What Invisible acne patches should I try

Adult acne hit me like a 20-something Mack truck. Until recently, I was convinced it was some sort of cosmic payback for not falling victim to adolescent acne as a teenager. My peers battled breakouts throughout middle school and high school, but I was lucky enough to have relatively clear skin as a tween and teen. I remember telling myself that I shouldn't take my thankfulness for granted, but I had no idea that my time to shine (literally) would come later.

After everyone else seemed to have gotten past this annoying skin stage, I dealt with the breakout while trying to interview for a job, was taken seriously in meetings, and seemed to be maturing into civilization. (By the way, the problem isn't purely superficial. It's painful, takes forever to prepare, destroys confidence, costs money to treat and cover up, and takes up space in an already bursting sense of self.) Not only does it stink, but you're expected to have acne at junior prom, first date or attend a salary negotiation meeting with a demented chin? N-o-p-e.

I've tried a lot of over-the-counter acne spot treatments, among them salicylic acid and other benzoyl peroxides; one changed color as it dried, the other swiped with a medication-soaked wipe. Some of them tingled calmly, others burned and stung, and almost all of them left me with dry, sensitive skin that became even drier and more sensitive. Then there is the one that rubbed off my favorite pillowcase and permanently stained it. I can't exactly say that nothing went wrong - I'm sure they all helped to some degree - but I couldn't find one, reliable and consistent ointment for my angry zits. In short, I needed a hero.

My favorite non-prescription acne fighter was the lowest maintenance of them all, and came in the form of tiny, almost invisible adhesive stickers: Cosrx Acne Pimple Master Patches ($20 for a 4-pack of 24 patches; amazon.com ). My colleague at the time had an extra sample pack in his office, which I greedily accepted. Being the self-proclaimed skeptic that I am, I was willing to try anything at that point, and was pleasantly surprised. You simply apply one patch at night to clean skin, right above the offending acne, and peel it off easily in the morning (or when the patch turns white). These little guys are affordable, discreet, odorless, waterproof, sticky, non-irritating, and effective. All without excessive dryness, stinging, burning, tingling, or pain to peel off.

Are they pure, unadulterated magic? Can I promise you that you will sleep with them on and wake up with skin as white as Jennifer Lopez's? No, not completely. But the power of these patches not only reduces the size and redness of acne quickly and quietly, but also helps pull the gunk out of inflamed areas, making them more manageable and easier to expel (gently, and only when necessary), and healing faster.

What I like most about these patches is that they don't guarantee some sort of hyperbolic cure (all or acne witchcraft). The very real Amazon reviews back this up.

These patches have changed my life. I have sensitive, dry skin and suffer from hormonal acne. I couldn't find an affordable product to prevent it, but at least now I have a way to heal it quickly, a costume maker writes on Amazon. My face has gone from being covered in acne to occasional pimples that disappear. It doesn't work on all acne, and it may take a few applications to get it to work on the deeper ones, but I think it solves 90% of them.

Thanks to a few trips to the dermatologist, my skin is now drinking a cocktail of unpronounceable topical formulas that keep the once-unmanageable flare-ups at bay. But that doesn't mean I don't get acne anymore. Naturally fluctuating hormones, a few nights without proper sleep, a long flight, or a round of particularly sweet margaritas often invite a new scar (or three) on my face. The difference is that now, instead of feeling a sense of helpless doom and rage, I can reach for a fuss-free acne patch and be confident that the zit will disappear in days instead of weeks.