Our top treatments for acne + breakouts

Treatments We Love for Stubborn Breakouts

Stubborn breakouts usually need more than one aggressive product or a quick fix. In fact, constantly stripping, exfoliating, and “drying out” acne can leave the skin barrier irritated and make an already inflamed complexion harder to manage.

Our approach is different: reduce inflammation, support the skin barrier, clear congestion when appropriate, and create consistency.

Acne is multifactorial, which is why the right treatment plan can look different from one person to the next. Even dermatology guidelines emphasize that there isn't one universal treatment for every type of breakout.

Here are some of our favorite in-treatment tools for stubborn, congested, and breakout-prone skin.

DMK Enzyme Therapy

DMK Enzyme Therapy is one of our go-to treatments when we want to take a more comprehensive approach to the skin.

Rather than simply focusing on what's happening at the surface, the treatment is designed to support the skin's natural functioning while giving us an opportunity to address congestion, inflammation, texture, and overall skin health.

For clients dealing with recurring breakouts, we often incorporate enzyme therapy into a longer-term treatment plan rather than expecting one treatment to do all the work.

Sulfur Masques

Sulfur is a longtime favorite for oily, congested, breakout-prone skin.

We love incorporating sulfur masques strategically, especially when the skin is experiencing active blemishes and excess oil. The key word is strategically—we don't believe acne-prone skin needs to feel stripped or painfully dry in order for a treatment to be effective.

Our goal is always to calm the breakout without compromising the rest of the skin.

Customized Facials

There is a reason we don't believe in treating every acne client exactly the same.

One person's skin may be oily and resilient, while another person's breakouts are sitting underneath a dehydrated, reactive barrier. The treatment that works beautifully for one could be far too aggressive for the other.

During a customized facial, we assess what's happening in your skin that day and adjust accordingly. That may mean focusing heavily on congestion and extractions during one appointment, then prioritizing hydration and calming inflammation during the next.

Acne treatment should evolve with your skin.

Blue LED Light

Blue LED can be a great addition to an acne-focused treatment, particularly for inflammatory pimples. Visible blue light is used as an adjunctive acne treatment, although light therapy typically works best as one piece of a broader treatment plan rather than as a standalone solution.

We love using it after we've done the hands-on portion of a facial because it's completely non-invasive and allows the skin to simply rest.

High Frequency

High frequency is another tool we may incorporate after extractions or over areas of active congestion.

It's especially useful when we want to give certain breakout-prone areas a little extra attention without adding another exfoliating step. As with everything we do, whether we use it depends on what your skin needs and whether you're an appropriate candidate.

Cooling + Calming Masks

Sometimes the best thing you can do for acne is calm it down.

When the skin is hot, red, reactive, or inflamed, piling on more aggressive treatments isn't always the answer. Cooling masks can help soothe the appearance of redness and give irritated skin a much-needed break.

We often finish acne-focused treatments with calming, cooling ingredients to bring the skin back into balance.

Hydration, Hydration, Hydration

One of the biggest misconceptions we see is that acne-prone skin needs to be dried out.

It doesn't.

Acne and dehydration can absolutely exist at the same time. When someone is constantly cleansing, exfoliating, spot treating, and avoiding moisturizer, their barrier can become increasingly irritated.

Gentle skincare is an important part of managing acne, and dermatologists specifically caution that irritating the skin can contribute to more breakouts.

That's why hydration and barrier support are a huge part of our acne philosophy. We want the skin functioning well—not just temporarily feeling less oily.

Thoughtful Extractions

There is a big difference between picking at your skin at home and having appropriate lesions professionally extracted.

For the right type of congestion, extractions can help physically clear clogged pores. Dermatologists also use acne extraction for certain blackheads and whiteheads that don't clear with treatment.

But more isn't always better. We never want to aggressively extract something that isn't ready, because unnecessary trauma can lead to more inflammation and increase the risk of post-breakout marks.

The Goal Isn't to Attack Your Skin

When you're dealing with stubborn breakouts, it's tempting to throw everything at them.

More acids. More exfoliation. More spot treatments. More drying products.

But sometimes acne-prone skin needs less aggression and more consistency.

Our favorite approach combines targeted treatments like DMK Enzyme Therapy, sulfur masques, customized facials, blue LED, high frequency and thoughtful extractions with the less glamorous—but incredibly important—pieces like hydration, barrier support and calming inflammation.

And most importantly, we give the skin time.

If breakouts are deep, painful, cystic, scarring, or aren't responding to professional skincare, we also believe in knowing when to refer to a dermatologist. Severe or persistent acne can require medical treatment alongside supportive professional skincare.

Clearer skin isn't about doing the most. It's about figuring out what your skin needs and staying consistent long enough to let it work.