i started to have acne since i was 18 and tried many products but last year i went to see dermatologist and he prescribed me this retinA and benzac ac..to apply retinA 1 time at night everyday(whole face) and now it clears all acne i have been using this for 2 years..

This review for people who have really sensitive skin. I used to have this product on my entire face for almost year and it not only cleared my ance, it repaired the damages left by the ance. However, one day my dermatologist told me that Stevia A stopped the production of the cream and i was literally out of it. Next, my ance started breaking again. I was so desperate, i went for isolaz thinking that it will solve everything. It did help my skin kickstart the purging phase. Here's the nightmare, i did let my skin rest after isolaz. I jumped right right straight back to using tretinoin, AHA and differin. When i felt the dryness, i didn't care, i literally continued. Please don't do any of what i did. If you do any laser, chemical peel or any treatment, let your skin rest for that day and then resume back the pimple cream and glycolic acid the following day. The reason i say this is because by the time i couldn't stand the dryness and wanted my skin to go back to normal, it was too late. My skin was already so so dry. I literally took almost a year to get my skin back to normal. In fact, my dermatologist told me that it is harder to treat dry skin with ance and it is true. I went through this myself and i know it's awful. Back to Retin A, since it is back in production with Stevia A, i am using it now. My routine now: Dalacin lotion 0.1% (whole face) (morning and night) Differin 0.1% (morning) (whole face) Tretinoin 0.05% (nightly) (whole face) Retin A 0.1% (nightly) (over the bumpy areas) So one year later, i have decided to go back for isolaz. I have since gone for 2 sessions of isolaz and will be going for my 3rd session in 2 weeks time. It has been two weeks from the time i started my first isolaz and topical treatment as stated above. My skin have jump from feeling the many crazy bumps under my skin to whiteheads all over my skin and now to the disappearance of whiteheads day after day. I must say the purging came really fast with the isolaz. It was really scary but i told to just hang in there. The earlier the purging ends, the earlier my skin can start healing. Btw, i highly recommend you to try out isolaz if you want to speed up the purging process. It works far better than a chemical peel since this is for active ance. Also, my dermatologist said that sebum glands will slow down after the 4th session. I will update you guys on my progress after my next isolaz. Week 3 My dermatologist added an oral antibiotics and topical antibiotics to help reduce the severity of purging. I definitely do see a lot of the whiteheads and papules going away. However, new ones are still surfacing from the bumps under my skin Week 4 I can now confidently use retin a on the sides of my cheeks and top of my entire forehead without feeling dryness. I guess my skin has gotten used to it. On the side note, i noticed that more of the under skin bumps are appearing to the surface as well. Nothing huge or anything scary. Also, i am now on topical and oral antibiotics. That is certainly helping as well. Week 5 I went for my 3rd isolaz session. This time round, i saw a significant reduction in my ance. My skin felt smoother and glowly. There lesser bumps and pimples after the isolaz session. My advice to all of you out there if you are intending to go for isolaz. Please make sure that your isolaz sessions apart are no longer than 2 weeks. Also, make sure you go for at least 4 sessions. That way you will reap the maximum effect of the isolaz treatment. If not you will just be wasting your money. Two weeks from now is my 4th isolaz session, i will update you guys then. Week 6 The under skin bumps all appeared as whiteheads. They are all over my chin, side of my cheeks and forehead. This all started to happen when i used retin a over my entire face. Therefore, i think the purging from the cream has just started for me. On the side note, i am no longer feeling any form of dryness on my skin. Week 7 I just got my 4th isolaz treatment. This time it took away all the under skin bumps with it. All i am left with is whiteheads. My dermatologist told me that enthromycin is gonna take care of that. I have noticed that my skin feels a lot less cluttered. I am have whiteheads here and there of my face. Overall, my skin has definitely made a lot of progress since my 1st isolaz. To everyone out there struggling with acne, try to hang in there. Moreover, know that since you started retin a, you are already making progress day by day. Soon enough, you will be at the finishing line. In the meanwhile, just try and focus on something else. Your friends ain't gonna abandon just because you have acne. True friends will embrace you. week 8 All the whiteheads have somehow subsided overnight. They were still really huge the night before. I am just left with a couple of pimples. When i touched my face this morning, the bumps were seriously almost all gone. I am now really sure that the creams are definitely taking effect. 3 days from now will be my next isolaz session. I believe that is going to take care of the remaining acne.

I am a 22 year-old female who started Retin-A Micro gel (tretinoin) in September 2015 for moderate acne. It is now mid December and my skin is nearly perfect aside from hyperpigmentation (which will go away over time). No more acne, no more under-the-skin bumps. This medication works if you use it correctly and religiously. When I started Retin-A, I applied it twice a week for three weeks, then three times a week for another three weeks, etc., allowing my skin to adjust to the medication. This is important to do because this medicine can cause a lot of peeling, redness and irritation for the first month or two. You can reduce those problems by starting yourself on the medication slowly. Application of this medicine is also important. Follow the exact instructions in the provided pamphlet and apply a pea-sized amount to your forehead, cheeks and chin. A little goes a long way. Only apply this before bedtime. It can make your skin very sensitive to the sun so always apply sunscreen in the morning before going about your day. I recommend Cera Vae AM Facial Lotion with SPF 30. Tretinoin is the only acne treatment that targets all causes of acne and it is commonly used with antibiotics which can be prescribed by your dermatologist. I have been taking doxycyline since August 2015 and it helped reduce inflammation when I experienced bad breakouts. I believe it was beneficial for me to decide to start the antibiotic one month before I began tretinoin because it allowed the medicine to build up in my system first. Side effects of the antibiotic were minimal. I only experienced a slight upset stomach if I took the pill without food and water. To get the amazing results you want, you must be dedicated. This is a very challenging process and it will test your patience. For the first two and a half months on tretinoin I experienced terrible breakouts because my skin was purging. There was a lot of acne that I didn't even know was there that needed to be brought to the surface. It was incredibly difficult to deal with this mentally and emotionally, however, had I not decided to go through with the treatment plan I would still be dealing with acne. It is best to push through and tell yourself that you are taking a step in the right direction and being proactive about your skin condition. A lot of people stop treatment in the first month or two because they are not seeing quick results or they are unhappy with the side effects they are experiencing such as extreme dryness / peeling, sensitive, red skin and worsening acne. If you are on this treatment plan and see that your acne is getting so much worse, this is a good sign. It means the medicine is working and your skin is purging. It's a long waiting game and depending on your acne / skin-type and it could take anywhere between 3-7 months to see results. I was fortunate enough to be cleared in 12 weeks. I would encourage anyone who is genuinely interested in this treatment plan to also ask your dermatologist for an antibiotic to help fight the instant breakouts. Since Day 1 I have religiously followed this routine: Morning - Wash skin with Cetaphil, apply LUSH Tea Tree toner, follow up with Cera Vae AM lotion with SPF, apply another layer of regular Cera Vae moisturizer for extra hydration. Night - Wash skin with Cetaphil, apply LUSH Tea Tree toner, follow up with Cera Vae PM lotion, apply another layer of regular Cera Vae moisturizer for extra hydration, set timer for 30 minutes, then apply tretinoin. It is important to always wait at least 20-30 minutes to apply tretinoin. Your skin needs to be dry for the medication to absorb. The products I have listed above are the best options to use for this treatment because your skin is already going to be sensitive on this medicine. It would be too irritating for the skin to use any acne washes such as Neutrogena, Clean & Clear, etc. Quit them all together - it helps more than you realize. I found LUSH's Tea Tree toner and fell in love with it because it's so hydrating. It helps even out your skin tone and the tea tree is beneficial for fighting redness and excess oil. This product is 100% natural and vegan. I wanted to write a genuine, real review on Acne.org because throughout my acne struggles I have visited this website many times reading endless reviews and looking for the best solution, hoping I was on the right treatment plan. I hope this medication works for anyone who is truly dedicated to clearing their skin. It brought back my confidence and self-esteem and made me a much happier person. If you find that tretinoin was a solution for you, never stop using it. Quitting the medicine could allow your acne to return so stick to a routine! - Effy

Acne sucks we all know that, you feel ashamed of yourself, you can't look at people's eyes and ugh it's hard, I know. This product WILL cure you. In two weeks, three, or even months, but it will trust me. It just depends on your skin. Well my skin is 40% cured in the last two days in the FIRST WEEK! the first five days my face peeled alot, it was red i mean, too red. but it's not as bad as it sounds, i handled it fine, and you will too! yes, i broke out, but so what? we always break out, but this time you will break out for a reason, to clear your skin, consider it as process, believe me i was too afraid to use it, but i'm so gad i did! just take it easy and go for it! PLEASE! IT WILL WORK!

I have struggled with acne as an adult for years. At first I thought I could treat it myself however it quickly became evident I was loosing the battle. My dermatologist initially prescribed me onexton, which helped at first but then seemed to stop. When she prescribed me retin A I was nervous because I had read about the "purge" that users experienced. Retin A has been a miracle! I did not experience a purge and although it makes my skin dry, it has cleared my acne completely!!!

So ive been using 0.1 tretinoin for just over two years and my skin, my confidence, as well as my relationship with my skin (and myself) has changed so much. Now instead of getting panic attacks near mirrors and obsessively checking my skin, I love staring at my smooth complexion and admiring just how much better it gets every day. This was not the case when i first began my treatment as many of you know the purging stage happens at around the first few weeks/months of daily use and I was still very emotionally vulnerable and sensitive about my skin problem so it was a difficult time seeing my skin go from problematic to lots of clogged pores unplugging themselves all at once all whilst going to school and interacting with people. There was no hiding my skin problem anymore as concealers only made my dry bumpy and healing skin look worse and redness persisted as my skin tried to adjust to this new irritant routine. At that point I knew there was no going back and i continued to use retin a daily slowly incorporating a non irritating moisturizer into my night time routine as my skin needed it and it didnt slow the process but helped my skin heal quicker. I find paraffin/petrolatum based creams for very dry and sensitive skin are best as they deeply moisturize, arent irritating and help remove flakes. Retin a has taught be to be patient with my skin as before I would scrub and squeeze the hell out of it and for what? Temporary feeling of gratification which resulted in superficial scarring. With retin a i learned to give my skin time to heal and clear itself naturally and I havent gotten a scar since. I am much MUCH less compulsive about my appearance now than i was and I have also grown to be OKAY with whenever i do get acne, because i know it wont harm me. its normal, its only temporary and most of all doesnt define me as a person. <--This was not how i felt before i began my treatment, it took about 7 months for me to adjust to the routine and develop the patience and discipline required to have and maintain the baby soft baby smooth skin i have now.

When my doc first prescribed tretinoin, I did my due diligence and researched on the Internet. I got terrified 'the purge' would happen to me, as I had a bad experience with clindamycin in high school and I broke out pretty badly. I put off using T for weeks. But my boyfriend said to me one day, "You'll never know if you don't try it out - why would else this treatment be so popular if it didn't work?" Here's some background: I am a 23 y/o Asian female with moderate acne since middle school, mostly painful and swollen papules/pustules that come up around my menstrual cycle. I'd have 2-3 big pimples on my face at a given time (mostly around my T zone), and some other random zits would pop up here and there. But the worst were the red marks that got left behind - I'd pop my zits (bad habit, I know) and then the marks would just not go away! My skin is naturally pretty oily, with some dry patches here and there bc of my eczema, but my complexion was always reddish and when I drank alcohol I'd always get Asian glow and my face would look splotchy. I had bad hyperpigmentation and the only way to improve my complexion was to first stop the acne. I was sick of having to rely on makeup and foundation daily to hide the zits, it was especially hard because I love to exercise and hated working out because I had to remove my makeup. When I started T, I started VERY slowly. I used it twice a week for 3 weeks. The first three weeks my face flaked a bit, especially around the chin/mouth area. But I'd exfoliate every now and then and it'd take care of the flakiness. It never got to the point where I had patchy or broken skin, I found that moisturizing multiple times a day helped to control the dryness. I didn't experience a purge. The worst it ever got with the T was a few small whiteheads around my chin/mouth. But since T speeds up the rate of skin cell production, the zits went away and faded pretty quickly - a trend that would happen in the months to come, which was awesome. I didn't experience any 'purge' at any point in time. My skin started getting better, and by week 5-6 you could start to see some results. I stopped getting those painful hormonal zits that I usually get a few times a month, and it felt great. I was also taking minocycline for the first month I was on T, but I stopped after a while as I didn't think it was really making any impact. After 3 weeks of 2x/week, I upped the T to 3x/week for another 3 weeks. Then I upped to 4x/week for 3 weeks. Now I'm at 4-5x a week, and my skin has adjusted pretty well. I'm 13 weeks in now. There's no flaking at all now and my complexion has improved so much. I stopped getting painful, swollen zits. I have virtually no acne anymore. At times there's a small whitehead or two, but those almost always fade after 2-3 days. My hyperpigmentation has improved as well, though that takes a bit longer to see big improvements for complexion. I've also started buffering now, as I'm getting a little lazy with having to wait every time I use T, so I'll mix moisturizer and T together and apply right after I wash. The other day, I went to work without using foundation! That was definitely a first for me, and it felt great. I highly recommend using this product for acne, but you MUST be diligent about using it the correct way. I always see people say things like "I started T 2 weeks ago and I have been using it 3x week, my skin broke out!" Well, of course it would break out - you're not using it correctly. The key is to start slowly to make sure your skin adjusts, and to use it in a regimented scheduled way, making sure to wait at least 25 min between applications of T and moisturizer. Here's my skin regimen, if that's of interest: MORNING - Cerave or Neutrogena Ultra Gentle Creamy Cleanser - Moisturize with CeraVe Lotion - makeup EVENING Nights with T: - Cerave or Neutrogena Cleanser ----Wait at least 25min - pea-sized amount of T ----Wait at least 25min but I like it give it up to an hour if I have time - Cerave Lotion and 3 drops jojoba oil (I use Now Foods Organic Jojoba Oil, it's actually great for oily skin. I would highly recommend this product to hydrate skin, it makes your complexion incredibly supple the morning after) Other products - Panoxyl 4% benzoyl peroxide face wash, on days I do not use T (bp and T counteract each other so do not use on days you use T) - Philosophy Microdelivery Vitamin C Peel: for hyperpigmentation, this stuff is expensive but does wonders. I would only recommend this after your skin has adjusted to T (at least 3 months into treatment). I only use this every 1-2 weeks or so. Good luck!

So as of today I am on week 6. My derm told me it would take about 6 weeks to see a BIT of improvement...he sure was right. My skin is so soft now and I can see my dark scars and acne slowly fading away. The first couple weeks I was using this was HELL. I don't have zits or cystic acne I just have crazy black heads that cause lots of swelling and I pick at my skin like crazy. On this it caused me to have zits and cystic acne and EXTREMLY dry and sensitive skin (I have extremly oily skin). I was really upset during these weeks and my face literally hurt when I put mosturizer on it or smiled. I went crazy!! But I have found a solution. I still use it every 2-3 days and during the days I'm not on it def the morning after, I wash my face with coconut oil. I just lather a bunch of coconut oil (organic; extra virgin) and get a wash cloth, soak it in hot water.. ring it out and wipe it off. This adds lots of mosture back into my face and it feels so good. I apply cetaphil moisturizing cream or muraid intense moisturizer. I do this every pm/am till the night I have to use the tretinion. Than I just wash my face wil cerave and apply it. My skin is so smooth and soft now, no tiny little bumps that I usually have. Black heads are still there but I'll be patient. Also good for removing full face and eye make up for you girls out there. Just do as I explained up there and after you wiped and is dry do the step over again.(Do your research in coconut oil before trying it out)

I've had acne, pretty bad acne, for the last 4 years. It has destroyed my confidence, made me decide to take many "sick days" so that I didn't have to go to school, and took me away from living my life to the fullest. Life sucks when you can't look other people in the eye, or when you cry every time you look in the mirror. I've been on many many antibiotics and prescription topicals that haven't worked. I used a combination of acanya and epiduo along with antibiotics for over 5 months, only to see little to no improvement. I got frustrated and upset and decided to be a little selfish and use some of my sister's topical (tretinoin) that she was prescribed from a different dermatologist several months back (her skin has really cleared up). After a few days of use, my skin became the most red and itchy and dry and irritated that my skin has EVER been. My skin looked awful. I stopped using it and applied moisturizer on my skin as much as I could, but it burned a ton. I was also breaking out in a rash under chin and down my neck so I decided to use hydrocortisone cream on my neck and face. It burned, but after applying it a few times throughout a day and night, my skin was back to about normal and it was like my skin shedded a complete layer of skin, I had so much dry skin peeling off my face. After the dry skin peeled off, it left my face a LOT clearer. I have now used this product sparingly for over a week now and my skin has NEVER LOOKED BETTER IN FOUR YEARS. Use this product as instructed and ease into the treatment to know how it will treat you. This has been the best product for acne that I have ever used and although my blemishes are not all gone, this product also seems to do a good job of fading the red pigmentation that acne leaves behind. This product has been a miracle for me as there was a point that I decided to just almost give up. Stay faithful acne sufferers! You're not alone and there IS a product out there for you!!

I have suffered from acne and cystic acne for 10 years. I have tried almost EVERYTHING there is to try from topical to oral treatments. I recently stopped taking minocycline after 5 years of use. I regret taking that because I now have to live with the side effects of taking an antibiotic for so long with results of hyper pigmentation, yellowing of the eyes, and gums/tooth discoloration. Anyway, the day I stopped taking minocycline, I began my treatment with tretinoin. It has been six months and my skin is BEAUTIFUL!!!! I am no longer embarrassed to go without makeup in front of my boyfriend and it is such a freeing state of existence. Those with acne will understand what I mean. There still is slight discolorsfion from years of acne but it is improving every day. Please, please, please give tretinoin a chance. It works, just be patient!! It took 2 months for me to be happy with my skin. Hope this incredibly long review helps :)