Acne.org : Moisturizer with Licochalcone (OLD)

wish there was a middle ground between the new and old moisturizers. (ie. more emollient like the old one with some [but not so much!] licorice extract like the new one)

I was using the old moisturizer for about a year and was not satisfied with the stinging sensation I got. The fact it made my face look really oily bothered me too. When I switched to the new moisturizer, at first I felt it wasn't moisturizing enough and made my face feel tight. I had a ton of dry skin and flakes so i abandoned it and went back to Cetaphil. Well, a few months later, after reading some of the posts, I decided to give it another try, but this time I reduced the amount of BP (just 1 pump and used a ton of lotion (4 pumps and 10 drops of jojoba oil) at night. In the morning I would gently wash off the lotion and jojoba oil under the shower for no longer than 10 seconds without touching my face. I didn't use any cleanser, just water. After getting out of the shower I would very gently pat dry and then gently apply more lotion (1 pump) without the BP under it. I have been doing it this way for about a month now and the dryness and tightness has just about completely gone away. Also I have been able to keep the acne away. Luckily, 1 pump of BP is enough for me. Since I am using only 1 pump of the lotion in the morning, there is no shine whatsoever. The new lotion is actually very soothing and calming just like Dan says.

I was not crazy about the new formula when I first tried it, but I was determined to give it a fair shot, and I'm glad I did. It took a couple weeks for me to get used to applying it so that it would absorb properly, and sometimes if I'm rushing I still have trouble. For the first few days I was tinted yellow and could feel it "sitting" on top of my skin not being absorbed. I even had lightly scratched my chin and gotten some under my fingernail (gross!). After trying different methods of applying it, I found a way that worked. I apply it slowly (1/2 pump at a time) and now, I don't have to use more than 1-1.5 pumps applied this way to get the appropriate use for my skin. I like that I can apply this over or under the SPF cream I use and it doesn't add to an "oily" look. I still had the old moisturizer in my travel case and went back and used it after using the new one for a month and realized I didn't like the old one as much as I had remembered. I'm actually happy that I didn't have the option to keep using the old one because I never would have given the new one a proper try. Another thing I noticed with the new moisurizer is I can skip a day or two of BP and use 2 full pumps at night and I will not break out. With any of the old methods I used, if I stopped the treatment (BP in this case) I broke out before morning. Also, with other lotions, if I use "extra" than normal my face will look swollen in the morning, especially under my eyes. I have never had this problem with this new formula. The reason I gave 4 instead of 5 is that it takes longer to apply and absorb and I do not care for the (light) smell of it (what I can guess is due to the licorice root). My strong suggestion, it to really try different methods of applying it and for at least a month. I wanted to give up after the first few days, but am glad I did not.

i have been reading that a lot of people are having flakiness issues and i found that freeman's peeling mask ($3+), used on daily basis, helps get rid of it. there is also boscia's black peeling mask which i use maybe twice a week and that helps as well. its a gentler way of exfoliating without irritating your skin. after i take off the mask i use avene milk cleanser to wash away access, instead of the acne.org cleanser, to mosturize (but before i use the mask i use the acne.org cleanser). this is all at night.. and being that i live in the city im sure i pick up a lot of things that im better off not knowing about.. so the mask helps with that as well. at first use for a couple weeks or so.. makes your skin feel very tight and a lot of flakiness and itchiness with the regimen and i had to reapply moisturizer mid-day after lunch especially on and around the chin area. a lot of that went away (and i didn't have to reapply moisturizer) when i started using the peeling mask. clay masks just dried out my skin more so might want to stay away from those. my skin is definitely firmer from the licorice in the moisturizer, if not firm. my skin has definitely cleared up and i only have two or so pimples in areas that i realized i was touching during the day or not using enough cleanser on. after my skin clears up fully i plan on using night serums with the regimen to help with my acne scars. hope this helps!

I only use half a pump of the Benzoyl Peroxide treatment and I use even less than that of the moisturizer. I know that's not what the instructions say, but 3 pumps is too much product to put on my face and wait till it dries. Using half pumps is syill clearing up my acne AND I'm not experiencing any dryness or flakiness. If I don't use the moisturerizer, I can tell my skin will be flaky the next morning, because the BP makes my skin tight. I only use the BP and moisturizer at night...not in the morning. I do this because I still wear makeup and these products are just too thick to put makeup over. But I do use the cleanser night and day.

I'm couple of weeks into Dan's regimen and it has been good so far. I do really like this moisturizer because it doesn't irritate or cause break out, but it doesn't moisturize enough when your using high dosage of BP. You have to use jojoba oil with this or I use conjunction with AHA+ gel which I find it to be very very much moisturizing.

It took some time to get used to. I'll start off by saying that I took some time to get used to benzyol peroxide, it used to make me face itch. But, now I can put it on with no problem. However, when I first used this moisturizer after applying benzoyl peroxide, my face felt like it was burning. I guess it took some time to get use to it, because now, it occasionally burns a tiny bit in some areas. I tried a lot of different moisturizers and I can say that this works very well for me. It doesn't leave my skin too oily or dry. The scent isn't too pleasing, but I'm not picky about the scent.

I like this moisturizer much better than the previous one for the many reasons every one else is stating; less irritation, calming, feels good on the skin, etc. Only real drawback is that it leaves a yellow stain around my white collared t shirts where it comes in to contact with my neck. I washed one shirt and it still seems a little of the residue stayed. If there was a way to make it not yellow in color, it would be perfect. Cheers!

I'm glad I tried it, and am going to keep using it! It isn't an all-purpose, though - I still keep aloe and Olay beauty fluid on hand for extra moisture and priming (the jojoba makes eye makeup slide right off.)

I want to rate this 5 stars as I have Daniel's other face products however it's not perfect. It gives my skin a cooling refreshing feeling after application however it doesn't fully hydrate my skin. I think it works differently for everyone as everyone's skin has it's own profile. I add six drops of Jojoba oil to it in the morning and 8 drops at night which significantly helps with flakiness. One thing I've figured out is that if I use just half a pump of Olay's moisturizer with SPF 15 in the morning and this product fully at night using Daniel's method, my face becomes fully hydrated and flake free over the course of a week. I highly recommend giving this technique a try if you still struggle with dryness and flakiness after using this.