I have been worrying about this time. I had horrible skin as a teenager, so did my husband. I still struggle some with acne flare ups. I hoped my daughter would not suffer this same fate, but I see some signs that her skin is going to break out. She's 12. Nothing awful yet, but definitely starting to get some pimples.
I don't want to make her self-conscious, she doesn't seem to notice yet. But it's obviously time to start a better skin care regimen. What have you done for your tween/teen in this regard? I plan to just tell her that she's old enough to start some different skin care, maybe focusing on the fact that she wears sunscreen and plays sports and sweats, so this is just to make sure all that gets off. Instead of freaking her out about pimples.
How did you bring this up to your child, what was your/their routine? And most importantly- what did you use? I would rather use natural or less harsh things, but I want them to be effective. I'm so worried that this will affect her self esteem as it did mine. I want her to stay the happy little thing she is right now! Help!!
My 10 year old started getting pimples around her nose. We have been using Proactiv and it's not that expensive and seems to really be working! It's not always easy to get her to stay on top of it, but I just stress that it's important to take care of her skin. She has seen other kids in school with acne and has commented on it...so I told her that taking care of her skin will keep that at bay (hopefully!).
Like you, I suffered with horrible acne as a teenager. I ended up taking a long course of accutane and suffering through the horrible side-effects. It's genetic, my Dad had it as well. Because my parents were not knowledgeable enough to deal with acne (I swear my Mom had never had a pimple in her life, and was convinced it was related to hygiene), I have horrible acne scars now.
I intend to cart any or all of my kids off to the dermatologist at the very first signs of acne. I won't risk them having the same scarring that I deal with, and I know, first hand, that OTC treatments do not work, period, the end. They just don't. They are too harsh.
Stick with a mild cleanser (my dermatologist recommends CeraVe, and I love it). No acne washes, acid washes, etc. If she starts to get beakouts, take her to the dermatologist.
I sat down with my daughter when she was 12 (barely) and showed her how to properly cleanse her face. However, with her, nothing seemed to work, and in fact, was getting worse. :( When she had her check up with her pediatrician, it was brought up. We got her a prescription for Minocycline - 100 mg. She takes one a day and it works wonders!!! If she misses a few pills, though, you can tell. When her friends ask what that pill was that I gave her, she just replies that it's an allergy tablet. :) Minocycline is used for quite a few different things, and it's perfectly safe for someone our daughters' ages. Best of luck to you!
K. and others...
Check out Acne.org. It offers the best information and knowledge. ideas for products to use or you can purchase products that Dan has developed. I have clear skin finally after 10 years of suffering. I didn't have acne as a teen, only after I got married. I am finally free!
I use
Neutrogena face wash anti wrinkle anti blemish and St Ives facial scrub (I alternate every other day to exfoliate )
Dan's benzoyl peroxide treatment (with teens make sure you get all white towels:) )
Eucerin or garnier's face lotion with sunscreen ( this one Changes frequently, I just make sure it is any quality face lotion with sunscreen.)
My Girls regimen (11yrs and 9yrs)
Liquid Neutrogena
and Eucerin lotion
If they start to get acne I will then add the benzoyl peroxide.
The reason I like Dan's BP is because it is a stronger % but as a lotion it really doesn't dry out my skin. you can get a very large bottle at a great price and a little goes along way. The stronger % of BP is more effective at killing the bacteria and works as a preventive treatment, not just curing.
so check out that web site and
good luck!
E.
acne will follow estrogen and testosterone levels. Females with bad acne should always have androgens checked by a doctor. Fixing hormone levels is the basic solution to this problem.
I wish my mom had been as concerned as you! Well, concerned enough to spend the money on it. My acne definitely affected my confidence for many years. Finally when I was in college and in charge of my own money I started using Proactive. It worked so much better than all the stuff I tried from Walmart.
We started very early with facial routines. May daughter (17) has been around me and my routines long enough to see that they are important.
When she was about 12, I took her to a dermatologist as a proactive approach so she could learn more about skin carea nd what to possibly expect.
I have used Clinique since I was about 11 and I am 50 and easily pass for early 30's. I was asked for my school id at the Senior high school last week.
Daughter uses Clinique as well. We have a routine that includes a fash wash in the morning and night (if we've been somewhere and get hot, sweaty, etc, we will wash again). Clinique is recommended by dermatologist as well as Purpose and Cetaphil.
What you eat also effects your skin. We drink a LOT of water, use sunscreen daily, and fortunately, we were both blessed with good genes.
If your daughter is having the occasional breakout now, she needs some sort of medicine with benzyol peroxide that will fight the bacteria and help clear things up.
My daughter has used ProActive but it is strong for her skin and since she has no issues, we decided to stay on the course for regular routine care.
It will be worth your investment to get her started with something now and into good habits. It can make a world of difference with her self esteem.
Good luck
Something like clearasil can help with face washing if you start noticing more breakouts there is oxy clean face wash and spot treatment that is a little stronger and can dry out the oily spots. My daughter is 12 and the oxy clean face wash works for her. My 14 year old likes the spot treatment to dry out the individual pimples.
Hope that helps.
I have thought about this a lot, I had (still occasionally have) very bad acne which is made worse because I also have poly cystic ovarian syndrome. My acne started at the age of 10 and was very bad right from the start. I used so many different products as a teenager and nothing really helped much. I did have some prescription products, but I didn't consistently meet with a dermatologist to find the right treatment for me, I just saw a bunch of different GP's (in Army hospitals you just don't have a regular doctor and seeing a specialist is really difficult) so I never really hit upon the right regimen for me. My oldest child is now 10 and I already see that she is developing some black heads around her nose so I want to take her to see a dermatologist and really take excellent and consistent care of her skin! Over the counter products are never going to be as good as prescription products from a good dermatologist! Having acne is really hard for a child; it is painful and embarrassing and hurts your self-esteem. Whether a child verbally complains about their skin or doesn’t seem to care, they really are affected a great deal by acne problems. I will do whatever it takes to ameliorate the effects of acne on my children.
All you have to do is come from it with the attitude that at 12 it is time to start taking extra care of your skin. It is just part of growing up. You do not even need to mention that she is starting to get pimples, she is just getting to the point where more care is needed.
A consistent morning and night skincare routine is big. Also, make sure you stay away from pre-packaged foods, fast food, soda etc. (hard I know). Lots of water!!! And finally I have my son on Arbonne's Clear Advantage. Their whole philosophy is to stay as natural as possible and still be effective. We are have great success with it. I can hook you up if you need help finding a good consultant to get it. Good luck!
i have the same worries!! so i thought about what i wished my mom would have taught me. so during our puberty talk i told her how i felt with bad acne and how i wished i would have taken better care of myself. so we got some natural face wipes that she uses once a day. just getting in the habit of cleaning her face. i didn't say anything about how bad it is to have acne or if she doesn't want bad skin to do this. i just simply talked about body changes and how to be clean and refreshed. we have always stressed, seeing we have all girls, that inside and being a good person is what counts.
hope it helps!!
