Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with pimples

Stress-related acne problem

Anonymous — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 22:47:35 -0800

Dermatology question. Whenever I get stressed, I get zits breaking out on my face and on my head. Is this normal? I'm a 33 year old male, so it's not teenager acne. I have noticed that whenever I'm having a stressful time at work, or if I've not got enough sleep, I get zits popping up on my face and a fair bit on the back of my head. Since I'm clean-shaven, the back side of my head looks messy. (Somewhat icky picture here if you're so inclined.)

Once in a while, when the stress is getting really bad (behind on schedules, employee problems, etc.), the zits pop up even in places like my butt crack, inside thigh, etc. (Those sometimes get large and painful, but go away in a week or two.)

Does anyone have experience with this kind of condition? I think it's been happening to me for about 4-5 years. I've read online that stress can trigger acne, but what can I do about it?

CLEAR SKIN CALLED, it said screw you

madmamasmith — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 03:07:10 -0800

well. i have searched and searched and there is alot out there , but i am looking for something specific. this question is about BLACKHEADS. I have had blackheads since i was a teen, when i was 20 i started getting zits too. Here I am 26 and my skin is the worst it has ever been.i have blackheads on every inch of my face and my face and scalp feel like an oil factory. I am a vegetarian, i dont eat crappy but i dont eat buckwheat cakes and organic chard everyday either maybe once a month i get drunk and maybe once a week have a soda, i do drink a couple coffees a week and my diet consists of alot of texmex but alot of organnic veggies too, i dont take vitamins cuz im really poor right now but in the past i have tried evening primrose, multivitamin, iron,birth control pills,,,i have used every face wash known to man as well as retina and other topicals, and now after 10 years of no noticeable difference i just use oatmeal soap and witchhazel. i was using jojoba cuz i heard that would help but it didnt but neither does lotion. basically i am freaking out, what do i do? i have the most sensitive skin so i scar really easy. i am too oily. i do everything u r supposed to ; drink water, change pillowcases, hot showers, all natural skincare,,,,help me please. I cant afford facials evryday but i did use to get microderms once a month to no avail as well as chemical peels that actually scarred me really bad. are there any remedies that anyone can suggest that have worked for you? home remedies, pills, liver cleanses? im so desperate, i hate looking in the mirror, dont lecture me.....just tell me if anything has worked for you

Help me fix my face after a weird skin reaction!

tastybrains — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 08:35:35 -0800

I had a sleep study done, and my face has broken out horribly where the electrodes had been glued on. I have never had any sort of reaction on my skin quite like this, so ... what do I do? Background info:

Tuesday night & Wednesday day I had a sleep study with electrodes glued to my face/scalp/etc. When they removed the electrodes on Wednesday afternoon, it burned terribly and I was left with painful red welts where the electrodes had been. When I got home, I washed my face several times (to get all the glue off), slathered on some moisturizer (for sensitive skin), and went to bed. Over the next few days, the marks remained red, and lots of little pimples have been popping up in them...teeny tiny ones. In addition, the skin is red and peeling and feels like a healing and itchy sunburn.

Problem:

In the next 2 weeks, I have to attend several wedding-related events (2 weddings, 2 rehearsal dinners, etc)...one of which I am the maid of honor for. I really want this cleared up by then...at least to the point where makeup will actually hide the little fuckers. Right now makeup is pretty ineffective and I feel like it's probably not the best thing for my face either.

I am hesitant to put certain things on my face, such as neosporin, because it is very greasy and my skin is both very oily and very sensitive.

So... what do I do? What would you do?

I have tried, but not consistently, the following: thick moisturizer for sensitive skin (I hate this, it makes me feel greasy), neosporin (extremely greasy and disgusting), benzoyl peroxide cream (thought it might help the pimples, but am worried it will exacerbate the peeling/itching).

Icky skin cooties.

missuswayne — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 11:59:03 -0800

Are these blemishes a result of cooties on the vinyl cover of my physical therapist's massage-type table? I recently have been visiting a physical therapist once or twice a week (back pain) and each visit starts with me lying face down on an adjustable massage-type table with my face resting in the cushioned ring at one end. The ring is vinyl covered, and there is a clean rolled-up washcloth that my forehead rests on - however, my cheeks rest on the vinyl.

Right around the same time I started going to PT I also developed some blemishes on the left side of my face. Coincidentally, they are right around the area of my face that rests directly on the vinyl, although only on the left. These blemishes are not like normal pimples. They are red, slightly raised, and were itchy at the start, kind of rashy. Now they are just red and kind of blotchy and ugly. They won't go away. Tea tree oil, which usually works for me on zits, just seemed to irritate them. When I wash my face (with Cetaphil only) the blemishes intensify and then calm down a bit after a while.

I have a dermatologist appointment in 3 weeks, but I'm just curious if it would be possible for me to catch some kind of disease from the vinyl. (I see pictures of the "impetigo" on Amy Winehouse's face and wonder if that's going to be me in 3 weeks.)

How to get rid of small bumps on forehead?

Malad — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 18:15:52 -0800

I seem to have a perpetual set of quite small, flesh-colored or slightly red, acne-like bumps on my forehead. These are not too obvious (though they show when I tilt my forehead in the light as imperfections in the skin), and don't look grotesque or anything. They are not pus-filled nor do they hurt when touched. How do I make them go away? Daily face-washing doesn't do much, and the one time I had a facial didn't really help either.

Did Ann Landers help clear up your skin?

midatlanticwanderer — Fri, 23 Nov 2007 08:41:33 -0800

Anyone had success with the egg-yolk-on-face treatment for acne discussed by Ann Landers several years ago? Years and years ago, I know there was an Ann Landers column in which someone said that applying egg yolk to their face helped clear up their skin. I found the column here. Sounds like good advice. I've also seen mention of similar solutions here and in this previous AskMetafilter answer.

My questions are:
1. Have you had success with applying egg yolk to treat acne? If so, how, specifically, did you use it (how long, how often, etc.)
2. Is it more useful for big red acne cysts, or can it generally help red spots from previous cysts or pimples go away? I'm certainly interested in both.

And yes, I did just get a really bad pimple before a date.

Elmo Oxygen — Wed, 10 Oct 2007 13:34:14 -0800

Looking for an all-natural, skin-friendly acne treatment. I'm almost thirty, but I still get pimples! Yuck!

I don't have a particularly severe case or anything, but they are definitely annoying, and my complexion is less then clear. Plus, I sometimes get them in terrible places, like the famous "cyclops eye" middle-of-the-forehead pimple, or the much-dreaded "rudolph" nose-tip pimple.

I'd like to get rid of these little buggers, but I'd like to use a nice, non-invasive, natural remedy that doesn't do mean things to my body.

Why do my thighs randomly break out with pimples?!

jimdanger — Wed, 15 Aug 2007 05:08:11 -0800

What are these pimples on my thigh? As you can see by the pics [1,2] my thigh is currently breaking out with some kind of pimples. This happens every so often, but I see no pattern. They're really red and some of them are tender. About the same time I get them on my upper thigh, I get one somewhere on my face, usually on the corner of my nose. They all last about a week and then go away. I have a history of bad skin, including redness around my nose and breaking out when my skin comes in contact with anything scented. I haven't changed my detergent, shampoo, soap, anything. I'm not allergic to any foods as far as I know, and I haven't been doing anything out of the ordinary. Anyone have any idea what might be causing this? It's not a major deal, just sucks when I'm wearing shorts and my legs look all blotchy.

Quick fix for a break-out

Zosia Blue — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 22:22:47 -0800

I'm wearing a backless dress for a formal event this Saturday, and my back has suddenly broken out in a small smattering of acne. What can I do to minimize/clear this up in four days? There's a lot of pimples, but they're light and small. Still, I'd rather do what I can. I've been lucky to avoid acne most of my life, so I don't know any quick fixes. I'm not looking for anything too expensive or elaborate - just tricks/techniques/products that will, at the least, minimize the break-out for the weekend. I've use tea tree oil with success in the past, and plan on trying that over the next few days.

If it matters, I have pale, freckly, dry skin. I tend to be allergic to a lot of dyes and chemicals, too.

Thanks, MeFi!

Exciting brand-new treatments for really severe acne?

Anonymous — Mon, 08 May 2006 03:04:07 -0800

Tell me about brand-new, even experimental, promising treatments for severe acne. My dermatologist is a really nice, very trustworthy older gentleman. He says there's nothing more that can be done for my acne, but I don't want to accept "Here, have this therapist's phone number and learn to live with it."

I have severe acne on my face, jawline, neck (front, back, and sides), shoulders, back (down to waist), chest, breasts, and in my groin. I've been this way for about 10 years and it keeps spreading and getting worse (and the scars are another thread entirely). Obviously, it impacts my life a ton. Living with it is not something I really want to do.

Although the dermatologist is very nice and I like him a lot, I'm afraid that he has been more concerned with keeping up with research in other areas (e.g. skin cancer) and may not know about new acne treatments. It makes sense, as acne isn't lifethreatening, but I really don't want to give up now.

For my next appointment, I'd love to go in with a list of some treatments I've checked out and would like to discuss with him.

Things I have tried, just so nobody tries to recommend them:
Retin-A; no effect
all max strength strains of oral antibiotics approved for acne; only side effects
prescription-level strengths of benzoyl peroxide (topical); some improvement/lightening, this is all I'm on now
all lines of OTC treatment available in the US; no effect
Proactiv; no effect
tea tree oil; no effect
acne.org regimen; basically what I'm on now
other bizarre regimens, memorably one involving ice cubes; no effect

Things I can't try, no really, even if it worked for you:
Accutane
Birth control

What I'm doing now:
Non-soap cleanser (Purpose) morning and night
Benzaclin (1% clindamycin + 5% benzoyl peroxide) night
Zoderm (8.5% benzoyl peroxide + urea) night
Retin-A (0.1% retinoic acid) 3x a week
Cetaphil (moisturizer) as needed -- in practice, hardly ever

Other conditions:
Everything I use is nonacnegenic/noncomedogenic
My acne is genetic, not affected by my diet
Change pillowcases/sheets/washcloths/towels daily
Nothing (e.g. phones, hands, etc.) touches my face

My skin doesn't even notice most treatments. I've given them all a fair try, 6 months minimum, so I could see any effects -- but my skin doesn't budge. It never even dries out (and I'm not overwashing). The benzoyl peroxide I'm using now has a slight lightening/bleaching effect, which is why I'm still on it (that and I don't want to feel like I'm doing nothing).

Partly I'm looking for info on stuff like maybe light therapy or laser therapy. But I'm really not sure about any other options. I would even be willing to participate in clinical trials for new meds. I'll do anything as long as the results seem promising. (And if you cite PubMed, please summarize...I don't have access.)

This question is anonymous because I really don't want to have you look at my username and think "zits on her tits" from now on. Thank you!

It tastes funny when I pop a zit.

greatgefilte — Sun, 02 Jan 2005 10:51:59 -0800

PhysiologyFilter: When I was a pimply teenager, I noticed an odd phenomenon that would happen every so often. It has to do with zits and salivary secretions. I hesitate to put more details here for the sake of the squeamish, so come inside for more... What I noticed was that if I popped a particularly nasty zit, a few seconds later I'd get a sour taste in my mouth. It didn't matter where on my body the zit was (e.g. forehead, back). Does anyone have the faintest idea why this might happen?

Painful Zits

Melinika — Sat, 17 Jan 2004 15:29:07 -0800

How do you get rid of those invisible, under-the-skin, extremely painful zits that take forever to work themselves out? [more inside] I just got another one on my chin and it *hurts*. Hot compresses don't get them to come to a head. Usually I suffer for a week until I can't stand it anymore, then I go at it and scar my face. I can't find any reliable method to get rid of them before it gets to that point. Any tried-and-true ways you can suggest would be helpful.