I got my iPhone a few months after Zach and I started dating. That is about the time my once (mostly) clear skin started breaking out all over my cheeks. I was really self-conscious about it... well, I am still self-conscious. Who wants skin like a hormonal 14-year-old boy? Not this girl. First, I thought it was the birth control I was on for my ferocious cramps and mood swings. I stopped taking it due to the fact that it turned me into a psycho hosebeast, but my breakouts still kept on. I ruled that out. I had also started gaining some much needed weight and I had suddenly grown these lovely womanly hips, so I thought "hey, maybe I am finally hitting puberty at eighteen! Maybe I will get boobs next!"
Well, I am twenty now, and still more or less boobless. I think the puberty fairy got lazy and distributed all my lady lumps to my behind, but that is besides the point. The point is I have been trying to combat my bad skin for two years now, and nothing has seemed to help. Not any expensive acne product, not any one of the quirky tricks I found on Pinterest... besides lemon juice, that does help. I will write more on that later... it was getting to the point where I was getting pretty miserable. I would look in the mirror and just be devastated by the fact that NOTHING worked. Then, one day, a little light bulb went off in my head. I had been clicking away on Pinterest when I saw a little thing about what causes acne on different parts of your face and then it all made sense.
Have you ever been talking on the phone and you look down and see all your makeup and face gunk smeared on your screen? I know that can't just be me. Especially in the heat we have been having. How about you've been eating some lovely fast-food because you are a poor cosmetology student like myself and scrolled through your newsfeed between mouthfuls of fries? Just imagine all that junk that is building up on your screen throughout the day.
Guess what... all that bacteria is apparently
really bad for your skin.
Needless to say, I felt pretty much stupid. I was accumulating all these germs throughout the day onto my phone and then sticking it to my face while I chatted to my mom. I was texting with all kinds of nasty things on my fingers and then talking to Zach for an hour on the phone. No wonder my skin was so terrible. I might as well have been smearing crisco on my face and rubbing it against public bathroom walls. Okay, maybe that is dramatic... but still!
My solution: alcohol wipes. I wipe my phone off with them a few times a day. I give it a while to dry before attempting to talk on it, and when I do I make sure to hold it away from my face. My skin has started changing so quickly. I can't believe I didn't realize this sooner. I am also washing my hands more and using hand sanitizer more often. I have stopped texting while eating. I finally feel like my skin is getting better. There have been a few times where I have forgotten to sanitize my phone because we were busy in school and bam! breakouts, so I know I have pinpointed my problem. I am happy to say I finally feel like I have my skin under control and it is actually improving for once.
Also, if you want to take it up a notch higher and keep your face off of even more germy things, try putting a clean towel over your pillow every night. It really makes a difference.
Well, I am off to watch Criminal Minds and cuddle with my kitties. Goodnight!
