Dear Skin Care Expert,

I have been having problems with acne for some time now. From time to time my acne seems to get a bit better, only to come back again with a vengeance. Is there something that I’m doing that is making my acne problem worse? Please help me out here!   
    -  Frustrated in Phoenix

Dear Frustrated,

Wow, this can be a frustrating problem. In some cases, it may not actually be you that is causing this problem; however, there are a variety of different things that can make acne worse. If you happen to be a female, one thing that can really cause acne to flare up is changing hormone levels. This can happen a few days before you period and can send your body all out of whack, causing your acne to flare up again. However, this isn’t the only thing that can cause acne to flare up.

If you are scrubbing your skin too hard, it can actually cause your acne to flare up as well, and picking or squeezing your pimples can cause this problem too. If you often lean on your skin or rub it with your fingers from time to time, this could be contributing to those flare ups that occur every once in awhile. Even pollution or high humidity outside can contribute to more breakouts, not to mention the pressure from tight collars, such as turtlenecks, pressure from helmets or hats, or even the pressure from a backpack. All these are things to consider and avoid if you want to keep those flare-ups from occurring again and again.