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Murad- Acne after birth control

Izzy03

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Dec 10, 2007
Messages
613
I know we had a thread about struggling with acne after quitting the pill. Plenty of us are going through it and lots of us only stay on the pill to avoid it!

I started struggling with mild- mild/moderate acne breakouts after quitting the pill 2 years ago. My skin would fluctuate, with breakouts around ovulation and menstruation. I never had this before quitting the pill, so I caulked it up to hormones. Proactive helped to heal the blemishes I had, but didn't do much to prevent them so I gave up on it and dabble around with other stuff. None of it helped very much.

Several months ago, I decided to give Proactive one more shot. Used it everyday, put up with the dryness, put up with the bleaching of my clothes, bedding and towels. Still seeing only minor results, I started researching other systems and found out that benzoyl peroxide (the active ingredient in Proactive and many others) is a free radical and can lead to premature aging of the skin. Wrinkles are not worth the crummy results I was getting from the Proactive and other benzoyl peroxide products!

On several "acne product" review websites, I read mixed results on a product called Murad. Apparently, there have been infomercials for the stuff, I have never seen them. I was hesitant to Murad because the active ingredient is Salicylic Acid, which never seemed to be helpful for my skin. I know salicylic acid is great for wrinkle prevention and skin health because it exfoliates, so I decided to give the product a try. After all, Sephora had the starter kit for a reasonable price and if you don't like it, you can return it........nothing to lose, my kind of deal.....

Within 5 days of using this stuff, my skin looks incredible. I have only had one breakout since, and it was literally one pimple that went away in 3 days. My classmates have commented on how great my skin looks even though I had pretty mild acne to begin with. Its not just the lack of acne, my skin just looks smoother, and even "glowing" (I really hate saying that, it sounds so cliche but I can't describe it any other way).

I know this product will probably not work for everyone, and some people are allergic to salicylic acid, but I had to tell those of you who are struggling with acne and may benefit from it. It can be returned for a refund if it doesn't work. I also read Dermatologica was great, but I am sticking with Murad for now!
 

megumic

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Mar 8, 2009
Messages
1,647
I've heard of Murad before and know several people who have used it and liked it. I was thinking of trying to find something on the expensive side to give it a whirl and see how it goes...maybe I'll get Murad. What product exactly did you get? Thx!
 

anchor31

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Oct 18, 2005
Messages
7,074
Thank you for that, Izzy! I've been trying to get rid of acne for 16 years... I'll try that!
 

Izzy03

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Dec 10, 2007
Messages
613
You two are very welcome!

Again, I have heard reviews from some that it did not help them, but everyone's skin is different so that is to be expected. The fact that I could return if it didn't work is what gave me the push to try it.

Murad has a few lines, but what I purchased is called the "Acne Complex Starter Kit", $33 at Sephora. Ulta has the product but it cost a tiny bit more and comes with one less product than Sephora's kit (the Ulta coupons aren't valid on Murad).

Good luck! Hope it works as well for you two!
 

Bunny007

Shiny_Rock
Joined
Feb 28, 2010
Messages
281
I too started using Murad about a month ago- for the same reason- after reading good reviews on Sephora. I only bought the cleansing face wash, which I use with my Clarisonic, and I saw improvement within days! Impressive stuff.
 

jstarfireb

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Mar 24, 2007
Messages
6,232
I'll have to look into this too! I've had acne for most of my adult life (surprisingly, though, not much as a teen), and Proactiv does nothing for me. At one point I was on 4 prescriptions that also helped very little. The only thing that made my acne disappear completely was accutane, but it came back 6 months later.

My facialist really likes Dermalogica as well. I believe their Medi-Bac line also contains salicylic acid.
 

MichelleCarmen

Super_Ideal_Rock
Joined
Feb 8, 2003
Messages
15,880
I've tried nearly every face cream/product sold at Sephora and Murad is a standard staple there. It has a good reputation.

The one really important bit of info you must keep in mind is Salicylic Acid makes your skin very sensitive to the sun. Any AHA or BHA also will do the same. So, depending upon where you live, it's best to use those products either just in the fall/winter and/or wear sunscreen and a hat if possible! I generally use various AHA/BHA Oct-May and I do wear a hat during the summer!

Have you gone to Makeupalley.com? There are tons of reviews of nearly every product out there...
 

Izzy03

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Dec 10, 2007
Messages
613
MC~ Good point, another reason why we should all use moisturizers with SPF during the daytime!

I live in Florida and haven't had any issues with sensitivity or dryness, but maybe my skin is just relieved to not be using tons of benzoyl peroxide anymore! The moisturizer I use in the mornings has AHA and SPF 15, I haven't seemed to have any issues. I think its also important to ease into the stuff.

The bad news is yesterday I had a new breakout. I just got my period so I'll assume its the hormones, plus it is milder than what I usually get and it seems to be healing already (after only one day), so I can't complain. Also, I have only been using the stuff for two weeks, and full results are expected after four weeks.
 
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