Proactiv Solution : Acne Treatment System

Problem #1: I used this product from the ages of 16-18. The product had worked great then and I got off of it when my skin became immune to it. I am now 22 and I just reordered it because my skin had become immune to a different product I have been using for the past couple years. I had ordered through the Proactiv website and they had a promo for free little goodies. I received the shipment about a week later and tried it a day after that. The product completely dried out my skin! I have never used any product that dried my skin out quite like this one. I attempted to the use the product 3 times. It took 4 days for my skin to recover between those uses. So I used the product for roughly 12 days. If you use the product in the 3 step recommended dose, the cleanser comes first, then the toner, and then the lotion. The lotion could not save my skin from the severe dryness caused by the cleanser. Problem #2: Recurring charges. The initial product cost around $35 with shipping and handling. After the attempted use the first month, I was adamant about not using this product again. A month later, I am hit with a $42 charge to my card. When I called their customer service, they had told me that they had shipped out another box and I can expect a $42 charge every month until I cancel the product and a new box of garbage skin care as well. I told them to cancel it and that I wanted a refund for the last box they had sent. They asked me around 20 questions as to why the product didn't work for me and even If I had to seek medical attention from the use of their product, as if many customers had to. I asked them how I would go about returning the product and receiving a refund. They told me that I had to pay out of pocket to return and that a return label would be sent to me in the next 7-10 business days. Looking at the weight of the box and dimensions, that's about $15 out-of-pocket just to receive $42 back ($27 outcome). She then told me to hold onto the first bottles I had received from last month for the next 30 days and told me that I could possibly receive a call from them asking me to return them to the company at my expense. If I receive no call, then just toss them in the garbage, a waste of $35 again. My only advice to you is being very careful around this predatory company because they will try to take advantage of every penny they can get out of you. I would recommend going for a product you can purchase in store and have the option of returning in store to avoid any issues you may have if this product doesn't seem to work for you.

I used Proactive Solution for 3 years and I regret every day of it. They are extremely alluring, those 10 minute infomercials (backed by the celebrity du jour) that promise to give you porcelain skin in as little as 3 weeks... But the sad truth is that Proactive just doesn't work. The picture perfect celeb you see promising you that Proactive will fix your skin is paid tens of thousands of dollars to say that, but you can bet that they themselves definitely don't rely on it - they have access to the best acne doctors, medications and treatment programs that money can buy (or failing that, photoshop). I wish someone had told 14-year-old me that... For the purpose of brevity, I will write a timeline of my own Proactiv experience: Day 1: The first few uses of Proactiv burned a little, but afterwards my skin felt tighter and much less oily (I made the stupid mistake of deciding that these things meant my skin was finally becoming 'clean'). Week 1: My skin became very, very dry, flaky and itchy. It was extremely embarrassing having to deal with the itchiness and flakes of dead skin everywhere. My face attained a red hue (akin to a permanent (mild) sunburn) from all of the irritants in Proactiv. Month 1: It was hard to tell, but there seemed to be fewer blackheads/whiteheads. My face was still red and irritated. Month 2: There was much less dry skin, but that ever-present red tint remained. There were still a few small breakouts. Month 3: My skin hadn't cleared completely, but it was better than it used to be. Month 6 (and it's all downhill from there): I got huge (and extremely painful) cystic eruptions, which I'd never had before using Proactiv, but as a result, still get to this day. They are large, red and blind (do not show pus), but they are very obvious and take weeks to heal (and even then leave a scar). And that's about where Proactiv's efficacy ends. Although it appears to c

Back in high school my acne was so bad i decided to try proactive. biggest mistake of my life. After two weeks not only was my acne worse my face was so red and dry a girl in the cafeteria told me to go look at my self in the mirror. worse day of my life. I hate proactive so much i hope this company would burst into flames. This product is trash you can find anything in stores stronger and cheaper than this and not as harmful to your skin.

Didnt work for me at all!! :(

After I relocated to FL my skin got really bad. I finally hit rock bottom and decided to try Proactive. My face started to get even worse. I figured it was the impurities coming out and continued using it. My skin just got worse and worse, MASIVE breakouts. So I canceled it. But they sent me the next shipment anyhow saying it was already sent out early before the 30 days so I would have it before my 30 days was up. I was charged for the 2nd shipment more than once since it's a larger shipment. Sent both back before the 60 days were up, got confirmation from tracking saying it arrived on time, and the stupid company still won't refund me. I hate them. What a rip off. Way to take advantage of people in a sensitive situation. DON'T DO IT!! My skin started clearing up after I stopped using it!

Their ads are very deceiving... they say, "Trial Version," but in reality they take different amounts from your account. I returned the product after call, my cost to return the item, around $15 to return it, and still, no refund. I even called them and all they said was, "We are sorry you were not satisfied." The product did not work. No results. I feel my money would have been better spent going to a "Real" skin doctor. I only have an occassional breakout, sooo... If you don't mind money being taken out! Then sign up! The $20 will cost you well over $100.00++++

My acne was never too problematic; I used to break out as much as any other person with uncontrollably oily skin and ineffective stress coping techniques, but I did do enough that I thought investing in a reportedly "good" acne treatment would be a good idea. The first time I used it, my skin got incredibly irritable, but I figured that was just the way the treatment worked. In the morning, however, I woke to find 7 or 8 cystic pimples littered on my lower cheek/jaw area, so I immediately stopped using the treatment. It's been over a week since I stopped using it and my acne has gotten worse still; my cheeks look like the God damn Rocky Mountain range, AND THEY'RE STILL HAPPENING!!! MY SKIN WAS NEVER NEARLY THIS BAD BEFORE!!! I'm super pissed, but I guess I should have done more research before spending upwards of $100 on this crap. Overall: this is the WORSE investment I have ever made and completely regret it.

It will mess up your face even more than before proactive.

I would not waist any money on this product! It's too expensive and did not work.

Do not waste your time, money, or patience on this company or their products. Be PROACTIVE and run - not walk away - from these products. I am in my early 30's and have very light "acne". I would break out once in a while each month but really wanted Katy Perry or Julianne Hough skin. So, I figured I would try Proactive. I might as well have taken my money, crumpled it into little balls and flushed it down my toilet. First of all, the products are worthless. I could get better results from a $3.00 bar of Cetaphil and $1.00 container of witch hazel. The cleanser was non-effective at best. The toner was worse than water alone. The "oil free" moisterizer was greasy and made my forehead look like an oil slick in the Gulf. The repairing treatment ruined my new sheets...blah blah blah...same thing everyone else says. Secondly, their customer service reps do not provide any service to their customers! I ordered the trial and then after two more payments of $29.95 I became aware that I was suppose to have received my products. Three days later I received my first and last notice from the post office saying that proactive had sent me a package, that it was forwarded from my previous address, but that I did not catch it in time and it was being returned to sender. OK...didn't really care about the package, just wanted my money back from the previous dings to my debit card. I called customer service and was made aware that as soon as they received the package back they would refund my money. That was 2 months ago. First they tried to say that I was "past the return limit of 60 days"...then they saw that I called them within the 60 days to report the package not received. Now they refuse to acknowledge that they ever received the package back and that I should have insured the package. And, to add insult to injury, they say that I OWE THEM the last payment of $29.95 - for products that I never received. RUN and don't look back!!!