My Journey To Fully Understand Acne

How It Started

About two months ago I started researching esthetics message boards, as well a different groups on social media sites like Linked In.  I have always been the type of person that likes to question things we do in this field. You can't just tell me that there is a new ingredient from a remote island that no one has ever heard of that will heal all of your skin problems. NO! NO! NO! With so many products on the market we as estheticians need to question these companies, our theories, and what we believe in when it comes to skin care.

As soon as I started on my quest for understanding acne, I quickly got discouraged. I mean, there are women on the boards that have twenty or more years of experience; and they are using words like, 5a reductase inhibitors, Interlukein 1a reductase, acne Bio-films and ductal cornification.

I think I was more upset at the fact that there was so much out there that I did not know, and I thought I knew a lot. How could I have slacked off and let it get this far? I quickly decided to embrace my lack of medical terminology and dive in head first.

It All Started With This Picture

Picture was taken by Jeff Berns

Cosmetic Industry Consultant, Licensed Esthetician (RET), Master MUA, Lecturer, Speaker Dallas/Fort Worth Area. You can find him on LinkedIn, as a member of the Acne Specialist Group.  

Jeff takes many pictures with a special camera of pores that have just been extracted. The question was. How do we know if we are getting everything out of the pore after it is extracted? Which then led to.

 1) Do extractions even help?

2) With p-acne bacteria changing to a more resistant strand, are the  products we use even clearing out the follicle?

3) If the follicle closes back in a matter of two seconds, what can we do to clear it out fast enough?

As you can see, this made me question everything that I have ever done during extractions.

The End Of My Journey

Well I would like to say that I am at the end of my journey and understand everything, but that simply would not be true. When we stop learning we stop growing.  During my journey I have talked to estheticians from Australia, Japan, Europe, India, and Canada; to find out that we all have different theories when it comes to the treatment of acne. What works for some may not work for others, and that's okay. During this month I will be giving you my newly developed theories about acne, the new research we are find, and the new products that are show promise.  I encourage you to keep an open mind, and share your thoughts.

Sites To Get You Started

If you are a member of LinkedIn you can send a request to join the Acne Specialists group, it is an amazing group full of professionals that love to help others. They are all about educating and do not tolerate selling or advertising of products.

The Second group can be found on Facebook. Their page is called Aesthetician Group. You can join the message board by going to http://aestheticiangroup.yuku.com and signing up.  Once you are in go to the tab that says forum and choose "How To"  from the drop down menu.  You can fill in your information and you can gain access to the forum.