Currently I am doing a bare bones skincare routine of cleanser, moisturizer, and sunscreen while I ease back into tret. as my retinol. I’m only on week four of tret. and week one of the basic routine so I don’t plan on implementing this routine until mid-June. Is there anything anyone would omit or add? A lot of the suggestions came from the help of the skincare subreddit!
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My biggest struggle has been finding a sunscreen without dimethicone in a liquid format that I could acquire locally for the moment. I used the sunscreen finder which was super helpful but a lot of the options require me shipping it in which is fine but right now I’ve just become extremely frustrated with the Neutrogena Clear Face sunscreen I’ve always used because it does not play well with the toleriane moisturizer well at all (I’m assuming due to the perlite and silica in it). I’m constantly battling horrendous pilling with it and I couldn’t take it anymore haha.
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Are you in the US? If yes, maybe these sunscreen options could work:
- https://whatsinmyjar.com/product/garnier-skinactive-water-rose-moisture-gel-spf-30
- https://whatsinmyjar.com/product/coppertone-cp-spr-face-spf50-ltn-12s
- https://whatsinmyjar.com/product/la-roche-posay-anthelios-clear-skin-dry-touch-sunscreen-spf-60
- https://whatsinmyjar.com/product/kylie-skin-broad-spectrum-spf-40-face-sunscreen
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I also wanted to add that you do not need to cleanse with a cleanser in the morning. Especially when using tret, it would help you minimize the damage to the skin barrier. In the PM, if possible, I'd also avoid double cleansing and just use one cleanser, in a generous amount but in one step.
I'd also be careful with the Pacifica serum & pads when using tret - the serum & pads are fragranced, and together with glycolic acid it can be an irritating combo. I'd rather go for a fragrance-free exfoliant, for example one of those (they combine glycolic acid with PHA which is gentler:
- https://whatsinmyjar.com/product/routinely-sunday-exfoliating-serum
- https://whatsinmyjar.com/product/medik8-press-glow-daily-exfoliating-pha-tonic-with-enzyme-activator.
Also please remember that you do not need an extra exfoliation when using a strong retinoid, so feel free to skip the exfoliators all together.
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I don’t usually cleanse my face every morning but rather on the days I don’t shower (every other day). Recently with me double cleansing to remove my sunscreen and other grime picked up from my food service job, I’ve stuck to just using cold water for a quick rinse instead of cleansing my face in the morning. I haven’t noticed any negative effects of double cleansing and my skin seems to appreciate it for the time being.
I’ve have extremely good tolerance and no irritation with the serum since it’s a “booster” but use the pads much less frequently since they’re a lot stronger. I use the pads twice a month max. I’m a bit afraid to skip an exfoliators all together because I’m not using one at the moment while I use my bare bones routine to let me skin rebuild itself and I have what I believe is closed comedones real bad. I didn’t have the issue before starting tret. but I’m trying to be as patient as possible by not adding anything into my routine while I stick it out until mid-June.
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I think it's great that you are paying close attention to your skin reactions - that's really the key with strong actives! Be sure to dial it down in case any issues pop up, but otherwise it sounds like you are on a very good track. Consistency & gentle approach with tretinoin + daily sunscreen + patience is almost guaranteed to give you a good effect!
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I’m wondering if the sunscreen stick format would allow you to get a good daily coverage in practice? Because it’s thicker, I found it disperses harder, so you end up missing spots. I think sticks are great for reapplying but not sure if they work well as the first layer?