Restarting Tret & My First Week Experience

I was going to switch over to Alpha Skin Care Intensive Renewal Serum after The Ordinary Glycolic Acid 7% Toning Solution didn’t work for me. If you missed out on my experience with The Ordinary Glycolic Acid 7% Toning Solution, follow these links!

My Experience After 1 Week Using The Ordinary Glycolic Acid 7% Toning Solution + Other Skin Care Updates

2 Weeks Using The Ordinary Glycolic Acid 7% Toning Solution. My Results!

3 Weeks With The Ordinary Glycolic Acid 7% Toning Solution + BP!

But, I moved in another direction. I was using benzoyl peroxide (which cleared up a ton of my acne!) when I decided to use tret again. It was so random. It was out of the blue. I thought, hey, let’s give this another try again. I’ve tried so many acne skin care products to get rid of my closed comedones and acne in general. I have acne-prone skin, so I need to keep my zits in check. I only have a select few closed comedones left on my forehead, upper lip, and chin area. They seem to be concentrated in these areas while my cheeks are extremely clear. I have no acne there. Benzoyl peroxide did a great job, but I needed to push it even further. Yes, I’m back to using tret. I’ve been on the lower strengths of tret for so long that I think it’s time to use the highest strength once again. I’ve had no results with the lower strengths. My acne did not budge. When I run my fingers over my facial skin, it feels bumpy. The bumps are not too visible to the naked eye, but I can feel them. I cringe every time I wash my face. I wish something as simple as 2% salicylic acid would work on my skin. Even a gentle salicylic acid face wash would be awesome. I’ve tried both of these and those darn closed comedones are still sticking around! So! Here I am using tret + benzoyl peroxide. I’m not using benzoyl peroxide at the same time as tret. I use it on my off days when necessary. If a pimple pops up or if I feel that need to use benzoyl peroxide all over, that’s what I’m going to do. I really do think benzoyl peroxide will always be a staple to treat my acne. It helps. But it seems like a combination of treatments would work better.

My Experience – 1st Application

I started using tret at the end of last week. I applied it directly to my skin and moisturized with Vanicream Daily Facial Moisturizer for Sensitive Skin. I woke up the next morning with flaky skin. Skin looked a bit red. My face didn’t burn. Yay! No crazy signs of irritation. Then bam! The next day, my skin started to burn, itch, it looked darker compared to the rest of my neck/body. Ugh! It’s a tret burn! I knew I should’ve sandwiched! My skin burned when I applied Vanicream Facial Daily Moisturizer for Sensitive Skin or any other skin care products to my face. None soothed my red, irritated, burned skin besides CeraVe Healing Ointment. I used this product to heal my skin. I didn’t use it to slug. I used it more like a face mask. This worked to help diminish some redness, itchiness, irritated skin. My skin softened, looked silky smooth after I removed the CeraVe Healing Ointment from my skin (when using it as a face mask). It took about 3-4 days for my skin to heal. I gave my skin a rest for 4 days before starting tret again. My skin started to peel and shed during the rest days. I noticed new pimples popping up in my acne-prone areas. Tret gave me a big nodule on my chin. It’s the biggest pimple I have had in a long time. It’s red, swollen, and hurts upon touch. 😭 When will it go away? Who knows, lol. At night, I stuck to using La Roche Posay Toleriane Double Repair Matte Face Moisturizer for Oily Skin. It’s not the most moisturizing moisturizer. I eventually had to add Cosrx Advanced Snail 96 Mucin Power Essence to add moisture to my skin. La Roche Posay Matte Face Moisturizer works better as an occlusive rather than a moisturizer. It dried my face out at times when used alone. With all that has happened after the first application, there’s good news. Tret removed all of the closed comedones on my forehead and most of the closed comedones on my upper lip and chin area. My skin looks so clear with some blemishes that will purge soon enough.

My Experience – 2nd Application

After 4 days of giving my skin a rest, I started using tret again. This time, I sandwiched. I used Cosrx Advanced Snail 96 Mucin Power Essence and Vanicream Daily Facial Moisturizer for Sensitive Skin before applying tret. After applying tret, I applied Cosrx Snail Mucin and Vanicream Daily Facial Moisturizer for Sensitive Skin once more. This application seemed like a good idea at first, but with this method, I didn’t notice any changes in my skin like I did with the first application besides some redness and tenderness in my skin. No peeling. I took 3 days off for my skin to settle down even though my skin felt fine the next day. I’m pretty disappointed in the sandwich method because I just didn’t see an improvement in my acne at all. I actually noticed more acne (not from purging). I noticed random blackheads (on other parts of my face and nose) and more sebaceous filaments on my nose. Could it be the Snail Mucin Essence or Vanicream that’s breaking me out? Possibly. My skin didn’t look better or feel better after using these moisturizers with tret. I might try the Vanicream moisturizer alone or try out another moisturizer. I need to move on from this Vanicream crap, lol. These products (Snail Mucin Essence and Vanicream) may be messing up my skin. I also stopped using La Roche Posay Toleriane Double Repair Matte Face Moisturizer for Oily Skin. It’s not moisturizing. I didn’t see the point in using this product anymore. Terrible product if you’re looking for a moisturizer that actually moisturizes. I’m done with it for now once again, lol. I tried to make it work, but I’m left disappointed each time. It just doesn’t do anything for my skin. I rather just not using anything on my skin if it doesn’t improve my skin and doesn’t provide any moisture. It even dried out my skin. I really think it’s time for a new moisturizer after this experience. My skin’s just really picky when it comes to moisturizers, which makes it very difficult to find one. Hmmm, what to do… 🤔

That’s my first week experience! Stay tuned for next week to see what happens! 🙂

2 Weeks Using The Ordinary Glycolic Acid 7% Toning Solution. My Results!

It’s been 2 weeks using The Ordinary Glycolic Acid 7% Toning Solution! This week, I used glycolic acid products and benzoyl peroxide (more on this in a bit!). So, I started off the week using only glycolic acid products. Just this toner and another glycolic acid serum (read more about it by going to that link!). Glycolic acid has helped improve my skin. But, I can tell that it’s not going to clear up my skin fully. While using glycolic acid, I noticed smoother, brighter skin, and some closed comedones moving up to the surface, but it’s not getting to the source. It’s not going to be the miracle cure for my acne. I stopped using it every day. Now I’m only using it only a few times a week for exfoliation. Hopefully it’ll help with acne marks with continued use. It’s a nice product to have in my routine. I haven’t had any issues using it. No redness, itchiness, or burning. The stinging sensation has diminished over time too. My skin is getting used to it real fast. Now on to my experience with benzoyl peroxide…

I decided to use benzoyl peroxide last minute (at the end of the week). It’s because I didn’t see much results with glycolic acid acne-wise. I know it’s only been 2 weeks, but that’s more than enough time for me to see if it works for my acne or not. I just don’t think it’s working. I noticed inflamed acne popping up, and it looks like it’s going to get worse if I didn’t do anything about it. Glycolic acid alone just isn’t going to cut it. At least for the products I was using. I’m using benzoyl peroxide now. I didn’t expect to use it again, but here I am, using it again, haha. Let’s see if it works this time around. It has worked plenty of times before. I just ended up venturing out to other ingredients/products to help with my acne. I guess, to no avail. Here’s my experience using benzoyl peroxide for the first time again.

So before applying benzoyl peroxide to my skin, I applied my moisturizer (La Roche Posay Toleriane Double Repair Matte Face Moisturizer for Oily Skin) first. I might re-add Cosrx Advanced Snail 96 Mucin Power Essence to increase moisture in my skin. I removed it because I didn’t need it anymore. But, more moisture right now wouldn’t be a bad thing while using benzoyl peroxide. Moisturizing the skin helps to prevent skin dryness and any other skin irritations. After applying moisturizer, I applied benzoyl peroxide all over my face! I’m not using it as a spot treatment. Just not yet until my skin is clear. The results the next morning was pretty amazing. I noticed a decrease in sebum, clearer skin, less closed comedones, and my overall complexion just looked less inflamed. I had some inflamed pimples the night before. They have diminished in redness and in size. I also notice some clogged pores making an appearance. That didn’t bother me much. I’m trying to unclog my pores for a smoother feel anyways. My skin has been super clogged for a long time. I can feel this gross bumpy texture to my skin when I move my fingers over my skin. It doesn’t look bad visually, but I can feel it when I wash my face. That’s been bothering me a lot. Hopefully benzoyl peroxide works this time.

Here’s my current skin care routine + benzoyl peroxide added last minute. Stay tuned for my results next week. I’m constantly changing up my skin care routine and trying to figure out what works.

Products I’m Experimenting With…

Alpha Skin Care Intensive Renewal Serum:

I really like this glycolic acid serum. It’s a higher percentage (14%) and leaves my skin feeling soft, smooth, and exfoliated. My skin is tolerating it pretty well. When applied to the skin, it stings a little bit. That stinging sensation eventually disappears. I tried using it every day and didn’t have any issues using it every day. But, I don’t think it’s necessary to exfoliate the skin that much. I’m only using this serum once or twice a week whenever I feel like it. The higher percentage of glycolic acid has helped blemishes move up to the surface even faster than the glycolic acid toner. My skin looks brighter and so much smoother. I’m really liking what I’m seeing so far. Hopefully it’ll continue to make a difference in my skin.

Canmake Mermaid Skin Gel UV SPF 50+ PA++++ Clear:

I tried the Canmake Mermaid Skin Gel UV SPF 50+ PA++++ Clear this week. It was a last minute kind of thing. I haven’t let this product touch my face in ages. I still have a few bottles left, so I thought I would give it another try, lol. Hopefully it doesn’t clog my pores like last time. My skin care routine is pretty minimal right now so I’ll know if it’s breaking me out or not. The sunscreen felt really nice when applied to the skin. It’s lightweight, gel-like. It absorbs easily into the skin and leaves the skin feeling and looking matte. I didn’t experience a sheen on my skin like I used to. The sunscreen does soak up oils on the skin. I used a moisturizer before applying this sunscreen. From my past experience with this sunscreen, it doesn’t protect my skin well. I noticed some skin darkening when I used it. But, I’m not going to use it alone. I’ll use my usual, daily sunscreen on top. This is a good way to use up a sunscreen that I won’t purchase again. I kind of miss the gel texture. It feels amazing on my oily skin.

Altruist Sunscreen SPF 50:

I stopped using this sunscreen, but I started using it again. Since my routine is shorter, why not give it another chance? Also, I finished my first bottle of this sunscreen this week! It took forever! So this sunscreen is still moisturizing and leaves the skin looking greasy on the surface of the skin. It burns the eyes if any gets in there. I really do love how protective this sunscreen is. It has a high SPF and high UVA. I hope it doesn’t clog my pores, but we’ll see as I continue to use it. I bought quite a few. I don’t want to waste them.

If you missed out on my updates…

Update: The Ordinary Lactic Acid 10% + HA & La Roche-Posay Anthelios Body & Face Mineral Sunscreen Gentle Lotion SPF 50

My Experience After 1 Week Using The Ordinary Glycolic Acid 7% Toning Solution + Other Skin Care Updates

After My Break & Trying Out Exfoliants

I stopped using tret about 2 weeks ago. My skin healed within 4 days, but I wanted to play it safe and just leave my skin alone for a bit. My skin became really oily during the break. If I didn’t have oily skin that is prone to blemishes, I would just stick to a basic skin care routine. I could only wish. Knowing my skin, it just can’t. It needs more than a basic skin care routine. So after 1 week of taking a break, I decided to add a cleanser that contains salicylic acid (CeraVe Renewing SA Cleanser) into my routine. I swapped my moisturizing facial cleanser for another facial cleanser that contains salicylic acid. I’m nearing 2 weeks on this facial cleanser! 🙃 It cleanses my skin and doesn’t dry my skin out! This cleanser feels moisturizing on my skin. I didn’t expect it to be this moisturizing. Maybe it’s because I have oily skin. It seems to work to cleanse and makes my skin feel good afterwards. No dryness or any irritation. But, I’m not sure if it’s doing anything for my acne. Since I didn’t notice an improvement in my acne using the CeraVe Renewing SA Cleanser, I started using other products to treat my acne.

Here are some products I tried out first…

Paula’s Choice Skin Perfecting 2% BHA Liquid Exfoliant:

Paula’s Choice 2% BHA Liquid has always been my to-go-to salicylic acid product. It contains 2% salicylic acid. I love that it’s a liquid too. It absorbs quickly into the skin, and I can use it twice a day without drying my skin out. Unfortunately, this product isn’t working like it used to. It helps to decrease some sebaceous filaments and some blackheads. I said SOME. Not most or all. My skin is still struggling with acne when using this product. I’ve been trying to get rid of closed comedones that have been lingering around for far too long. This bha product isn’t doing much. So far, I’m quite disappointed in the results. It’s been months using this bha product. I still have 2 bottles left, so I’m going to keep using it to finish it up. But, I most likely won’t purchase it again unless I notice a difference with it vs without it. I’m currently using it in the morning, 7 days a week. I know that’s a lot for some people. My skin is pretty sturdy, lol. I was using it twice a day, 7 days a week before I changed it to using it only in the morning. Not because it’s drying. It’s because I wanted to make room for other products. I didn’t see results using it twice a day either. The results were the same using it once a day.

Alpha Skin Care Intensive Renewal Serum:

This is the first aha product that I decided to try again. It’s the Alpha Skin Care Intensive Renewal Serum. It contains 14% glycolic acid. I haven’t used a glycolic acid product in a while. I was pretty excited about it, haha. I chose the Alpha Skin Care Intensive Renewal Serum first because it’s the strongest aha product I have. And I have acne to demolish. 💥 This serum is more like a gel rather than a serum. It smooths over the skin nicely and leaves the skin feeling moisturized. Once it absorbs into the skin, it leaves the skin looking dewy, but it doesn’t feel heavy or greasy on the skin. I noticed some stinging upon application. It didn’t bother me. I was thinking, hey, at least I know it’s effective, haha. My results with the Alpha Skin Care Intensive Renewal Serum has been…not too bad. So, I guess it’s effective after all. I noticed some clogged pores unclogging, and my skin looking softer and smoother. I had a closed comedone on my upper lip for months. It’s finally out! This glycolic acid serum is pretty moisturizing too. This could make it back into my routine if it keeps on improving my skin!

The Ordinary Lactic Acid 10% + HA:

I have a few bottles of The Ordinary Lactic Acid 10% + HA left. I decided to try it out again. This serum is more on the watery side compared to the Alpha Skin Care Intensive Renewal Serum. It actually feels like a serum. It absorbs into the skin faster and more efficiently. With this serum, also, I noticed a stinging sensation upon application. That stinging sensation disappeared after a few seconds. This serum felt moisturizing on the skin. I really love the way lactic acid makes my skin feel. Why did I ever stop using it?? I noticed a brighter, smoother, and a more even complexion after using it once. Compared to the Alpha Skin Care Intensive Renewal Serum, it feels so much stronger. Between the two, I’m leaning towards glycolic acid at the moment. It was nice to try out this lactic acid serum though.

The Ordinary Mandelic Acid 10% + HA:

I haven’t used The Ordinary Mandelic Acid 10% + HA in ages. I was searching for an exfoliant that could work better than salicylic acid. This one popped up. I wanted something that would work better for blackheads and post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation. Mandelic acid is a popular choice. This serum felt thicker and more greasy in texture and consistency. It was oily. I didn’t enjoy using it, so I only used it once and never looked back. I didn’t notice any breakouts after the first try, but I can’t see myself using this serum on a daily basis to treat my acne. The texture of the product is just way too greasy and oily for day-to-day use. My experience with The Ordinary skin care products that have this type of texture is a no-go. It was nice to try out. It’s just not going work. My skin doesn’t like oily serums. I’m trying to eliminate my acne here, haha!

The Ordinary Glycolic Acid 7% Toning Solution:

The last aha product that I tried this week was The Ordinary Glycolic Acid 7% Toning Solution. You know, I’ve always loved liquid skin care products (like the Paula’s Choice 2% BHA Liquid). This one was very easy to use and apply. I dispensed the solution onto a cotton pad and swiped my face all over! Easy-peasy! There was a stinging sensation that later on disappeared. No troubles there. Once the solution absorbs and settles into the skin. Wow, my complexion looked brighter and super glowy instantly! I was so amazed. I dropped all of my other exfoliating skin care products (except for the bha liquid) and decided to stick to this one. It’s a texture thing. The product is a liquid and it just sinks into the skin easily without leaving any sticky residue behind. It doesn’t feel greasy or oily either. Here’s another product where I catch myself asking why I stopped using it, lol. I’ve only used it once, but I’ll make an update next week.

What I’m Doing Now…

After this experience, the only product I’m going to continue on with is Paula’s Choice 2% BHA Liquid (have to use a lightweight acne-fighting product in the morning, maybe it’s doing something if I keep using it? lol.) and The Ordinary Glycolic Acid 7% Toning Solution (a nighttime exfoliant and also helps with acne). I really love my liquid-based skin care products. Having oily skin, they just absorb and sink into my skin better. It makes it easier to apply other skin care products afterwards too. They’re also time-savers. I find them more effective too. My skin loves them! What else this week?? I started using tret again. It’s about time I get back into it! My skin condition now is so much better this time. I wonder if it’s the aha products. My skin transformed so quick after using them in a short period of time. My skin looks cleaner, clearer, and more glowy. It helped to unclog clogged pores too. Goodbye closed comedones! My jaw literally dropped after seeing immediate results from aha products. Along with the chosen exfoliants, I’ll be using tret. I’ve already started using it, and I’m trying to use it every day. So far, it’s going pretty well. I haven’t had any issues with redness or dryness using it daily. Hopefully it works out this time. Wish me luck!

My Acne Journey: 3 Months + 3 Weeks Results

It’s a new week! 🙂 My results!!

1 Week Update on Paula’s Choice 2% BHA Liquid

It’s been 1 week using Paula’s Choice 2% BHA Liquid. I started off using it in the morning only. Since I noticed a difference in my skin after a day of use, I started using it twice a day. Fortunately, without any issues. My skin didn’t dry out or become irritated. So after a single day of using the BHA, clogged pores were unclogging. Blemishes I didn’t know existed moved up to the surface. I had clogged pores this whole time? Who knew! Also, sebaceous filaments decreased, especially on my nose. That was my main problematic area for sebaceous filaments. By the end of the week, my skin looked clearer and smoother. I was incredibly shocked because I’ve been battling closed comedones, blackheads, and acne in general for so long. Adding the BHA Liquid was a good move. And it worked! But too bad Paula’s Choice 2% BHA Liquid is pretty costly. It used to be affordable and just plain amazing (price and size), so I’m not sure if I’m going to stick to it if the price is this high. I might have to find another BHA product to use. But we’ll see what happens. My skin is looking pretty clear after adding BHA to my routine. I’m happy with the results so far!

Note: I’m only using this product a few times a week now. 🙂

Trying AHA & Niacinamide…

I tried using an AHA product this week. It’s the Alpha Skin Care Intensive Renewal Serum. It’s been a while since I’ve used this serum or an AHA skin care product. With this serum, I only used it at night. Only once this week. This is a glycolic acid serum (14%). It contains Glycerin, Chamomilla Recutita (Matricaria) Flower Extract, Green Tea Extract, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, and a few other ingredients. My experience using this serum didn’t go well the first time I tried it again. It didn’t really do anything for my skin. It’s a 14% glycolic acid product, but my skin doesn’t seem to care for it at all. I didn’t see any changes in my skin. Even though I used it only once this week, I remembered why I stopped using it in the first place. It feels like I’m applying water to my skin, and I never noticed any results using this serum in the past. It could just be this AHA product that doesn’t work on my skin. I’m not going to bother finding another one any time soon. I’ll stick to the BHA for now. It seems to be working so much better.

I also tried a product that contains niacinamide. It’s the SOME BY MI Niacin 30 Days Miracle Brightening Sleeping Mask. This product contains 5% niacinamide. I’m not big on niacinamide, but my skin has been very oily lately. It’s been a while since I’ve revisited this product, lol. The last time I used this sleeping mask it helped to control oil on my face (a little too drying from what I remember) and helped to brighten my complexion. The sleeping mask contains Niacinamide (as mentioned), Citrus Junos Fruit Extract (70.5%), Panthenol, Arbutin, and it even has Ascorbic Acid, ha! After a single day of using the sleeping mask, I noticed a brighter, more glowy complexion. But, after the third day, my skin started to get really dry. I mean so dry that my whole faced looked chapped. My face was cracking. I immediately stopped using it since I didn’t have a good moisturizer to use. I stopped using Vanicream around this time too thinking that SOME BY MI would be moisturizing. 😂 I was so wrong. It’s extremely drying!!! Like it was before, haha. I wouldn’t recommend this sleeping mask if you have naturally dry skin. For me to continue to use this product, I would have to pair it with a good moisturizer to make it work.

What happened this week?

I’m still trying to figure out what works for my skin. I’ve removed a bunch of products too. I’m glad I did. I didn’t need that many products. I started to look back at the times when my skin was at its best. It was when I had a minimal skin care routine. Removing these skin care products was just a test to see how my skin would react. So far, it’s been going well. I really think it’s just a skin care addiction. LOL. For a few days I felt like I was missing something in my routine. Now, I know that I don’t actually need it, hahaha. So if you missed out on the skin care products I removed from my routine recently, check them out below!

Eucerin Q10 Anti-Wrinkle Face Cream

The Ordinary Resveratrol 3% + Ferulic Acid 3%

Benton Fermentation Essence

The Ordinary Matrixyl 10% + HA

Melano CC Vitamin C Essence

Purito Centella Green Level Buffet Serum – I started using this serum again but stopped using it again this week. It’s a nice serum that soothes the skin, but it provides absolutely no long-lasting moisture. The product that was moisturizing my skin the whole time was Vanicream. I tried using the Purito Centella Green Level Buffet Serum as a lightweight hydrator/moisturizing product, but it just didn’t work. My skin became so dry after I applied it to my skin. I think this serum is only effective when paired with a moisturizer that actually moisturizes.

Cosrx Advanced Snail 96 Mucin Power Essence – I stopped using Cosrx Snail Essence for the same reason as Purito. It didn’t provide my skin that much hydration as I thought it did. It didn’t help protect or strengthen my skin either. My skin still felt dry while using it. Maybe I’ll add it back in the future. But I think I’m done with it for now. Hopefully this time, lol.

What I’m doing now. 🧴

My face skin care routine has been simplified. I’m only using a cleanser (looking for a more moisturizing one for the winter), acne products (tret, bha), moisturizer, and sunscreen. That’s basically it. I’m thinking about adding benzoyl peroxide too since I had good results with it before. I’ve been using it as a spot treatment, but I’m thinking about an all-over treatment again. What I used to do. It worked too. My skin looks really good without an excess amount of products. Hopefully a minimal routine like this works because I am so sick and tired of getting breakouts. Let’s hope for the best and move on to another new week! Hello 4 MONTHS!! 😲😮‍💨

My Acne Journey is right here if you missed out!

My Acne Journey: 1 Week In…

My Acne Journey: 2 WEEKS!! 

My Acne Journey: 3 Weeks Results!

My Acne Journey: 4 Weeks Results!

My Acne Journey: 5 WEEKS IN!

My Acne Journey: 6 Weeks Results…

My Acne Journey: 7 Weeks Results

My Acne Journey: 2 MONTHS!! 

My Acne Journey: 2 Months + 1 Week Results!

My Acne Journey: 2 Months + 2 Weeks!

My Acne Journey: 2 Months + 3 Weeks Results!

My Acne Journey: 3 MONTHS!! 😃

My Acne Journey: 3 Months + 1 Week Results

My Acne Journey: 3 Months + 2 Weeks Results