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I've been applying a pea-sized amount of Stieva-A 0.05% cream every 3 nights over my face (so far I have only used it 3 times over 10 days) and yet... I am already facing peeling, redness, new inflamed pimples along with sensitive, dry and tight skin. Is this normal? I've read everywhere that it takes around 3-4 weeks for the "purge" phase to kick in, so could my symptoms be something else? Im starting to think this cream doesn't agree with my face at all.
My doctor first told me to use stieva-a at night, and then benzoyl peroxide in the morning (5.5% OXY deep pore acne vanishing treatment). I found that to be excessive so I've been doing 1 night stieva-a and benzoyl peroxide on the other 2 nights but only on my pimples, not over my whole face as I do with the tretinoin cream. I also only wash my face at night to avoid dryness, could this be bad since the stieva-a cream sits on my face for 24hours ?
I'm going to wait at least 5 days before I apply it again, and maybe see my doctor for the 0.025% or 0.01% cream. My skin has always been very sensitive and it took me over 6 months to get the rosacea under control. Is it really possible for the purge phase to begin after merely a week? (redness begun after the 2nd application)
To be fair, i haven't been using moisturizers at all because EVERYTHING i try breaks me out. Literally Everything. Then last night I remembered my japanese toner which I hadn't used in months and applied some. It soothed my skin but not much. It keeps itching and peeling, the kind you'd get after a bad sunburn. Japanese toners are hydrating, nothing like the american ones~ Its actually the only thing that never broke me out but im a little paranoid you see.
Here is a picture. You can't see the dryness since i had just washed my face and applied the toner. Please ignore my greasy hair, its a hair treatment that I washed out since 
hehe
Please let me know what you think, is it too soon for my skin to be reacting that way? Does it mean I should stop? 
This is the other side of my face. This one has always been better for some reasons.. what I'm worried about is the redness accross my cheeks, it really is the same as a sunburn and its so sensitive I have no idea what to do and I really don't want to go out like this.. I can't even use makeup to cover it up
Ugh I just wrote you a whole reply and then my phone died and wiped it...well basically what I said was that I f you are experiencing and concern about side effects...then please stop before it causes damage.
I used a retinoid also..only twice.. and it has utterly destroyed my skin.
Its been two months and things only getting worse even tho I have been barely so much as splashing my face with water.
Its hard for me to see through your acne to see anything else that could be going on..but I also felt like I had a sunburn after using this stuff..well more Likesomeone stuck my face in a fire pit..and even genuine sunburns don't last this long..
So if you are experiencing anything such as textural changes, color changes, burning or pulling sensations, "scars", lines and indentations or marks appearing out of nowhere, MORE acne, etc etc etc..then I would stop it all now.
You don't want to end up like me or all these other people I've found across the web who are now dealing with seemingly permanent damage from retinoids..id much rather just have acne than deal with the entire integrity of my skin being compromised..I'm crying everyday because of it..yet I can't for long because the tears burn my now crepey eye lid skin..I also have blurry vision, dark eye circles and marks under these circles..and that's just the eyearea..you can go look at my post "Taz destroyed my skin" if you want to know more..I'm just trying to warn others incase they are also one of the unlucky people who react this way to retinoids
it's a nightmare
Sweetie I am SO sorry to hear that.. I'm guessing you must've had an allergic reaction for it to cause such damage after using it only two times ? This is really awful.. You met an incompetent derm.. I can't believe he is allowed to work. Of course scars can be healed there are tons of ways to do so, or at least make them much less visible. Honey please don't lose hope. I know right now you feel horrible and probably don't leave the house as much... But it will get better. I've seen severe cases of acne, dermatitis and other skin conditions that have healed so well. It just takes time, maybe a year... But it WILL get better. And it wont take that long for you to start noticing it. Stay strong <3
As for me, my skin started to calm down after I stopped using the 0.05% retin-A cream. It took a few weeks and I also tried some benzagel here and there (Which I've found works wonders for my acne, but I really have to apply a smaller amount than I first tried least I burn my skin AGAIN)
Here's a picture! Same side as the first one. Lighting may be different but you can still notice a huge difference. This is also close to how my skin was before I used that dreaded retin-a cream.
I've seen my doctor as well and got a presciption for the 0.025% tetrinoin GEL... I'm never using a comedogenic cream again. But when I try this gel, i will be doing a patch test for several weeks. I will update with pictures once I do.