Try Proactiv

Mission Level
Success

My Skin
I have bad skin. Some people do not believe me. I will post this charming picture of how my skin would look at least 2 weeks out of the month - the rest of the time, it was in a state of repair, smaller pimples or me trying to pop everything.

I do love popping pimples and blackheads.

True story

I have bad skin. Really. Some is due to just who I am - my brother was on prescription stuff so some is my genes. I also struggled with issues from the toxins, sickness and medication.

Your skin is a great teller of what is happening inside of you. It's good to know the pattern of your skin and hair.

The last set of awesome break-outs I had was due to too much B vitamins.

Public: But, Manda, you tell people they should get B vitamins  Are you trying to ruin their skin?!

Look, I was on a lot of Bs. I was on shots of it for my neuropathy and then some extra for metabolism. After a few weeks of my regiment  I would give myself an injection and without about 10 minutes, I would be breaking out in painful, cystic type acne.

I figured if the Proactiv could maybe help with my skin issues. I didn't have a ton of hope, though. I know enough about the world that when people claim there is some awesome treatment that can easily fix all your problems, it's probably a lie.

Proactiv

Magic

Proactiv contains a large dose of benzoyl peroxide. It will take care of mild to bad acne. However, it will do nothing for cystic acne or nodulocystic acne. These are the worst kind of acne - cysts are painful fluid filled sacs that can be huge and nodules are hard and deep under the skin. I did have both  but it was temporary for me.

There are other products with benzoyl peroxide - like Acne Free which I did try back in the day. I actually did not like the smell of it - it had a watery, fake lavender smell. I also saw no results which is why I assumed Proactiv wouldn't work either.

For Me
Proactiv did work for me. And some of my friends used it (who did not have issues) and their skin got a lot clearer and more glow-y.

The whole system is simple:

• Cleanser: It smells light to good to nothing. Proactive calls them "micro beads" but the cleanser comes with some light exfoliation stuff. It will not suds up or anything. I like to wet down my skin with warm water just to open everything up, then gently scrub.
• Toner: You are suppose to apply this with a cotton ball  I squirt a bit on my hand and rub it on my face. I know, incorrect. But, whatever. It tastes salty. Don't eat it.
• Lotion: This still contains the benzoyl peroxide - but, it does help repair acne issues. I sometimes put a rub on after work. It will soften your skin.

Here's the low-down. First, you use the product twice a day - although I currently use it once a day because I am lazy. When I think I am going to be breaking out, I use it twice a day for a few days. I like conserving the product.

You do have to be a little patient. My skin felt softer after a few treatments, but, I was trying to come to terms with having bad skin after I was still breaking out after a week or so. I wanted instant results and when I didn't see them, I figured I was stuck with bad skin.

My Mom did note my skin looked better (between my blemishes) about a week later. A good four weeks later, I was amazed at how my skin responded and how much better it looked.

Clear! (in the non-dead way)

True story, you might find your skin drying out a bit. I had some dry skin that was a little painful around my eyes. I do use an eye moisturizer and I was careful to avoid the area while it re-hydrated. After a little, my body seemed to have adjusted well and I never got dry patches. A friend of mine had such dry skin it peeled - in these cases, it is best to take a day off or reduce what you are doing.

Also - be careful about other products you use. I don't use anything else with Acne fighting stuff in it.but, you will want to run through your normal skin care to make sure you don't combine anything wierd. You won't need another cleaner or anything, by the way. You can use just the three steps.

You might want to make sure you get some SPF on you if you are using Proactiv.

The Industry
Proactive will send you about two or three freebies with your first orders. Then they will send you a lot of catalogs with products and stuff for  problems you never knew you had.

Good news, bad news for Proactiv - I think the basic product works great and I felt no need to get anything else from some weird brush to the 100 million products they seem to have. You might want to invest in body cleanser if you have body acne - that might be about it that I would buy. I did enjoy using my free sample of the refining mask. When I want a "mask" I just use the normal cleanser and keep it on. Again, the basic product and regiment worked great for me.

If you sign up for the auto-shipping you can set it to be delivered from 1-22 weeks or something. They will also bill you accordingly. They say they discount you a lot, which they might, but, when I say that my going rate for an article is $500 but I discounted you to $100 - did I really discount you or did I just make you feel better about spending $100?

After being on the auto-thing for about a year, I stopped it. I have a stockpile of the stuff and I can buy it elsewhere these days. I have well over a year worth of the stuff in my bathroom. No need to be greedy. Plus, I don't like the work that goes into tracking when everything ships, arrives and I get billed. It's annoying and I normally noticed my account being billed and a week or so later the product arriving when I didn't need it. I don't like that. I stopped it.

The Weird
The stuff will stain your towels. Either use a towel you don't care about or get one that you don't mind looking as if it was bleached.

Be Part of the Adventure
Do you have a suggestion or want to see me attempt something? Drop me an email at AdventuringAmanda@gmail.com with your suggestion.

Image Credit
Product shot from amazon.com