I'm a big fan of Tazorac 0.1% gel and the 0.1% cream. I use the 0.1% gel in the summer and switch to the 0.1% cream in the winter. Rather than jumping right to slather either formulation on every night at bedtime, I let my skin adjust to the new level of exfoliation. I started one night a week for 4 weeks, then 2 nights for 4 weeks. and so on till I'm up to an every night routine. This really helps to reduce the crazy peeling alot of people seem to experince. And its pretty normal for my to break out more at the start of the therapy, but it settles down by the 5th or 6th week. What really helps me tolerate Tazorac treatment are the NON-glycolic products from M.D. Forte. There made by Allergan, the same co. that makes tazorac. They really help reduce the irritation and redness, like 10 fold.

it works amazing. it will mess up your skin at 1st. i think it took months literally to clear it all up.

I can't complain. For about two years I had a lot of skin colored (white heads) bumps surfacing my forehead. I started tazorac but wasn't patient and stopped. Once my dermo put me back on it she said to continue to use it since results may not occur until about 3 months. My skin was already used to benzoyl peroxide so I was able to apply it every night with not a lot of drying for 5 months straight (July- December). I can admit I noticed my skin to fluctuate, I honestly think it got slightly worse before it got better. As of now I don't have nearly as many bumps than I did before and I am so thankful. I have a few dark spots, slight discoloration but my skin is so much more clear. Much more confident in myself! I was using Tazorac .05%

This stuff is horrifying. It wrecked my skin after only two uses. I dont know if I will ever recover and I can barely even function now because of this crap. I used it for a small amount of pimples I got from not washing my face for awhile and it did the following: -Blotchiness -Itchiness -Crepe like skin bunching up like cellophane -Pores/pin pricks everywhere -Fine lines and wrinkles that look very abnormal -Dents and shallow marks of all sizes and shapes out of nowhere (more continue to come) -uneveness In color and in thickness of skin -Burning to the point it felt my face was used to put out a fire -Turned my porcelain skin to a reddish yellow mottled mess with texture issues galore -made me breaks out like nuts after a week or so had passed -made my skin sensitive as all hell -made my skin mushy and "mesh like" especially the forehead..it's like parts of my face are a partially deflated helium balloon, my skin no longer sits flat against my face -Made me depressed to the point that now I contemplate leaving this earth if my skin doesn't go back to its pre-tazorac state ...I am now in contact with others who have been damaged by similar retinoids..crazy enough their damage is similar to those who have been damaged by laser and chemical peels..i now have to visit the IPLaser damage and support forum thanks to only two tiny uses of this cream (.05)..I'm devastated I hope for my own sake as well as the sake of others that I am able to update with news of fully healed skin with time..if anyone had similar reactions or is prescribed this, don't hesitate to contact me WARNING: JUST Don't use this stuff unless you want to risk potentially permanently damaging your skin, if you think acne is bad, wait until the day comes where it feels and looks as if someone has transplanted your entire facial skin with someone else's...like that of an 80 year old man who has labored in the sun and the elements all his life..and your acne will be 1000 times more like to SCAR if you have a bad reaction to this cream..my advice..if you've got bad acne, go in on Accutane, and if you have good skin, don't try to make it better with something as harsh as this chemical is. All its positive effects are temporary while its negative effects are seemingly permanent. So really there's no reason for ANYONE to use this stuff, unless you want to risk your happiness and quality of life completely. And even if you have good results..it's all fake..it gives the appearance of helping some people's skin..it does not ACTUALLY permanently improve your skin. It's gilded dog poo as far as I'm concerned. And as one of the 3 dermatologists I visited labeled it.."Paint Thinner"

So I started tazorac .05% exactly 5 weeks ago. I had mostly mild/moderate acne localized to my chin and a little around my mouth, so probably hormonal even though I'm on birth control (ortho cyclen). My acne ranged from small tiny texture bumps to large cysts/inflamed pimples. I decided enough was enough and saw a derm who prescribed me tazorac .05% at night and aczone 7.5% in the morning. I am doing this regimen with cetaphil cleanser and ceraVe pm lotion. The first 2 weeks were SO awful my skin was unbelievably dry and peeling and breaking out. Around week 3-3.5 I noticed the breakouts were getting smaller and now at week 5 I have maybe 2 small active whiteheads and the rest of my chin is healing hyperpigmentation from the initial breakout, which I can easily cover with makeup. My face looks 90% clear at week 5! I saw my derm today who said my skin looks great and to keep the regimen up! My suggestion is I do believe tazorac will work for most people but stick with it and use a topical antibiotic in the morning. Definitely moisturize! Good luck :)

I am a female with moderately severe acne, and I used Tazorac for 6 months when I was around 17 years old. I am 19 years old today. The first few months, my acne got a lot worse (purging), and I also suffered from very flaky, irritated skin. (I was using it with moisturizer, too!) In fact, I would carry a bottle of moisturizer with me, and I asked my friends to point out any flakiness so that I could whip out my bottle of moisturizer to use on the spot. Some days, I would use moisturizer about 6 times an hour. However, around months 5 to 6, my acne got a whole lot better. (I remember getting a lot of compliments on my skin around this time.) Also, in the areas that the acne healed, my skin was completely smooth and had no scarring or hyperpigmentation. (I still deal with hyperpigmentation of my skin after the acne lesions heal on benzoyl peroxide these days.) However, after month 6 on Tazorac, I recall my acne getting a lot worse (almost as bad as the purging months of Tazorac). After that, I stopped using Tazorac and began using benzoyl peroxide, where I noticed a noticeable improvement. However, I feel like the overall effect of Tazorac on my skin has been more negative than positive: I ended up with acne in spots I usually wouldn't get acne. Even then, though, I believe Tazorac helped immensely with my forehead acne (or perhaps that was due to puberty). These days, though I am on benzoyl peroxide, it seems like my acne is getting out of hand again and resisting its treatment. I am not sure what to do at this point because benzoyl peroxide is what is recommended by this site. Most of my severe acne is around my mouth area (between my nose and mouth, and on my chin). It has even started spreading outward to my cheeks, where I have never had acne before. :( Anyway, I hope this review has been helpful. Good luck!

I am a 20 year old female that has tried EVERY topical and oral prescription and over the counter for acne treatment. I have been prescribed Tazorac 0.1%. I have been on it for 6 weeks. During these 6 weeks I have experienced the common "purging" effect that Tazorac has on some. In theses 6 weeks my acne has gotten MUCH WORSE! I had moderate acne when I started now I have severe acne all over my face. Mainly on the sides of my chin and the hallows of my cheeks and my forehead. With lots of cysts and white heads and they are all inflamed that are not healing and only getting worse. And the scars are not healing. I am going to try to keep doing it for the recommended 12 weeks. But I was wondering if anyone has experienced the same thing. This is my last hope before I take Accutane. Advice and others experiences with Tazorac would be amazing!

I am 45 and have been dealing with moderate to severe cystic acne since I was a teenager. :( I believe I have tried it all - OTC and prescription treatments. Accutane twice (once in my younger years and again last year at age 44), cleansers, topical ointments, antibiotics, and on and on. Doctor started me on Tazorac cream over two months ago. Acne definitely has gotten worse, but I have continued application I haven't experience any major problems with dryness or irritation. Doctor instructed me to NOT wash my face in the evening as I don't use makeup, apply CeraVe PM moisturizer and wait at least one hour before applying Tazorac. This is the first night I believe I see some improvement. I SOOOO want this to work.

I've been using this stuff for years and out of everything I've tried, tazorac was the only thing that helped. Since I've been using it for so long that after a while I can go a month without touching the stuff. My skin does peel at times and I know that's something a lot of people have a problem with but my docter said that your skin is suppose to do that. Bottom line-tazorac works.

I'm not sure if this medication is worth it....the breakouts seem to get worse and worse as time goes on. I'm waiting for the time when everyone says it gets much better, but it's been almost 4 months now with slight improvement on my forehead and absolutely NO improvement everywhere else. I'm not sure what to do here :( I've had acne since I was 14 and ten years later there still seems to be no solution. I would just recommend that you know that you are truly ready for your skin to get MUCH worse before it gets better, with the possibility of it staying worse than when you started.