CLearing acne is more than just skincare and nutrition

When people ask me what helped clear my acne, they usually expect me to list all the foods to avoid if you have acne, or the best skincare products to clear breakouts. And don’t get me wrong, nutrition and skincare were huge parts of my journey (I am a qualified skin nutritionist after all!), but other things that helped me along the way, too. If you have read my story already, you will know that after nearly ten years of acne, those two years of focusing deeply on nutrition and lifestyle felt like a complete turning point – compared to the decade of struggling, the healing process after making diet and lifestyle changes felt fast.

But as I got deeper into the world of nutrition and functional medicine, I started realising that wellness goes far beyond what you eat or put on your face. It’s your environment, your nervous system, your thoughts, your past experiences, even the people around you.

So I want to share the unexpected things that helped clear my skin, the things no one told me about. The things that were not food or skincare.

Life Coaching

I know what you’re thinking, life coaching? How can that help my skin?

Well, on my wellness journey I came across Robin Sharma’s work, and he says to use joy as a GPS. To me this meant letting your feelings of joy or happiness guide your decisions, like an internal compass to help you get on the right path.

It got me thinking, how many things in my daily life actually make me feel better about myself? Certain friends, my (then) full-time job in an office, my environment?. Things just felt off in my personal life, like I was stuck, trapped and honestly a bit fed up and lost with life.

So I tried life coaching.

And I’m not exaggerating, it was honestly life-changing for me. Life coaching helped me work out my core values and gave me direction. Once I was clear on those, I started making decisions that aligned with them. If something did not match one of my core values, I either stopped doing it or started working towards a future where I did not have to.

How Life Coaching Helped Clear My Acne

It helped me realise the environment I thrive in. Working a structured 9-5 in an office all day was making me feel depressed, but at that moment, it was serving a purpose. It was paying my bills and helping me invest to get the business off the ground. Life coaching helped me see that for me to be happy I would have to aim to eventually run my own business. So I could have more freedom in the hours I worked and actually enjoy what I do on a daily basis. It gave me a little more motivation to keep going with my 9-5 and put the effort into the business on the side, this had to work.

It gave me the confidence to say no to things that weren’t good for me.

Have you ever gone out with a group of ‘friends’ and come back home feeling a bit rubbish about yourself? Whether it was due to them not being supportive, engaging in things you don’t really want to do anymore (drinking, gossiping etc), or just not really feeling a genuine friendship. That was happening way too often, and I needed to let go of those people (or spend less time with them!). I said no to events that drained me, no to friends who made me feel bad about myself, and no to trends or routines that did not feel right.

And I know you might still be wondering how life coaching helps your skin.

Well, remember stress has a huge impact on our gut health, our nutrient levels, our skin, and our hormones. It literally slows down your healing. So if you feel out of place, depressed and stressed in your everyday life, how is your skin going to heal? Life coaching helped me change my environment so that I was happier and less stressed, and guess what – my skin got better!

Acupuncture

Acupuncture is something I learnt about while studying but I never had the funds to commit to regular sessions. I like to give things a fair chance to work before I decide if they help or not, so I wanted to do at least six sessions before deciding if it worked for me. Once I had the money, I booked in with Laura, an incredible acupuncturist based in Sutton Coldfield who I regularly refer clients to now!

Can acupuncture help clear acne?

Around this time I had burnt myself out trying to run a business while working full-time. My PCOS symptoms flared up again. My periods were becoming irregular, painful and I felt exhausted. I was breaking out, taking painkillers for period pain and just not feeling like myself.

After a few sessions with Laura my period pain actually vanished, and from speaking to her clients, I learnt that it can also help manage endometriosis-related pain too. I am not saying acupuncture will fix everything overnight, but it really helped me manage things. I felt calmer, my skin started to settle and I had more energy again. There is something so powerful about giving your body space to reset. I genuinely looked forward to those sessions because they were so relaxing.

Hypnotherapy

I have tried lots of types of therapy over the years, and I will always say this: finding the right therapist, and right type of therapy is key. If you do not connect with one do not give up, keep trying until you find a therapist you really connect and feel comfortable with.

Is your mind holding you back from clear skin?

For me, hypnotherapy was something that really helped to reframe my beliefs. I worked with Elyssa Desai and used her hypnotherapy recordings every day for 30 days. The shift in my mindset was honestly crazy. I have always struggled with negative thoughts about myself. I realised that a subconscious belief I had about myself was that I felt like I was not good enough. So when something went wrong, I spiralled big time because it was proof to my brain that I wasn’t good enough – I make mistakes and everything goes wrong.

I’d also noticed that even when my skin cleared, I could still find faults with it. I used to think ‘once my acne clears I’ll be happy’ and then it did clear and I still wasn’t happy! Why? Because I had an underlying belief that my skin was bad, it made me ugly.

After a few weeks of listening to the recordings, something changed. I would still get a spot now and then but the spiral of negative thoughts did not come with it. It was just – oh I have a spot – and then I moved on. I also noticed I stopped looking in the mirror and quite literally ripping myself apart with negative thoughts, like ‘oh I look awful today’, those thoughts went away. It was really weird, actually (but obviously a huge win). I found that I stopped obsessing over having ‘perfect skin’.

I used to think mindset work was all a bit woo-woo. Saying affirmations in the mirror like ‘my skin is clear and healthy’ when it clearly was not, used to stress me out even more – I didn’t believe what I was saying and it was making me feel worse. But hypnotherapy helped those beliefs shift from the inside out, and it really did make huge changes to my life.

Spending More Time Outside and Doing Things I Enjoy

Look, I have been there and know that when you are overwhelmed, tired and anxious, the last thing you want to do is something that is good for you. Like exercising, eating healthy food or going to bed early. It feels better to curl up on the sofa, eat a load of pizza or ice cream and doom scroll online (I know because I have done it).

How Hobbies & Nature could Help Clear Acne

But forcing yourself to do something you enjoy is good for your skin.

When you do something you love, your brain releases feel-good chemicals like serotonin. It lowers your stress hormones and calms your nervous system. Getting outside, going for a walk, listening to the birds, looking at the colours of nature, watching the seasons change through the months (I actually love watching the seasonal flowers pop up throughout the year), all of these help switch off your amygdala, the part of your brain that has a huge influence on negative emotions (like fear and anxiety). It helps your brain chill out a bit and gives your body a chance to heal.

Ask yourself, when did you last do something you actually enjoy? How many times a week do you engage in a hobby? Do you even have a hobby? I know I didn’t for the longest time, my only hobby was the gym and I didn’t even really enjoy that (no hate to the gym, it’s just not my kind of ‘fun’). It felt like life was just about work and chores.

Try something new!

Go to a pottery class, try some gardening (watching seedlings pop up and fruit grow is so much fun), painting, or join a dance class. It doesn’t matter what it is, as long as it feels fun and takes your mind off worries. Hobbies are not just a nice extra, they are part of your self-care and healing toolkit. And if you’re struggling to think about what you might like doing, think back to when you were a child. What activities did you do in your spare time? What were your favourite lessons at school?

Reiki

I love Reiki. Some people find it a bit out there but honestly do not knock it until you have tried it. Reiki is a type of energy healing, and even if you do not believe in the energetic side of it, just the deep relaxation it brings is enough of a benefit on its own.

I came out of Reiki feeling like my brain had been switched off, it felt empty but in a good way! Reiki sessions put me into such a calm, peaceful state. And we all know stress is a huge driver for health issues, including acne. Even if you think Reiki is just a glorified nap you will still get something out of it. I came out of every session feeling lighter, calmer and more grounded. My sleep was also amazing afterwards (another win for skin healing!).

Final Thoughts

I still believe nutrition and skincare are key foundations for healthy skin but they are not the only pieces of the puzzle. Sometimes the things that make the biggest difference are the ones no one really talks about.

If you are on your skin healing journey and feel like you have tried all the food, supplements and skincare, maybe it is time to zoom out. Ask yourself how you feel after spending time with certain people. Look at what brings you joy. Give your nervous system a break. Explore some of these therapies and see what resonates.

Skin healing is not always a straight line but I promise there is more support out there than you realise. And it might just come from the most unexpected places.