Hi,
SoI think I burned and damaged my skin barrier with benzoyl peroxide and I'm utterly horrified. I followed all The Regimen directions perfectly but somehow my cheeks look as if I've burned them.
The rest of my face is fine but my cheeks are very very irritated with a burning sensation that's lasted for about a week now. All of my pores seem to have enlarged and when I look in the mirror my cheeks look shiny. When I touch my cheeks they have a tacky feel to them too.
I immediately stopped using all products and I'm just so sick to my stomach right now because before The Regimen I hardly had any pores on my cheeks.
Will my skin heal? Should I leave them alone completely or put moisturizer on them, like Cerave moisturizer lotion??
I would greatly appreciate any advice, thank you.
It sounds like you may have used too much too soon or perhaps had a reaction. Please read here: http://www.acne.org/faq.html#burn
I would think it would start to heal since you have discontinued the products, however if you have concerns please see your doctor for medical advice. Use your best judgment.
I had a similar experience this week. I started having crazy crazy dry skin and it burned all day. It made me miserable, so I reluctantly decided to stop the regimen for a few days. This is my second day that i haven't used any products (except moisturizer) and my skin looks a lot less red/swollen, and doesn't burn anymore.
I don't really know when I'll start back up.. or if I want to. I no longer have "pimples" just lots of red marks.
If you're really miserable, I'd say just stop for a few days and then start back up slowly... it's a waiting process, and you just gotta be patient. I'd try putting on moisturizer too.. unless it just burns too much! Good luck!
Treat it like a sunburn or chemical peel. I'm a broken record about this, but BP is bad news for a lot of us with sensitive skin or in conjunction with other medications.
Broken record time again I'm going to pimp Body Shop Honey and Oat (moisturizing, soothing) mask to calm and moisturize. If you can't get to a Body Shop, your local Walgreen's or Target should have a hydrating mask, aloe (healing) based is best, and you can sleep in it with no worries.
When I started the regimen, I had the same thing happen to me. It was probably because I was so eager to get rid of my acne that I used too much BP too soon. My cheeks were sooo red and looked like they had been burnt! It hurt like crazy! It was so bad that everybody would comment on it and my mom told me to stop doing whatever I was doing.
I stopped the regimen and only moisturized my face for about 2 weeks. Then when it got better, I SLOWLY began using BP again. I also did some oatmeal masks as well which was very helpful with calming down the redness and making my skin softer because it was so stiff from the burn, lol.
Now my skin is clear and I do get a few pimples here and there but after suffering with acne for almost 10 years, I don't mind. Hang in there! 