Acne Q & A Archive: Success! after 3 weeks

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Author	Topic: Success! after 3 weeks
Lizzy 10-12-2002 01:36 PM	Hi everyone, I have been on the diet for 3 weeks and am ready to make a post with my results. Week 1: many of the pimples I had started to dry up. Pretty happy with that, but new pimples were still developing. So, I read more of 'the book' online and realized I was making some mistakes, even though I was still being SO STRICT: I was using olive oil which was not extra virgin and blending up my fruits and I ate unshelled nuts (once), drank some coffee (once) and wine (once). So, I stipped all these mistakes away and went on with more determination during week 2. Fully strict this time except once I had some gin (it's sooo hard to go out and not have a drink!) No progress at all even though I had become so strict! I was getting very discouraged. New pimples were developing! I felt like nothing in the world was ever gonna work for me. But, I kept on going fully determined to stay on this diet for as long as it took! Well, it is now the end of week 3 and my skin has totally cleared up! It really has! Someone even told me "it glows" (and I have to admit-- sometimes it really does!) I am thrilled. And I am really getting adapted to this very strict diet. It is not really hard at , especially because I now see how much it works. I am so skeptical that clear skin would ever last for me (it's only been 3 weeks now) so I am going to keep monitoring, but I am super happy with the results so far. I want to thank Wai for sharing all this information. Thank you, thank you! I can't get over the rush I feel knowing I have some control over this problem. In fact, knowing that I have so much control over myself is a rush. The discipline I am discovering I have over myself by going on this strict diet has given me an inner confidence that I was not even looking for-- a confidence totally separate from the way I look! Very cool. I do have one question-- people who are posting their results with the diet keep talking about how smooth their skin feels. Well my skin looks great and yes, seems to have a lovely glow often, but it does NOT feel smooth. In fact, it used to feel much smoother. It feels like there are little microscopic bumps in places. Wondering if that will go away. Also, in case anyone is interested, I have battled with acne for about 15 years. It comes and goes. I get it with my menstrual cycle, I get it when I'm stressed, but I also just get it randomly. I almost always have a pimple, and sometimes lots-- big and small, mostly on my face. The reason I went looking for information on the Net about acne (when I discovered this diet) is because it had started to get really bad again (huge ragers on my chin! horrible!) and I had just had enough! I have been on all kinds of medication for acne in my past. Accutane was the only thing that worked but I didn't want to go there again. I have tried all the well-known infommercial products, but nothing worked for me. This diet has given me new hope and I am sticking to it. I will keep posting my progress. Thanks again, Wai!
Wai 10-13-2002 03:18 PM	Congratulations Lizzy!!! quote: Well my skin looks great and yes, seems to have a lovely glow often, but it does NOT feel smooth. In fact, it used to feel much smoother. It feels like there are little microscopic bumps in places. Wondering if that will go away. Aaahhh, there they are again... this has been quite an issue in some dieters before; we used to call them 'sandy bumps'... In one person it took 2 months before they finally disappeared. In others it took just a few weeks (after they had eliminated their acne). I still have no clue to the cause of these sandy bumps, and why they go away. The only thing that I do know is that it happens in women only. Yes, please keep us all updated! Thank you,
Lizzy 10-14-2002 02:08 PM	Thank you for your response. I will keep tabs on the 'sandy bumps' and my general progress and let you know. So far so good!
hollywood 10-14-2002 04:17 PM	quote: I still have no clue to the cause of these sandy bumps, and why they go away. The only thing that I do know is that it happens in women only. im a guy, wai. im not positive if what im getting is sandy bumps but it could be. they look like goosebumps that someone would get on their arm but they usually are filled with stringy material. usually it comes out easily with light pressure, sometimes (if youre not carefull) you irritate the area making a full-blown inflamation. is this what youre calling a "sandy bump?" ----- this is all that remains of my acne since beginning your diet. i believe most people do not even concider this acne since many people get clogged pores yet do not have acne.
lyn 10-15-2002 10:36 AM	After trying Proactive for a week my face was covered with those 'sandy bumps'. The other inflamations cleared but the little bumps were horrible. And then of course the other inflamations started to come back after a few more weeks. But ever since then i've had them in some degree or another... until about 3 or 4 weeks on this diet. I thought maybe this diet wouldn't take care of them along with the real inflamations but it did... Now, i have been eating too many munch foods daily for a while now so they have returned. But i have to say that Lizzy's testimony has helped to spark a new determination in me to do better with the diet. I'm gonna start today with the strict version again. I actually don't find this diet that restrictive anymore (in the beginning i felt like i was starving myself until i learned that the juicing part was necessary for me) I think i just get lazy and settle for less than perfect skin. But i love this diet and what it does for my skin! I'm gonna be much more diligent. Hollywood, are you following the diet strictly?
Wai 10-15-2002 12:08 PM	quote: im a guy, wai. ...like goosebumps that someone would get on their arm but they usually are filled with stringy material... is this what youre calling a "sandy bump?" Ooops , yes, that's THEM... There goes my analysis down the drain...
Lizzy 01-17-2003 01:56 AM	It's been more than 3 months since I first started Wai's diet and I thought I would just add a comment that I am still doing it and very happy with the results. Christmas season nearly killed me, though. I was forced to go completely off the rails for weeks because there were parties almost every other day and I could not hold to the diet. I also travelled and stayed with friends/family and had to eat 'normal food' because any other option was too much work for me and my hosts. I broke out badly. BADLY! Diet is totally responsible for acne, that much I KNOW!! I am back on track now and my skin is clear again. I am getting better at knowing what to watch out for. I have to remain very strict, though. I am very sensitive to acne. But I do make a few exceptions and just suffer the consequences (the consequences aren't 'that' bad at all, in my opinion). In addition to the strict stuff (raw fruits, eggs, oil, nuts) I do eat some cooked veggies now and then and manage to have a cup of coffee every day, the ocassional drink, and the occassional 'blended' concoction of fruits with avacado. (Getting a little sick of eating avacado on its own). Just wanted to give an update on my progress! My advice to anyone who has acne is to give this is try, it totally works. Change is possible! Lizzy
Wai 01-17-2003 04:21 AM	thank you Lizzy!!!
lyn 01-17-2003 05:38 PM	Lizzy, I love to hear the testimonies! If you would, could you go into more detail about what you eat daily, what kind of acne you suffered with and like how long you've dealt with it? Also , have you lost any weight? Thanks!
Lizzy 01-19-2003 05:55 PM	Hi Lyn, Sure I would love to give more detail. I will try to be as accurate as I can. When I started this thread (in October-- see above) I did mention some of my history with acne. I have had it for about 15 years, at least. It started when I was a teenager and it never left. It was not a phase for me-- it was MY LIFE. It only affects my face. I get the occasional pimple on my back or chest but nothing too bothersome. It's my FACE that gets hit. I have scars on my cheeks, and here and there on other parts of my face, which have been there for years, from when it was the worst. But it's still a consistent problem even now. I get whiteheads, I get big pimples. I get it all. Recently over Christmas, I had up to 8 zits on my face at one point. Little and big and it was awful and it was definitely a result of going off the diet quite significantly throughout December. I am sure I have hormone-based acne issues, and I also tend to be an anxious type-- I'm pretty tightly wound. I think that doesn't help either. BUT ANYWAY-- yes, the DIET has changed everything for me. What I eat: it's different everyday but basically in the morning I usually don't have time to prepare breakfast so I gulp down what I call my "power juice," which is about a cup of OJ, 1/6th cup olive oil (yes, at least that much olive oil) and raw egg yolk stirred in. I take quite a bit of oil because I tote fruits with me to snack on once I get to work and I don't want to overdo the sugar intake. I snack on bananas a lot, but also others that are available to me right now (NOTHING is in season where I live)-- apples, grapes, oranges, pineapple, kiwi. And I snack on almonds because I happen to really like almonds and am allergic to brazil nuts. Note: I used to shell my own nuts but I find that I seem to be getting away with buying natural pre-shelled almonds and it's so much easier that I am hoping I can keep that up with impunity... If I have time in the morning I will make a sort of avacado smoothie instead of the power juice-- blending any combo of fruits with avacado. I usually don't get around to putting egg yolk in that. Or, I will make a fruit salad and pour raw egg yolks all over it (about 3), and then just gulp down some OJ and olive oil. Note: I don't make my own OJ. I buy the not-from-concentrate BUT pasteurized stuff that you're not supposed to drink on this diet! (Oops, but... I seem to get away with it...) When I get to work I drink my coffee. Yes, I manage to get away with that, too. When I first went on the diet, I was 100% strict and quit coffee for a month. I am sure this was ideal and much better for my skin overall, but... I can't do without it right now (one step at a time!) And my skin is good enough! so I am going to hang on to the coffee and keep my fingers crossed. During the morning and afternoon I snack as time at work permits. I also drink as much water throughout the day/evening as I can choke down . At lunch I eat more fruits and then a salad. Tomatoes & cucumbers usually, with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. When I have had NO TIME to prepare lunch at home on a given day, I just pack some of my own oil & vinegar dressing with me and buy a green salad without dressing and eat that. And I eat sashimi at lunch a couple of times a week, too. When I get home I usually eat fruit salad (with the egg yolks) and some OJ with olive oil and/or something like tomato/cucumber salad with the oil & vinegar dressing and/or nuts. I snack on any combo of these things in the evenings if I feel hungry. AND... lately I've been introducing cooked veggies. Trying to pick low protein ones (to the best of my lazy ability to do the research). I eat boiled pototoes a fair bit (and sometimes mash avacado into them-- not the hottest tasting, but...) and I eat green beans, cauliflower, um, stuff like that. Also, I do drink quite a few cups of the OJ and olive oil throughout the day/evening. Recently I also started taking vitamin supplements because I don't have a scale and so have never benefitted from the nutrient calculator. I thought maybe to be safe I would add some vitamins and calcium and stuff. Seems to be working for me (i.e. seems to enhance my energy). When I go out to eat with friends (which is often so I have had to learn to manage this) I try to "eat beforehand" as much as I can and then I bring my oil & vinegar dressing and just have a salad. There's little else I can eat at a restaurant. My friends are used to it. I do drink alcohol. I have cut down on that a lot though, I drink less, and less frequently, but I have not eliminated it altogether. Again, I seem to be getting away with my occasional drinks. So you see it's been a big lifestyle change that I made. It was not going to be a quick fix for me. I realized after the first few weeks trying this diet and seeing how much it helped, that there was no "quick fix" for ME because I obviously am just super sensitive to what I eat. So I have been changing my life around this fact. It helps to be extremely patient. And just be very, very aware that every choice I make is part of a long-term plan. Maybe I won't see the effects right away and that makes certain choices really hard... but I always have to remember what I now KNOW is true: that in time I WILL see the effects. Right now my skin is clear with the exception of the red marks where my Christmas zits were. But I am happy with my skin. I almost never wear make-up anymore, which is revolutionary for me. I do have what I consider big pores and blackheads sprinkled throughout the T-zone of my face, but I don't care. Overall my skin looks really good if I do say so myself and I am happy with it. I have lost weight, yes, I have to be honest about that. But not too much. Maybe about 5 pounds maximum. I'm not thrilled with that becasue I didn't want to lose weight. I kind of liked feeling a little more 'filled out' over Christmas while I was eating meat and dairy. Now I'm back to skinny-style and have to keep up the fat intake as much as possible. On the other hand, though I'm thin, I do have patches of cellulite on my butt and thighs and am hoping that over time that will all be gone. Not so far, but I plan to post any progress on that as I notice it. * * * That is a report of all my experience with this diet! HAVING SAID ALL THIS, I do want to mention one more thing, from a totally different perspective altogher. I wouldn't mind hearing from others on this sort of thing, as well. I want to mention the reactions of others. This has been interesting. My close colleauges (all female) have been very vocal about how good my skin looks. My close FRIENDS and FAMILY, on the otherhand, ALL INSIST that though my skin looks good, they really don't notice a difference and that "you always look good to me" and "you are so much more than your skin!" and stuff like that. They all get impatient with the diet becasue it interferes with the lifestyle they are used to enjoying with me. I also get asked out on dates every bit as much as I ever used to. I guess what I am trying to say is that somehow it is really only me, MYSELF, that this diet seems to be impressing... I will just end with this, which is kind of a digression, but it's an important one to me. I don't know what to say about this. I just think this is really interesting becasue it makes me realize that the people who love me most have always just loved who I am, not what I am. I worry I have been so caught up in all my imperfections that I have lost sight of all the good things about myself (things that go deeper than the surface). I have to be careful of that. That is going to be the thing I struggle most with over the months, I think: balancing my desire to be "perfect" with just letting go and realizing that maybe I'm already "perfect" enough.
lyn 01-21-2003 12:23 PM	Thanks so much for taking the time to share with all of us! I know for me personally........it's encouraging!. I can definately relate to the "responses from others" part. It took my husband a while to adjust.He would joke alot about Wai and say in response to something, "oh let me guess, Wai says you can't do that" kinda jokingly but a little sarcastically as well. But he doesn't say anything anymore, i think he's used to it. I don't live near family so they really don't know about the diet in any detail except that i'm eating lots of fresh food and it helps my complexion. My sister did kinda freak out about the raw egg yolk thing though (her family and mine went on vacation together) It is amazing that a diet change like this is such an adjustment when it comes to spending time with people.......... one thing i need to deal with better is... around my period when i get ravishingly starving, ya know....that's the time when i need to be the most strict on the diet and that's usually the time i screw up the most! Well, keep up the good work!
Wai 01-21-2003 02:30 PM	quote: around my period when i get ravishingly starving, ya know....that's the time when i need to be the most strict on the diet and that's usually the time i screw up the most! It helps if you then increase your intake of egg yolks very much, and also your fat and protein intake (egg yolks as well as fish, and lots of fat)
jhontry 03-05-2003 04:26 PM	hi lizzy, could you tell me where you get the fresh egg yolks? how many each day? since i cant find fresh eggs anywhere. thank you
Lizzy 03-06-2003 12:28 AM	Hello! Actually I just get my eggs at the local supermarket. I just grab off the top of the pile of the organic, free range eggs. (I have to admit, I don't usually bother to check how fresh they are but maybe I should start... the eggs in my fridge right now have a month to go before their "best before" expiry date.) ~Lizzy.
Lizzy 03-06-2003 12:32 AM	Oh, and regarding how many: I have increased to 6 egg yolks a day-- I add it to my fruit smoothies, I drizzle it all over my fruit salads, or I add it to O.J. ~L.