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So as most of my skin starts behaving, I do a sloppy shaving job and get three irritation spots on my right jawline. They're not severe, but I've got to remember to be more careful with a new blade.
I tried the Neutrogena Dry Touch sun block, and it's OK. I don't love it. I don't hate it. It's got a good SPF (45), but I don't really notice how dry of a touch it has. Maybe the Cetaphil with SPF 15 that I'm using isn't really all that un-dry to begin with.
Cam >B)
So I must have done a really sloppy job in shaving a few days ago because I have seven slightly inflamed spots on my right jaw, of which three or four are already dying. But seven? Honestly, that's a little much.
It did prompt me to buy one of those extraction tools, though. And I have to say, those things are great. They definitely do the job, and without any of the damage and swelling I usually cause by squeezing. It also stops me from going after spots that aren't quite ready to be dealt with yet. If I get no results from the tool, I just leave it alone.
And I'll take more care with the shaving.
Cam >B)
Okay, so there is no way that this is shaving irritation. I've had shaving irritation, and this is not it. This is suspiciously like the initial break-out I had when starting Diacneal. Same place: my right jaw line. They hurt like a son of a bitch, even though they're relatively shallow. Seriously throbbing.
A few weeks ago, I changed the way that I applied my Diacneal, I started dotting it on my face and massaging it around. Previously, I had mixed the Diacneal in my hand with a drop of water and massaged it around. Maybe I was getting more product into my skin the new way, and that made me experience another "initial" break-out. A few days ago, the dotting method proved to be too time-consuming so I stopped, and I'm not going to go back to it.
I love what Diacneal does to the texture of my skin, but this break-out totally sucks. Ow.
The rest of my skin looks great, though.
Cam >B)
This is the worst break-out I've had in years and years. The spots are all nodule-like, and some are grouped together, making one large nodule. They don't hurt as much as they did a couple of days ago, but they're still really raised and haven't formed a head. I think that I'll just have to wait for the swelling to go down.
Again, I'm pretty lucky that the spots are in a bearded area so it's been pretty easy to hide them.
I really like what Diacneal does for my skin. But if these kinds of break-outs are going to happen semi-regularly, I'm going to have to find something else to use.
Cam >B)
At the end of the day, the layers of skin on the nodules is peeling and flaky. I guess that's a good thing. I just gently exfoliate it off and put on the Diacneal. The quicker that we can get to those lower layers of skin, the better.
The nodules really look awful. Strangely, I don't feel that awful about it, though. I'm just thankful that they're not on my nose or something.
Cam >B)
Thanks, Brandy. It's been a real pain in the ass, frankly.
I'm still getting a lot of flaking and exfoliating action each day so that's a good thing, I think. Today, the swelling has gone down quite a bit. It's still red, blotchy, and unsightly, but it's not nearly as swollen and painful. Maybe in another week, it will just be a memory, and I'll be back to (not mentioning how) clear (my skin is so that I don't jinx it).
Cam >B)
OK, I give in. Friday the 13th, maybe? Since starting this Diacneal thing, I've had two really horrendous break-outs: the initial one and this one. And several small ones that I never got on the DKR. I've only rarely had the kind of consistently clear skin that I had on the DKR. So I'm officially giving up the Diacneal. I hate to get rid of a retinoid, but I just can't count on it like I can on BP. It's a real shame because I sure like the idea of a retinoid. In practice, however, it's occasionally a nightmare, and I just can't take the risk of these horrific (and I do mean gawd-awfully horrific) flare-ups.
So it's back to the DKR, which is brilliant for keeping me clear. I'm going to need to go back to something pretty darn moisturizing, though, because it makes my skin a little dry and taut. I'm going to go back on the Neutrogena Healthy Skin AHA moisturizer for its exfoliating, too, and hope that does some good for my skin. I'll likely try to go back on a retinoid when I'm out of my breaking out stage, which will probably be sometime in my early forties, if my father's skin is any indication. And I'll keep on the sunscreen to minimize the sun damage.
Could I ask a mod to move me back over to the DKR log forum? It's been nice hanging out with y'all here. I hate giving up, but I think I've given Diacneal its fair chance, and it's time to go back to good old tried and true.
Cam >B)
Sure, I'll move ya on over there now....
Sorry you are having breakouts again! I hate those jawline cyst/nodule things. I had a small one on my jawline that was there for 2 months and still going strong. My derm extracted it for me last Thursday and it seems to be going away now. I've had problems with retinoids too. Differin gave me a horrendous breakout on my chin, like nothing I've ever had before or since. I've only been able to use a very mild OTC retinoid - Derm A Gel. I tried to bump up to a slightly stronger one called Exfol-A last year, and my chin started breaking out again. I wonder if some people just react badly to all retinoid-type products??
Good luck with the DKR regimen!!!
Hey Cam,
You mentioned needing a good moisturizer to go back on the Regimen with. Use whatever you have handy for now (do you still like the Cetaphil with spf?), but hopefully in a few weeks Dan's new moisturizer will be ready and I think you will really like it. Maybe you could give it a try.
Thanks. I'm really confident that the DKR will get me back to where I was, clarity-wise. I guess I'm one of the unlucky retinoid-reactors. 
Cam >B)
Sure, I'll move ya on over there now....
Sorry you are having breakouts again! I hate those jawline cyst/nodule things. I had a small one on my jawline that was there for 2 months and still going strong. My derm extracted it for me last Thursday and it seems to be going away now. I've had problems with retinoids too. Differin gave me a horrendous breakout on my chin, like nothing I've ever had before or since. I've only been able to use a very mild OTC retinoid - Derm A Gel. I tried to bump up to a slightly stronger one called Exfol-A last year, and my chin started breaking out again. I wonder if some people just react badly to all retinoid-type products??
Good luck with the DKR regimen!!!
lol ^ I know, it's hard to keep up with all the name changes around here.
When the moisturizer comes out, the first will not have spf in it because the spf version will have to undertake several months of stability testing. So, hopefully the end of this month the regular (non spf) moisturizer (no AHA in it, btw), then later on the spf version will follow.
After about seven months of once-a-day BPing, my skin isn't really needing much adjustment to go back to twice a day. After four days, the only skin that is the least bit irritated is my neck, and I only have stray BP there anyway.
The nodules are shrinking, and no new ones are coming up. I am still getting some smaller spots, but they're going away in a day or two so I'm not worried about them. I can deal with small spots for now. Soon, they'll all be gone again, just like the last time I did the Regimen. Why again did I stay away from the Regimen for so long?
Cam >B)
Some of the nodules are just shrinking, and others are forming heads. I've gotten a couple of little pimples in the last few days, but they are relatively insignificant. The overall effect of the Regimen on my skin is very positive so far. I'm guessing that, in a week, I'll be able to shave off the beard I've grown and show the nodule-neutral skin underneath.
I'll probably fix my hair at the same time. I'm really due to cut some of the dead ends off and deal with my skunk-like roots.
Cam >B)
In the week that I've been on the Regimen again, my skin has improved so much. I no longer have any small spots on my forehead, and the nodules are looking much less angry than a week ago. It's very encouraging.
I'm putting a lot of moisturizer on since I've gone right to the full dosage, twice a day. I don't want to replace spotty skin with dry, dull skin.
Cam >B)
I got a small irritation-like spot on my left cheek. It's totally invisible under my facial hair, though. Also, it feels like the kind of spot that will never really get that bad and just fade away. My right jawline is getting much, much better. And I would say that I only have about five nodules there instead of the dozen or so that I had last week. My forehead is pretty well crystal clear. My neck is still a little dry, but I can handle that.
Cam >B)
The same thing is happening with this Diacneal-related break-out as with the last. Spots that had shrunken away have mysteriously grown again, still never forming a head. They are trying my patience. Plus they hurt. Still, my skin is better overall since re-starting the Regimen. I hate waiting.
Cam >B)
My skin had been so persistently bad while not on the Regimen that I'd recently considered going back on Accutane, just to give the acne one final kick in the ass. I'd been on Accutane a lot before, and I'm not convinced that the potential side effects (like hair loss) are worth it. Imagine having clear skin and then going bald from it. Ach!
I'm going to give the Regimen its time, though. I'm remembering the kind of bulletproof skin that it gave me before, and I'm looking for that again.
It also turns out that one of the nodules I had on my jawline was actually an ingrown hair. I was examining the spot yesterday, and I could see the hair buried under the skin. This is totally gross, but I tugged on the part sticking out, and a one-inch hair uncoiled out painlessly. The good news is that the spot has shrunk down to nearly nothing.
Yesterday, I also started using a 5% benzoyl peroxide on my back. I only occasionally get spots there, but I can only apply the BP once a day there: at night so that I don't stain my clothes. So I figure that a doubled percentage might help to keep those occasional spots at bay. Plus the skin on my back is much tougher than on my face and can handle the higher percentage pretty easily.
Cam >B)
Well, I'm two weeks back into the Regimen. And I don't know why I'm amazed, seeing as I've been on the Regimen before, but I am. The dozen or so bumps have shrunk down to almost nothing, and I have only one noticeable spot. I have a feeling that it will be shrinking down to nothing very soon as well. And I'm not getting any new spots.
Love that.
Cam >B)
Well, I'm two weeks back into the Regimen. And I don't know why I'm amazed, seeing as I've been on the Regimen before, but I am. The dozen or so bumps have shrunk down to almost nothing, and I have only one noticeable spot. I have a feeling that it will be shrinking down to nothing very soon as well. And I'm not getting any new spots.Love that.
Cam >B)
:boogie: