Believe the hype

I was skeptical.  I had seen the commercials and celebrity endorsements but it seemed too good to be true. It wasn't until a good friend of mine told me to believe the hype...Proactiv works.

She didn't have "bad" skin.  In fact I thought she had pretty good skin, not many break outs,  and her skin tone was fairly even; I didn't think she really needed much improvement.  But when she told me instead of wearing full coverage foundation (like I have always known her to do) that she was only wearing concealer and powder, I knew I had to give it a try.

EarlyAugust is when I got the Proactiv 30 day starter pack: the cleanser, toner, and repairing treatment.  With my pack came a little refining mask.  Like I said I was skeptical.

Pinky swear, I saw a difference within 1-2 weeks.  That is lightening fast when you are talking about skin.  My rosacea has calmed down.  I have not had any break outs.  My skin tone is more even than it has ever been.  And my skin is softer than ever!

My initial questions were answered immediately.

Isn't this line really harsh? No.  Not at all.  The cleanser has teeny tiny micro scrubbers.  We're talking the smallest exfoliators I have ever used.  I think the small granules make this cleanser much less irritating compared to other exfoliating cleansers.

What about drying out your skin?  No, this line does not do that either.  The cleanser and toner is much gentler than I expected.  Honestly I was expecting the toner to sting after washing my face (because I know it happens to us all), but it didn't at all.

I do have a few caveats to add.

I do use make-up remover before washing my face.  I hate to admit this, but I wasn't using make up remover and I think that was part of the problem.  I really needed to get all of my make up off in order for any cleanser to really do it's job well.

I only use Proactiv once a day partnered with a non-exfoliating cleanser.

So this is my routine (and this is probably over-share but I'm going to do it anyways.)

Mornings:  I use Clinique's Liquid Facial soap in the mornings, followed by Clinique's Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion.  I've been using a combination of these two products for years and I didn't want to completely surprise my face with too many changes, so I'm keeping them in my routine.

Evenings:  I remove my make up and then use a little bit of Clinique's face wash to get rid of the oily residue the make up remover leaves on my face.  Then I use the Proactiv cleanser.  I probably don't need that pre-cleanser cleanser, but it works for me.

So after washing, I use the Proactiv toner to clean up anything the make up remover and cleanser left behind.  This is when I feel really clean.  My skin is not tight or overly dry at this point, as you might expect.  I feel like my skin looks really good too, clean and happy.  

Then after washing and toning, I use the repairing treatment.  I think of it as a protecting layer between my skin and the rest of the world.

Another plus of Practive - $20 for a 30 day supply.   Since I'm only using it once a day, It's early October and I am still a couple weeks away from needed to re-purchase anything.

I don't need nearly as much make up as I used to.  Instead of wearing a solid layer of full coverage foundation, I now only use a sheer layer of liquid foundation for work days.  On the weekends or after work, I only use powder.  It's a truly wonderful feeling not to stress about my face anymore.

I was skeptical, but believe me, it works.  And if you have questions, let me know.  I am happy to answer!