Ratgirldjh (Austin, Texas, USA) on 09/30/2009

the oil cleansing method did did not work for me either. it ended up making my skin drier (i guess it really does remove oil) and also gave me cystic pimples too.what helped me a lot - was to start using a tiny bit of baking soda and a wet face to exfoliate. then i use very diluted ACV afterwards to balance my skin back out.
after a few days of this my cystic pimples started clearing up. some are taking longer.
i think that why the oil cleansing method doesn't work for everyone is that you are actually massaging the oil into the pores and some pores are too small for it to come back out very well...
even with the steaming hot washcloth i still has this problem :(
i thought about steaming my face to try and get rid of the cystic pimples and it did help when i did it with water alone or a little ACV over a pot and then used a washcloth on my skin - or did the baking soda afterwards...
Tee (Chicago, Il) on 09/28/2009

Well I wasn't so lucky with the oil cleansing method. I wanted to know is there any kind of tool or product that can just suck the junk from under my skin. I saw a pore cleanser advertised a few years ago any recommedations? The stuff is like stuck in my skin til i squeeze it out and it stinks bad. I also have patches of these tiny bumps they never seems to go away on there own. Is there a name for this condition or is it just acne?
Misha (Binghamton, New York) on 04/28/2009

I tried the oil cleansing method for about a month. It did not work for my skin, fairly balanced, normal skin with a slightly oily T-zone. I combined olive oil and castor oil (1/2 a drop of each), applied to my face, then steamed my face with a hot wash cloth for about 5-10 minutes. I then used the damp wash cloth to wipe away the excess oil. I did this process 1x per day at night and used olive oil soap in the morning. My skin absolutely glowed...for four days. AFTERWARDS, my skin broke out like never before! Hard cystic acne that hurt to the touch! Yikes!!! I actually contemplated going to the dermatologist it was so bad! I figured I was using the wrong combination of oils for my skin, so then I tried jojoba and castor oil for three weeks. This oil combination improved the condition of my skin, but not significantly.I have since discontinued use of the oil cleansing method as I find it does not work for my skin. I have resumed my use of oil free cleansers and my skin is starting to clear up, however it still has quite a way to go before it returns to its "normal state"!
I still use jojoba oil as a light moisturizer for my face with good results.