I recently wrote a post in November 2016 called "Making A Change In My Lifestyle," where I focused solely on talking about how I have been pretty drastic changes in my diet in order to try and alleviate the severity of my acne. This post today, is a part 2 version of that, an update on how I have been doing a couple months after making this dietary change.
I am pretty strict on myself, always pushing myself to follow the diet I outlined for myself. Before I go eat anything at the dining hall at my college, I always check the online menu and see which foods that I want to eat has dairy in it. Since I am trying to cut out all forms of dairy, I avoid all foods that contain dairy at the dining hall. I am also completely avoiding processed and sugary foods, so no cupcakes, no cake, no muffins, no graham cracker, no cheez-its, etc. I have been so good about avoiding these processed and sugary foods, and I find that I feel so much better when I don't consume them. I rarely get cravings for these foods anymore, which is a huge step in the right direction for me, because it shows me that I no longer need these unhealthy foods in my life. The dairy situation is another issue for me though. I stopped drinking milk and drink lots of almond milk instead, and I have been really good about avoiding foods at the dining hall that contain dairy, eating salads every day and other foods that are non-dairy. However, sometimes I consume small amounts of dairy, like butter. I am still trying to cut dairy completely out of my life, but as of right now I am still consuming the smallest amount of dairy possible, but that is also a huge step since I used to have a cup of milk every day and eat tons of cheese and butter, and now I only have very very small amounts of butter only.
I am pushing myself to also drink a lot more water. I bought a new 32 oz water bottle and am trying to drink 2 of them a day to keep me hydrated since I never drink enough water, and to help flush out toxins from my body and help my skin on my face. However, this also leads in exercise. I exercised pretty much every day over winter break, but ever since I got back to school I haven't exercised. I have time to, but I have just been too exhausted or busy to go out. The weather outside has also been pretty nasty (rain, wind) since a storm just passed through, which prevented me from going on runs, but now that the storm passed and it is sunny, I will be encouraging myself to work out.
I have also been trying new face washes and topical medications to help with my acne. I ended up going back to my original face wash that I have been using ever since I was in high school since it works with my skin and doesn't dry it out or irritate it. But I did start using a new topical medication with salicylic acid in it. After I take my makeup off and wash my face at night I apply this topical medication all over my face. It doesn't dry out my skin or anything, and although I have only been using it for 2 weeks, it seems to be helping, so I will continue using it.
I think a huge change for me regarding my skin is really my diet. When I got to school fall quarter I ate everything in sight. I had cups upon cups of milk, bagels with tons of cream cheese, instant oatmeal, cupcakes, muffins, little amounts of salad, not enough water, etc. And I really paid the price with the amount that I broke out on my face. But ever since I started changing my diet as well as drinking more water and trying new topical medications, my skin seems to be less red, and I haven't been breaking out as much. I am still on this journey to clear my skin, but changing my diet to become so much healthier and sticking to it successfully has really been a huge step for me. It is going to take a long time to clear my skin, but the treatments and changes I have made have really been benefiting me, and I will continue following them to clear my skin.
I am pretty strict on myself, always pushing myself to follow the diet I outlined for myself. Before I go eat anything at the dining hall at my college, I always check the online menu and see which foods that I want to eat has dairy in it. Since I am trying to cut out all forms of dairy, I avoid all foods that contain dairy at the dining hall. I am also completely avoiding processed and sugary foods, so no cupcakes, no cake, no muffins, no graham cracker, no cheez-its, etc. I have been so good about avoiding these processed and sugary foods, and I find that I feel so much better when I don't consume them. I rarely get cravings for these foods anymore, which is a huge step in the right direction for me, because it shows me that I no longer need these unhealthy foods in my life. The dairy situation is another issue for me though. I stopped drinking milk and drink lots of almond milk instead, and I have been really good about avoiding foods at the dining hall that contain dairy, eating salads every day and other foods that are non-dairy. However, sometimes I consume small amounts of dairy, like butter. I am still trying to cut dairy completely out of my life, but as of right now I am still consuming the smallest amount of dairy possible, but that is also a huge step since I used to have a cup of milk every day and eat tons of cheese and butter, and now I only have very very small amounts of butter only.
I am pushing myself to also drink a lot more water. I bought a new 32 oz water bottle and am trying to drink 2 of them a day to keep me hydrated since I never drink enough water, and to help flush out toxins from my body and help my skin on my face. However, this also leads in exercise. I exercised pretty much every day over winter break, but ever since I got back to school I haven't exercised. I have time to, but I have just been too exhausted or busy to go out. The weather outside has also been pretty nasty (rain, wind) since a storm just passed through, which prevented me from going on runs, but now that the storm passed and it is sunny, I will be encouraging myself to work out.
I have also been trying new face washes and topical medications to help with my acne. I ended up going back to my original face wash that I have been using ever since I was in high school since it works with my skin and doesn't dry it out or irritate it. But I did start using a new topical medication with salicylic acid in it. After I take my makeup off and wash my face at night I apply this topical medication all over my face. It doesn't dry out my skin or anything, and although I have only been using it for 2 weeks, it seems to be helping, so I will continue using it.
I think a huge change for me regarding my skin is really my diet. When I got to school fall quarter I ate everything in sight. I had cups upon cups of milk, bagels with tons of cream cheese, instant oatmeal, cupcakes, muffins, little amounts of salad, not enough water, etc. And I really paid the price with the amount that I broke out on my face. But ever since I started changing my diet as well as drinking more water and trying new topical medications, my skin seems to be less red, and I haven't been breaking out as much. I am still on this journey to clear my skin, but changing my diet to become so much healthier and sticking to it successfully has really been a huge step for me. It is going to take a long time to clear my skin, but the treatments and changes I have made have really been benefiting me, and I will continue following them to clear my skin.