Journey to treat papulopustular rosacea/mites

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I tried Clarisonic and even though I didn't wear foundation/sunscreen today, I found the color of my foundation on the brush after using it. Wow it means I still had foundation on my skin from yesterday. :s
An unexpected and wonderful side effect after using Clarisonic was... my lips were soooo smooth. Omg, I am going to use Clarisonic to exfoliate my lips from now on so it looks better with lipstick. I am going to use Clarisonic again in a few days (planning to use it 2x a week). I use the delicate brush.

For the cramps, make sure you get enough magnesium. I got rid of my cramps by taking nettles which are high in magnesium, iron and calcium. It worked like magic and I wish I had known about them 20 years ago. You can add dried nettles to your green smoothies if you like. I have often done that. If you don't like the nettles idea, make sure you get veggies and nuts with lots of magnesium in them like pumpkin seeds, kale, etc.

I've used kale in my green smoothies, maybe that's why my period wasn't as bad as last time (tho still painful). I am hoping that magnesium rich plants for my green smoothies will help for my next period even more. I'll have to find nettles, thanks for suggestion! <3 <3

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10/20/2015: Today I got new whiteheads and zits. I am really bad about picking, I know I should stop. The zits came to head though. I think it's the Clarisonic breaking me out. I don't know if purging is real or a myth, but anyway it doesn't feel good. Feels like back to day 1 again. I hope this is temporary because the Clarisonic otherwise really took care of the flakes.

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The day after my first Clarisonic use, I was breaking out in the morning but by the end of the day, all the breakout was gone.

10/21/2015: Today I got new white heads in the morning. I haven't been using permethrin or sunscreen recently so maybe that's why. I put on sunscreen afternoon, and it was nowhere near as flaky as before. Also not as drying, if any. I am betting it's the Clarisonic that made this possible. The sunscreen still pills, but that's fine. It seems to help with acne, it's cheaper than foundation, and presentable. So I hope I can keep using it. At the end of the day there was no breakout and my skin was calm, so I wonder if it's truly the sunscreen that helps calm my skin down.

Even after I wash my face with cleanser and borax, when I use the clarisonic, there's still the tint of the sunscreen coming off.

I also have been doing green smoothies daily, 2 large cups a day. Not on purpose, I just end up making too much and I don't want the veggies to spoil. I've been rotating the greens as well. I haven't cut anything out of my diet, I've done that in the past and it's way too restricting for my lifestyle. I still have some junk food like chips and pasta in my diet occasionally.

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10/23/2015: No more oily, gross sebum smell around my nose. It might be the clarisonic or the green smoothies. My skin is doing fine, no irritation or breakouts. I just have to deal with scars now.

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10/24/2015: No zits except two, and I have a feeling they'll be gone soon. My period ended. I hope the zits aren't just a period thing, and that the clear skin (almost) is permanent. I've continued with the green smoothies, rotating it. I also realized that I look skinnier even though I didn't lose weight, probably from the menstrual blood loss and incorporating more green smoothies into my diet instead of actual food. I don't want to starve myself so I am trying to eat more.

I showered last night. It's been a week since I showered, and I realized that I smell less. Usually I'll start to itch my head and have sebum smell by a week. Maybe it's the green smoothies? maybe the season is just getting colder?

My face isn't as red as it used to be. I am just waiting for the scars to heal. Something is working?

My current routine:
green smoothies
borax water (mixed with green smoothies, make food with it)
borax with facial cleanser
clarisonic every other night
sunscreen

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10/30/2015: So I've been continuing the routine I last posted, I am recently doing Clarisonic every night now, and I haven't been using the sunscreen much to be honest. My skin has a few new whiteheads (like 2 at a time) but it's a lot better than before. My skin isn't bumpy like before. I just wish the scars would fade quickly. I've made a vitamin C serum to help with it so let's see how it goes.

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11/10/2015: I still have 2-3 acne at a given time, but it's far better than the cystic acne and "bumps" I had. My cheeks are still pink from rosacea like I am blushing, but my acne scars are less apparent. The pore on my nose is smaller (I think it's due to Clarisonic) but my skin still feels dry and flaky. Bummed that Clarisonic doesn't seem to be taking care of that as much anymore (or maybe it's because I have stopped using borax with my face wash as much). I haven't been using topical borax or the sunscreen much. Still doing green smoothies, added more types of veggies and introduced fruits, and I am doing internal borax. So far, I like it, my skin is way better than before. I am not completely cured but this takes time.
My period is coming hopefully next week, I'll see what happens then.

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11/12/2015: My skin was clear for the past few days, no zits at all... and then suddenly now today there's 3 itchy lumps on my face. Two on the cheeks, one on forehead. I don't think it has to do with my skincare regime. Probably the junk food I binged on a while ago, or that my period is coming.

Otherwise my skin is still clear and the acne scars are fading. I've been drinking green smoothies for 4 weeks now.

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long time no see. I am back with photos. Bad photos, sorry, but I hope you can sort of tell that the previous photos have bumps and rashes while the other one is just scars.
before:
DSCF5139.JPGDSCF5140.JPGDSCF5143.JPG

after:
DSCF5180.JPGDSCF5181.JPG

Since my last post, it's been pretty much the same. A zit here and there, but the frequency of zits popping up are a lot slower. I am actually on my period right now so maybe that's why, but maybe I'll have clear skin once this is over. My skin isn't as scarred anymore, but it's still scarred, but that takes time.

I am not doing the green smoothies as much anymore, but I am eating a wide variety of vegetables and meat. I avoid too much junk food and keep bread and milk to moderate, not total avoidance. I still add borax once in a while to my drinks.

I changed my cleanser because I realized that it was irritating my skin, from Cerave Foaming Cleanser to something else (some foreign brand). I still use Clarisonic, I am loving it.

My skin has cleared up after I went out of state, and I realized that it might be the climate or the dryness that has been irritating my skin. It's not the only problem, but a big part of it. I also learned about sheet masks from a relative of mine, and realized that it will help with moisture. I've been doing sheet masks daily for a week and it definitely helps give my face a softness and glow, and less redness/flushing.

Moisture is very important not just for rosacea but for skin in general. My problem was with the dry climate here. I started wearing sheet masks, both self-made and commercial, to help retain moisture in my skin.

My routine:
Cleanser and Clarisonic every other day, add borax if I want an extra boost but it's rare that I need it
Cerave PM Moisturizer
Sunscreen/Foundation
Sheet Masks twice a day
Sleeping pack, sometimes

I hope it always stays this simple.

I really recommend sheet masks to help keep your skin moist so it can heal itself. I get plain sheet masks like this (http://www.amazon.com/Yiki-Beauty%C2...dp/B00YD8IGIS/) and mix it with water and a bit of moisturizer/serum/whatever you use, or I buy the pre-made sheet masks from dollar stores, which makes it 50 cents per sheet mask. I recommend not getting anything over $2 for a sheet mask, the job should be to help your skin retain moisture and IME the fancier herbs/vitamins/whatever doesn't make difference.

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12/10/2015: Period stopped yesterday. My period this time was even less painful than the last time.

No new acne, redness, or flare outs so far since last post. My skin is sometimes itchy (like if there are mites) but oddly there's no bumps or redness. I still pay attention though. My diet is so and so - just normal. I eat out. I drink milk and eat bread. I truly think that sufficient moisture definitely helped, so if you live in a dry area, finding ways to get moisture to your skin is a good idea to try. I was first afraid that sheet masks will have weird chemicals/fragrances that irritate my skin, but it's been good so far.

I think my credit goes to (from what I can tell):
Supplementing with borax
Clarisonic or good exfoliation, with a cleanser that doesn't irritate
Fresh vegetables
Sheet masks/ways to keep skin moist

I will update again in the future, when my scars fade even more. See if this routine continues working for me.