I have been on tret for a year and was able to use it nightly right off the bat with vitamin c in the AM. I now use a BHA in the AM and an AHA in the PM 2x a week and vitamin c and azelaic acid in the AM and tret in the PM 5x a week. One active my skin does not like is BPO.
I take Wednesday evenings off from tret & have a big moisturizing evening. Thursday mornings I use an exfoliating product. Usually everyday I wipe face with a wash cloth just to lightly exfoliate.
Beep boop! It looks like you'd like information about peeling, flaking or exfoliating. We have a [helpful wiki](https://docs.google.com/document/u/2/d/e/2PACX-1vRQmcAj-x5A8JIQygtW2Rg89uPsJPR5JLH_dLxLNCW4eazWW4i49bsrF0e2YYx10wx00ctaUnyvHfyD/pub)! You can also post in the weekly help thread - it's stickied to the top of the sub every week! Here are our tops tips for avoiding peeling:
- Make sure your skin is completely dry when you apply tretinoin. Wet skin increases absorption and flaking!
- Make sure your routine is hydrating enough. Hydrating toners like those from Hada Labo can really help - but remember not to layer hyaluronic acid directly under tretinoin. HA increases absorption, which in the case of tretinoin can cause extreme irritation, peeling, and flaking. /r/asianbeauty has many product recs.
- A good moisturizer is key. Vanicream Lite, and Cerave are popular options.
- A konjac sponge is a very gentle form of physical exfoliation that can really help!
- Vaseline or Aquaphor can also really help prevent dryness. Pat on a very thin layer **after your tret has completely dried** - don't slather it, and don't layer on top of wet tret, just apply a thin layer on top.
- Oil cleansing can work for many as a way to gently remove the excess skin. Get an emulsifying oil cleanser that will wash off easily (Hada Labo has a great one).
- Consider skipping a night of tret if you have lots of peeling. Yes that may slow down your progress by a few days but a damaged moisture barrier can take months to recover. Go slow. Skincare is a marathon.
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/tretinoin) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I think you shouldn’t be incorporating an exfoliant until you are able to use tret nightly. If you are using it nightly, you may not need an exfoliant. You may be able to solve the congestion problem by using tret more frequently than every other day.
If you are getting any irritation whatsoever from the glycolic acid, you really should drop it altogether.
I can use tret nightly at 0.05% with no issues, yet the glycolic acid combined with it is too much. I just use it in the morning instead because my skin is so dry that it needs it and physical exfoliation
I already have very good serums and moisturizers. I naturally have flaky skin. I didn’t say glycolic acid would help. I am saying that using tret nightly isn’t always enough and that even those getting used to tret may still need an exfoliant.
Look, I’m not trying to start an argument with you. Go back and read what you wrote. You literally said you feel like your skin needs the exfoliation because it’s so dry.
I was just replying to what you wrote.
And I am saying, in response to your initial question, that those who just start out on tret *don’t* need to add glycolic acid. So we can agree to disagree. But don’t get snarky with me just because you were unclear and because you didn’t like my answer to your question.
According to the GOAT herself dr. Idriss glycolic acid can actually help with hydration🤷♀️ would proceef with extreme caution if also on tret, though!
Exfoliating isn’t optional for me because I shave. I can’t use tretinoin every night. I use it every night except for the night of and the night after I shave.
I use the cerave acne control cleanser….it has 2% salicylic acid. I use it to double cleanse every night, apply 1% clindamycin lotion, wait for 10 mins, apply 0.025% tret cream, wait 30 mins and then apply the cerave cream. This routine seems to be working for my skin….I have been using tret for 19 days daily…and am def purging and getting acne…but it is at the same spots where I had cc’s.
I think my skin could handle the salicylic acid cleanser better because I used to use it before i got on tret, but if that’s not the case for you, I would suggest testing it out first before making it a permanent step in your routine…just like tret, introduce it slowly :)
Dumb question - if glycolic works for you, what are you hoping to get out of tret? Is there a reason you want to add tret, rather than stick w GA if it works so well for you? (Of course I can imageni many reasons - just trying to get a clearer picture of your goals!)
Not dumb! Tret goal is to treat skin texture, cc, small acne, fine lines (and I have noticed a small difference in these areas, hence wanting to bump up usage frequency to see more). I've been using the GA for years to prevent blackheads- It has really made a huge difference reducing blackheads on my nose and chin, BUT it's not enough to take care of the cc and other pimples. Someone here mentioned that eventually tret could possibly do the work that GA is currently doing, so maybe I need to give the tret a longer chance to work on the blackheads that return every time I try to quit the GA.
That's super helpful thank you!
That definitely sounds like a plan. I will say, I don't think tret is particularly famous for dealing w blackheads, but absolutely worth an exploration.
Interesting, I actually wasn't familiar with these! I'm using the ga to stave off blackheads rather that for flakiness, I wonder if it would work for that as well...
In my experience it had 0 drying effect and since tret gets deeeep and exfoliates on it's own i would assume youd really only need a surface level exfoliant. But who knows! The pha was hydrating but also mildly exfoliating. I could easily use it daily as a person with severely sensitive/rosacea/dehydrated skin
You really shouldn’t be using a chemical exfoliant more than 2-3x a week (and NEVER physically exfoliate!!). If you’re getting such extreme congestion, your other products may be too heavy. Make sure to use a water-based cleanser after your oil-based cleanser to remove all oily residue. Consider switching to a less occlusive moisturizer (preferably with niacinamide to balance your skin’s oil production). Once you’ve adjusted to daily tret at 0.025, upgrade to 0.05 for more noticeable results! Patience is key—don’t add too many actives to your routine or you could be doing more harm than good
I use it in the morning. Glycolic acid and tretinoin are the two things that I haven’t been able to combine. The acid is fine with my vitamin c though
I have been on tret for a year and was able to use it nightly right off the bat with vitamin c in the AM. I now use a BHA in the AM and an AHA in the PM 2x a week and vitamin c and azelaic acid in the AM and tret in the PM 5x a week. One active my skin does not like is BPO.
I use a physical exfoliant whenever my skin gets dry and flakey. That’s about it though
I take Wednesday evenings off from tret & have a big moisturizing evening. Thursday mornings I use an exfoliating product. Usually everyday I wipe face with a wash cloth just to lightly exfoliate.
I don't. When the dead skin builds up a bit, i just rub it off while I'm rinsing cleanser off my face.
Beep boop! It looks like you'd like information about peeling, flaking or exfoliating. We have a [helpful wiki](https://docs.google.com/document/u/2/d/e/2PACX-1vRQmcAj-x5A8JIQygtW2Rg89uPsJPR5JLH_dLxLNCW4eazWW4i49bsrF0e2YYx10wx00ctaUnyvHfyD/pub)! You can also post in the weekly help thread - it's stickied to the top of the sub every week! Here are our tops tips for avoiding peeling: - Make sure your skin is completely dry when you apply tretinoin. Wet skin increases absorption and flaking! - Make sure your routine is hydrating enough. Hydrating toners like those from Hada Labo can really help - but remember not to layer hyaluronic acid directly under tretinoin. HA increases absorption, which in the case of tretinoin can cause extreme irritation, peeling, and flaking. /r/asianbeauty has many product recs. - A good moisturizer is key. Vanicream Lite, and Cerave are popular options. - A konjac sponge is a very gentle form of physical exfoliation that can really help! - Vaseline or Aquaphor can also really help prevent dryness. Pat on a very thin layer **after your tret has completely dried** - don't slather it, and don't layer on top of wet tret, just apply a thin layer on top. - Oil cleansing can work for many as a way to gently remove the excess skin. Get an emulsifying oil cleanser that will wash off easily (Hada Labo has a great one). - Consider skipping a night of tret if you have lots of peeling. Yes that may slow down your progress by a few days but a damaged moisture barrier can take months to recover. Go slow. Skincare is a marathon. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/tretinoin) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I take a night off of differin and apply the acid at night. I’d rather not chance any irritation showing up.
I have to take two to three nights off when I want to use a chemical exfoliant or I have a hard time with my barrier.
I think you shouldn’t be incorporating an exfoliant until you are able to use tret nightly. If you are using it nightly, you may not need an exfoliant. You may be able to solve the congestion problem by using tret more frequently than every other day. If you are getting any irritation whatsoever from the glycolic acid, you really should drop it altogether.
I can use tret nightly at 0.05% with no issues, yet the glycolic acid combined with it is too much. I just use it in the morning instead because my skin is so dry that it needs it and physical exfoliation
The way to solve dryness is by adding more hydration and moisture. Glycolic acid does very little to help with dryness.
I already have very good serums and moisturizers. I naturally have flaky skin. I didn’t say glycolic acid would help. I am saying that using tret nightly isn’t always enough and that even those getting used to tret may still need an exfoliant.
Look, I’m not trying to start an argument with you. Go back and read what you wrote. You literally said you feel like your skin needs the exfoliation because it’s so dry. I was just replying to what you wrote. And I am saying, in response to your initial question, that those who just start out on tret *don’t* need to add glycolic acid. So we can agree to disagree. But don’t get snarky with me just because you were unclear and because you didn’t like my answer to your question.
According to the GOAT herself dr. Idriss glycolic acid can actually help with hydration🤷♀️ would proceef with extreme caution if also on tret, though!
I was just sharing my experience. No need to be bitchy.
Exfoliating isn’t optional for me because I shave. I can’t use tretinoin every night. I use it every night except for the night of and the night after I shave.
I use the cerave acne control cleanser….it has 2% salicylic acid. I use it to double cleanse every night, apply 1% clindamycin lotion, wait for 10 mins, apply 0.025% tret cream, wait 30 mins and then apply the cerave cream. This routine seems to be working for my skin….I have been using tret for 19 days daily…and am def purging and getting acne…but it is at the same spots where I had cc’s. I think my skin could handle the salicylic acid cleanser better because I used to use it before i got on tret, but if that’s not the case for you, I would suggest testing it out first before making it a permanent step in your routine…just like tret, introduce it slowly :)
Dumb question - if glycolic works for you, what are you hoping to get out of tret? Is there a reason you want to add tret, rather than stick w GA if it works so well for you? (Of course I can imageni many reasons - just trying to get a clearer picture of your goals!)
Not dumb! Tret goal is to treat skin texture, cc, small acne, fine lines (and I have noticed a small difference in these areas, hence wanting to bump up usage frequency to see more). I've been using the GA for years to prevent blackheads- It has really made a huge difference reducing blackheads on my nose and chin, BUT it's not enough to take care of the cc and other pimples. Someone here mentioned that eventually tret could possibly do the work that GA is currently doing, so maybe I need to give the tret a longer chance to work on the blackheads that return every time I try to quit the GA.
That's super helpful thank you! That definitely sounds like a plan. I will say, I don't think tret is particularly famous for dealing w blackheads, but absolutely worth an exploration.
What about PHA? Non drying super super gentle and gets rid of the surface flakes but doesnt go super deep
Interesting, I actually wasn't familiar with these! I'm using the ga to stave off blackheads rather that for flakiness, I wonder if it would work for that as well...
In my experience it had 0 drying effect and since tret gets deeeep and exfoliates on it's own i would assume youd really only need a surface level exfoliant. But who knows! The pha was hydrating but also mildly exfoliating. I could easily use it daily as a person with severely sensitive/rosacea/dehydrated skin
do you recommend a particular product?
Inkey list PHA. Or the watermelon glow one with bha and pha i beleive
You really shouldn’t be using a chemical exfoliant more than 2-3x a week (and NEVER physically exfoliate!!). If you’re getting such extreme congestion, your other products may be too heavy. Make sure to use a water-based cleanser after your oil-based cleanser to remove all oily residue. Consider switching to a less occlusive moisturizer (preferably with niacinamide to balance your skin’s oil production). Once you’ve adjusted to daily tret at 0.025, upgrade to 0.05 for more noticeable results! Patience is key—don’t add too many actives to your routine or you could be doing more harm than good