Acne.org Products
My doctor recently prescribed me Differin along with Clindamycin Phosphate lotion. I was told to use the lotion twice a day and the Differin at night. My question is, for those of you who have used Differin/Clindamycin and seen results, do you find that you get faster/better results if you actually rub the medication into your face? Or do you simply just apply a layer over the top of your skin and leave it to dry?
Also, does anyone actually use the pea size amount? I've been finding it hard to suffice for my whole face but I'm wondering if more is worse for my skin.
I rub Clindamycin in good or else when it dries I'll have white stuff all over my face.
For the pea size amount, no.
What I use is like 2 1/2 pea sizes (on my left pointer finger), and to effectively spread it around I get a tiny bit on my right pointer and just dab small amounts all over my face and then rub it in.
I just started a similar regimen my derm gave me, but I have a clindamycin phosphate sort of liquid/gel that goes on nightly, and then Differen for every other night for the first two weeks and then every night after. I'd suggest using the pea sized amount and following your doctor's instructions because from what I've heard retinoids are pretty strong when you first start off. They can make your skin dry and your skin needs to get used to them, so that's why you need to use a little bit. I'm the same way, usually with mosturizers and such I put on a lot because I feel like more will help so it's been hard trying to use only the pea sized amount! And I agree with dupa about dabbing small amounts and rubbing it in.
No, rubbing won't make a difference. Just let the clindamycin lotion absorb on its own.
The pea-size rule is there to minimize irritation. It only really becomes important when you use the strongest retinoids, such as 0.1% tazarotene gel. For those kinds of medications, if you use significantly more than a pea-sized amount for the entire face then you will get major irritation. Differin is much more mild though. Unless you have sensitive skin, I imagine you can use quite a bit of the stuff and not get much of a reaction. And no, you won't make your skin worse by using more.