burn off running at 15 mph.

BE THAT GIRL ON THE BEACH!! 


don't mistake me. i'm not encouraging you to run down to your nearest mcdonald's and scarf down two big macs plus a large soda.


honey, listen to a teenage girl that's been through it all. i've been overweight, had acne (which is now under control), and now am currently in the process of getting braces. in sophomore year of high school. meaning they will NOT be off by senior year.

but i'm fine w. that b/c i'm confident w. who i am.

let's talk about YOU.

you need 2 stop obsessing. the pimple did not ruin your chances w. the football team's captain. it did not ruin your perfect date. your extra flab did not keep you off the beach. it did not keep you from fitting into the perfect prom dress.

you did.

you said freaked out, like you do every single morning, and said to yourself, "oh god.  look at my acne. look at my face! i gained weight! he would never ask me out!"

you can keep on staring at the mirror, asking yourself, "why am i so ugly?"

you can keep looking at the numbers on the scale, but they won't budge. maybe it's broken. why don't you try a few more times? go ask to borrow your neighbor's scale maybe?

by the time you've lost the two pounds, you'll want to loose two more, and two more until you're nothing but a sad little toothpick with only ONE goal in life: to loose two more pounds. those numbers don't bite, and they don't ruin dates either. surprise surprise!

cause you know what? those stupid little numbers on the scale are so friggin important! they ruin your entire life! 

so go! hide in a closet. and don't come out. don't come out until you've lost every single pound. 
until you pass puberty.
until that face fixes itself. 

 all you care about is that stupid little face.
and those numbers on the puny little tag that goes on your shirt.
the truth is, your world only consists of a little bubble filled with a scale, a mirror, and a plastic surgeon.

let me remind you hon, of reality.


WHAT GETS YOU THROUGH LIFE IS YOUR ATTITUDE. IT's not your face. it's not your bust. not those stupid little numbers on the scale that hold so much power over your life.


when you loose your job, when you go through a break up, when a loved one passes away, your acne-free face does make it hurt less. your size zero waist does not comfort you. your DD breasts will not get you a man that loves you for who you really are.

YOU CAN DO ALL THE PLASTIC SURGERY YOU WANT. go ahead and be the botoxed grandma at 67.

for all i care, you're doing the economy good, and keep plastic surgeons in business.

new york.

i have a distant aunt (that's two) in n.y. her name is kae.

my grandmother visited her, and she asked her, "kae, why do you drink less milk now?"

she replied, "because milk makes me fat. my tummy is too fat."

my grandma thought it was cute. my mom thought it was cute. i thought it was horrid. being a two year old little girl, being told you're fat. she has 3 older sisters, who are all teens now. they exposed her way to early. beauty is cruel. but so is reality. when it hits you upside the head.

when you all of a sudden realize that size 6 is too big. that your face needs fixing. when you realize that you don't "belong" in a swim suit.

you shouldn't be told when you're a little girl not even in kindergarten yet that you are too fat. that you need to stop eating.

this is the way the future will be.

little girls barely out of their cribs, told they are too fat.

too fat to be pretty.

too ugly to ever have a boyfriend.

i'm seeing a good future for all those cosmetic sergeons out there.

i'm seeing a race of puny humans that are more shallow than little puddles on the sidewalk. their small little worlds only consists of a mirror, and a scale.

they NEED other people. they NEED to be loved. by others. they NEED to be told they are beautiful. by strangers.


because their OWN OPINIONS ARE NOT IMPORTANT. because what they think about themselves is irrelevant.


but what about a little something called self-esteem?


what about the one thing you can't see in the mirror, looking back at you: your self-image?

once upon a time, there was a little girl that was over-weight in elementary school. she had no fashion sense, refused to wear jeans, and wore stretchy yoga pants to school, and always wore her hair in a pony tail even though it did not flatter her face.
she had horrible acne, and she was me.

i remember being at a distant relative's party one time: "that's her daughter. the fat one."


even my own aunts that i knew did not mean it, said it to me: "____, you gained weight!"


my parents cared more about my acne-ridden face than me: "wow, ____, look at your forehead!" "you grew a new crop!"


my mother would spend hours fussing over my acne, caring more than i did about it.

now, i'm crippling shy in school. i've always been called "quiet" by teachers. my parents ask me why i don't talk.

but ever since i got into high school, i've been surrounded by lots of out-going friends classmates. i don't call them friends b/c i don't have a close connection. to any of them. if i did not talk to them about school, there would be nothing else in to talk about. it's them that helped me come out of my shell. just a little bit. i'm still very much a wallflower; a mouse. part-time nerd, full-time geek.

flash back to me, post-acne: 

my cousin in 6th grade asks me every. single. time she sees me: "____, how did you do it?"

"do what? loose weight?"

"yeah."

"kate. stop obsessing. you're not even pass puberty yet! i honestly don't know. i had a growth spurt, and i just did. i stopped with the excuses i kept feeding myself about why i didn't exercise.

i stopped eating out of boredom. i noticed i would eat whenever just because. because there was nothing to do, because i knew the food was good, but you know what? the food is always good. that doesn't mean that i have to eat it. i'm not gonna miss out."

[my parents own a restaurant, and ever since i was a little girl, i would ask for food, and i would get it. i was surrounded by food, and i didn't know how to curb my eating. i ate when i was full, i ate when i was bored, i ate when i wasn't hungry...i ate just because i knew that the food my dad made looked good]

her mother would call her fat. she would say that she needed to loose a few pounds. she would ALWAYS criticize her hair.

i know that she doesn't mean any harm, but i know that it hurts.  

it hurts when your own mother calls you fat.  

it hurts when your mother tells all her friends that her daughter is fat. "yeah, look at our kate. she's like your son and needs to loose weight too!"

review: My Review of Neutrogena Oil-Free Acne Wash Pink Grapefruit Foaming Scrub 4.2oz.

as a teen w/ acne, i choose my facewash wisely, and these are my reviews: (all the facewashes below have 2% salicylic acid)

i've always used neutrogena, and this is the one that i'm currently using: Neutrogena oil free acne wash foaming scrub, pink grapefruit - 6.7 Oz 

it's really nice, and it foams up like it says it does, but it also has beads, so it's a cleanser/scrub mix that i really like.

here's something that i don't like from neutrogena: Neutrogena Oil-Free Acne Wash Daily Scrub 125ml/4.2oz

it works okay for normal/dry skinned people, but for those w/ oily skin, like me, it's a no. it doesn't remove all of the oil from my skin, so it feels like there's still sorta a film of oil on my skin.

this is what i also currently use from neutrogena: Neutrogena Oil-Free Acne Wash Redness Soothing Gel Cleanser

i've never tried neutrogena's pump-dispensed cleanser, and i was disappointed, sort of. it really does have a gel-like texture to it (from the aloe extract), and it lathers up, but i don't really like the fact that it's a gel, even though it cleans perfectly fine! i'm wierd like that. so i won't buy this ever again.