TLDR: I'm nervous to start the regimen since I've already found something that works pretty well for my acne but irritates my skin.
Hi everyone,
I've had moderate acne for years now & have tried lots of things, including prescriptions, with nothing really helping a lot. I'm really fair skinned so my acne usually leave a red mark as well, even though I never touch my face or pick/pop my acne at all. I've always been pretty good with taking care of my skin; I've been cleansing, treating, and moisturizing my skin religiously for years, with only changing the products I use for each step.
About 1.5 months ago I started using benzoyl peroxide for the first time to try to treat my acne; I've been using Benzagel 5, a 5% BP gel. It has helped me SUBSTANTIALLY, although my skin is nowhere near clear, it is way better than it was a couple months ago. My only complaint about the Benzagel is that although I don't really experience any redness/itchiness/severe irritation, I do still have flaky skin. It isn't severe but it's definitely noticeable and makes it hard to wear makeup seeing as foundation kind of accentuates it. I haven't been able to find any BP in my area that is lower than 5% as well.
Anyways, I decided to try the regimen out seeing as my normal face wash and moisturizer just ran out (they weren't really doing much for my skin anyway) & I want to try the 2.5% BP to see if it doesn't make my skin as flaky. I also wanted to try out the AHA+ to help with my red marks and texture due to past acne. However, I'm kind of nervous seeing as the Benzagel DOES work for my skin for the most part... I've heard a lot of people say that once you've found something that works, you should just stick with it. The regimen also uses BP though so hopefully my skin will react well to it?
Do you think it's a bad idea to try something new even though the Benzagel does work, although it's irritating my skin? Will changing up my skin care routine reverse the affects the Benzagel has had and put me back to square one?
I started the ''regimen'' 4 days ago, I live in Finland, so I dont have access to the 2.5% either, so I am using 5%. I haven't still had any side effects at all. Maybe your skin is very sensitive? Or is there a chance that you are allergic to it?
Anyway, im only using my Benzoyl Peroxide at night, before I go sleep. I will try to use it only once a day, if I dont see any good results after 1-2 months, I might do it twice a day.
Not sure if my comment was so much for help, I bet a moderator will help you soon. 
Hi there!
I've been where you've been. The frustrating part of that all is, you find something that sort of works but doesn't really address all the issues that you may be having. It may with time, but I know for myself, I can get pretty impatient. I think The Regimen and the principles behind it (staying extremely gentle, avoiding irritation, stripping your products down to the bare essentials), may be of benefit to you. I think Dan's BP is the star of all of his products. It is high quality but is still a low enough percentage to lessen the irritation most acne medications can cause. I would say buy the BP. If you are already using a gentle, ph-balanced cleanser and have a moisturizer that does not break you out, you might not need to order the entire kit. I will say to take the first weeks slow. It does not matter how accustomed your skin has gotten using BP before --irritation may still occur once you start a new acne medication regardless if you are switching from one BP product to another. Follow the instructions precisely, then after a month, introduce Dan's AHA. I think The Regimen may give you the results you need if you are patient enough to persevere through the initial stages.
I hope this helps. Please keep us updated on what you decide to do.
7 hours ago, MindfulTiler said:I started the ''regimen'' 4 days ago, I live in Finland, so I dont have access to the 2.5% either, so I am using 5%. I haven't still had any side effects at all. Maybe your skin is very sensitive? Or is there a chance that you are allergic to it?
Anyway, im only using my Benzoyl Peroxide at night, before I go sleep. I will try to use it only once a day, if I dont see any good results after 1-2 months, I might do it twice a day.Not sure if my comment was so much for help, I bet a moderator will help you soon.
My skin definitely is on the more sensitive side. It was way more irritated when I first started using the BP so I did what you did and used it only at night, but my irritation has gone down a lot so I use it twice a day now! I just can't seem to get rid of the dang flakes! It doesn't hurt or get red or anything though so I don't think I'm allergic. Thanks for your comment
7 hours ago, ilickoreos said:Hi there!
I've been where you've been. The frustrating part of that all is, you find something that sort of works but doesn't really address all the issues that you may be having. It may with time, but I know for myself, I can get pretty impatient. I think The Regimen and the principles behind it (staying extremely gentle, avoiding irritation, stripping your products down to the bare essentials), may be of benefit to you. I think Dan's BP is the star of all of his products. It is high quality but is still a low enough percentage to lessen the irritation most acne medications can cause. I would say buy the BP. If you are already using a gentle, ph-balanced cleanser and have a moisturizer that does not break you out, you might not need to order the entire kit. I will say to take the first weeks slow. It does not matter how accustomed your skin has gotten using BP before --irritation may still occur once you start a new acne medication regardless if you are switching from one BP product to another. Follow the instructions precisely, then after a month, introduce Dan's AHA. I think The Regimen may give you the results you need if you are patient enough to persevere through the initial stages.
I hope this helps. Please keep us updated on what you decide to do.
Hi! I did use a good cleanser & moisturizer but they just ran out & are fairly expensive so I figured why not try Dan's whole system haha. I'll definitely take it slow, it's good to know I should even though I've used BP before so thanks for letting me know! Do you think if I experience no irritation I could start the AHA sooner?