Clarisonic - to keep or not to keep..

Anoneemoose

I recently had a thread about my acne and was given fab advice by some lovely fellow spotties! Thank you again.

My dilemma now is whether to keep my clarisonic that I bought after suggestions on my other thread. Initially it seemed excellent and my skin improved but it seems it may have been temporary. My spots have not reduced and I have also started getting more white bumps under the skin - especially on my forehead.

On the plus side, my skin feels and is much cleaner, and the bits without spots are much smoother. But, I bought it for the purpose of reducing my acne and it hasn't kept up with that. I also got it because I knew there was a 90 day money back guarantee. This is what I would return it under.

So, I am looking for ways of ensuring my face is properly clean without the clarisonic. I was really surprised at how much make up came off even after I had already washed my face when I first used it!! I have thought of double cleansing. Or possibly finding a cheaper alternative to the clarisonic.

Or I could just keep it!! So confused...

jenniewb

Not sure if you were diagnosed with acne or have labelled yourself with acne because you feel you have a lot of spots, but my understanding of acne through friends (and if I am wrong please someone correct me!) is that acne is not caused by bacteria or dirt on your skin but is a hormonal and biological problem caused by your body rather than by germs.
I think that exfoliation brushes like this could be good for many people, because they exfoliate and if you live anywhere with polluted air (so most places in the UK then...) getting rid of the surface dirt is going to be a helpful thing. But as to if it could help the type of acne Doctors/dermatologists diagnose, it doesn't make sense to me because that type of acne isn't caused by dirt. It's caused by hormones and other internal issues (maybe things that knock your hormones out of sort for example such as sugar).


I would suggest seeing if it works for you. What works for one person may not work for another person and only you know what is best for you. Make sure you keep the brush clean and make sure you don't aggravate your skin by over-using it, people who have acne have very sensitive skin and you need to handle this with kid gloves, the last thing you want is some sort of infection, raw skin or dried out skin because your skin has become over-worked and stressed out and kicks up a tantrum as a reaction.


Maybe keep a diary, see how things go, be religious about when and how you use it so you can check it is being used properly -I know for me I can easily forget and forgo my skin care routine because I am tired, have too much on my mind or just can't be bothered that day. I'm not saying you aren't using the Clarisonic properly at all but if you were, it wouldn't be abnormal IMO. I know for many of us life often gets in the way of looking after things like our skin or out diet for example.


If after following a routine which works for you, (not always what is advised- what works for *you*) and you decide that it isn't working out, part with it. Either return it or I'm sure ebay would have it and if not it could be sold on to a mate at a cheaper rate, these brushes seem to be very popular.

AbbieCadabra

i was all ready to splash out on a clarisonic about a month ago, then saw some info on micellar water cleanser & thought i'd try that 1st. it's been an absolute revelation! my skin is smoother, clearer, pores reduced & oil/dryness rebalanced too.

i'm using the garnier one at the moment, i also got the boots time delay as that was on special offer, but it will be a while before get around to trying that. i've decanted the garnier into an old facial toner spray bottle for ease of application/save waste, you need very little & it's really effective.

maddiemay

I am a bit haphazard with my use of my Clarisonic, (I don't have acne or spots, just some congestion around nose and chin) and I think that a good, gentle face brush would probably work as well for me, but I do enjoy using it and knowing that I have given my skin a good cleanse. I think in the early days people use it too much and then hopefully settle into a routine. Whatever our skin problems we should be gentle.

Regarding Micellar water, my all time skin guru/goddess Caroline Hirons states that is should be a first cleanse make up remover only if wearing make up or spf, it certainly does not leave my skin as clean and soft if I don't do a "proper" cleanse afterwards. Apologies if you already know this Abbiecadabra, but there might be readers who don't:)

jenniewb

maddiemay wrote: »

Regarding Micellar water, my all time skin guru/goddess Caroline Hirons states that is should be a first cleanse make up remover only if wearing make up or spf, it certainly does not leave my skin as clean and soft if I don't do a "proper" cleanse afterwards. Apologies if you already know this Abbiecadabra, but there might be readers who don't:)

I'm so glad I'm not alone in that! I've tried a few versions of the Micellar water (L'Oreal, Caudile, Garnier, Bio-something-or-other) and although they do help get off some dirt, if I go over my skin with a cotton wool pad and some cleanser it is far from clean, in addition it would take quite a bit of scrubbing if on my eyes if I were to try to remove eye-makeup with micellar water (for me at least) alone. I think it's a great product, but it's not as good as the magazines and websites would have you believe IMO.

AbbieCadabra

thanks for the info .i don't wear make up too often but when i do i use nip+fab deep cleansing fix with a muslin cloth & lancome bi-facil eye makeup remover. the micellar water is used 1st thing in the morning/at night/after i've been to the gym, still seems to get me cleaner than the cleanser that i've used for years & thought i was happy with!