Homemade Remedies. We get way too excited about them knowing that they're "free." But there's always that nagging feeling of "sure it sounds nice, smells nice, feels nice, but is it really doing anything or is it just the glorious placebo effect* of slathering honey and salt on my face? Here I'm going to say which remedies actually work and which are better left for eating for now.
HOW IT ALL STARTED:
So this summer (summer always ravages my sensitive skin--sun and sweat...mmmm) I developed a whole field of under-the-skin almost-pimples across my forehead. At first I was only slightly perturbed, blaming it on the sun and sweat and humidity at all. I figured, once it was back-to-school season, my skin would get back to its relatively low-maintenance state.
BUT IT DIDN'T. Sure, I was probably a little impatient waiting for an overnight recovery, but I was not used to this! See, I have dry, sensitive skin, prone to red blotchiness when it's too hot and horrible rashes that have their own eras, but pimples were not supposed to be my problem. Other than a habit of Spf 15 everyday ( DO IT), I had no strict regimen of skin patrol. Sure I always was interested in skin care more so than make up, but I really didn't have to worry about it to the point of washing my face with cleanser once a week. Although I had my host of crazy allergies and eczema--on the whole, my skin was pretty healthy, constantly garnering envy of makeup-free even-ness and non-ruddiness, which I didn't appreciate (doesn't everyone have okay skin?).
But this, the under the cover little bumps that I was smug to discover on other peoples face --the at first glance facade of even tone but in a certain light...yep, there they were, the bumps--was not ME. Exacerbated by my new found ruddiness of inadequate sunscreen application during hours of outdoor swimming--I mourned my once carefree skin. Was this forever? was this the inevitable result of aging?
So I treated, and treated and treated. Aggresively, attempting to dry those little suckers out. Daily spreads of salicylic acid, Benzoyl Peroxide, those intense deep cleaning cleanser that double as masks, toothpaste, listerine. I'd do it for an hour, I'd do it overnight. Initially I got results, the bumps cooperatively reduced. However, no effect. Whether it never truly worked in the first place--the alcohol just temporarily dried them out--or the overzealous method made my skin turn on itself churning out oil in the desert of my forehead like it was a mid-revolution Arab country--i think it was a combination of both. I would wash my face every moment I head, imagining a clean and sterile state, bacteria dying on the spot.
But that wasn't how it worked. The strong chemicals didn't give my skin a chance to recover, but I couldn't just NOT wash my face--in my delicate state that would just breed more of those HAH you can't treat me because i'm not a real pimple yet little bitches.
Sometime during this state of crisis I decided to start buying food from trader joe's be healthy, and also got a cold--amassing a collection of sour organic yogurt, green tea, salt, and honey. Mid- grimace (dude it's so sour) during a healthy breakfast I spilled some yogurt on my arm (emily post I am not) and then lightbulb in my head--I should use yogurt to clean my face!
To be Continued...
*You can also go to a very expensive spa and get this very expensive placebo effect
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