beauty and allergies?

Let's talk for a moment about how I became obsessed with the Simple face wipes. And how, a year ago, I casually noticed that my skin felt better using those than when I used my regular cleanser and water. I tucked that vital information into into the back of my mind and went blindly forward with my acne crusade.

Fast forward to a few weeks ago when I was getting my makeup done for Frank's wedding. The makeup artist kept commenting on how the bumps on my face didn't look like acne and they looked more like an allergic reaction. I brushed her comments off because I was rushed and wanted her to finish my makeup so I could get moving.

Then when she was doing my mom's makeup, she kept insisting that I was allergic to something, probably my shampoo. We were hurried and running late and it wasn't until recently that my mom brought up the makeup artist's comments and persistence.

I started to think about it. She's a makeup artist. She sees all kinds of skin conditions every day. She might actually know what she's talking about.
(unlike the hurried dermatologists who are more concerned with prescribing medications) Plus, I have developed issues on my scalp that have gotten worse and she mentioned shampoo specifically.

So I figured, what the heck. My skin's not getting any better.

I had no idea what to try, so I made a few calculated changes:
-Since my skin behaves better when I use the Simple wipes, I purchased a Simple cleanser and stopped using Cetaphil.
-I decided the best place to start looking for a natural shampoo would be Whole Foods. I randomly picked up two shampoo/conditioners in a travel size to try.

I used the shampoo for a couple days and immediately my scalp began to clear up. Like, HUGE difference.
Then I traveled and forgot it at home and had to use hotel shampoo. Immediately and painfully, my scalp broke out.
Then I came back home and began using the new shampoo again, and my scalp cleared up within 2 days. The new shampoo definitely made a difference.

So I started checking the labels on allll my old shampoo bottles and comparing them to the new shampoo. The main difference between them? The new shampoo didn't contain sodium lauryl sulfate.

Then I checked the Cetaphil cleanser. It also contained sodium lauryl sulfate. I stood in the shower shocked. I thought it was supposed to be a super gentle cleanser for sensitive skin. It might actually be causing the issues?? What??

I even googled it and in the images I saw pictures of people with rashes on their face exactly like what I struggled with during the Great Mysterious Face Rash of 2015. DUDE.

So now I'm living a sls-free existence and so far I've noticed a huge difference on my scalp.
We'll see if it makes a difference on my face, as that still tends to fluctuate with hormones.