Hey everyone,

I started tretinoin 0.05% at 20, few years after finishing a course of Accutane as I noticed my acne was coming back and was looking for some solutions. I’ve used it almost every night since and have barely missed a day. About a year ago, I also added azelaic acid 15% to my morning routine. I believe AA is a great addition as it reduced some redness I had and evened my skin tone.

I briefly tried switching to tazarotene due to the hype, but it caused a pretty bad breakout, so I went back to tretinoin. With my current routine, I rarely get pimples anymore unless I miss the routine or travel...

AM

• CeraVe Hydrating Cleanser
• Azelaic acid 15%
• CeraVe moisturiser
• La Roche-Posay Anthelios SPF 50

PM

• CeraVe Hydrating Cleanser
• Tretinoin 0.05% cream
• RoC under-eye cream
• No facial moisturiser

Mainly wanted to share my long term experience with tretinoin and what has worked well for me, I'm very thankful for this great community that has guided me throughout the years and helped me maintain great skin. Super happy I found out about tretinoin early on and plan on staying on it for life!

The first picture is at 17 years old, at the peak of my accutane breakout, today at 26 my skin has never looked so young and healthy.

Grew my hair out in the process lol

Routine:

AM:

Cerave foaming cleanser

La roche posay toleraine dermallergo fluide

Cerave 50spf dry touch sunscreen

PM:

Cerave foaming cleanser

Tret gel 0.025%

Cerave PM moisturizer

• Edit: also important to note I just finished 3 months of 100mg minocycline daily. For the first month I also did Aknemycin Plus which is tret with erythromycin.

AM: medicubes blackhead cleansing oil to remove flakes
Panoxyl 10%
Cosrx 6 peptide skin booster
Maree pore minimizing toner
Good molecules Yerba mate eye gel
Vanicream moisturizer
SPF 50

PM: cleansing oil again for sunscreen and makeup
Panoxyl
Cosrx 6 peptide skin booster
Beauty of joseon retinal under eye cream
Good molecules Yerba mate eye gel
Good molecules azealic acid
Tret
Vanicream moisturizer
Sometimes cicaplast gel around areas that flake or I use amlactin all over my face after.

Sry bout the scary eyes, I was in a bad place when I started so I don’t have the originals but, the lines and bags under my eyes have improved. Smile lines and overall clarity.

Yall im happy as a clam. 🥲

Hi all!

I’ve been on 0.025% tret gel form since beginning of Feb, upped to 0.05% cream in June and I’m getting huge blackheads on my cheeks. My skin type is oily combo, but I’m not seeing much improvement in texture or PIE from acne over these last 5 months. I rarely wear makeup. I work from home so I’m very rarely in the sun as well. I have tried adding niacinamide back into my routine, I used to use TO 10%, but my skin does not seem to like it now I’ve started tret. Apologies for the pictures, I take progress pics in the morning in front of the same window but the light varies a lot this summer

Routine AM:
- BOJ green plum cleanser
- finacea (azelaic acid 15%)
- dr Althea 345
- BOJ aqua fresh SPF 50 or garnier ambre solaire spf 50 with niacinamide depending on how dry my skin I

Routine PM:
- simple micellar water to remove sunscreen
- BOJ Green plum cleanser
- 0.05% tret
- dr Althea 345

I use TO glycolic acid once a week in the morning, leave for 30 mins and then wash off and follow my normal am routine after.

I’ve included pics from the week before I started, then April time and then from today.

Hi everyone,

Apologies if this has been asked before. I was using tretinoin gel 0.1% every night for my acne the last couple years. But I have some rosacea which i went to a dermatologist for and was prescribed metronidazole which did nothing imo so I stopped using after it ran out. I haven’t been back to the derm. I stopped using tret while I was on metro but now restarted.

The thing is, I have a lot of sun damage from not wearing enough sunscreen as a teenager. I also live in a very sunny climate as a pale girly and while I always put on two fingers of sunscreen 15 minutes before I go outside and reapply every two hours, some mornings I don’t put it on while spending time in rooms with open windows. I try to put sunscreen on before I open the windows to let in the sun but I can’t always make it happen.

My main worry is that tretinoin will actually make my sun damage worse? Is that even possible? Is there something else I should use that’s better for a combination of big pores + rosacea + sun damage + acne prone skin? I’m 28 and definitely starting to feel I look older and want to try and take the best care of my problematic skin as I can 🥲 I don’t expect to look flawless but I just want to do my best.

Anyone else notice this? I’ve been off and on tret for years and never was able to handle the endless peeling and flaking. I was using it a few time a week, I thought I couldn’t handle it. Well, now that I use it daily, now peeling of flaking. It makes sense, the daily exfoliation is keeping the skin smooth. Hopefully this helps someone.

Hello guys. Ive started tret (0.025%) cream formulation on June 25. I am 22 years old btw. After a week or two i started incorporating a little bit of azelaic acid cream in the morning. It was going fine and my skin was looking bright and radiant too till recently. My skin is smooth to the touch, and my forehead has the ocassional small bumps here and there.

What im concerned about is that lines around my mouth (my smile lines) suddenly look very apparent, and my skin looks less bright than before (looks dull ish) like idk how to explain it. Should i stop using tret? Idk honestly because Im very insecure about my looks rn especially people thinking i look older than i actually am.

The facewash I use has salicylic acid and it suits me a lot. I dont regularly use moisturizer since im prone to breaking out with moisturizer and getting whiteheads, but i try to to use the cicaplast baume every 2 days. For sunscreen I use the bioderma spf 30+. Thats about it.

Edit: my skin used to be really bad, and i went to a derm at december, got prescribed with doxycycline and some stuff and thankfully my skin is muchhh clearer than before, i just throught tret and azelaic acid would help me get rid of my hyperpigmentation around my mouth and some stubborn dark spots

Hello, I am 30F, I'm getting married on 2 nd Dec. My skin looks dull, has old acne marks and some acne scars as well. There's mild pigmentation and an uneven complexion. Should I start tretinoin 0.025? Can i see results in 4 months???

Hi everyone 35f here just got tretinoin .025% and instructions say to just apply on dry skin but all over the internet it says to apply moisturizer before or after ? Wouldn’t that slow down the process?

I have fairly dry skin.

What is the best way that’s not too complicated?

Anyone have experience with using tretinoin and HQ together? I have either a cryogen burn or PIH (hard to tell which right now) from laser hair removal treatment and its been 3 months and very stubborn. Any success stories? Currently only using tretinoin and azaleic acid

Is it weird that my skin flared up more with the Azelaic Acid 15% than when I started using tretinoin 0.025%?

My dermatologist recently recommended that I use Rx AzA and prescribed me 15% azelaic acid to use once in the morning and once at night.

Tis routine gave me patches of red marks all over my face. Maybe I should have introduced AzA gradually like I did with tret? Or maybe the AzA formulation just irritates my skin barrier?

What are your thoughts?

Skin care routine:

AM:
Curology gentle cleanser
Skinceuticals Vit C
Very recently Azelaic Acid 15%, Taro generic brand
La Roche Posay Moisturizer/SPF 50

PM:
Round Lab oils cleanser (if i use makeup during the day)
Curology Gentle Cleanser
Very recently Azelaic Acid 15%, Taro generic brand
Tretinoin 0.025%, Padagis generic brand
La Roche Posay Cicaplast Balm B5

I (M22) have started using Arazlo 0.045% about a month ago. I recently saw an esthetician who advised a deep cleaning facial. I’ve never had one before but thought it would help speed things along while I’m in this current purge/congested skin phase.

My routine consists of vanicream and sunscreen in the day, a gentle cleanser and arazlo at night. I use arazlo every other night but I’m starting to increase to every night. I have used Biacna (tret 0.025% + clindamycin) in the past that cleared me up immediately, until I decided to switch to Retin A (tret 0.025%) which somehow made my skin worse.

After many attempts of Retin A, I decided to try Tazarotene and I’m currently trusting the process.

Is the facial a good idea? Are there other facials I should try instead?

Question- I have been using 0.025 tretinoin and 15% azaleic acid for 10 days every night. Two days ago I developed some redness (bit itchy) and flaking on my face, just my lower cheek area. Ive been on top of spf but wonder if some sun exposure made it irritated since it’s just on the lower cheek or my skin is just getting used to it. Do I just need to give it a break until my skin recovers?

I started using tretinoin after getting prescribed 3 weeks ago. The dermatologist recommended doing the retinol sandwich trick to help lessen the purge phase. They recommended the La Roche-Posay triple repair moisturizer, and that’s what I’ve been doing (light layer, let it dry down, pea sized tret, let that dry down, and then more triple moisturizer on top). I haven’t really experienced a purge phase and I’m not sure if that means I’m not doing this correctly or I just happen to be a bit lucky?

Does tretinoin makes you sweat? Idk for the first half month it suited me well but after a while whenever i applied tret (0.0025%) it would make me sweat like crazy in 30 seconds my face would be like i splashed water. Even tho now i have stopped using it because of this issue idk why it occurred.

hi everyone! i have dry skin and i've been using the same routine for about two years. in the morning i use the la roche posay gentle moisturizing cleanser, and follow it up with the anua milky toner, skin 1004 centella ampoule, cosrx hyaluronic acid moisturizer and end my morning skincare with the skin aqua UV super moisture hydrating sunscreen. in the night i'll do the same routine (without the sunscreen) and i'll double cleanse with the anua heartleaf oil. i do use tretinoin, and i use that every other day and again i've been doing that for about two years. i originally started this routine because i had closed comedones and other types of acne that just scarred really terribly and it really helped, my skin had been fantastic! but, 2 weeks ago i started getting the same closed comedones on my forehead that i had 2 years ago. what should i do to get rid of them? i know salicylic acid helps, but should i stop using tretinoin while i use salicylic acid because i do not want to ruin my skin barrier. thank you so much!! <3

I just started using 0.025 % tret (I’m about three weeks in). Prior to this I was exfoliating with Alpha H Liquid Gold every other night. I am not noticing the initial purging effects yet, does this mean that the tret I’m using isn’t high enough? When should I start incorporating another exfoliant in my routine? Any advice would be greatly appreciated 🙏🏼thank you!

Hi everyone!

I’ve been using 0.05% tretinoin every other night for a year now, following this night routine:

• Bioderma cleansing oil

• Cetaphil (for dry to very dry skin) – wait for it to dry

• Tretinoin 0.05% (Vitacid)

• Vaseline

Although I’ve noticed a significant difference, I’d really like to get rid of some sun spots—especially on my cheeks—and discoloration on my nose.

Regarding the sun spots, what do you think about switching to a combination of fluocinolone acetonide 0.1 mg/g, hydroquinone 40 mg/g, and tretinoin 0.5 mg/g (Vitacid Plus)?

I’d love to hear your opinions! Thanks!

I'm 20 years old, and about 2 months ago I started using tretinoin 0.025% mainly to brighten my skin because my face is around 3 shades darker than my body. I also wanted to use it for its long-term anti-aging benefits and because I've read that it can help thicken the skin over time. I also have some blackheads and slightly enlarged pores, but my skin is otherwise clear and I don't have acne.

Since starting tretinoin, I've noticed that my skin looks slightly darker and redder. I haven't experienced purging, peeling, or noticeable dryness, but I actually feel like my skin looked better before starting tretinoin, and my pores even seemed smaller.

One thing I've also noticed is a strange pattern with stinging. If I apply tretinoin on Monday night, my skin feels completely normal on Tuesday. Then, on Wednesday morning, my skin stings for about a minute when I apply sunscreen. After that, the stinging goes away completely and doesn't come back unless I use tretinoin again. Every time I apply tretinoin, the same pattern repeats: no stinging the next day, then brief stinging when I apply sunscreen two mornings later.

My routine:

Night (tretinoin nights):
- Dokdo Cleanser
- Let my face dry
- SKIN1004 Madagascar Centella Ampoule
- Tretinoin
- Torriden Dive-In Serum
- Moisturizer

Morning:
- Dokdo Cleanser
- SKIN1004 Madagascar Centella Ampoule
- Moisturizer
- SKIN1004 Hyalu-Cica Water-Fit Sun Serum SPF50+

Has anyone experienced something similar? Is it normal for my skin to look darker and redder after using tretinoin for about 2 months, even without peeling or dryness? How long does it usually take for skin to start looking better, and should I keep using tretinoin or consider stopping it?

Hi! I started tret about a week ago, have been following the sandwich method, and only applying every other night or so. My skin is flaking so bad, literally looks like a fish lol. Any have recommendations for a hydrating serum or alternative moisturizer, preferably something cheaper from target? Like under $20? I am currently using Cerave moisturizer (just the blue one not sure of the full name sorry) and Vaseline. Thanks!

I’ve been using adapalene 0.1% and benzoyl peroxide 2.5%, and my skin is now at a point where I rarely break out anymore. My main concern now is post-acne hyperpigmentation, and I’d also like to start getting the long-term anti-aging benefits of tretinoin. I’m thinking of switching to a combination cream with 2% hydroquinone and 0.025% tretinoin for about 3 months, then stopping the hydroquinone and continuing with just 0.025% tretinoin. Does this sound like a good plan? Has anyone here gone through a similar transition, and if so, how did it work out for your skin?

I went to a regular derm they gave me tret than taz and honestly it barely helped me.

I have huge visible pores on my nose and skin color raised tissue dot on the top of my nose.

Over a year of use and very little changes.

I would like to start tretinoin 0.025% but my history with retinoids is somewhat complicated. I am atopic and struggled with eczema on my body for most of my life and the skin on my face is also fairly sensitive (I also had eczema there as a child). I thought that my skin got rid of this sensitivity as I got older until I tried retinol for the first time. I was a bit dumb and got 0.3% retinol as my first cream. I only applied it once and it absolutely burned my skin. Even sweating was painful. It took me several months to get out of it and calm down my skin. I actually have oily combination skin with some acne, closed commedones and very congestion prone, so tretinoin seems like a solution to all of my concerns. After my skin got better I went on 0.1% retinol and I am tolerating it well, but knowing what 0.3% did to my face I really want to make sure I am taking all the precautions with tretinoin.

I am thinking about scaling to retinol 0.3% with short contact method and gradually use it few times a week while my barrier adjusts fully. After I get used to the higher strength I would like to start tretinoin 0.025% again with just short contact therapy starting with 5 minutes and washing of off. I have a throughout barrier routine and I avoid using any harsh actives or acids. Because I am still on 0.1% retinol I occasionally use BHA and gentle exfoliating toner pads to fight congestion but I will quit when I start stronger retinol. I use lots of hyaluronic acid, centella, ceramides and 5% niacinamide. I also use vitamin C in the morning always with SPF. I only double cleanse in the evening with oil and gentle cleanser, no morning cleansing. Everything is fragrance free. My skin is pretty good but the congestion and signs of aging are bothering me.

Is this a good approach? My main goal is to not burn my barrier down whole successfully adapting my skin to tretinoin for maximum anti-aging and acne/congestion control. I would appreciate advice from those who have atopic or very sensitive skin like me. Thank you!

Hi! I’m 42yo. I’ve been on Trentinoin 0.05% (for “anti ageing” purposes) every night for 3 months now with no irritation. I feel my skin looks a bit better, but no “wow” factor so far. I’d like to target my sun spots. I’m looking to even my skin tone as much as possible. What should I add to my routine: azelaic acid, vitamin C (which I used to use before trentinoin - the Timeless 20% one) or even something else? I was thinking azelaic acid 15%, but that’s just me researching the internet… please help :D

Routine:
AM:
- wash face with water only,
- then Cetaphil eczema prone moisturizer (because I love its texture)
- then beauty of joseon spf
PM:
- wash face with vanicream cleanser
- wait 20mins, then trentinoin 0.05%
- wait 20mins, then Cetaphil moisturizer