Let’s face it. Acne is annoying. You could be doing everything right with your skincare routine and still get those pesky little bumps. This post will not have product recommendations, but I want to share the actions I have changed in my everyday routine to help prevent unnecessary bacteria/acne.
1. Can’t touch this! | I avoid touching my face. I used to touch my face without even knowing it until someone pointed it out to me. Think of all the things you touch and you’re putting that bacteria back onto your skin. The only times my hands should touch my face is when I am washing it or applying my skincare.
2. Pillow Fight! | Go out and buy a lot of pillowcases; A good amount so you don’t have to keep washing them everyday. Keep them in rotation. When I broke out all over my cheeks, I literally changed my pillowcase after one use on the top and one use on the bottom. CHANGE! Now that my acne is clearing up nicely, (Thank goodness!) I still change the pillowcase out every single week.
3. Work that up ‘do! | I tend to tie my hair up and away from my face while washing my face and especially during sleep. The oils in my hair definitely can contribute to my acne. I have noticed that is why my the perimeter of my face had pesky acne, and once I started to tie my long hair up, the acne has lessened in those areas.
4. Drink up! | H2O is your best friend. Not only is water good for your body, it helps clear your skin as well. I usually take a huge glass and fill that up with water. I try to have four of those a day (or more, if I’m really good!) and I have one during breakfast, one at lunch, one with my 4pm snack, and one during dinnertime. I usually stop drinking water around 8 or 9PM.
5. Beauty Sleep! | Out of all these tips, I really have to work on keeping this one up. I’m guilty of watching YouTubers and Netflix right before bed, keeping me awake… Bam! It’s midnight. This week I have been trying to sleep at 11-11:30PM and gradually make it earlier and earlier. The best time to sleep is 10PM for me. Any later and you can see it in my complexion.
I have noticed that these are the steps (plus my skincare routine: A & B) that have helped me prevent random acne from appearing on my face. I know how difficult it is to live with endless acne flare ups. These tips and tricks have helped me and I hope they help you, too.
Do you have any tips to add that have helped you prevent acne? Please share!
6th Tip – Dry your face with tissue instead of Towels, unless you change a fresh towel everyday and launder it in warmer water. This kept my acne at bay.
7th Tip – know your triggers. Sometimes acne pops when you have dry skin. Hydrate and use moisturizers that works for your skin. For me my triggers include dehydration, hormonal, hygiene (I used to use towels for my face), and clogging pores (I countered this with Clarisonic). π
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AWESOME TIPS! Thank you for adding that 6th tip bc I use paper towels to dry my face too. Everyone without acne thinks it’s weird. But hey it keeps me clear so I don’t care π I’m also a victim of hormonal monthly breakouts. I now try to predict what day in the week it will happen and you can try to combat it before it happens if you’re lucky.
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π for using tissues to dry our faces!
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I just did it right now! Lol π
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I just wish I can follow #5, haha! I get sucked in by too many YouTube videos and blog posts!!
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Girl! I am trying my hardest not to take the iPad out before bed as it is more addictive to me than a television. Lol it’s just too handy.
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I feel the struggle! Haha! xx
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kiehls skincare is amazing and really doesn’t irritate skin
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I have tried Kiehls avocado eye treatment and their oil free foaming cream cleanser. No irritation at all π
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Great post! I change my pillowcases religiously, and I definitely notice a difference in my skin. Also, I have a separate towel in my bathroom just to dry my face, and I think that helps too. xoxo
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Great to see that I am not the only one who changes pillowcases more than others! It makes a huge difference!
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Haha, nope I do it too!!! It really does π
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Iβve nominated you for the Creative Blogger Award!!! http://sarahheartsbeauty.com/
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Thank you! π
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Great tips! Also, try to reduce stress. Yoga, meditation, tai chi… goes hand in hand with your last tip! π
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Thank you! Yes! Exercise. I didn’t include it because I am not the greatest at entering gyms. Lol I would like to follow what I “preach.”
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I also have same experience with you. Totally agree w every point here!! I think having yoga/mind meditation to release stress is also a way to avoid aging skin + acne but I think it wont make big difference :)))
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Acne sucks! But thank you for stopping by. Anything that gets the body moving is great for your skin π
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Great post! I third the changing up towels/wash cloths tip. I use a different wash cloth to dry my face every day.
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Thank you! π yes, I tend to use paper towels to dry my face and it has changed my routine for the better!
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Great tips – especially the pillowcase one! π Retinol has been a lifesaver for me when it comes to acne!
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Thank you! Me too but sometimes it wears off and I need benzoyl peroxide instead.
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so helpful! Just found your blog and itβs so pretty, Would you mind checking out mine?π
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I’m glad you found it helpful. Thank you for stopping by π
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Amazing tips! I need to follow them because I am a culprit of all 5. It really doesn’t matter what products work because it all comes down to how you prevent it.
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Thank you! As long as you are making conscious decisions of what to do and what not to do then you can control at least some of your acne!
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Great tips! It’s so true about not realising how often we touch our faces! I think we’d all be disgusted if we could actually see the amount of bacteria we carry on our hands! Enjoyed reading this π
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Thank you! My friend read the post via my Facebook page and he said, “I was literally touching my face as I read this lol”
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Haha im not surprised! I realise I do it as I notice my blusher coming off lol
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Thank You for this I had never though about tips 1 through 3! But thinking about it they all make sense π Well done with the water this is something I am so bad at doing, really need to up my H2O game!
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You’re welcome! My family makes me realize the things that I do that might contribute to the breakouts and it all made sense. I figured I should share as it will help a lot of people who were like me when I was younger. And even now! I am proud to say that I finally slept at 10pm last night, but it won’t last long. I love Netflix too much. Lol
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Netflix is so addictive! lol
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Seriously! What are TV shows are you watching?? I just finished Gilmore girls, I am going through Friends even though I watched every episode, and I also have HIMYM on rotation. Lol
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HIMYM is one that I haven’t been able to get into but Friends never gets old! No day passes in the Carter household without a Friends reference haha Im loving Orange is the new Black and Nurse Jackie at the moment, in the Uk were a little behind on releases which sucks a little bit. Have you watched either ?
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OITNB is so good! I have not tried Nurse Jackie yet. Friends will forever be awesome!
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Its like the Nursing version of House! so good π
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Ooh fun!
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Changing pillow cases are a must! Drinking water is great for health and also a must but with acne, it’s a bit more complex as several factors contribute to it. π
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Agreed!
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Being tired and stressed are the top of the list for me, definitely! I haven’t found any food triggers for myself, thank goodness π
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Mine is the beloved mango and sometimes grapes. Luckily milk isn’t a trigger! I love dairy too much. Lol
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Mango?? Nooooo! Oh, yes, at least you can have dairy. Mmm cheese.
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Love this post! I really need to work on drinking more water!!!
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Thank you! Me too! There are days that I just drink one instead of four or more. Terrible. Lol
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π¦ but I can’t stop touching my face lol especially because I wear eye glasses, I’ll push them up or there’s an itch in my eye and my nose tends to be so itchy too. I try not to do it but I can’t help it hahaha. I try to drink plenty of water!
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Aww just touch it if you need to, but for the most part make sure you hands are clean when you do touch your face. Drinking water is hard sometimes. I have been training my body to enjoy it. Lol
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I love water when I’m super thirsty or craving it but drinking it on a regular basis, yup it’s hard sometimes for me too!
In regards to touching my face, I always try to keep my hands “clean” but forget sometimes then I feel disgusted D: haha
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One thing on this list I haven’t tried is changing pillow cases. Makes sense since there’s no telling what can get on there, especially on those occasions when I just want to use a cleansing wipe and nothing else. I’m definitely one to pick at my face, but I’ve been trying really hard not to.
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Changing pillow cases every other day while I had breakouts on my cheeks and now every week has changed my acne life! There is so much dirt and oil on that pillow that not many realize and it is just being transferred onto your face again and again, causing more breakouts.
I’m thinking of doing another post on acne because I had a tip from my lovely comments and I feel like I should share more tips! It’s a control thing for me when I pick at my face. I have learned that I just have to cut my nails and really notice when I do it. A blemish only lasts a few days if you don’t pick at it… and almost a lifetime if you do, especially with scarring. It’s just not worth it!
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