How You Can Clear Spots Overnight Safely and Cheaply: Hydrocolloid Bandages (Day 3)

#30dayglowup - Day 3

Clearing spots overnight in a way that is safe, cheap and doesn't cause scarring? Let's find out how...

I haven’t been one of the lucky ones when it comes to my skin – I suffered with persistent acne all throughout my teenage years which was only finally reduced when I went on a 9-month round of 60 – 80 mg Accutane. One positive thing that does come out of my not-so-fun years is my knowledge and experience when it comes to skincare, makeup and anything that involves reducing the overall appearance of acne. One of the best things I’ve learned though is how to quickly and safely heal a spot overnight without causing any prolonged scarring.

 

You hear all sorts of techniques for healing spots overnight – spot creams, sudocrem, toothpaste and the likes. However, some of these contain very harsh, drying ingredients which can damage the moisture barrier of your skin and cause more harm in the long run. As someone who’s still dealing with scarring from acne from years ago, I need to be very careful with what I use on my skin if it’s going to increase the risk of scarring. I used the Mario Badescu spot cream for years because I liked how quickly it ‘healed spots’, and I regret how long it took me to realize that this contributed to my scarring and hyperpigmentation.

 

The method I’m about to show you is completely safe and for me, doesn’t cause any scarring beyond what any spot normally does. It’s also fine to use under makeup, very satisfying overall and stops you from picking at your spots as they’re healing. Most of all though, it’s a lot gentler on your skin than many other spot treatments and won’t cause long-term damage. If you want to know more about this seemingly miracle solution, keep reading.

 

What you’ll need

• Hydrocolloid bandage/ pimple patch
• Q tips
• Exfoliating product

 

What I use

• COSRX PimplePatches (Very cheap from ebay in the UK)

• The Ordinary Glycolic Acid Toning Solution

 

How to

1. Apply a thin layer of your exfoliating solution to the spot using a q tip
2. Remove excess using a dry q tip
3. Apply a pimple patch
4. Leave overnight
5. Remove in the morning

Here is my Tik Tok that I filmed about how to use this method in case it’s unclear:

@cglowupdiaries

How to clear spots safely overnight without causing acne scarring ##skincare ##acnetreatment ##acne ##clearskin ##skincarebyhyram

♬ оригинальный звук - lllove_page

 

Why it works

The chemical exfoliant removes the top layer of dead skin cells so that the sebum in the spot has less resistance to being drawn out. Hydrocolloid bandages are commonly used as dressings for wounds as the polysaccharide material is able to absorb moisture and swell to form a gel. They are often used for burns or treating skin graft donor sites as they protect the area from being exposed to the surface whilst drawing out any excess moisture. When you apply a hydrocolloid spot patch to a pimple and leave it for a long duration, it allows the sebum in the exposed spot to be drawn out gently and naturally, as opposed to using a tool or your fingers to ‘pop’ a spot. Additionally, as the moisture gets absorb into the bandage matrix, it prevents the bacteria from the spot from spreading to other areas of the face and potentially causing more breakouts.

 

You can even see the extra moisture from the spot when it’s drawn out; if you look in my Tik Tok it appears as a white dot on the bandage surface. Overall this makes it very satisfying to take off as you can actually see how it’s benefitted your skin – sometimes it even retains the shape of the spot in the patch which is very gross but gives me all-the-more satisfaction. Some people even use bigger bandages over their nose overnight to absorb excess oil.

 

After using a pimple patch, I usually find that the spot is no longer raised, making it a lot easier to cover with makeup. There is usually some remaining pigmentation but that normally faded within a couple of days and doesn’t leave any long-term scarring unlike some other spot treatments. Be aware that if you’re using any kind of exfoliating treatment that you should be using SPF to protect your skin from sun damage and to help with the process of healing scarring.

 

Benefits

• Doesn’t damage your skin’s moisture barrier (Which could lead to scarring)
• Easy to apply and remove
• Can be worn under makeup
• Stops you from picking at spots
• Very satisfying
• Cheap

 

In conclusion

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: acne absolutely sucks. You can try everything, and it just not work for you, and all along you’ll have people with genetically clear, poreless skin telling you to ‘Just wash your face’ or ‘Drink 8 glasses of water a day’. Having acne isn’t your fault and it doesn’t make you any less deserving as a person. I hated having it and I’m still dealing with the consequences today, so I’m not going to try and phrase it as a positive thing, but I will say it has made me a stronger and more resilient person. I think having acne gives you a lot of humility and an ability to sympathize with people more than you ordinarily would.

 

If you’re dealing with acne, please just keep going and try not to let it overwhelm your life. Remember your worth and know that this doesn’t define you, even if it feels like you’re completely on your own and the only one struggling with it. I guarantee you it affects more people around than you think; most of my friends have faced some sort of issues with their skin which I didn't know about until I talked to them.

 

Thank you for reading and I hope you’re enjoying my glow up journey so far. Remember that even though a lot of what I’m talking about is the aesthetics, the way you feel about yourself is so much more important and you deserve to feel worthy and proud of yourself. If you have any questions or recommendations let me know in the comments or message me on any of my social medias, and if you’re enjoying my journey so far definitely subscribe using the feature at the bottom to get emailed updated when I post.