I remember this stage!

Don't pick girly! I know it's SUPER hard. But Differin thins the top layer and any

marks you make are going to be a little more intense than before. I actually messed

up and have a stupid red mark on my face now because I pushed too hard. Your skin

WILL look amazing if you give it time and don't harass it. Get a gentle clay mask or opaque

spot treatment and use that when you want to pick.

Thank you so much for your reply and advice. arghhh picking... I ALWAYS think its going to make things look better, but as if that's the case! I have got a clay mask in amongst my hundreds of other skin care products ) x

Haha you really have to intensely remind yourself that it DOES NOT make things look better. When you see a spot that you want to pick, dab a little of the mask on and cover it! I swear if you are consistent it helps.

Though I use a French company tretinoin cream not differin, my issue now is hyperpigmentations after the breakout. But Lumixyl helps my red and pink scars a lot. I had used this cream before I started using tretinoin, and it helped acne scars.

Lumixyl is much safer than hydroquinon. But it's expensive.....

Thank you, I'll have a look into the cream. Anything to help with the marks would be a great start. I'm so down about it! It's my works Christmas party on Friday and I don't wanna go because of the state my face looks... Thanks guys n girls x

Ugh, I'm in the same boat as you right now, Friday will be exactly 8 weeks on Differin for me, and I'm just getting more and more worried. I know about the initial breakouts, but for most people, their skin seems to start clearing up at 6-8 weeks, but for me, there are just no signs of getting better at all. I'm getting stuff on my face that was never there in the first place, that I've never even seen before and it's just terrifying. I'm trying to stick it out until the 12th week, hopefully we both make it and see results.

californiaEstie, your posts and faith in Differin give me hope, haha.

I also can't resist picking, especially when it's the kind with a white dot that's just begging to be popped out. For me, when a pimple reaches that stage, I just always, always pop it right away. Are we supposed to leave those alone, too? I just always assumed I was supposed to pop it when it gets like that. And blackheads. A lot of people say blackheads will not go away on its own, and needs to be extracted. Does anyone know if that's true?

I've hit 9 weeks today so here is to week 10! My face seems to be looking even worse than last week its all clogged pores that are becoming inflamed huge whiteheads. I'm sure I have more clogged pores than I did to start with. Also, my face has just decided to start peeling... Is this not suppose to happen in the first few weeks?!

Karen, I feel exactly the same as you... Terrified!!! keep me posted on ur progress. Good luck. x

I've just recently stopped using Differin. I'd just hit week 15 with no luck of clear skin. I had major flare ups and breakouts worse than id ever had before... Now i just have scars and an horribly covered in acne face. Hope it works better for you all!

Makes me wonder why it seems to work great for some people and just does not do anything except worsen it for some people. I hope it's just taking longer for me, and frankly, I really hope Differin is the last thing I ever have to use for my skin after all these years because I'm just sick of not knowing what my skin is going to do next, but I have heard of people on it for half a year and still stuck where we are now. :/