Oil Cleansing Method
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Sun Jun 26, 2005 8:38 pm

I was over at LHC and saw a post about the Oil Cleansing Method. Then I thought about all the EDS members who have tried this with mixed results and also of DHCC (which really is just a variation of this) and seeing as it was a huge success among LHC members, I decided to try this. Here's what I've experienced so far:

Day 1: Used a 50%/50% mix of grapeseed oil and castor oil. I massaged for about 7 minutes and about 5 minutes into it I had 4 dried up sebum plugs come out from my cheek and chin area. Alas the blackheads on my nose refused to budge. After washing off the oil a sticky residue remained and the next day I had 3 white head like inflamations. Maybe I should have used less castor oil! However, there was no visible oil sheen and the next morning I discovered that the cystic acne bump on the side of my face had shrunk significantly. Miraculous!! The stupid thing had been there for over three months...

Day2: Mixed ~1/2 tbsp. grapeseed oil and 4 large drops of castor oil. Only had one sebum plug come out. After washing, skin felt a little tight, but was so very soft and glowy Very Happy

. Also the inflamations from the day before had disappeared without a trace and there were no resulting breakouts this time. Very Happy

Day 3: (Just now) Used the same oil proportions as yesterday. During the massage I not only had a sebum plug come out, but a bunch of smaller black plugs! It seems that I finally got rid of the blackheads that had taken up a permanent residence on my nose. However this has left several gaping (clear) pores right at the tip of my nose. Sad

Hopefully this will clear up.

I will continue to experiment and see how my skin likes this, yet based on the past couple of days I would say that I've been converted to the OCM. Is anybody else here willing to contribute to the experiment?

free skin care · Mon Jun 27, 2005 12:34 am

I use a balm cleanser, which works in the same way. I also use olive oil from time to time and it is a really fab cleaning system. I'd never go back to soap based cleansers!

Bit OT, but don't those girls have lovely hair! I must resist reading the forum till I've done all my work, but I have to find out what they use!

free skin care · Tue Jun 28, 2005 10:51 am

Kayanl, how's it going with the OCM since your last post? This method really intrigues me and will probably try it since my pores on my nose and besides the nose are clogged from sunblock. The only thing I am worried about is if the oil will clog pores more.
And wonder where I can buy castor oil.

K.

Tue Jun 28, 2005 12:07 pm

Okay here it is:
Day 4: Same as days two and three. I still have plugs and blackheads coming out, but not as much as the previous days. Also I haven't had any resulting breakouts since the first day when I fubared the mixture and the cystic acne has completely dried up leaving only a light bruise. I don't know if this is due to OCM or if it's just my skin getting its act together, but the purple acne marks on my cheeks have definately faded so that they're only visible upclose or from a certain angle.

Kk1668: You should be able to find castor oil either at a health food store or at wal*mart (which I despise and am firmly against Mad

) but that's besides the point. It would be either with the cooking oils or digestive aids (i.e. laxatives) depending on the type that you're looking for. Or you could order it online from one of the many sites listed in the various posts here (see homemad recipes, etc.).

free skin care · Tue Jun 28, 2005 1:35 pm

Have you tried grapeseed oil with alpha lipoic and salicylic acid added?

free skin care · Tue Jun 28, 2005 2:21 pm

Sharky wrote:
Have you tried grapeseed oil with alpha lipoic and salicylic acid added?

What is the percentage of each of those?
That sounds lovely!!

free skin care · Fri Jul 01, 2005 5:54 am

You know, it’s funny that you mentioned the LHC board (I was researching how to grow my eyelashes) because they were the ones that turned me on to the miracle curing powers of Castor Oil. Seriously! And I don’t mean swallowing a teaspoon of it, either. My mom has severe back pain and arthritis in various places, and I printed out the castor oil guide that some LHC member posted a link to and took it home to my mom to read. Now she rubs cold-pressed castor oil (not the stuff in the laxative aisle at your local drugstore) on the sites where she has pain, and it it sucks the pain right out of her. I even tried rubbing it on my forehead for my migraines, but it didn’t help with that. I did get relief from my trick ankle by rubbing castor oil on it, though. Now both my mom and I always keep a bottle of CO in our medicine cabinet. I wish I could find the link to that Castor Oil guide for everyone to read because you wouldn’t *believe* the number of ailments it cures!!

free skin care · Fri Jul 01, 2005 8:10 am

Oh god! another oil to add to the list for when I hit something resembling solvency Rolling Eyes

Fri Jul 01, 2005 8:33 am

This interests me. Haven't tried it yet. What is the follow-up, as far as cleansing? I mean, do you just rinse the oil off with water, or is it followed by some type of commercial cleanser?

Sun Jul 03, 2005 6:01 am

Any updates? Can grapeseed oil (only) be used instead of a combination of oils?

Crystal

Mon Jul 04, 2005 12:51 pm

Funny that you asked this. I've switched to using jojoba oil instead of grapeseed for the past several days and my skin is loving this Very Happy

. The jojoba leaves skin feeling bare and dry (but not uncomfortably so) which is a lovely feeling in this humid and hot weather. However, the grapeseed leaves skin feeling well moisturized and slightly damp so this is something that I would use in the winter. Also since the jojoba comes off so much more easily I have been able to increase the amount of castor oil again to a 50%/50% ratio which REALLY does help in removing gunk from the pores.

Does anybody know which essential oils would be good for dry AND oily skin that is sensitive and prone to hormonal acne, and which oils would help with very slow to fade acne scars? It seems that adding essential oils would be effective considering the amount of massaging that has to be done and the amount of time that it needs to be done for in OCM.

free skin care · Mon Jul 04, 2005 1:08 pm

According to my aromatherapy book, lavender and bergamot are both antibac, plus lavender is soothing and healing whilst bergamot is astringent and an antidepressant. Geranium is sebum balancing as well as used to stimulate the lymph to clear out toxins, as is rosemary.

It recommends lavender an neroli to reduce scarring. All oils must be diluted in a carrier oil and then massaged into the skin. It isn't specific about combining the oils though. Maybe a mix of just two at a time would be best?

as to dry skin, chamomile, jasmine, neroli and rose (very recommended), are mentioned, but geranium, lavender and sandalwood are also recommended due to sebum regulation.

HTH, Liz Cool

free skin care · Mon Jul 04, 2005 1:23 pm

I am curious about the same thing Mowgai asked. Do you rinse the oil off with just water? Or water and a cleanser? What happens if you just use 100% castor oil?

Mon Jul 04, 2005 1:57 pm

Yes, just use *hot* water and wipe with a *gentle* wash cloth until all the oil is gone. The only reason pure castor oil isn't used is that it can cleanse too well and leave skin feeling tight and also since castor oil is very viscuous that undiluted it can be practically impossible to remove without the aid of a cleanser (which is what we're trying to avoid with OCM). Trust me too much castor oil is not a good thing. Think skin that feels tight and about to flake all over and yet at the same time feels sticky and greasy. Perfect conditions for a monster breakout!

Mon Jul 04, 2005 2:52 pm

So the castor oil is the key to getting rid of the sebum? I've been using straight grapeseed oil and have seen nothing so far.

Crystal

Mon Jul 04, 2005 4:21 pm

Okay, I've been experimenting with this. I only had jojoba to add to the castor oil, but it sounds like that's probably good anyway. First I tried 3:1 castor oil and jojoba, skin felt a little dry and tight afterwards, but looked good, not at all greasy. No blackheads removed that I could tell.
Next day, I tried about 2:1. This time after about five minutes I felt several little grainy things with my fingers. I managed to visually detect one, and I'm pretty sure it was a very hard blackhead that had been plugging a pore. Hard to tell how many that time - I think I felt 3 or 4 of these little grainy things. I followed up with my home-made Dr. H. to avoid that dry feeling. I mean, it's actually just almond meal and jojoba, so I don't think it's counteracting anything the oil does, but it got rid of the tightness.
This morning: tried the 2:1 again. This time after about five minutes, I felt a number of those little grainy things. Yep, they were really coming out, especially on my cheeks. (I have blackheads on nose, cheeks, and chin). I was so excited, I didn't stop after seven minutes, I kept going as long as felt like anything else was coming out. When the grainy things stopped showing up, I rinsed and did the warm washcloth thing. Althogether, this time I massaged for about eleven minutes. Followed up with my usual JB stuff.
I have to say, I like my skin better today than I have in like, forever. I'm really stoked about the OCM. I hope I can keep getting the results I got today, and can maybe get rid of the ones on my nose. It looks better, but I can still see some there.
I hope there's no adverse effects to going longer than seven minutes. I was just so excited. Laughing

free skin care · Mon Jul 04, 2005 5:28 pm

I'm intrigued and terrified! I wish I felt confident this wouldn't cause me to break out! I love the whole blackheads-going-away thing though! Would the castor oil in the drug store work? Or does it need to be another kind? When you are using it to remove makeup, do you just massage away on top of your makeup? I'm afraid I would just massage my makeup into my skin, why I'm worried I dunno, it's just minerals. Rolling Eyes

free skin care · Tue Jul 05, 2005 7:06 am

kayanl wrote:

Does anybody know which essential oils would be good for dry AND oily skin that is sensitive and prone to hormonal acne, and which oils would help with very slow to fade acne scars? It seems that adding essential oils would be effective considering the amount of massaging that has to be done and the amount of time that it needs to be done for in OCM.

Click here for a fairly complete Essential Oil Guide for Hair and Skin: http://www.essentialdayspa.com/forum/viewthread.php?tid=5922&start=0&postdays=0&postorder=asc&highlight=

To find which oils would be good for dry AND oily skin, check out the section that groups EOs by skin-type and/or condition, then check to see which EOs are cross-referenced for both dry, oily and/or sensitive skin.

The OCM method has me very intrigued so I think I’m going to give it a go in the evenings starting this week. Will keep everyone posted of my results....many thanks to kayanl for bringing the OCM to our attention! Very Happy

Tue Aug 23, 2005 4:45 am

Hello all, I have to bring this subject up again...

I'd like your opinion on something. I've been using OCM for about four weeks now. I haven't been absolutely faithful to it - I have used some other cleansing products as well, but only for a couple of times.

At first I was using only jojoba oil for both cleansing and moisturising and it felt really good. After a while I started using apricot kernel oil in addition to jojoba for cleansing (about 50% each) and about a week ago also a drop of palmarosa essential oil for both cleansing and moisturising.

My problem is that about a week and a half ago my skin broke out. It went from ok condition (I've always had blemishes) to worse than it has been for years. Big red spots that really hurt! At first I thought it was just hormonal, but since the problem seems to persist, I think I have to look for somewhere else to blame...

I remember reading that some people react badly to OCM, but has anyone else experienced this kind of sudden change in the regime that seemed already to have been working very well for some weeks? Do you have any idea whether apricot kernel oil could cause this kind of reaction, has anyone else used it? According to the bottle, it is supposed to work well with blemished skin, but could it be too harsh for mine (a bit sensitive)? It does not smell like anything and does not dry my skin out.

I'm probably going to go back to using just jojoba (and maybe palmarosa) anyway, but I'd still like to hear your opinions and experience on this. Thank you!

free skin care · Wed Aug 24, 2005 1:08 am

Hi Merch

Sorry to hear about your breakouts.

It was the first time I have read this thread, and it seems like such a wonderful method. But like others I am afraid of one of those either 1. overnight huge break outs, or 2. after a few weeks huge break outs.

Perhaps your skin might be going through a late stage purge from the oil cleansing.

I think it is good to persevere with the cleansing method, but try sticking to it completely to see if it is actually one of the factors, like apricot oil or palmarosa, or other cleansers, that is causing it.

Is there any change to lifestyle, diet too?

Mon Aug 29, 2005 12:23 am

Hi Miranets, thank you for replying. I did continue using all of those oils and after a couple of days, my skin did get better! It's still not as good as it was when I first started using OCM, though... but maybe in time it will be. Maybe it was like you said, my skin was a bit slow to react to the method. There were no changes in my diet or lifestyle, so it must have been something else anyway.

I'll stick with the method at least for a few weeks more and see how it's going to be. It would be nice to hear from other users as well, how many of us have continued using the method for more than a couple of months? I myself feel that I may give up on it, unless I'll see a dramatic change for better in the next couple of weeks.

free skin care · Tue Aug 30, 2005 2:16 am

Merch

I am glad your skin cleared up. I know how it feels when you try something new and hope it will at least NOT cause havoc on your skin, if not just keep it in a nice condition. It is frustrating having to wait a good few months to see if a certain routine is definitely working out.

I will try the OCM soon, and HOPE it will not make me feel really gross all day with the oil film left!

Mon Sep 05, 2005 8:14 pm

How is this the OCM going for you guys? Still using it. Any negative reactions yet?

I'm very interested in this approach. I do have some cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil in the cupboard and the cold-pressed castor oil is available at Whole Foods. I like the idea of such a simple, all-natural approach to skin care.

Tempting to try but my skin is calm right now, so I'm afraid to mess with it.

free skin care · Wed Feb 08, 2006 3:04 am

I've tried OCM three times now and it is definitely breaking me out! I tried to focus on any clogged pores around my nose and on the part of my cheeks near my nose and that is precisely the area where I am breaking out. In some cases there are tiny white heads but there are also areas where it gave me bumpy skin. I'm a bit disappointed so far and don't know if I'll continue with this.

Wed Feb 08, 2006 5:43 pm

OCM made me break out when I first tried it. I used 50/50 of both CO and EVOO because I have combo skin. I thought that half of each would be just fine. Well it made me break out like crazy so I quit until I could find some essential oils and some jojoba.

For the past two weeks I've been using a mix of 75/25 jojoba and CO along with geranium, lemon, bergamot, and ylang ylang EO's at night. I follow up with my ACV toner which has all the same EO's. After that my vitamin C serum goes on. In the mornings I use my homemade DHCC with all of the above mentioned oils except for lemon. And once a week I use an aspirin mask made of the crushed aspirin and some raw honey. Every single one of my pimples has cleared up on it's own and even the broken capillaries all over my cheeks and nose are fading. My skin isn't dry or overly moisturized. I think I finally found my formula Very Happy

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