879 replies to this topic

[Yvette2]

Hi -

If you go to the dermadoctor or Sephora websites you can see the ingredients in the cleanser. It does have SLS it it. If you aren't sensitive to SLS, then it may work for you. Sephora can give you a sample to try.

Yvette

[dwhaa]

Hi -

If you go to the dermadoctor or Sephora websites you can see the ingredients in the cleanser. It does have SLS it it. If you aren't sensitive to SLS, then it may work for you. Sephora can give you a sample to try.

Yvette

thanks - yes, it is a problem for me.

[switches2]

hi lionqueen,
i was curious, if you knew the difference between retin A and green cream. i have rentin a, and try to remember to stick to it, and green cream sounds appealing. i was just trying to figure out the difference, or if they are quite similar? i remember in your post you used to use retin a, but got tired of going to the derm, and now use GC. does the green cream have teh same effects as retin a?
thanks!

[LionQueen]

The active ingredient in Retin A is retinoic acid. It's quite powerful and irritating to the skin, which is why the directions that come with it always say to ease into it slowly. In the US, it's only available by prescription.

The active ingredient in Green Cream is retinol. Once it is absorbed into your skin, retinol is converted to retinoic acid by enzymes in your system. Because this is a somewhat inefficient process, retinol is nowhere near as powerful as retinoic acid. On the other hand, it is a whole lot less irritating ..... and if you use a strong enough product, it can still be an extremely effective treatment for acne and for aging, sun-damaged skin. Over-the-counter retinol products are available in a variety of strengths and formulations.

Personally, while I found Retin A effective against acne, I never liked the way it made my skin look. I was using the strongest formulation, which in retrospect was almost certainly too strong for my skin. Also, I didn't like the hassle of constantly having to go back and see the derm to get my prescription renewed.

Green Cream has worked really well for me, and I like the convenience of an OTC product.

[switches2]

The active ingredient in Retin A is retinoic acid. It's quite powerful and irritating to the skin, which is why the directions that come with it always say to ease into it slowly. In the US, it's only available by prescription.

The active ingredient in Green Cream is retinol. Once it is absorbed into your skin, retinol is converted to retinoic acid by enzymes in your system. Because this is a somewhat inefficient process, retinol is nowhere near as powerful as retinoic acid. On the other hand, it is a whole lot less irritating ..... and if you use a strong enough product, it can still be an extremely effective treatment for acne and for aging, sun-damaged skin. Over-the-counter retinol products are available in a variety of strengths and formulations.

Personally, while I found Retin A effective against acne, I never liked the way it made my skin look. I was using the strongest formulation, which in retrospect was almost certainly too strong for my skin. Also, I didn't like the hassle of constantly having to go back and see the derm to get my prescription renewed.

Green Cream has worked really well for me, and I like the convenience of an OTC product.

wow, you know your stuff, thanks for taking the time to reply me!
i saw in your regime you take accutane for maintenence, did you at some point take it in a full dose.. or higher dose? i am 21, and have acne since i was oh.. 11 ish, and im wondering if that would be a good idea for me to look into(the low dose accutane).. do you have a thread already about your experience with that, or might you tell me a bit about it? thanks alot!

[SMT12483]

Hi LionQueen,

My main problem is the skin colored bumps which sometimes become inflamed, which is why I am trying some of the steps of your regimen as (I believe) this was your main problem as well.

I have been using the GC level 6 for about a week and a half now and so far I like it. It seems to be working on my skin colored bumps so let's hope it continues to be effective. Once you started level 9 was that when your skin colored bumps start to really go away? I know every person is different but I'm just curious.

I have a question regarding the new cleanser you are using. I looked it up and it says it should be used for people who have Seborrheic Dermatitis, more commonly referred to as Seborrhea or Dandruff on their face. What were the problems with your skin that you started using it for and what has it done for you? I am using NeoStrata now which is pretty mild, which is why I like it, but if there is something more effective out there I would love to try it.

Thanks!

[LionQueen]

wow, you know your stuff, thanks for taking the time to reply me!
i saw in your regime you take accutane for maintenence, did you at some point take it in a full dose.. or higher dose? i am 21, and have acne since i was oh.. 11 ish, and im wondering if that would be a good idea for me to look into(the low dose accutane).. do you have a thread already about your experience with that, or might you tell me a bit about it? thanks alot!

I did a very short, low-dose course (10 mg/day for 60 days) a bit over a year ago as a treatment for folliculitis ... it helped a lot, though it didn't get rid of the problem entirely. The very pleasant side effect was that it completely cleared out my congested pores.

The maintenance dose has been extremely successful at keeping the oily skin and waxy sebum at bay.

Hi LionQueen,

My main problem is the skin colored bumps which sometimes become inflamed, which is why I am trying some of the steps of your regimen as (I believe) this was your main problem as well.

I have been using the GC level 6 for about a week and a half now and so far I like it. It seems to be working on my skin colored bumps so let's hope it continues to be effective. Once you started level 9 was that when your skin colored bumps start to really go away? I know every person is different but I'm just curious.

I have a question regarding the new cleanser you are using. I looked it up and it says it should be used for people who have Seborrheic Dermatitis, more commonly referred to as Seborrhea or Dandruff on their face. What were the problems with your skin that you started using it for and what has it done for you? I am using NeoStrata now which is pretty mild, which is why I like it, but if there is something more effective out there I would love to try it.

Thanks!

I had really good results with Level 6 as I recall ... that's what I used for the first 8 weeks. Then I went up to Level 9 and finished the job.

The cleanser I'm using is to combat fungal folliculitis, the unfortunate side effect of a course of antibiotics I did a couple of years ago.

[LionQueen]

The DermaDoctor cleanser is still very successfully keeping the folliculitis away. My face looks the best right now that it has since last fall, when the itchy bumps came back. No redness or irritation on the cheekbones at all.

[hv1788]

Hi LionQueen,
I'm new to this website and you were the first person i ran into... I've read up on your posts and it seems like you can help me out...
Im M/21 i have black heads, white heads, clogged pores around my nose, my fore head is nice, i get my breakouts around my cheeks and jaw line. I just recently started getting cysts around my jaw line, and i have uneven skintone, sun spots and an oily t zone.
My regime is in the morning i was my face with dove bar soap, apply olay complete all day moisture lotion spf 15 for sensitive skin, and at night i was with cetaphil antibacterial (i just started using this as of 3 nights ago). I use to break out more than i do now but i just want my face to clear up indefinatly. I've tried a lot of OTC stuff with no results. Proactive didnt work for me either.

Now that i told you my life story lol my question:
I want to go on Retin-A because it seems to work, ive read in a lot of places as well as hearing from people that it works. Now, after reading your posts, i started to rethink it. I dont have medical insurance so everything is going to come out of pocket and im a starving college student as it is so i really dont want to be throwing away money. Retin-A seems to cause a lot of dryness to the skin and it seems to need to get worse before it gets better, and i need a prescription for it and need to pay for doctor visits as well... and i think the product itself is around $120.00. Now this Green cream that you've been talking about has sparked an interest. It cheaper that Retin-A and it doesnt seem to cause dryness or redness.. .Can you give me advice as to what to do? I'm just ready for my skin to be clear and i want to go out an not have to worry about how bad my skin looks... Thanks for listening, i really appreciate it.

hv1788.

[LionQueen]

If you don't have insurance, GC probably is a cheaper way to go than Retin A.

Retin A doesn't actually cause dry skin ... it makes your skin peel a lot, because retinoic acid interferes with the mechanism by which skin cells stick together. This makes dead cells less likely to clump together in your pores, but it also results in quite a bit of peeling on the surface.

You will see some of this surface peeling with Green Cream as well, but less, because it is not as strong a treatment.

GC will certainly help with the blackheads, whiteheads and clogged pores. You may still see some congestion in the pores, especially around the nose, but overall, it should dramatically improve the quality of your skin.

The one question mark for me is the cysts, if that is indeed what they are. I don't know if Green Cream on its own is strong enough to correct cystic acne. Papules and pimples, yes ... but cysts and nodules? I just don't know.

[hv1788]

perfect GC it is.. thanks so much, ill see if i can keep this updated to let everyone know my progress with the GC... any recommendation on what i should start with 3,6, or 9?

[hv1788]

nvm 6 is what im going for... im also thinking of getting the BHA 2%... using a combination... since the BHA is less expensive ill try that first and if it works ill just stick to that, if i need something stronger ill use the BHA with the GC 6 gel... is that a good idea?

[LionQueen]

yes, BHAs and GC are very easy (and effective) to use together.

[hv1788]

SO.... I just got my bottle of Paula's Choice BHA im excited to use it..

[LionQueen]

Not a great month for me, skin-wise. I had a horrid folliculitis outbreak a couple of weeks back. Lots of factors involved, I think: hormonal cycle, travel/stress, and excessive sugar and alcohol indulgence (it was Easter break).

It was a real low. Red itchy bumps all over my forehead ... plus, the red, irritated patches on my cheekbones came back .... plus, I got some small acne pimples around my mouth and nose. Overall, it was by far the worst my skin has looked in about 18 months.

Luckily the sun came out for a couple of days, and I spent some time outside. After just an hour or so of indirect sun exposure, the patches on my cheekbones completely faded and dried up. Since then, I've gotten the rest of the bumps under control as well.

Some things I've learned:

-- Folliculitis hates sun. I suppose that explains why it comes back full-force in the fall ....

-- I HAVE to cut out sugar. (I know, I know, I've learned this one before.)

-- 10 mg of Accutane once every 7-8 days keeps my acne completely in check. But as soon as I push it to a longer interval .... tiny pimples start showing up again. The nose is the first to go.

-- I can dry up active folliculitis bumps pretty well by putting a tiny dab of the DermaDoctor cleanser on them and leaving it there for an hour or so. However, if the dab is too big, it dries up the surrounding skin as well.

-- Best regimen for me right now:

AM:

DermaDoctor "Born to be Mild" cleanser (massage with plenty of water for at least a minute or two).
Vivant 15% mandelic serum (this works better for me with GC than the Face Reality formulation)
Vivant Spin Trap
Emu oil/red tea serum from Diana Yvonne (yup, I've gone back to it ... the emu oil helps keep inflammation from the folliculitis down ..... )

PM:

"Born to be Mild" cleanser
Green Cream (wait 45 minutes)
Emu oil/red tea serum

Plus the maintenance dose of Accutane, of course. Luckily my derm is fine with continuing it!

The oral antifungals don't really seem to help me. I may finish what I have, but I'm not spending any more money on them.

And, of course ..... I have to give up sugar.

Sigh.

I'm not into self-deprivation.

[Zigg123]

Hello,

I read about half this thread and I did a search but I must be missing something. What exactly is "Jessfoliation"? I can't seem to find the description / product.

Thank you!

[LionQueen]

There used to be a really long thread on it, but Jess (the OP) deleted it.

To make a long story short: it's manual exfoliation using an electric toothbrush with ultrasoft bristles. Kinda like the Clarisonic brush but a whole lot cheaper!

[LionQueen]

Five more folliculitis bumps on my forehead this AM.

They're small and not very inflamed .... pink, not red. I have a tiny dab of the DermaDoctor cleanser on each one right now, and am hoping they'll dry up and go away without any drama.

Luckily my cheeks are clear. When I get bumps there, the red marks stick around for days.

It's been raining most of the week and I've barely been outside. Today is nice though, and I'm going to make sure I get a little sun.

die, bumps, die!


EDIT: Seems to have worked, at least partially. I can still see the bumps when I look closely, but they no longer feel hard and prickly.

The skin on my forehead looks uneven and a little blotchy, ugh.

[willow569]

Not a great month for me, skin-wise. I had a horrid folliculitis outbreak a couple of weeks back. Lots of factors involved, I think: hormonal cycle, travel/stress, and excessive sugar and alcohol indulgence (it was Easter break).

It was a real low. Red itchy bumps all over my forehead ... plus, the red, irritated patches on my cheekbones came back .... plus, I got some small acne pimples around my mouth and nose. Overall, it was by far the worst my skin has looked in about 18 months.

Luckily the sun came out for a couple of days, and I spent some time outside. After just an hour or so of indirect sun exposure, the patches on my cheekbones completely faded and dried up. Since then, I've gotten the rest of the bumps under control as well.

Some things I've learned:

-- Folliculitis hates sun. I suppose that explains why it comes back full-force in the fall ....

-- I HAVE to cut out sugar. (I know, I know, I've learned this one before.)

-- 10 mg of Accutane once every 7-8 days keeps my acne completely in check. But as soon as I push it to a longer interval .... tiny pimples start showing up again. The nose is the first to go.

-- I can dry up active folliculitis bumps pretty well by putting a tiny dab of the DermaDoctor cleanser on them and leaving it there for an hour or so. However, if the dab is too big, it dries up the surrounding skin as well.

-- Best regimen for me right now:

AM:

DermaDoctor "Born to be Mild" cleanser (massage with plenty of water for at least a minute or two).
Vivant 15% mandelic serum (this works better for me with GC than the Face Reality formulation)
Vivant Spin Trap
Emu oil/red tea serum from Diana Yvonne (yup, I've gone back to it ... the emu oil helps keep inflammation from the folliculitis down ..... )

PM:

"Born to be Mild" cleanser
Green Cream (wait 45 minutes)
Emu oil/red tea serum

Plus the maintenance dose of Accutane, of course. Luckily my derm is fine with continuing it!

The oral antifungals don't really seem to help me. I may finish what I have, but I'm not spending any more money on them.

And, of course ..... I have to give up sugar.

Sigh.

I'm not into self-deprivation.

Yep - gotta get rid of that dietary sugar!! With the antifungal supplements - are you rotating them every couple weeks?

[LionQueen]

Yeah, I was. But I honestly don't feel like they were making any difference.

I'm wondering about some sort of light therapy ..... when I had the photofacials last year, it completely wiped out the folliculitis for about 9 months. Have you run across any info in that area?