Acne.
Weren’t we promised as teens that the spots, lumps, cysts, and oil slicks would disappear as soon as we made it through puberty? Our mothers never sported great cakey mountains of cover up, or spent their mornings agonizing over blackheads in the mirror. The glamorous older girls we saw at the mall had flawless, tanned, beautiful skin.
So what’s the deal, hormones? Why, over 15 years after the onset of puberty, am I still faced with massive zits? Looking in a mirror at this moment, I have 4 giant crimson volcanoes, six medium sized lumps, three whiteheads, a nose full of blackheads, and dozens of dark/red marks from pimples of years gone by. Would you believe me if I told you that I wash, tone, moisturize and exfoliate my face like clockwork?
Over the years, I have tried virtually every product made by Clean and Clear, Neutrogena, and the skin care aisle of Walmart. I was faithful to St Ives Apricot Scrub for two years, until I noticed that the constant exfoliation was leaving tiny red bumps spread across my forehead. Proactiv was not only labour intensive, it was also pricey. I used it diligently for six months, and my face cleared up a little. But when I stopped using it, I had withdrawal breakouts, leaving my skin worse than it had been in months.
The Body Shop’s Tea Tree Oil line has been my stand-by since graduate school. I like that the products are natural, and I know that Tea Tree Oil is a good, antibacterial remedy to zap zits on the spot.
I now realize that my acne wasn’t caused by any fault of my own. I cut out dairy, I drank more water, I avoided sugars like the plague. But ultimately, it was the haywire hormones caused by my PCOS that have been wreaking havoc on my poor face.
So why this dissertation on skin care products?
Because I’m trying something new. Something that breaks every rule we have ever been taught about skin care. Something that seems so fundamentally wrong that it just. might. work.
The Oil Cleansing Method.
The Oil Cleansing Method (OCM) operates on the theory that oil dissolves oil (or that oil and water don’t mix). Our skin produces oil because our skin NEEDS oil. So why do we spend so much time scrubbing and scraping and stripping the oil from our face? We should instead be gently dissolving the excess oil, dirt and impurities with other oils, and removing it with warm water.
Everything in my body was screaming at me the first time I tried this. I mixed together a teaspoon of olive oil, two teaspoons of grapeseed oil, and a teaspoon of castor oil. I added a few drops of tea tree oil, and massaged a quarter-sized puddle of the mix into my face. I cringed. I steamed my face with a hot washcloth, and wiped the oil away. I imagined waking up with shiny, greasy, lumpy skin, and not being able to fix it.
Instead…my skin was soft. It was calm. It was still red, and my pimples didn’t disappear overnight, but honestly? My face certainly liked it better than harsh, drying chemicals. And the following morning, rather than being plagued by greasy skin, my face was still smooth and clean-looking.
Depending on your skin-care needs, you can use different combinations of oils and scented essential oils. I’ve heard that more castor oil makes a more drying mixture, and the addition of jojoba oil make things a lot smoother and more moisturizing.
What do you think? Has anyone else tried OCM? Results? Horror stories? Thoughts on how crazy I am for rubbing cooking oil into my face?
blogger / pomegranate / 3491 posts
Totally intrigued. Pregnancy is wreaking havoc on my face and I love how natural this is.
cherry / 102 posts
this may sound odd, but a dab of aloe has been my all time best tip i ever received. the pimples for me will be gone in a day or two max. it’s a tricky thing this skin we are given! good luck! I have not yet tried the OCM.
wonderful kiwi / 23653 posts
I def have been a fan of oil! While I don’t d oil cleansing, I used to use argan oil to moisturize my face, and now coconut oil and my skin loves it!
guest
Bumped into your blog by accident (was searching for Clomid success stories :)). It’s like reading about myself ! I’m 32 and still get zits on my face (thanks PCOS!) and I hate it when I see teenage girls with flawless skin! Argh! I’ve tried everything too, Proactive worked for about 2 years then nothing. I tried the Himalaya Neem and Honey face wash and really liked it. They sell it at Whole Foods. I’ve used the Josie Maran Argan Oil to remove makeup, that worked too. Give it a shot.
guest
I am so intrigued by this concept!! Reminds me of the movie Lorenzo’s Oil, where a terminally ill boy’s cholesterol was lowered by adding oil to his diet. Fascinating and I want to try this (getting pimples again after years of clear skin is NO FUN). Now, how do I go about finding the right oil for my skin?
wonderful pear / 26210 posts
I tried it, but it didn’t knock my socks off. I am going to try again though, I probably didn’t have a good mix. I used grapeseed and castor oil, with a touch of tea tree.
blogger / apricot / 367 posts
I have PCOS and have totally been in the same boat! I tried everything… While I was breastfeeding my skin was horrible. After I weaned my daughter, got on the pill, and started using Effaclar by La Roche my skin finally started getting better. I haven’t tried the oil cleansing method, but I think it could work b/c I definitely think it’s better than over-exfoliating or other harsh methods. I hope it works for you!
pear / 1698 posts
I have struggled with acne almost my whole life. I have tried countless prescription medications without great results. I switched to a gentler routine and my skin is finally looking so much better!
My routine is as follows:
AM: Cerave foaming face wash
Cerave moisturizer in the tub (I ordered a pump for it off Amazon)
Elta MD UV Clear sunscreen
PM: I use mineral oil to take off my makeup, the follow with the above face wash, then stridex in the red box, then the moisturizer from above.
Once a week I use a 10% glycolic acid treatment from Paula’s Choice and a charcoal mask from Origins (not on the same day!)
Also, I had what I thought was really bad hormonal acne on my chin and my lips were perpetually chapped and I switch to an SLS free toothpaste and it really improved.
guest
I started the OCM when my face went berserk with my second pregnancy. It cleared up almost immediately and stayed clear for the rest of my pregnancy. I’ve literally never had my skin look like that, ever ever ever. However, six months postpartumn, my breakouts started coming back. I’ve tried switching up my oils but, ultimately, I think I have a hormonal imbalance that cannot be addressed with topical treatments alone. I still am religiously using jojoba oil with a dash of tea tree oil and/or lavendar oil to moisturizer day and night though. I’ve never found anything that has felt better on my skin. However, since the OCM didn’t seem to be making a difference in my breakouts, I stopped because it was more labor intensive that face wash. I use Cerave hydrating cleanser now + jojoba oil now and it is meh, at best. I am exploring other options since I’d really rather not go on oral medication for it…I’m just so tired of covering up spots!
coffee bean / 28 posts
I totally believe that this would work! I used to completely abuse my skin with every cleanser system possible. I would try one for a few weeks, then switch to another. No improvement in the acne on my chin and forehead. Then, out of frustration I just completely stopped using ANY cleansing product on my face. I only used lotion, and, guess what? My skin completely healed up. I was CAUSING the acne, not treating it. Now I have found that I can use a very gentle cleanser to remove makeup and a good quality moisturizer and that is it. No breakouts in about 10 years (since the abuse stopped).
blogger / pomegranate / 3201 posts
I have not tried this, but I have been a believer for a long time that washing our skin and hair very often does more damage than good. I’ve been told by people that I have great skin (not now because pregnancy makes my face freak out) and asked about my skin care regimen. I’m always embarrassed to say that I don’t really do much. I wear sunscreen, I drink lots of water, I don’t wash my face twice a day, sometimes not even once. I don’t wear a ton of makeup, but I do use bare minerals. I think the less we do to our face, the better it can look. And now I want to try this oil cleanse for the stupid pregnancy pimples on my chin that are driving me crazy!
blogger / eggplant / 11551 posts
Yes completely agree! By stripping your skin of oils, it’ll cause it to overproduce… so I believe in this method!
pear / 1750 posts
Yes! I do a combination of oil cleansing at night and gentle exfoliating in the AM. My skin is very sensitive, but also prone to oil and breakouts (thanks, hormones!). For oil cleansing I use Lush’s Ultrabland. It’s a fabulous mixture of almond oil, rosewater, and beeswax and it’s also a great makeup remover. Full disclosure: I used to work for Lush, but I don’t anymore and I still buy the stuff religiously.
grape / 88 posts
I’ve always had oily skin that was prone to hormonal breakouts. A few months ago, I started the OCM, and my skin is FANTASTIC. I should probably get a more natural oil facewash, but I switch between coconut oil and a Garnier Fructise oil facial cleanser, and then I moisturize after my skin has dried completely with a dab of coconut oil or a body oil from The Body Shop. I was terrified when I started of my skin becaoming even MORE greasy, but it is the softest, clearest, most even and least oily it’s ever been in my life! Hope it continues to work so well for you
grapefruit / 4187 posts
I had horrible acne as a teenager. It went away for a few years in college but as a young adult it reappeared with a vengence so I took accutane. This worked really well for years until I got pregnant and hormones brought my cystic acne right back, mostly on my back. What helped most was actually washing with only warm water in the morning (no scrubbing) then using purpose cleanser at night – again, gently. Being diligent about this really did reduce the redness and while it didn’t completely clear up my skin it made a noticeable difference. It’s a balance of keeping your skin clean but not irritating it.