Adios cows!

Next major attempt at eradicating the acne circus performing on my face: Dairy-free!!!

 

My plan is to go without dairy for at least 3 months, and see what happens. I've read that the hormones from cows remain in the dairy foods we eat, and can affect our hormones. Also, dairy products contain protein casein, which is difficult for human digestion. Digestive and hormonal issues are very much linked to acne. Plus, a restriction from dairy greatly lessens my possibilities in the realm of desserts, which is always a good thing. For I am a chocoholic. Therefore, thees eez me next challenge!

 

And just because I love funny cat photos...



 

 

You're welcome.

 

This week I also tried a kitchen rememdy for shrinking pores: egg whites. You just whisk up one little bad boy and slap him on. Let it dry for about 15 minutes or so, and then rinse. Voila! Pores sucked tight into submission!

 

One blog I read also suggested taking the inner skin of the egg shell, and placing pieces of it on pimples. Hence the weird white patches on my face. What I read stated to practice the egg-white remedy 1-2 times a week, so I think I'll give it a whirl for a while. Try it too if you wish!



A Flop?

This Tuesday marks Day 30 of the challenge.

The first week of the challenge, I handled the No Picking experiment quite well. But I caved, and popped a white head. No one can eat just one Goldfish cracker. And I cannot pop just one pimple. It always leads to more picking, and I just never stopped after my first week of victory.

So was the challenge a flop? Perhaps. Most of my other attempts to quit lasted about a week.

I do not feel, however, that this venture has been all for naught. Yesterday I went to our local walking trail without a stitch of makeup, and I didn't really mind it. Opening up via the web has allowed me to feel less self-conscious about my acne. I've realized that going sans makeup will not cause the earth to cease turning.

 



I do, however, wish to continue the fight against picking. Anyone have any ideas?

Day Eleven

It's Day Eleven of the challenge, and I've come to an impasse.

Of the numerous times I have attempted to quit picking, this is usually the time that I give up and give in. I cheated... bad. I've been picking for a few days now, to the point where my face is worse than the day I began the challenge. My ingrained perfectionism and need for control beckons me to call it quits. "If I can't be perfect, why try?"

 



I came to the realization long ago that picking is a sin. I dare not trust that God created my body in such a way that it heals itself when allowed to. Rather, I grasp for control and determine to do something about it. Like a good American, I pull myself up by my bootstraps and take action.

But this is not the way to conquer sin. In his book, Celebration of Discipline, Dr. Richard Foster writes, "Willpower will never succeed in dealing with the deeply ingrained habits of sin." He goes on to quote Emmet Fox, "As soon as you resist mentally any undesirable or unwanted circumstance, you thereby endow it with more power - power which it will use against you, and you will have depleted your own resources to that exact extent" (p. 5). So what are we to do if resisting sin only makes the situation worse?

Christ alone can alter the wicked heart of man. So do we simply sit back and wait for Him to change us? Not quite. The Apostle Paul wrote, "the one who sows to his flesh will reap corruption from the flesh, but the one who sows to the Spirit will reap eternal life" (Galatians 6:8). In order to experience the transformation of Christ, we must position ourselves to be open to His Spirit.

Dr. Foster offers the example of a farmer. He plants his seeds, waters them, and weeds the ground. He has created the correct environment to grow crops, but he has no power within himself to cause photosynthesis. Similarly, we must create an environment for spiritual growth through reading and meditation of the Word, prayer, corporate worship, and so much more. Only then are we open to accept Christ's remarkable sanctifying work.

So my solution to quit picking? 1. Stop trying to quit. 2. Spend more time in God's presence, utilizing the spiritual disciplines.

I'm pressing on.

 

P.S. So can you.