So Your Clarisonic Made Your Skin Breakout?

LOTS of girls were "surprised" (aka told someone exactly what they wanted) with a Clarisonic this holiday season: the holy grail of skin care. If you're like me, you went bananas using it two or three times right away. And, most likely, your skin started breaking out like it was picture day in 7th grade.

Only after a small (okay, medium) meltdown over the giant waste of money and expectations, I finally read the instructions and scoped out the online boards. I managed to reel in my Clarisonic use and haven't had a zit since. Here are some of the tips that helped my already fairly breakout-prone skin, which will hopefully help you too:

• STEP AWAY FROM THE CLARISONIC. Yes, you. Put it down. I used mine 5 times in the first two days, like a psycho, and my skin did not appreciate it. The online boards recommended that you only use it once a day (either forever, or at least until you get used to it). I stepped away from it for a full 24 hours (which also gave me the chance to do the full charge they recommend. Oops.) and then started using it only in my morning shower.

• Don't push so hard! I, too, was super psyched to deep clean those nasty pores, so I was scrubbing my face for dear life. The boards said to gently let the Clarisonic glide over your face. It's really tempting to push harder, which is why I try to use as few fingers as possible to hold it.

• Use the lowest setting (at least for now while you are getting acclimated). I figured this one out on my own, but in case you haven't: The Mia 2 is set on low speed if the bottom LED half-oval is lit up. To change speeds, press the speed button while the Mia 2 is on.

• Throw away (or put aside) the little face wash that it comes with. Use your normal face wash for a properly controlled experiment. (Hot tip: I didn't use it, but Jill said that the Clarisonic wash made her face red, and she has sturdy Greek skin...) Once you've gotten your skin under control, you can start experimenting with other face washes.

• Wash your makeup off FIRST. If you are just soaping on top of your makeup, you are just shoving the makeup deeper into your skin. This is why I decided to use mine in the morning.

• Consider buying one of the gentler brush heads. Even though I've curbed the breakouts, I still feel like the standard brush is a little too hardcore for my sensitive skin. It looks like the Acne or the Delicate brushes are the most gentle.

• Realize that you might be going through a purging stage. Think about it: you are rustling up all the gunk that's been buried deep in your skin. Some people on the interwebz swear that this is normal and some say it's a gimmick so you won't return it immediately. Try the rest of these tips and see if your purging stage subsides.

• After trying all this, you may just realize that the Clarisonic is not for everyone. If you can't return it, try using it on your dry winter hands (maybe even feet, if you're sure you won't be using it on your face again!). Or, you could always buy a brand new brush head and try selling it on eBay.

Do you have a Clarisonic? What do you think?