We don’t know who needs to hear this, but no skincare product is enough to fix your quarantine acne. No matter how many bottles of serum you buy, your acne is never going away because of bad habits you have to unlearn.
Two weeks in the pandemic, my face broke out. At first, I thought it was a normal break out caused by my hormones, but as the weeks went by, I realized this one was different. What was different about it? It never went away. My usual breakouts would last a week, but these pimples stayed for over 2 months. At this point, I was buying product after product I would see on TikTok and online. Big mistake. Not only did I lose a ton of cash over products that I didn’t need, but the fact remained, I still had my pimples. If you can relate to this experience, then good. There is no more need to worry because the solution isn’t as complicated as you would think. All you need to do is put the toner away (for now, at least) and listen in.
Here are the quarantine lifestyle changes you need to make, if you want to be rid of those horrible, insecurity-inducing pimples.
Expose Your Face To The Sun
One of the biggest culprits in acne formation is a lack of Vitamin D. Before you start looking for serums infused with Vitamin D, you should consider the most natural way of getting this nutrient—sun exposure. Think about it. When was the last time your face saw the sun? Dermatologists would even recommend you stay under the midday sun for around 10-30 minutes, several times a week. This time frame works best for those who are fair toned. If you have darker skin, you may need to stay under the sun for a bit longer. Less sun exposure is required for those who have sensitive skin and, of course, don’t forget to wear sunblock.
Open A Window
The air that your skin lives in is detrimental acne build up. That is why you get more pimples when you frequent a polluted area. Same goes to skin that lives in a stuffy, dusty, lived-in apartment. Crack open a window to let the settled air out and the fresh one in. Before the pandemic, your skin would be able to breathe whenever you step out to grab coffee or have your morning run. Now that you can’t quite do that, you’ve been living in a controlled air-conditioned environment that dries out your face. Turn off the AC and open a window.
Change Your Bedsheets Frequently
Martha Stewart recommends that you should change your bed sheets once a week. She provided this information in a 2011 article, Bedding Care 101. The story focused on the many ways a good night’s sleep is ensured through hygienic practices. Unfortunately for us, it is not 2011 anymore. Gone are the days of using the bed only for sleep due to quarantine. Simply put, the longer you stay in bed, the more frequent you must change your bedding. Otherwise, the acne is here to stay.
Wash Your Face
Admit it, you have stopped washing your face as much as you did pre-pandemic. Your reason may be plainly because you didn’t think you had to. The house is always clean, and you didn’t put on any make-up anyway. Despite these tempting, sinful thoughts, your face still needs thorough cleaning at the start and end of the day. An excess of natural oils and sweat can birth the growth of pimples. That is why consistency in care is essential to keeping authentic glassy skin.
Change Up Your Lifestyle, Rather Than Your Skincare Routine
Not all trendy skincare products are effective for your skin. When you face skin problems during quarantine, you first turn to products you can buy off the counter. In most cases, the ingredients found in the products you already have are the same ingredients in the products that you will buy. With that being said, it is time to think outside the box and retrace your steps. What have you stopped doing since the pandemic happened? Have you been consuming greasier food? Have you been sleeping beside your laptop? Once you figure it out, you’ll be able to move on.
Your Reusable Face Mask Must Be Washed
Some would like to prolong the wear of their reusable face mask. It is easy to fall victim to the idea of not having to get your mask laundered after every use, but this is an absolute must. Masks must be treated with the same precaution as clothing does whenever you step out of the house. A short visit to pick-up a package, could be the turning point from safety to hazardous. A mask that is not immediately washed may retain dirt from the outside world that could build up to even more acne, or even worse, small bacterium that could infect your household. It is better to be safe, than sorry during the quarantine. For the disposable surgical face masks, as the name persists, they must be disposed after use.
