OCM: Purge or Breakout?
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Thu Aug 18, 2011 3:19 pm

I started the Oil Cleansing method about 2 months ago and need some answers.

I seemed to have done everything right: I bought high quality organic cold pressed oils, stored them in my fridge, used clean towels to wipe the oils off and massged the oils in for 2 to 5mins tops. Moreover, I only did the OCM twice a week & I made absolutely sure to wipe off all the oil after doing it (since I read so many horror stories about people beaking out after leaving traces of oil on their skin). I used a mix of 25% Castor Oil and 75% Jojoba Oil. Sometimes I add in a dash of avocado oil if I feel like my sky feels dry. I cleanse with Spectro Jel almost daily.

At first my skin looked amazing and I was so happy, but when that time of the month comes I develop a few big boils. They are deeply rooted and hurt. My sister, a trained beautician, had to extract some for me. she told me that they were infected milia. One boil even left minor scarring on my forehead. Now that the boils have started to heal my skin is breaking out in little whiteheads all over. My skin felt smooth up until this week: now when I touch it it feels bumpy.

I do not know how much longer I should continue with OCM (if at all). I bought tea tree oil and decided to add that to my mixture... but I am unsure... I am starting to think the Castor Oil builds up on your skin and causes breakouts.

Should I hang in there and hope that this is just a purge? Or should I stop now?

My skin just keeps on looking worse and worse...

free skin care · Thu Aug 18, 2011 3:43 pm

OCM doesn't work well for everyone. I tried with my own combination of oils, castor oil & something else, then tried a store bought concoction. All it did was waste my time & give me pimples (and i don't normally get pimples). I have dry/dehydrated skin, for reference.

free skin care · Thu Aug 18, 2011 3:45 pm

You're breaking out from the oils, and I'd suggest stopping now before you do any more damage. Either those particular oils are not for you or no oils are. I break out (cystic type bumps) from any oil other than mineral oil.

Thu Aug 18, 2011 4:41 pm

Thank you Girls!

I am in my mid twenties and I have dehydrated combination skin. I get minors breakouts when it is that time of the month.

My face seems to like avocado and sweet almond oils. I think I might omit the Castor Oil and just clean my face with those two.

I am also thinking of washing my face with raw honey; I heard it can make your face glow.

No more OCM for me!!

free skin care · Thu Aug 18, 2011 5:14 pm

Are you washing the oil away with lots of warm water?

Thu Aug 18, 2011 5:58 pm

Yes I made sure to have washed off all of the oil.

free skin care · Thu Aug 18, 2011 6:05 pm

mavala wrote:

Yes I made sure to have washed off all of the oil.

Then I would definitely take a break from it!

free skin care · Fri Aug 19, 2011 3:44 am

Some people need to use a cleanser to fully wash away the oils. But what jumps out at me is the jojoba. It can definitely cause breakouts for some. Either switch out the jojoba to another oil to just stop OCM all together. Finding the right oils for your skin can be a process sometimes.

free skin care · Fri Aug 19, 2011 4:45 am

Jojoba Oil is quite expensive too. I use Olive and Castor Oil and have never had a problem - but I do wash the oil away very thoroughly with lots of warm water.

free skin care · Fri Aug 19, 2011 9:05 am

Or you may consider to add 10% to 15% of emulsifier to the oil. I use Olive Oil PEG 7 Esters and it is available inwww.theherbarie.com orwww.gardenofwisdom.com.

Fri Aug 19, 2011 5:06 pm

Thanks again everyone! I might try OCM again with an avocado oil and castor oil mix... maybe the Jojoba Oil is the culprit and not the Castor Oil like I thought.

Summer2004- Pardon my ignorance, what is an emulsifier? And what does it do exactly?

free skin care · Fri Aug 19, 2011 5:35 pm

mavala wrote:

Thanks again everyone! I might try OCM again with an avocado oil and castor oil mix... maybe the Jojoba Oil is the culprit and not the Castor Oil like I thought.

Summer2004- Pardon my ignorance, what is an emulsifier? And what does it do exactly?

In my opinion, I don't think it's the jojoba. Jojoba is very similar to the skin's natural sebum, so your skin should be able to tolerate it very well... unless the issue is that you break out because you skin doesn't tolerate your own sebum, then it could be possible but I never heard of this happening.

And to answer your question, an emulsifier is basically something like polysorbate 20/80 and it basically makes it easier to wash off oils (sort of like a soap would do to remove grime and grease)

free skin care · Fri Aug 19, 2011 6:53 pm

IMHO castor oil is the smoking gun for getting out all those plugs that are so satisfying, if you omitted that one, it wouldn't really be cleansing if thats what you are going for. I personally couldn't handle the OCM, tried various oils. Interestingly enough I tolerate DRHCC and the Dermalogica Precleanse Oil perfectly, although its not really OCM.

free skin care · Sat Aug 20, 2011 2:54 am

You really have to try out a few more formulas before you get it right. At the beginning I tried mixing my own cleansing oil but I found that it sometimes went off and bought ready made ones from the shops. After trying a few, I am settled with Fancl.
Saying that, as many have said, OCM doesnt work for everyone. If you find that you react to it adversely, quit using OCM,

Sat Aug 20, 2011 7:49 am

Yeah I know Castor Oil draws out the plugs, but if it is the cause of painful boils and breakouts I have to live without it.

For the past three nights I have been cleaning my face with a mixture of avocado & sweet almond oil (1:1 ratio) and a few drops of tea tree oil. I really find that this mixture has helped to heal my skin significantly! It really gets my skin clean and moisturized, although it does not it does not draw out the plugs. My whiteheads have dried up & I have not had any new breakouts.

I *might* try OCM tonight or tomorrow, but this time without jojoba oil (I don't have much left anyways). I will just add some castor oil to my avocado/tea tree/sweet almond oil mixture and hope for the best.

I am thinking this horrible breakout may have been a purging stage after all.. but I am still not sure.

Any more thoughts or advice will be appreciated!

free skin care · Sat Aug 20, 2011 8:44 am

Keliu wrote:

Jojoba Oil is quite expensive too. I use Olive and Castor Oil and have never had a problem - but I do wash the oil away very thoroughly with lots of warm water.

I use this oil combo also, except i wash it off with dove soap or aha cleanser. In any case clean the oil off afterwards with or without cleanser but leave the tea tree oil in.

free skin care · Sat Aug 20, 2011 8:19 pm

I also echo the recommendation to try OCM with washing off all the oils with soap afterwards. If you try that for a while, it will tell you whether or not the problem was oil from the OCM being left on your face. Then you can experiment further with that newfound knowledge. Regardless, best wishes Smile

free skin care · Sun Aug 21, 2011 2:05 am

I'm also in favour of using a non-alcoholic toner after cleansing.

Also, people's definition of "washing" can be different. Some people are happy to give the face a quick wipe - but I can't stress enough how important it is to thoroughly wash away the oils. The key word is CLEANSING - so the face must be squeaky clean.

free skin care · Tue Aug 23, 2011 3:38 am

Its the residue of oil left on the face after OCM that has caused breakout disregard the choice and combination of oil used. Emulsifer is the key thing to help wash away such oil residue . I guess you may not have it handy at home to DIY your cleansing oil, but i sure you do have a bottle of cleansing milk which already contains emulsifer. Try tonite after the OCM, splash some cleansing milk with DRY hand on DRY face, massage and wash away as usual. See for yourself if u need to wash again with a mild gel cleanser.

I have really oily skin and wear make up daily. I used to repeat to wash my face with foaming cleanser twice or even three times every night and still find my face was not thoroughly cleaned up. Some times i thought i overcleaned my face and felt dry but still i saw dirts and clogged pores. Then once i got to know some dirts are oil soluble, the OCM melts those dirts but does not carry it away. Cleansing oil ie. the make up remover oil does the job to carry away dirts when it is emulsifed by adding water to it. However, the proper procedure to do with dry hand has to be followed.

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