I guess I should start by saying that my skin is pretty sensitive, but lately my acne has been under control. I typically use asalicylic acid spot treatment for any little breakout I get and it seems to work just fine. Well I ran out and when I thought I purchased a new tube at the store last week, it turns out I ended up grabbing a tube of 10% benzoyl peroxide gel (I know, I know, REALLY dumb mistake). Combine PMS hormonal changes with traveling the last several days, I was fairly certain I would end up breaking out. So the genius that I am decided to put a good amount of the acne gel all over my right cheek. I did this for two nights and the third day (yesterday), OMG did I realize I had made a mistake. The area I put the gel on is now super red and irritated. I have a ton of red spots that look like a pimple, but they are completely flat. There's a few very tiny acne bumps, but they are mostly just red, not yellow or anything. The skin is very dry ad burns a bit.
The rest of my face is not like this and looks completely normal, which is why I'm pretty sure the BP is the culprit. Obviously I'm not applying anymore of the gel, but what can I do to try and clear this mess up? I used my trusty detox clay mask, loaded up on moisturizer, and am taking Benadryl to try and keep it from getting any worse. Is there anything else I should be doing? How long does it take for a reaction like this to clear up? Should I avoid using any othersalicylic acid products until this goes away? Any help would be much appreciated. Thanks!
I thibk you're on the right track. I would avoid making the area any more irritated. benadryl is a good idea to avoid it getting worse. I wouldn't apply any other treatments to the area until it heals up, even though it's tempting. I think they have like a benadryl cream, but I've never tried it. maybe try a cool compress? and just use super gentle stuff, cetaphil always helps my skin calm down. also, if you have any aloe, that might help.