My Battle with Hormonal Acne

For those of you who saw my post on the depo-provera injection you will have seen the state it had left my skin in. I used a lot of different products in my attempt to combat the lumpy demons that plagued my face, however it only seems right to show you what I consider to be the products that actually worked for me.

If you are suffering from hormonal breakouts, I would visit your GP if there's no improvement after some time and appropriate home care. I knew mine was due to the hormonal contraception that was leaving my system, however if the painful lumpy phase went on any longer than it did I had the number of a dermatologist at hand.

My skin is much better behaved now compared to how irritable it was before, I remember pustules that would form overnight and bring their friends to the party. Any attempt to deal with them lead to constant weeping and soreness that made me feel so self conscious, and no amount of make up could cover the texture and if anything just made it look worse. The marks left behind looked just as angry as the blemish that was there previously so I had no real respite. Working in a beauty hall where everyone has such gorgeous complexions was not doing me any favours in terms of my self confidence and how I saw myself.

I used a cleanser containing salycylic acid initially which helped with the general texture of the area, but not the redness. I even purchased zinc tablets that I was praying were the solution to my skin issues. After a quick bit of googling I came across the Mario Badescu range, specifically the drying lotion. A friend of mine from work had highly recommended that I try the facial spray as well, as she often suffered with her skin breaking out in painful acne. After placing my order on Beauty Bay I pretty much waiting by my front door Scott Pilgrim style for it to arrive, I do feel so sorry for my partner at this time.

One thing that is most definitely a plus to this brand is the price point, as well as the sheer number of value sets that guarantee you have a full routine to complete rather than doing to much mixing and matching if you're unsure as to what you're using that might be more of a hindrance than a help.

The Facial Spray comes in two different sizes and ranges from £7 - £11, which is pretty handy for those who simply want to trial a smaller size before investing or want to keep a bottle with them to spritz throughout the day. The herbs and rosewater formulation is for hydration, the cucumber and green tea is cooling and refreshing, and the chamomile and lavender is calming. These are suitable for all skin types, another thing I love about this brand is the clear labelling on the product as to who should be using this product.

I've purchased this spray around four times now, so as you can imagine I'm a fan. I mist this usually after I've applied my moisturiser, on a cotton pad to remove mask residue as well as over the top of my make up on my more flaky days. I'm thinking of switching it up next time and going for the calming solution, just to see if it's any better than the herbs and rosewater formula.

As for the drying lotion, I was thoroughly impressed at how quickly and painless it was when it came to treating my breakouts. What was once creating its own heatwave of pain across my chin suddenly had no more power over me. It wasn't the miracle I had hyped in my head and it took around a week of religious use to make sure my juicy spots were being sufficiently dried out, but it reduces a lot of the angry redness in my skin. I now call it the eviction notice, guaranteed to kick the ass of any whitehead in two - three nights.

What's great about this treatment is that it is localised and doesn't involve drying out your entire face in an attempt to solve the problem with excessive force. I know a few people have voiced their issue about the alcohol you have to surpass to get anywhere near the chamomile, but from what I can see is that it's more there to disinfect the cotton swab you're about to liberally jab all over your sore bits. So for those worried about bacterial acne, this might be a comforting option.

During the Beauty Bay Black Friday Sale where they literally knocked 30% off everything, I decided to purchase a set I had kept in my basket for a little while, just to see how the other products performed. By this point my skin was in its well behaved stage, however with the return of my period I also had the usual chin breakout to accessorise with my bad mood.

The enzyme cleansing gel was a pleasant surprise and I will be purchasing another cleanser from the MB range, I've just not decided whether it will be this one yet. Once again the price is excellent for this product and it is suitable for all skin types, which is a big win. It's gentle non-foaming consistency leaves me with cleansed skin that doesn't feel like it's been ravaged by harsh chemicals. I've yet to remove my make up with this product, as I don't feel confident that it has the power to completely remove my level of make up wear.

My only problem wit this product is the unnecessary shimmer that has been added to the product, and while my skin has in now way reacted I'm just wondering if it's entirely needed other than looking pretty?

It contains papaya and grapefruit extracts which are essentially Alpha Hydroxy Acids to cleanse the skin and gently dissolve dead skin cells on the surface. I'm a huge fan of AHA products for my dry ass, and I have noticed that my skin does feel a little bit more plump and squishy after using this for the last two months. Despite only having a smaller bottle I still have plenty of cleanser left to use, so goodness knows how long a full size bottle would last. I would still recommend buying a set or miniatures where available to see whether this cleanser is suitable for you.

Lastly we have the mask treatments; Silver Powder, an iconic member of the Mario Badescu range, and the Flower and Tonic Mask. I'm a big fan of a mask treatment, however my favourite from Clarins was more for dehydrated skin rather than dealing with excess oil and breakouts, and my GlamGlow masks were far too harsh for skin maintenance.

While I don't tend to have a lot of blackheads anymore (constant vigilance) I was excited to use the silver powder to see what kind of horrors it might be able to pull out of my skin. Alas while nothing shocking came to the surface, it did an excellent job of controlling the oil on my forehead which has been out of control ever since I joined the fringe club. Unfortunately as I can only use it every couple of nights, it wasn't really a permanent fix for that issue and I currently refuse to grow out my bangs. I'm awaiting the day my partner lets me near his nose with it, I feel that will be the greatest test as we all know men are usually pretty reliable for a blackhead harvest.

My only issue with the silver powder is the white powder that get everywhere once it's dried on your mug, definitely not one you want to be taking on a plane journey, or anywhere that you might have your bag searched. The product contains only three ingredients; calcium carbonate, kaolin and zinc oxide, so no added shimmer with this one.

I will admit that while the Silver Powder has done wonders for my T-zone, I am in love with the Flower and Tonic Mask. It's the only product that came in the set which was not for all skin types, instead this is recommended for oily and combination skin. This is the mask that I will always use on any pesky chin spots that decided to emerge anywhere near my time of the month as it has more soothing properties than the silver powder.

Similar to the powder, the tonic mask is kaolin based so excellent for any clogged pores as it is a mask that dries down. Other key ingredients are Evening Primrose, Olive leaf extract and Zinc Oxide, so I would recommend that if you do have any dry bits on your face to keep this mask well away and maybe use something more moisture rich in those areas. This mask is excellent for calming down any redness or irritation caused by acne, or by yourself if you are a known spot pecker like me.

Overall I'm very pleased with these products, I've repurchased the spray and drying lotion multiple times and will most likely purchase the cleansing gel again. These products do last a long time, even in their miniature sizes, so the masks are probably going to last me a while longer into the year before I can decided 100% whether I'll purchase them again or maybe try another mask solution.

This set is still available to purchase from Beauty Bay.