How To Heal Pitted Acne Scars Naturally

How To Heal Pitted Acne Scars Naturally

Author: Jasmine M. ("Pending" blogger, till June/July 2020!)

Indented Scar Removal (Without Expensive Laser Treatments or Dangerous TCA Peels)

Image@RissDesign

My Acne Scar Treatment Journey Begins

Cystic acne throughout my teens left me with extensive pitted acne scars, and indented scarring on my cheeks and temples. At 23 years old, after buckets of tears and feeling devastated whenever I caught a glimpse of my skin in the mirror, I finally got serious about my acne scar treatment. After researching questions like “do acne scars fade over time,” and “do acne scars go away,” I realized that this problem wasn’t going to be fixed with cute Korean Sheet Masks from my local store (bummer, I know). I needed to take meaningful action. My self-esteem had suffered, and my confidence was low. Thankfully, with the support of my husband, I realized that healing my skin was still possible, and that I was worth the time and patience. I decided I would keep looking for solutions, no matter what.

About My Skin

I am mixed, South Asian and African. My skin is coffee colored, tans heavily in the summer, and can get relatively pale in the winter. While I love my skin tone, what I’m not a fan of is that I am EXTREMELY prone to hyperpigmentation, which is common for South Asian women. On top of that, years of deep cystic acne left me with two cheeks and temples full of tiny ice pick scars, and larger, deeper boxcar scars as well. On the plus side, although my skin is combination, and does get both oily and dry, it’s luckily very soft and usually well hydrated—something I want to preserve. On this journey, my main concern has been the texture of my skin, which looks extremely uneven in any lighting, other than that perfect golden-hour-morning-sunlight (am I right?!)

Why Not try Laser?

By the time I found the Devoted Things website, I had already tried every topical treatment I could find at beauty stores, pharmacies, and on Amazon— including scar creams, derma rolling, healing oils, and silicon sheets. Although I had come across a few good products over the years, nothing worked substantially. Above is a close-up, unedited, picture of my left cheek, taken about a month ago. As you can see, I had lots of deep ice pick and boxcar scars. Because of this, I had even considered extreme measures like medical indented scar fillers, extremely harsh TCA peels, and laser treatments. However, when I did my research, I discovered that fillers were only temporary. On top of that, the internet is full of testimonials sharing horrible complications associated with laser and strong peels, like those on RealSelf. Women who just wanted to improve their complexion have ended up with severely burned skin, which subsequently scarred. Um, #1- Poor Them, and #2- Too Risky! Eventually, after reading those stories and considering the long recovery times those procedures often required, as well as their ridiculously high costs ($2,000 for laser?!), I crossed those off my list.

 I began trying to use the Law of Attraction to help find an alternative. By elevating my attitude, and meditating on what it would feel like to have (healthy, glowing, smooth, beautiful skin). I knew that if I focused on the positive- something I had rarely, consistently, done when it came to my appearance- the Universe would send the perfect solution my way. One day, (more quickly than I was expecting, to be honest) Leah’s website appeared on my Pinterest page. I saw that her products were natural, and that she made her skincare with many different ethnicities in mind. I was understandably skeptical, about whether they would be strong enough to make a noticeable difference on my skin, but I was also genuinely willing to try something new.

Trying The Indented Scar Peel

After, I kid you not, 3 hours of obsessively combing through her website, and reading all the review pages (you guys know how it is), I decided to order the Indented Scar Peel, and try it out. During the next two and a half weeks (including days off from using the peel), I had what I can only describe as The Best Success I have ever had in healing my scarring. I wanted to keep trying out new products, and I also wanted to share my journey with other current and potential customers (so that we could support one another). I reached out to Leah, to see if I could interview to become a blogger for her website, in exchange for more natural products- and she agreed! So, here I am, taking you all on my skin care journey.

When I saw the tiny bottle, and very large, thorough instruction sheet, my first thought was “This must be strong.” I tested the peel, which is a clear color liquid, and lightweight- on the inside of my wrist. I didn’t experience any complications, so I proceeded with following the directions on the sheet.

I would wash my face with a plain facial cleanser (I was using pure castile soap at the time), and then pat my skin dry. Afterwards, I would apply small drops of the peel to my face using my fingertips. It stings a little bit, but it’s is not too bad. Next, I would wait for my skin to dry again, before following up with a moisturizer: vitamin E oil (at night), and a moisturizer containing SPF (in the mornings).

Within 4 days my skin looked noticeably smoother, but it was also becoming irritated. I took 3 days off from the peel completely, before beginning again. This time around, I only applied the peel at night, and added fresh Aloe Vera before my nightly moisturizer into my routine. I found this to be incredibly effective, and after about 7 days of doing this, I could see an improvement, but it then I got irritated again. I took off another 4 days off just to absolutely make sure my skin was okay. When I really looked in the mirror, at the end of the 4-day break, I was stunned by how massive of a difference I noticed. So much so, that I took pictures (before I  even knew I'd write about it). The first image is an unedited, close up of my left cheek. The one below is 3-4 weeks after that first picture was taken, and 2.5 weeks into using the peel! Yes, these are really both my skin.

Pros and Cons about the Indented Scar Peel

Please excuse my lack of camera skills! Hopefully, as you can see above, the biggest pro is that the Indented Scar Peel WORKS. At the end of the day, that’s what I care about, and this product over-delivered, in my opinion! My boxcar and pitted acne scars are both significantly shallower, and some of my larger pores shrunk a bit as well. I still have a way to go, of course, but for two weeks of using a product, I have NEVER seen this much improvement in the texture of my skin! I’m excited to see what my skin will look like 6 weeks from now. One drawback was that I had to monitor my skin very carefully during this process, to avoid damaging it (with a chemical burn). Those break periods I took to let my skin heal were vital, and that was talked about on the directions sheet that came with the bottle. Rushing is not an option! Furthermore, even though the Indented Scar Peel is not one of those dangerous, 3-week recovery TCA peels, it is still strong. Thus, it often made my skin feel sensitive and irritated when using it for more than 3 days in a row. If I was starting my first bottle over again, from the beginning, I would do 3 days on, and then 3 days off. Some more massive benefits, are that the peel does not require "down time", it did not cause my skin to shed, and it did not make me look like a zombie while it was working. Another drawback was that the product was a bit drying for me. But, when I consider that I got the results I would have expected if I’d spent hundreds of dollars on a Laser Treatment- I’m not complaining! To combat this drying, used vitamin E oil, Aloe Vera, and very gently cleaned my face with baking soda once or twice a day (to exfoliate any dead skin).

My Recommendations

I would highly recommend this to anyone suffering from acne scarring before you try something harsher. The way I see it: if you make a mistake with your skin that severely damages it, you might never be able to go back. Leah’s Indented Scar Peel requires time, and a bit of patience, but it also saved me the potential heartache of massive scarring, or skin damage caused by more invasive dermatological procedures. If you want to learn a bit more about natural approaches to healing the skin, and why natural approaches might actually work better for you than some of the harsher ones, you can check out this video by one of my favorite Youtubers/bloggers: Sarah Marie Nagel. She focuses a lot on the power of essential oils and plant extracts. She debunks some important myths about healing skin. Expect an "Update" from me soon! Good luck on your skincare journeys, my friends!

Update

                                            4 Month Progress Picture

It's been just about 4 months since I first began using this indented scar peel, and I have a ton of tips and updates. First, it took me while to figure out how to best use this product. I naturally have sensitive skin, so I noticed that I was only able to use to peel for five or six days in a row, before I would need to take a break for about 4 or 5 days, to let my skin adjust. This meant that for the first 3 months, I only really used the peel half the time. I was definitely getting results, but I wanted to figure out how I could use the peel more often without getting irritation.

About two weeks ago, I found a great solution that's really helped me a lot--fresh Aloe Vera! What I do now, is put the peel on at night, and let it dry. Afterwards, I take a 1 inch square chunk of a fresh Aloe Vera leaf, purchased at my local Price Right grocery store, and I spread the inside of the leaf all over my face. Then I go to sleep--simple as that! The benefit for me, is that the irritation I was experiencing before has been minimized.

I've also noticed that using this product, without a toner, and without the Natural Skin Beach at the same time, works best for me. I think the combination of using more than one potent product at the same time, can be intense for extremely sensitive skin. So at night, I only use the Indented Scar Peel and Aloe, after I cleanse my skin. In the mornings, I choose not to use the Indented Scar Peel. Instead, I use my Natural Skin Bleach or Herbal Toner for Oily Skin, and some of the Natural SPF Beauty Oil. This routine is working great for me.

Above is a 4 month progress picture. When you compare it with my first picture, you can see that I've had a massive improvement in just 4 months of inconsistent use. I'm really excited to see what my skin looks like after 8-10 weeks of consistent use. Hopefully, I'll be able to use the peel much more often, and I'll have some truly amazing results to show you guys! So far, this is still the single best product I've ever used on my acne scars. I think that if you're willing to be patient, you'll be so incredibly happy that you tried this. I definitely recommend this! I would just advise you to work slowly, and take the time to figure out how your skin responds to the powerful ingredients in this peel. Healing scarring is a marathon, not a sprint :)

Lots of Love,

Jasmine