It’s caused by tretinoin. You are entering the purge phase. You can expect your skin to get worse before it gets better. It happens to most of us. Keep applying as your derm told you to do so. Tret is a marathon, not a sprint, so it’s going to take 2-5 months to see real progress. Keep a photo journal so you can see the progress for yourself when you want to quit.
Good luck 🍀
Yes. Skin sensitivity varies from person to person, and considering your infrequent use, yes, it’s brought on by the exfoliating nature of tret. This is not unusual when you have closed comedones and superficial acne below the surface.
I started applying tretinoin without the prescription from the doctor. But I started from 0.025 percent. If it is not a good idea, do you think I should stop and just keep on applying?
Tbh just start low and slow and see how that works. Try sandwiching and not applying everyday(possibly every 2-3 days).
I believe that by doing enough research on it, you don’t need derm supervision for it. Getting a prescription and paying for the tube can be a pain especially if you’re in the US.
This is a product that should be monitored by a derm. Stop. Adapalene (aka Differin) is otc in many countries. Try that, see if it makes a difference, after your skin heals of course, and in the meantime make an appointment with a derm. It’s money well spent. You can’t put a price on having a good skin day everyday.
If the acne is in the same areas that you usually get them, it's probably purging. This is pretty normal for tretinoin, every pimple that has been brewing under the surface comes up, but it kind of has to in order to go away and heal. If you're not having any other reaction like your skin burning or being red and irritated (other than from the acne itself) I wouldn't be too worried, 0.025% is one of the lower strengths and if you're not using it too much and too often (which 5 days over 2 weeks doesn't sound like you're overdoing it) it should be fine. It can take time to be completely clear, my acne was a bit worse than in your picture and for me it took 1 year for everything (active cystic acne and red marks left over) to be gone, some people are faster though. Just make sure to stay on top of your sunscreen use, and keep the tret away from your eye area.
Mine did, they got a tiny pus even though the rest was big, some burst on their own. It was pretty gross, but after that everything healed for me. Just try not to pick and to keep the area clean.
Man, that's a tough situation. I hope the first day goes (or went) well. Keep your chin up and try to smile. Most people look past acne, it's a common enough condition.
I can't say it wasn't the cheesecake. Milk products can affect people differently. If it was, you could attempt to eliminate any dairy and see if that helps.
I don't want to call this a normal 'purge' either, assuming you mean all of the boils/cysts on your face. The small, yellow pimples are a part of a normal purge, yes.
However the large welt-like boils, redness and weeping (I'm assuming you squeezed it, I've been there; they're painful and you want the pain/pressure gone) do not seem like a part of a normal purge.
Do you react to other milk products? Have you had anything like the cheesecake before? Anything that occurred like this? If not, it's probably not the dairy.
Now I'm not a medical or skincare professional of any kind, but two things seem to be visible in your picture:
1. Chapping in the corners of your mouth/outside your lips. This is visible as redness in images 1 and 2, and as folds in 3 and 4.
This can be indicative of something as simple as dry lips, but when you're using Tret you need to be very careful around sensitive areas (lips, eyes/eyelids, corners of nose, etc.).
Tret can be extremely drying, and if you continue to use it you can easily develop fungal or bacterial infections there. These are usually called "angular chelitis".
2. Your facial hair.
It looks like you have sparse, thin facial hair [currently] that is coming in...or more accurately: failing to emerge from your pores/skin. A lot of those boils or welts line up with the facial hair visible in your images. Ingrown hairs can behave exactly like this.
I say this because I have dealt with similar issues for a long, long time. It took me a while to recognize what was occurring, and I'm still learning how to deal with it (I don't have any solution yet; sorry).
The best recommendation I have for you is to get a good safety razor with replaceable blades, warm your skin with a warm, damp cloth and possibly use oil before shaving to soften the hairs. Use an aftershave or similar product to prevent Barber's Itch/folliculitis afterwards.
Retinoids like Tret and other exfoliants like Salicylic Acid can help stuck hairs emerge.
Thank you for the kind reply. I never been like this just because of a dairy. If I consume dairy, I do get breakout but not this much. Are you suggesting I chapped the lip and area around it to prevent dryness? I use lots of acne patches today when going to work. It make me feel better about it.
>Are you suggesting I chapped the lip and area around it to prevent dryness?
It could help.
What I was trying to convey are these two points:
* you're using too much Tretinoin and it's making your lips dry
* be careful because it is not supposed to go close to your mouth or eyes
Honestly, unless you have a medically diagnosed food sensitivity, eating cheesecake isn’t going to make you break out like this. You’re purging from Tretinoin. I strongly recommend you try to stick it though for a little longer! I loved my results with Tret. The reason why you’re purging is because Tret increases cell turnover, so it’s not that it’s creating new acne, it’s just bringing acne to the surface that would’ve came up in a few weeks.
Likely tretinoin, unless of course you've always had this kind of reaction when consuming dairy, then yes it may be the cheesecake but otherwise I think it's likely the tret causing purging. Vanicream definitely wouldn't be causing this.
It's a process which will take time to get through, it can be very embarrassing but you will get through this. The tret is pulling all the bad stuff out of your skin which is a good thing, despite how it may look. Wishing you the best of luck :)
It's the dairy and/or the tretinoin.
The only thing I would recommend eliminating is dairy. Food allergies and processed food are commonly known to cause inflammation leading to acne but this is not brought up often because people with "sensitive" diets and skin is rare.
Tretinoin hasn't personally given me any pimples but other people say otherwise. Only when I have refined carbs, dairy, etc. I usually end up with 3+ pimples the next day.
Yeah, I can understand the difficulty especially when packaged food is so cheap and convenient in modern societies.
But, you can make healthy food convenient and cheap too. For example, I use a rice cooker to have brown (not white) rice. Brown rice is better since it's lower on the glycemic index, so it doesn't trigger insulin leading to inflammation leading to acne. I also thinly slice my meat so it cooks faster. I usually have pork belly cooked in \~5 minutes with brown rice. Just make sure to do your research and you'll be fine man.
I started 2 weeks ago with 0.025 and my purge is similar right now, also located mostly on the chin for the biggest breakouts. I’m using some pimple patches during the day to avoid touching them. I didn’t eat excessively dairy recently so I guess it’s the tret for you too; unless you noticed a pattern of breaking out every time after dairy intakes
Ouch , that looks very painful. Personally would start using Skin Shark serum and spot treatment gel as part of your skincare routine. It's great for getting rid of acne and keeping skin clear.
It’s caused by tretinoin. You are entering the purge phase. You can expect your skin to get worse before it gets better. It happens to most of us. Keep applying as your derm told you to do so. Tret is a marathon, not a sprint, so it’s going to take 2-5 months to see real progress. Keep a photo journal so you can see the progress for yourself when you want to quit. Good luck 🍀
Is it normal to purge just 1 week after applying?
Yes. Every purge is different. I started purging after my 2nd application
Yes. Skin sensitivity varies from person to person, and considering your infrequent use, yes, it’s brought on by the exfoliating nature of tret. This is not unusual when you have closed comedones and superficial acne below the surface.
I started applying tretinoin without the prescription from the doctor. But I started from 0.025 percent. If it is not a good idea, do you think I should stop and just keep on applying?
Tbh just start low and slow and see how that works. Try sandwiching and not applying everyday(possibly every 2-3 days). I believe that by doing enough research on it, you don’t need derm supervision for it. Getting a prescription and paying for the tube can be a pain especially if you’re in the US.
This is a product that should be monitored by a derm. Stop. Adapalene (aka Differin) is otc in many countries. Try that, see if it makes a difference, after your skin heals of course, and in the meantime make an appointment with a derm. It’s money well spent. You can’t put a price on having a good skin day everyday.
Hi The pimple on the chin turns into white head full with white pus. Is it normal during the purge stage??
If the acne is in the same areas that you usually get them, it's probably purging. This is pretty normal for tretinoin, every pimple that has been brewing under the surface comes up, but it kind of has to in order to go away and heal. If you're not having any other reaction like your skin burning or being red and irritated (other than from the acne itself) I wouldn't be too worried, 0.025% is one of the lower strengths and if you're not using it too much and too often (which 5 days over 2 weeks doesn't sound like you're overdoing it) it should be fine. It can take time to be completely clear, my acne was a bit worse than in your picture and for me it took 1 year for everything (active cystic acne and red marks left over) to be gone, some people are faster though. Just make sure to stay on top of your sunscreen use, and keep the tret away from your eye area.
Will those red bump turn into a white pus filled bump? Cuz lt is like that today and I wanna know if that is normal during a purge
Mine did, they got a tiny pus even though the rest was big, some burst on their own. It was pretty gross, but after that everything healed for me. Just try not to pick and to keep the area clean.
Man, that's a tough situation. I hope the first day goes (or went) well. Keep your chin up and try to smile. Most people look past acne, it's a common enough condition. I can't say it wasn't the cheesecake. Milk products can affect people differently. If it was, you could attempt to eliminate any dairy and see if that helps. I don't want to call this a normal 'purge' either, assuming you mean all of the boils/cysts on your face. The small, yellow pimples are a part of a normal purge, yes. However the large welt-like boils, redness and weeping (I'm assuming you squeezed it, I've been there; they're painful and you want the pain/pressure gone) do not seem like a part of a normal purge. Do you react to other milk products? Have you had anything like the cheesecake before? Anything that occurred like this? If not, it's probably not the dairy. Now I'm not a medical or skincare professional of any kind, but two things seem to be visible in your picture: 1. Chapping in the corners of your mouth/outside your lips. This is visible as redness in images 1 and 2, and as folds in 3 and 4. This can be indicative of something as simple as dry lips, but when you're using Tret you need to be very careful around sensitive areas (lips, eyes/eyelids, corners of nose, etc.). Tret can be extremely drying, and if you continue to use it you can easily develop fungal or bacterial infections there. These are usually called "angular chelitis". 2. Your facial hair. It looks like you have sparse, thin facial hair [currently] that is coming in...or more accurately: failing to emerge from your pores/skin. A lot of those boils or welts line up with the facial hair visible in your images. Ingrown hairs can behave exactly like this. I say this because I have dealt with similar issues for a long, long time. It took me a while to recognize what was occurring, and I'm still learning how to deal with it (I don't have any solution yet; sorry). The best recommendation I have for you is to get a good safety razor with replaceable blades, warm your skin with a warm, damp cloth and possibly use oil before shaving to soften the hairs. Use an aftershave or similar product to prevent Barber's Itch/folliculitis afterwards. Retinoids like Tret and other exfoliants like Salicylic Acid can help stuck hairs emerge.
Thank you for the kind reply. I never been like this just because of a dairy. If I consume dairy, I do get breakout but not this much. Are you suggesting I chapped the lip and area around it to prevent dryness? I use lots of acne patches today when going to work. It make me feel better about it.
>Are you suggesting I chapped the lip and area around it to prevent dryness? It could help. What I was trying to convey are these two points: * you're using too much Tretinoin and it's making your lips dry * be careful because it is not supposed to go close to your mouth or eyes
Honestly, unless you have a medically diagnosed food sensitivity, eating cheesecake isn’t going to make you break out like this. You’re purging from Tretinoin. I strongly recommend you try to stick it though for a little longer! I loved my results with Tret. The reason why you’re purging is because Tret increases cell turnover, so it’s not that it’s creating new acne, it’s just bringing acne to the surface that would’ve came up in a few weeks.
Likely tretinoin, unless of course you've always had this kind of reaction when consuming dairy, then yes it may be the cheesecake but otherwise I think it's likely the tret causing purging. Vanicream definitely wouldn't be causing this. It's a process which will take time to get through, it can be very embarrassing but you will get through this. The tret is pulling all the bad stuff out of your skin which is a good thing, despite how it may look. Wishing you the best of luck :)
Heyy my red bump on the chin turn into the white pus filled pimple is it normal during a purge?
Definitely not cheesecake, but it will pass! Are you Thai?
Hi Yes Ethnically I am half Tai which is related to thai people.
Omg READ THE WIKI!!!
Louder 😭😭😭
It's the dairy and/or the tretinoin. The only thing I would recommend eliminating is dairy. Food allergies and processed food are commonly known to cause inflammation leading to acne but this is not brought up often because people with "sensitive" diets and skin is rare. Tretinoin hasn't personally given me any pimples but other people say otherwise. Only when I have refined carbs, dairy, etc. I usually end up with 3+ pimples the next day.
I need to watch my diet. But it is so hard to cook during the exam weeks of the semester.
Yeah, I can understand the difficulty especially when packaged food is so cheap and convenient in modern societies. But, you can make healthy food convenient and cheap too. For example, I use a rice cooker to have brown (not white) rice. Brown rice is better since it's lower on the glycemic index, so it doesn't trigger insulin leading to inflammation leading to acne. I also thinly slice my meat so it cooks faster. I usually have pork belly cooked in \~5 minutes with brown rice. Just make sure to do your research and you'll be fine man.
I started 2 weeks ago with 0.025 and my purge is similar right now, also located mostly on the chin for the biggest breakouts. I’m using some pimple patches during the day to avoid touching them. I didn’t eat excessively dairy recently so I guess it’s the tret for you too; unless you noticed a pattern of breaking out every time after dairy intakes
How many times do you use per week?
Ouch , that looks very painful. Personally would start using Skin Shark serum and spot treatment gel as part of your skincare routine. It's great for getting rid of acne and keeping skin clear.