How I Got Rid Of My Acne

Hi Guys!
This post is about my latest acne journey, how it all started, how bad it was, and how I got rid of it. I really hope it will help you, especially my readers in Surabaya. But before I jump into the story, please understand that any treatment and products that I’m about to tell you here may have different results for different individuals and for a different type of skin, but this was what worked for me 🙂

My Skin Background

Growing up, in my school years, I had clear skin. I did get breakout sometimes, because I have very oily skin, especially around the nose area, but it was nothing major. My skin was pretty much flawless until I finished University and started working. I guess the first time I had a very bad breakout was when I was 23 years old (2012), and since then, I have always been breaking out here and there, and my skin never seems to be perfect anymore.

For the first two years (2012-2014) of my ‘late puberty’, I’ve tried several doctors and clinics, some did not work out, and some did. But the thing I noticed when it did work out, the process has always been fast. It was too fast that I felt they put really harsh ingredients on my troubled skin. They peeled my skin to the point where I literally looked like a snake. My skin was so tight and dry and cracked. And after I finished the treatment, I got a bad breakout as soon as I stopped using the products.

So, after that (2015), I decided to not go to the doctors and clinics anymore, instead, I tried so many products from many brands to find the one that’s best for my skin. Finding the right product for my skin was really (and still) challenging, I’ve spent so much money on it, but I tried to stay focus on what did good to me. I also did a facial routine, and it changed my skin a lot better, but it was also pricey, I had to do it monthly, or sometimes weekly depending on my skin condition, and it was freaking painful every time, I’m not even joking!

In the middle of 2016, my skin somehow got to its perfect condition, I got no acne, no acne scars, no acne marks. It was the happiest time of my life, but sadly it didn’t last too long…

Where it all started (again)

At the end of 2016, I sensed that something bad happens to my skin, but I didn’t know what it was. I was breaking out and I got so many whiteheads on my right jawline. At that time, I was busy preparing for my visa to Australia, I thought I was just stressed out and it caused me to break out, but it didn’t end there. It even got worse when I went to Jakarta for a full week.

Again, this time I thought it was because of Jakarta’s pollution that got my skin into this very bad condition, but I was thinking maybe I shouldn’t do anything about it. I just did my usual skincare routine and makeup and turned out, it still got worse and worse. Weeks later, I stopped my skincare routine and I really didn’t know what to do. Even makeup couldn’t hide all of the acne bumps on my face, my friends started asking me what happened and I got even more frustrated.

When I found hope

At the end of January 2017, a dear friend of mine Merli San just couldn’t stand seeing my skin condition, she told me she would arrange, an appointment with Dr. Leni Kumalasari, which is the Director of Emdee Skin Clinic. I thought she was just trying to be nice, but she really did make an appointment for me, LOL. I guess my skin was too bad. At first, I really hesitated to go back to a doctor or clinic to treat my skin, but I was at the point where I should just shut up, and let the expert do their things, so I proceeded with the appointment.

I was then got contacted by Nidya, the Emdee representative via Line Messenger, she made sure that the appointment was still on. It felt like I have a personal assistant, it was nice to be reminded, and she did it very politely and professionally. After arranging the time and place for a consultation with Dr. Leni, a couple of days later I went to Emdee Skin Clinic at Darmo Bukit Boulevard early in the morning as scheduled.

Emdee Clinic

Emdee Clinic is a skin clinic that opened a couple of years ago, and today, they have three branches, their headquarter is in Billiton Street (center), and the rest are in Manyar Street (east) and Bukit Darmo Boulevard (west). I went to the headquarter once for their opening, but I chose the Bukit Darmo Boulevard branch because it’s really close to where I live and it was actually the first time I had ever been there.

The Root of My Problem

The first time I met Dr. Leni, just like everybody else, she asked me, “What happened?” lol. But I asked her back, “What do you think? Because I don’t know what went wrong, that’s why it got worse and worse.” After looking at my face thoroughly, she told me, “This has to be your makeup, probably foundation because the acne is spreading everywhere”. And on that second, all that I had in mind was the big F word! Why wouldn’t I realize that earlier?!

Indeed, I changed my foundation a couple of months ago, but since it blends so well (even too well) on my skin, I never thought that it was the thing that caused my severe acne! I kid you not, it felt so light, not cakey at all, it has a matte finish, and I really loved wearing it! It did break my heart so much, I felt like I’ve been destroying my own skin because I wore it every single day without knowing that it was the core of my problem T___T I even stopped using my skincare but I still wore the foundation to cover my acne, I really felt so dumb!

If you’re wondering what was the product, it’s the Maybelline Fit Me foundation. But I don’t make this blog post to shame the product, it just my bad luck that it turns out to be a nightmare for my skin. I’ve read and seen so many amazing reviews about the foundation on the internet that’s why I had been dying to try it, so I didn’t hesitate to buy and use it. Oh my, poor me.

The Treatment

The first thing that Dr. Leni gave me was acne peeling, by giving me a brown cream on a jar, I should apply it for three hours on my face and rinse it. What it did was to open all my pores and let all the acne comes out, it also light peeled my skin and made my skin red for a couple of weeks. It was a horrible one for me, since I just started working at Common Grounds, and it’s located in Galaxy Mall, at an open bar. I met so many people during my work, and with that condition, I couldn’t wear any makeup at all as well, can you imagine? My face was super red, and had lots of big pimples!

After two weeks, I was honestly starting to doubt the process of the treatment. I felt like the acne that I already had were slowly disappearing, but at the same time, there was more acne popping up on the other parts of my face. It was really frustrating and I really tried to cope with all of the staring and the “what-happened-to-your-face?” question, it was exhausting explaining this stupid tragedy to everyone.

But I decided to just trust the process and be patient, I met Dr. Leni every once a week or twice a week for weekly control. She gave me pretty much external face creams to be used daily and after a month, I kept seeing better progression on my face. The tiny bumps were gone, and the big acne also slowly disappearing.

On my last control with Dr. Leni, it was after a month and a half since the first time I been there, she did laser treatment to my skin to treat the dark acne spot. After that, she gave me another peeling cream to complete the treatment, she said it would vanish my acne for good. I again hesitated, because I started to feel good about my skin already and I was just not ready for another severe popping acne and two weeks of redness on my skin. But she said this time wouldn’t be as bad as the first one, so I sucked it in and just complied.

The Results

I remember Dr. Leni promised me that she would get rid of all of my acne in less than two months. I trusted her and she was right, and I am so happy with my skin right now. In the above pictures, I was using makeup to cover the acne scars, but there’s no pimple there! Still struggling with the scarring and the dark spots, I know it will take more time to get rid of it, but honestly my skin has never been happier in the past year!

So overall, I would really recommend Emdee Clinic for you who’s currently struggling with acne. Just make an appointment with Dr. Leni and let her take care of your skin! 🙂 I think for the whole process, I’ve spent around four to five million rupiahs in total. It’s honestly not the most affordable option, but for such a result, I wouldn’t mind!

I hope this blog post gives you enough insight about Emdee Clinics and their services, don’t forget to share it with your friends who are maybe struggling with their acne, who knows this might help them too! 🙂 It will make my day for sure, thank you so much for reading and I’ll see you on my next one, xoxo!

Summary

• Emdee Clinic
• Branch 1 :
• Jl. Bukit Darmo Boulevard no 10 – Surabaya
• Phone +62-31 731 9788 
• Fax +62-31 731 9699
• Branch 2 :
• Jl. Nginden Semolo 101 kav 01 – Surabaya
• Phone +62-31 5911 567
• Branch 3 :
• Jl. Biliton 40F – Surabaya
• Phone +62-31 503 9798