From overusing actives to starting Accutane, before and after pic
I was layering everything glycolic acid retinol vitamin C masks basically anything that promised better skin. My acne didn’t improve it just got more irritated red and uneven. I was also really scared of Accutane so I kept trying to fix it myself with topicals and honestly felt like I had tried everything
At one point my routine looked like this
AM Cerave hydrating cleanser then vitamin C sometimes niacinamide sometimes even salicylic acid then La Roche Posay double repair moisturizer and EltaMD UV clear sunscreen
PM same cleanser but I was rotating and sometimes layering retinol or tretinoin glycolic acid lactic acid salicylic acid benzoyl peroxide and exfoliating masks then finishing with Cerave moisturizing cream
Looking back it was way too much and a lot of those don’t even go well together
Once I simplified things it did help calm my skin a bit but I still wasn’t where I wanted to be. Around that time I started using Thea to track my routine and it made me realize how much I was overdoing it. It showed I was using too many actives at once not giving my skin time to recover and even pointed out bad combos like retinoids with acids benzoyl peroxide with tret and constant exfoliation which was basically wrecking my skin barrier
It also suggested Accutane based on my acne type which made me finally talk to my derm and we decided to give it a shot
Since starting Accutane I’ve focused on supporting my skin instead of attacking it. I keep it simple gentle cleanser thick moisturizer multiple times a day sunscreen every morning lip balm all the time and no extra actives. The dryness and peeling are real but this has made it manageable and I still use Thea to keep track so I don’t fall back into overdoing it
Still not 100percent but thank God my skin is healing looks calmer especially around my jaw and neck so I know I’m moving in the right direction, anyone else went through the same phase of trying everythingg before finally going on Accutane?