Reddit reviews The Ordinary Hyaluronic Acid 2% + B5 30ml

Skincare Routine:

Morning:

• Wake up, wash face with water and apply a small amount of Biotherm Life Plankton Elixir (Got this in a sample size, free with a purchase for some other products).
  
• Afterwards, I'll apply Vichy Skin-Perfecting Velvety Cream (SPF 50).If I'm wearing makeup that day, I'll use Weleda Skin Food as a primer (some sites suggested it) and go on with a little bit of foundation.
  
  Evening:
  
  
• When I get home I'll take my makeup off by lathering on Nature Republic Himalaya Cleansing Balm, Pink Salt and gently wiping it off with a cotton pad. I don't want to over-wash my face so I usually leave it as is for the rest of the day until I properly wash my face before bed (Usually no longer than 5 hours)
  
• Then, at night, I wash my face using Bioderma Sensibio Mild Cleansing Foaming Gel and pat face dry.
  
• I use Mario Badescu's Facial Spray with Aloe, Herbs and Rosewater as a light toner, followed by the Ordinary's Hyaluronic Acid 2%+B5 all over my face and once that's sinked in, I'll apply Weleda Skin Food again to boot.
  
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  I only exfoliate twice a week, (Tuesday) once using a brush as an physical exfoliator (something similar to a Clarisonic brush) and (Thursday) the Ordinary's Lactic Acid 10% + HA as a chemical exfoliator.
  
  I only recently started using these products together, in an attempt to help this bumpy issue I've been having for quite a few months now. I don't know exactly when it started but it's definitely only been 2+ months since it has re-appeared and stubbornly stayed with me. I've also just bought the Ordinary's Salycylic Acid 2% since I've heard it does wonders, especially paired with the Niacinamide (which I need to get!).
  
  If you've any recommendations or advice, I'm willing to hear and learn more! If it helps at all, I currently live in Sweden so not all products are found here, keep in mind. I'm also sorry for the switch between amazon.co.uk and amazon.com - I couldn't find some products on the US site.
  
  I would so, so, so appreciate any help given. (I have a more HD picture if wanted, but it's gross - imo). Am I doing something wrong? Is it an allergic reaction to something? The spots aren't itchy or anything and they don't flare up or turn red (the only redness/red spots are due to me picking the skin, I must admit I suffer from Compulsive Skin Picking - which makes this whole ordeal horrible).
  
  EDIT: Grammar and change of a product + Forgot to specify that I do have PCOS (policystic ovarian syndrome), and I'm taking birth control pills for it. I know it can affect the skin along the jawline, but how come it affects other parts of my face and comes and goes? I have some speculations that this is not hormonal acne.

There's been a post recently on one of the skin care subs about someone meeting a scientist who worked on the Nip/fab glycolic acid products who said it was formulated to be too weak to do any damage in case of lawsuits, so maybe give up with that brand. Look into other brands tho- Amazon is actually really great for having a whole bunch of skincare stuff in one place with budget friendly and cheaper yet multibuy options. I'm linking mainly to Amazon in this post too, so just a heads up.

I'm going to go out on a limb and guess that your skin is dehydrated and sensitive from all the harsh products you've tried, so let's try something different. Your acne may well be hormonal though, you should talk to your GP about getting your levels checked.

Face wash wise, I'd recommend you start with either Cetaphil gentle cleanser, or Eucerin Sensitive Skin Gentle Hydrating Cleanser. Both of these are super gentle and won't strip your skin or make your face feel tight after washing.

Use a microfibre or muslin cloth to cleanse with, they're cheap and great gentle physical exfoliators. Be gentle, you really don't need to scrub hard, just gentle circles.

For a budget friendly and honestly fantastic face mask that's known for clearing skin and giving glowy complexions, ignore the overpriced hype of Aztec Healing Clay and buy a bag of calcium bentonite clay (which is all that is in Aztec healing clay btw) and a bottle of apple cider vinegar - mix about a tbsp of the clay with enough vinegar to make it foamy and use it twice a week. You can use this on body acne too- I use it on my back and bum about once a month.

You're going to want an AHA/BHA you can use Niacinamide daily and or The Ordinary AHA 30% + BHA 2% Peeling Solution 30ml, 10-Minute Exfoliating Facial twice a week. Leave a few days between using this and the calcium bentonite clay and apple cider vinegar mask tho. There are loads of AHA BHA products on the market but The Ordinary has fantastic reviews and is what is says on the label- percentages and everything, which to me puts it head and shoulders above many other products in the same price range. You can mix your own AHA/BHA's for far cheaper but it's a little trickier than the super easy recipe for hyaluronic acid serum in the next paragraph.

Now this stuff isn't necessary but it has a pretty huge and immediate impact on how your skin looks and feels. Making your own hyaluronic acid serum (this stuff forces moisture into the skin and moisturised skin is far less prone to irritation and spots) is super easy. Buy the powder, some glycerin and a preservative and make your own, there's a great website with instructions here. Trust me when I say you will save a shit load of money with this. You will also see results fast. If you want to buy/try first tho, I'd recommend The Ordinary. I keep my hyaluronic acid and AHA/BHA bottles in the fridge, it probably does little to extend the life span of the products but it feels super nice to put on cold serums (and sheet masks!).

Now, to moisturiser. I've heard great things about YES to Tomatoes Clear Skin Daily Balancing Moisturizer for dealing with acne prone skin, also about Bioderma Hydrabio Gel-Crème Light Moisturising Care and Vichy Normaderm Anti-Blemish Care you get a free cleanser that's supposed to be quite good with that link too btw.

Suncream is really, super fucking important- I use Biore UV Aqua Rich Watery Essence SPF50+/PA++++ and cannot reccomend it enough- it neither smells like suncream nor feels like it and it looks nice and kinda satin matte on my face too. Any suncream is better than none tho- just make sure you wash it all off at the end of the day.

I know that all together the stuff in these links comes to a bit of money but these products will last you bloody ages for the most part and they're super well reviewed and mostly unlikely to do much damage to you or further break you out.

That's basically it! Full disclosure: I did buy [this]https://www.amazon.com/Ordinary-Hyaluronic-Acid-2-30ml/dp/B01MYEZPC8/ref=sr_1_2_s_it?s=beauty&ie=UTF8&qid=1526756684&sr=1-2&keywords=the+ordinary the same week, and I love it but don't think it was the source of the healing. I've also been on Accutane in the past, so I think my skin wants to heal quickly and not break out, but this was really telling that I'm the one responsible for the decline in my skin.

Might be a little late but I had really bad acne for a kid and still would as an adult if I didn’t adopt a strict skincare routine and diet (it’s not that bad). Drinking water and changing your pillowcases frequently (every week to two weeks) also will help especially if you start putting all this product on your face. see note at the end*

For some, cutting out either, some, or all of the following helps alleviate acne: Dairy, Oil, Sugar, Gluten. But since you said you had no changes in diet I won’t go into that. Sorry in advance for formatting errors as I did all of this from mobile. Some products have instruction in Korean but I will tell you how to use them. Everything is used everyday/every night unless specified.

1. If I wear makeup, I use Jeju Deep Cleansing Balm. When used, it creates a layer of moisture but this can make rags feel congested, so I recommend wiping this with toss-able towels. It smells good and is good for getting the eyes especially. Just put a little on there towel/wipe and rub face until makeup is removed, then use another wipe to remove the excess balm.
   
2. I use African Black Soap after removing heavy full face make-up. For light/no make-up/mornings I use Senka Perfect Whip Foaming Cleanser. It takes about a month to come through Amazon, but if your local Asian market has a skincare store and most do, it can usually be found there. Works best if you have some kind of Spin Brush for face or a Whip Maker. It doesn’t work as well as it does with either of these products using just hand or rag. You can also use cheesecloth (examples on YouTube).
   
3. I use either of these masks if my skin feels dry or looks dull. Just rub on face and leave for 5-7 min then rinse off. This brand also has peeling masks as well that I use every other day in place of these. The peeling masks work similar to the nose strips people use to pull out nose blackheads and can be used to substitute them but can be used on whole face as well.
   
4. With my face cleaned and moisture somewhat restored, I soft exfoliate (I use everyday. If I wear makeup I use it same night and if I plan to wear makeup the next day, skip morning and use at night again. To use - rub soft side on face first to spread, then rub gently with textured side. Otherwise I use in morning. I hard exfoliate with this. I don’t scrub harder it’s just a sugar kind of scrub so it has the potential to cause inflammation if you’re rubbing to hard. I use every other day, this also works great on body and legs when shaving.
   
5. After exfoliating, I use Thayers Witch Hazel Toner. Remove with a cotton pad. I’ve found towelettes and pepper towels don’t work nearly as well as something cotton based. Toner helps to pull excess dirt from deep skin pores. On Sundays/Wednesday’s only I use Innisfree Jeju Volcanic Pore Clay Mask. Instructions say specifically to use after Toner.
   
6. Now that face is cleaned and restored, I use a squeeze Vitamin C serum only at night. I got this from my local Asian market but if you ask they’ll know what you are talking about. I dab it ONLY onto any dark spots/acne scars on my face. Vitamin C has lightening/brightening properties and using it on your whole face may lighten it. I let it sit for 5 minutes minimum to as long as I can before I need to sleep so it absorbs into my skin. I dab off any excess after with a paper towel.
   
7. After that, I use The Ordinary’s Hyaluronic Acid. You can look up the full benefits but it can help with skin elasticity and smoothing wrinkles/scars from pimple popping. You can get this MUCH cheaper at Sephora - they’re $7 I believe and this company has a bunch of other serums I want to try. On Sundays and Wednesday’s, I use a Mask Sheet. Asian markets sell them but they usually sell them individual and I pay for the big back of 48 here. Helps restore tons of moisture in face and provide different benefits based on the mask you choose but most are the same. They also smell nice!
   
8. One I use the mask and rub it in, I use a mixture of three oils: Kukui, Rosehip, TeaTree Oil. All of them can be found on amazon and have different benefits that tie together. I mix them into a tiny container and do very small dabs into my skin and rub it in. Kukui oil also works as a massage oil as it’s very light and great natural sunscreen (though if you plan to go to the beach wearing regular sunscreen and using the Kukui to seal it in is best).
   
9. Finally, I finish with my Elizabeth Arden Moisture Cream. $55 seems expensive but a little goes a LONG way, I use about enough to cover the whole tip of my finger, a light dip like if you want to taste something for example. You don’t need a lot because at this point your face is already moisturized enough that it should just glide on.
   
10. To finish, since I have hyperpigmentation and get dark spots at the slightest raise on my skin, I use Ambi Dark Spot Corrector. Can be found at target I think, my mom usually buys it. Put light amounts on affected areas and sleep.
    
    *Note: you may need to slowly introduce these products. Most of them are geared toward moisturizing and preventing aging as well. If you do anything, I’m at least recommend exfoliating often, changing pillow cases and properly moisturizing your skin using the sheet masks as well as possibly vitamin E serums. I plan on getting some but have no money rn, but Belei sent me free samples and I loved it. I think The Ordinary also carries some. Also, properly washing your face will probably help as well, and I’d recommend getting at least a spin brush. Over rubbing your face can be harmful to the skin and skin brushes usually clean well enough without harm.
    
    I hope this helps! This is my whole routine but if anything jumps out feel free to not look at everything! I’m of course not a dermatologist but this helped me and I now only get pimples usually if I eat excess of the previously mentioned triggers :) my skin is now brighter and dark spots clear up in about 2-3 months but are usually lighter after about two weeks.

Okay from left to right

Molton brown hydrator
https://www.amazon.de/Molton-Brown-Herren-Hydrator-Feuchtigkeitscreme/dp/B01C34DGVU/

Hylamide cleanser
https://www.amazon.de/Hylamide-High-Efficiency-Detergente-Multiattivo-Efficacia/dp/B01J1JFM7Q/

Alpha lipoic acid
https://www.amazon.de/Ordinary-Alpha-Lipoic-Acid-30ml/dp/B0716Z26N1/

Molton Brown facewash
https://www.amazon.de/MOLTON-BROWN-DETERGENTE-VISO-100ML/dp/B00IRD8BWG

Hyaluronic acid
https://www.amazon.de/Ordinary-Hyaluronic-Hyaluronsäure-Vitaminen-30-ml/dp/B01MYEZPC8/

Retinol 1%
http://theordinary.com/product/rdn-retinol-1pct-30ml
Uk store but posts to DE for around €5

Salicylic acid
http://theordinary.com/product/rdn-salicylic-acid-2pct-solution-15ml
As above

Now the Molton Brown stuff is pricey as hell, it's much cheaper to buy in the UK, so you could probably get advice elsewhere on here for something that's just as good but 1/10th the price. The ordinary stuff you can get for dirt cheap, and I'd probably go to the deciem store http://theordinary.com/ for all of the ordinary products listed above