Make-up artist’s once-perfect skin erupted in acne and BOILS after she spent hours slathering on foundation, concealer and bronzer every day
- Alice Muir, of Scotland, spent hours covering her cystic acne with make-up
- She wouldn’t go outside bare-faced with ‘mountain’ spots for almost two years
- A diet change and cheap high street toner toner cured her skin in six weeks
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A make-up artist who had severe acne shares her astounding ‘before’ photos after transforming her skin with a £25 toner.
Alice Muir ruined her skin and was left with infected boils on her face after slathering on foundation, concealer and bronzer every day.
At her worst point, the 21-year-old refused to leave her house and spent almost two hours covering her ‘mountain-sized’ spots with more make-up.
Miss Muir, of Edinburgh, Scotland, tried everything from antibiotics to expensive specialised skin products to try and cure her cystic acne – the most severe type.
Earlier this year she came across a high street product, which, in combination with a healthy diet, transformed her skin in six weeks, she claims.
Acne is very common, with about 80 per cent of people aged 11 to 30 affected, according to the NHS. It normally goes by itself by mid-20s, but about 5 per cent of women and 1 per cent of men have acne over the age of 25.
Alice Muir, 21, had the most severe acne – cystic acne. She dreaded leaving the house and spent almost two hours covering her ‘mountain-sized’ spots with foundation
The make-up artist, from Edinburgh, Scotland, used a £25 toner and overhauled her diet, which gave dramatic results in six weeks. Now, she is blemish free
‘People honestly don’t believe it’s me now when I show them my “before” photos’, Miss Muir, who works at a luxury retailer, said.
‘My acne was all over my face and was bright red and sore all the time.
‘I like to show customers who are having issues with their skin, to make them see that they’re not alone and things do get better.’
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Miss Muir began battling cystic acne at the age of 19. The pimples occur when oil and dead skin cells build up deep within hair follicles, causing a rash of infected boils.
She had been blessed with beautifully clear skin all her life, preferring a natural make-up look with a fresh complexion.
Miss Muir said: ‘People would ask me, “Why don’t you have any spots?”. Most people of 16 did, but I didn’t seem to have any problems.’
Ironically, it was training for the job she loves so much that triggered her problems when, after leaving school, aged 18, she started studying make-up artistry at Edinburgh College.
She said: ‘I was practising at home at least three nights a week, applying really heavy make-up, so I could then take photos and post them on my social media, to show what I’d done.
‘I’d apply foundation, concealer, powder, bronzer, blusher and highlighter, before I’d even added my eye make-up.’
Miss Muir would spend almost two hours doing her make-up before even allowing her family to see her, sharing her make-up looks on social media as part of her job
Miss Muir had clear skin when she was growing up and before she started her training in make-up, aged 18, at Edinburgh College, when the pimples began to arise
A month into her new course, she noticed blemishes popping up and her pores opening – making her skin more prone to break-outs.
Cystic acne’s exact cause is unclear but is thought to involve the hormones androgen, which increases during puberty and can result in pores getting clogged.
Miss Muir said: ‘I didn’t want to go out and dreaded events like the work Christmas party or my graduation, as I didn’t want people looking at me.
‘I hated looking in the mirror and didn’t recognise the girl looking back at me, I felt disgusting.
‘Not even my own family saw me without a full-face of make-up when the acne got really bad.
‘It would take me up to one-and-a-half hours every day to just put my full face on.’
After her diagnosis, her doctor prescribed a series of lotions, creams and antibiotics, in a bid to improve her skin, but nothing seemed to work.
‘I realised it was the make-up I was applying on my course that had started the terrible acne, but there seemed to be nothing I could do about it,’ she said.
Miss Muir’s skin at its worst. She said: ‘I hated looking in the mirror and didn’t recognise the girl looking back at me, I felt disgusting. I didn’t want to go out and dreaded events…’
Then, Miss Muir began using a skin toner called REN Ready Steady Glow Daily AHA Tonic, which soon started to clear her skin.
Miss Muir, pictured now, says her skin has completely cleared in six months
When she landed her current job, following her two-year course, Miss Muir felt ashamed of her acne-covered skin when she was applying clients’ make-up and helping them to choose expensive skincare products.
She said: ‘I was supposed to be advising people on how to care for their skin and which make-up to use, but they must have been looking at me thinking, “Sort out your own skin before giving me advice”.
‘No one ever said that to me, but I was sure that was what they were thinking. The terrible thing was there was nothing I could do about it.’
Miss Muir joined a long waiting list to see a dermatologist and refused to take the strong acne drug Roaccutane.
The controversial drug slows down the amount of oil your skin releases but according to the NHS, can also have a serious side effect of depression.
Miss Muir said: ‘I knew I had to do something. I was desperate and felt horrendous about myself.’
In May this year, Miss Muir decided to take the issue into her own hands. She overhauled her diet, deciding to cut down on carbohydrates and follow a ‘clean eating’ plan, eating mainly plant-based foods.
Then, she was given a sample at work of the brand REN Ready Steady Glow Daily AHA Tonic. Miss Muir said she noticed a change in her skin just a week after using it.
The REN Ready Steady Glow Daily AHA Tonic toner that cost Miss Muir £25, and saved her more years of self-loathing
Now, six months on, Miss Muir’s skin is clear, without a pimple in sight.
Before she was ‘cured’, Miss Muir had not even allowed her family to see her spotty skin barefaced, but now she is releasing her photos in a bid to raise awareness about adult and cystic acne.
She said: ‘It can happen to anyone, and it’s not because you’re not clean or you don’t wash.
‘At the work Christmas party this year, I won’t feel ashamed of how I look.
‘Instead, I’ll feel proud of how far I’ve come, and, who knows, I might even get a cheeky kiss under the mistletoe.’
WHAT IS CYSTIC ACNE?
Cystic acne – the most severe form of the skin condition – occurs when oil and dead skin cells build up deep within hair follicles.
If these become infected, it can cause boil-like blemishes.
Spots occur when a pore in the skin gets clogged, usually with dead skin cells. If bacteria enters the pore, it can become red and swollen.
Cystic acne takes place when this infection goes deep into the skin, creating tender bumps that are full of pus.
If the cyst bursts, it can spread the infection, causing more break outs.
Sufferers are usually in their teens or early 20s, but can be as young as eight or as old as 50. Cystic acne is more common in men.
The face, chest, back, upper arms and should are most often affected.
Cystic acne’s exact cause is unclear but is thought to involve the hormones androgen.
Androgen increases during puberty and can result in pores getting clogged.
In women, the menstrual cycle, pregnancy, menopause or polycystic ovary syndrome can also worsen acne.
Over-the-counter medication that can ease milder acne often have no effect on cystic forms.
A dermatologist may prescribe oral antibiotics that control bacteria and lower inflammation.
Creams and gels containing retionoid, a form of vitamin A, can also help to unclog pores.
Birth-control pills may also help women to regulate their hormones.
It is important to seek treatment to prevent scarring.
Acne sufferers should not pick at their blemishes as this may push the infection deeper and make it spread.
They should also lead a healthy lifestyle. Research suggests sugary diets can worsen acne.
Sufferers should also try and relax due to stress causing the body to release more hormones.
Source: Web MD
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