Our patient came to us suffering from mild adult acne. Although it wasn’t severe, it was damaging her self esteem as this had been a life-long battle with bad skin.
After an in-depth consultation, she decided to proceed with using ZO Skin Health cosmeceuticals, Hydrafacials and skinade to combat her skin issues.
WHY I CHOSE ZO SKIN HEALTH?
My battle with my skin has been a long one. I suffered from really bad acne as a teen which after years of antibiotics and various topical treatments, was finally treated with Roaccutane. This was a long 6 month process but it did clear up the vast majority of my spots and scarring which was great.
However, some 15 years later, and here I still was, every morning waking up with some spot that had developed. Some were little yellowheads and others were much deeper and more painful. I never really liked to not wear makeup as I just wanted a more even skin tone and complexion.
THE TREATMENT
After having a consultation and the Visia images taken, it was clear I needed to start using a proper skincare routine. I had previously worked for a large cosmetic company who consistently used face oils as part of their regimes, but was quickly told that oil was essentially the devil for the skin. It was going to slow down my cell turnover, contribute to dead skin blocking up my pores and essentially exasperate the issue even more.
I started on the Phase 1 kit from ZO Skin Health which had the exfoliating cleanser, Exfoliating Polish, Complexion Renewal Pads and Daily Power defence. I stayed on this for six weeks to essentially reset my skin and get it back on a healthy skin cycle.
In this time, I did suffer a few more breakouts. I was told to expect this as the small amount of retinol in the Daily Power Defence was increasing my cell turnover and bringing the spots buried deep in my skin out. This was really helped by having regular HydraFacials as the therapists were able to clear out my skin and help to exfoliate it fully. The Dermalux
LED Light therapy was a life saver as this kills the P Acne bacteria on the skin really targeting any active acne.
After 6 weeks I started on my retinols. I am not going to lie, this wasn’t fun. I decided to really go hard and push through by applying it straight away every night. I also had started Oil Control Pads in place of the complexion renewal to target my oily skin. Having recently turned 31, having a small toddler and having smoked for most of my twenties I had also been very much aware of my lines developing around my eyes
In a nutshell, I was red. Very red, dry and peely and it did hurt. My night routine definitely involved a lot of fanning my face as the oil control pads burned a lot! When I mentioned this to my therapist she advised that this was because my barrier function was disrupted. I knew if I just toughed it out it would be worth it and within the month this completely settled. There was one Saturday where I had a slight moment of weakness staring at my Wrinkle + Texture repair wondering if I wanted to do it anymore before I quickly was reminded how for the last 18 years I had been plagued by spots that I no longer wanted!
THREE MONTHS ON
The process from getting my skin ready to finishing being red dry and peely with Retinols took just under 3 months (6 weeks for the phase 1 and another 4 weeks for the Retinols to stop making my skin red)
It was not a complete walk in the park, but it was certainly worth it. Something I didn’t consider was the change in the texture of my skin. It is just more smooth and the pores are finer. My spots are no longer breaking out with my hormones and although I have the occasional spot, it is mainly when I have had a weekend of indulgence with sugar or been under a lot of stress. I really have noticed that I can comfortably wear no makeup and my skin is so much more even.
My skin is also a LOT more predictable. I know by eating sugar I will get a spot or two, but by controlling my oil and using ZO Skin Health, I know that I am going to only have these odd spots here and there and it is not a daily occurrence.
My HydraFacials have really helped battle the congestion in my skin and blackheads are really non existent now. This also massively helped with the lines and wrinkles around my eyes and on my forehead.
I also use mineral makeup to reduce the clogging of my pores. Combined with Skinade, I feel I am giving my skin the best possible start to combat not just spots and acne, but also ageing which is really important as I go further into my 30s!
CONCLUSION
For ANYONE suffering with Acne, put down the face cream and get onboard with ZO Skin Health. It has made a massive difference to my life by giving me so much more confidence. Once you make it past the red dry and peely stage, you will be left with such a clearer complexion which after 18 years of dealing with congestion and spots, I just didn’t realise I was able to have.
