The Scorched-Earth Acne Solution

For years, the cabinet underneath my bathroom sink was a graveyard of skin-care products, filled with the ghosts of face soaps, washes, toners, and scrubs past. Bottles of Neutrogena, Cetaphil, Proactiv, and Clean & Clear products were all laid to rest after my hopes that they would cure my blemished face were dashed, raised, and dashed again. Nothing I tried worked.

A couple years and a handful of dermatologists later, piles of prescription products were also thrown into the landfill of acne medications in my bathroom. Tubes of Retin-A, Tazorac, and Epiduo cream, and antibiotics like doxycycline and tetracycline had all been prescribed to no avail. Whenever one pimple went away, another popped up in its place, like a game of whack-a-mole played on my forehead and chin. Even as I reached the end of my teens, when acne generally subsides, mine was only getting worse and my frustration and embarrassment