Hi, I'm 34 as well, and have had persistent mild-moderate acne pretty much my whole adult life.

I use tretinoin .01% gel at night and clindamycin gel in the morning. I use cerava face cleanser. I use to use BP 2.5% in the morning, and the combo of BP and tretinoin was effective in controlling my acne. I rarely am 100% clear, but i've been able to manage w a few active blemishes, and the occasional cyst (or two :/).

I switched to clindamycin in the morning because I thought the BP and tretinoin was aggrevating my skin...it helpedcontrolled my acne (but never 100% clear), but my skin always looked dry and unhealthy. Switching, I've def feel my skin looks less irritated, and it's almost as effective.

When I was a teen and in my early 20s, I used differin gel at night, which is basically tretinoin, and benzaclyin in the morning (bp plus clyndamycin). It was very effective, I was very clear at that time.

However, as I got older, my skin could no longer tollerate the strength of those meds. So I tried different strengths, and settled on the most gentle strength of tretinoin, which is .01% gel. Speaking just for myself, I find the .01% gel is the most effective on my skin.

So I have had success using tretinoin. Unfortunately, my skin is never completely clear, but it's managable. But after over 18 years of using topicals, and no end in sight, I have to admit, I'm getting fed up with even mild acne, and sadly I can't say tretinoin has cleared me 100%, but it's one of the best topical I've tried. Hope that helps.

Thanks for the reply Derek.

I got prescribed the clindamycin lotion which I've been using for a year and it's worked better than anything else I've used, but still not enough.

Did you use to use a 2.5 BP topical or cleanser? I only use the 2.5 BP cleanser, and haven't used any BP topicals in a couple years, that was causing me more cysts and breakouts.

I'm glad to hear that the use of tretinoin has been helpful. Did you experience the terrible breakouts for months like many people have written about?

I was happy that when I started the clindamycin lotion, I didn't break out much, but I'm worried b/c of all the horror stories on this forum, and my face definitely doesn't need anymore acne scars.

I feel the same way. It's been a better year this past year since I've used the clindamycin, and I never used to wash my face at night until I started seeing a dermatologist again this past year, but to still have new pimples frequently, sometimes daily, with all I do, makes me feel hopeless, like if this is the best I can do even with all this at 34 when I've dealt with it constantly since I was 16, I might as well just end it.

I tried this glycolic acid stuff they sell at my derm but that wouldn't work great either, only at times. So again I felt what's the point. So tretinoin is like the last option, and I just worry that if I try it, and get awful breakouts for 6 months, have to get injections to the cysts it'll probably give me, or go on anti-biotics, only to never really be worth it, and get more scars and marks on my face, then what the hell is the point?

Or there's accutane but I don't want to start that based on the all the horror stories I've heard too . It's freaking acne, I don't understand why the science big wigs haven't developed something that does more good than harm and actually cures it!

I guess I just want to know if tretinoin caused you months of the worst breakouts you've ever experienced, or if it was pretty mild? b/c everything I've read so far has been horror stories.

Hey,
I'm one of those people that accutane worked great for and topical retinoids did not.
(tho my use of a retinoid was really unnecessary to begin with)

Right now I'm one of those "tretinoin" horror stories..tho my retinoid was tazorac.. all retinoids seem to have the same effect when the effect is negative.

You don't know what I would do right now to have someone, 2 months ago, tell me not to put that **** on my face..I'm telling you I'd kill to have had someone say that..to warn me.

So that's all I can do..

Im currently at a loss as to what to do for myself so I can only share my experience...I doubt you'd want to read my long post about Tazorac destroying my face, buts it's there, and there are pics. I guess the Before ones Could double as post accutane.
But I've also done a lot of other things to keep my skin from going to crap (besides the tazorac lapse of judgement) like avoiding the sun for seven years (I'm very pale so I will burn), changing my diet and lifestyle and drinking water by the gallons, taking the necessary vitamins (esp D because I get zero sun), otherwise being gentle on my skin and only using bland face wash, etc
So I'm sure that helped its previous condition...of which the retinoid completely reversed and ravaged practically overnight.

Im still trying to find pictures of people who have healed from this reaction to retinoids and I'm having no luck.
I think I've made a complete circle around the god damn internet by now.

Id say go for the accutane and don't even mess with that topical vitamin a.
I don't say this because I don't believe others have been harmed by accutane all the same as anything else..I say it
because if you are at the point that you have to use either one..then you best go with the one that could "cure" you from the inside long term rather than the one that causes constant irritation from the outside and is only temporary (the only thing that could be permanent is the damage and the fact that retinoids strip the epidermis and leave you exposed to the the elements and scarring).

I always had amazing success with fixing things from the inside out...besides BC...so idk what possessed me to attempt the topical route so casually.

Be Careful. I hope to give others the oppurtunity to learnfrom history rather than experience.

I know I just wasted the money buying the tretinoin but with all the negative reviews I think I'll just suck up the money waste and stick with the BP cleanser/clindamycin regimen. I just don't see the point of heavy purging, scarring my skin, into something that doesn't seem to have any successes with anyone. Accutane at least has some success with people, even with all the bad reviews. I've found nothing good about tretinoin, yet why do dermatologists prescribe it? Feels like everyone is just cheated.

3 hours ago, seckf93gj said:

I know I just wasted the money buying the tretinoin but with all the negative reviews I think I'll just suck up the money waste and stick with the BP cleanser/clindamycin regimen. I just don't see the point of heavy purging, scarring my skin, into something that doesn't seem to have any successes with anyone. Accutane at least has some success with people, even with all the bad reviews. I've found nothing good about tretinoin, yet why do dermatologists prescribe it? Feels like everyone is just cheated.

"Why do dermatologists prescribe it?"

Asking my my self that question everyday...and why they also just give out samples like its candy.

It is a wise decision not to mess with the nightmare that is topical retinoids .

1% Retinol and glycolic acid ruined my face and gave me rosacea which I have had for a year now and not manaaged to shake. It has completely f'ed up my complexion. Was given treclin only two months ago and although it didnt make rosacea worse it made me break out and didnt seem to help at alll.

Finacea however has helped with the first few applications. Although it burns a bit it seems to help more than treclin does.

On November 3, 2016 at 5:57 AM, ViceX said:

1% Retinol and glycolic acid ruined my face and gave me rosacea which I have had for a year now and not manaaged to shake. It has completely f'ed up my complexion. Was given treclin only two months ago and although it didnt make rosacea worse it made me break out and didnt seem to help at alll.

Finacea however has helped with the first few applications. Although it burns a bit it seems to help more than treclin does.

Ugh Jesus Christ...this stuff really wreaks havoc..what did your derm say about the rosacea? I see others saying it initiated rosacea in them as well.
i swear I will lose my head completely if I am left with anything permanent

whats your skin type btw