Comprehensive Guide to Tretinoin + How to Use it Best

[RealNinja]

I got the Cerave cleanser and Cerave moisturizer but when I moisturize my face the forehead becomes oily, I tried to apply just a tiny drop but it still becomes oily. What moisturizer are you using for your oily skin?

Vanicream body and face lotion in the pump bottle, they sell it at Kroger. I find that it’s light but absorbs very well into the skin and is good at hydrating. I believe I have used the same cerave moisturizer before and also found it oily. Some moisturizers are heavier or have an occlusive component which makes them absorb differently.

 

[acmilan__]

INTRO
Tret is commonly recommended to .org users for its power in reducing acne, anti-aging, and improving skin texture. However, there is a good bit of misinformation and I decided to write a post about the nuances of tret and how to use it without fucking your shit up and making your skin worse. Yes, this is an essaypost. Yes, you will read it from top to bottom or else your sister will be raped by Indians.

HOW DOES TRET WORK?- Tret's mechanism is pretty simple- it increases the rate at which your skin cells shed off and regenerate. The old layers fall off and a new layer comes to the surface. All the shit and gunk inside your skin gets pushed up from within, eventually leaving you with clear skin.

TYPES OF TRET
CREAM: tret in cream form is easier to apply and generally less drying than the gel form. Some cream formulations can clog pores due to ingredients used in the base formula so be wary of that if you are prone to it.

GEL: tret in gel form is generally more drying so maybe better for you if you have oily skin or live in a hot/humid climate such as the slums of Mumbai. The main complaint that people have with this form is that it can dry down quickly so its harder to apply.

TRET MICRO: tret in micro form is basically extended release. So it works more slowly over time instead of starting to work right after you put it on your face. Less irritating than other forms, but also more expensive.

STRENGTHS- the most commonly seen strengths of tret are 0.025, 0.05, and 0.1, ordered from weakest to strongest. These all do the exact same thing just in different amounts of time. 0.025 gives the same result as 0.1 but more slowly. Be warned that the higher strengths are more irritating and its a bad idea to jump right into using 0.1. Be patient and start with 0.025, move up in strength when your skin can handle it.

SKIN BARRIER
WHAT IS A SKIN BARRIER? - Your skin barrier is basically your skin's ability to hold it's own moisture inside. When your skin loses this ability, it is very bad and you need to fix it.

HOW DO YOU BREAK A SKIN BARRIER?- Broken skin barrier is caused by overuse of actives, overcleansing, or lack of hydration. When you begin using retinoids or other exfoliating active ingredients, you have to step up hydration to match because they are drying to the skin. If you have never used tret before and you were to start using it every night right off the bat you are probably going to break your skin barrier.

IS MY BARRIER DAMAGED?- Signs of barrier damage include redness of the skin, swelling, a "tight" feeling face, breakouts, peeling, and stinging or burning when applying skincare, even basic shit like cleanser and moisturizer.

HOW DO I FIX A BROKEN BARRIER?- Quit using all actives including tret. Moisturize heavily and only cleanse your face with water. At night, "slug" by covering your face with a barrier repair product such as La Roche Posay Cicaplast, Aveeno Calm+Restore Skin Therapy Balm, or plain old Vaseline. Wait 1-2 weeks before slowly reintroducing active ingredients.

STARTING OFF WITH TRET
FREQUENCY- It is important to take it slow with the frequency, aka how often you are applying tret. The first 2 weeks of using tret you are going to apply once every 3 nights. You should also buffer it through moisturizer to decrease your chances of skin irritation. Routine should look like this: cleanse, moisturize, wait 10 minutes, apply tret. You don't want to apply tret when your face is wet with product because moisture increases the efficacy of tret and it will be drawn into the skin quicker, thus increasing irritation. The point of the every 72hr application is to make your skin stay retinized while also taking it easy on your barrier. If you stop using tret for longer than 4 or 5 days your skin will likely deretinize and you will have to restart. If everything goes well after the first 2 weeks, move up to 3 times a week, then 4, then 5, then everyday. Take as long as you need to properly adjust to daily application. The eventual goal should be to be able to apply tret every single night to clean dry skin, not buffered with moisturizer.

HOW TO APPLY- All that is needed is a pea sized blob of tret. Dot this evenly around your whole face and rub it in. Avoid getting right up close below your eyes and dont put it on your upper eyelids like a retard. Tret migrates a few inches underneath the skin but some people get dry and irritated eyes from putting it too close to their undereyes. Definitely do not get it on your lips either and avoid getting it too close to your mouth in general since the areas around the lips can peel from this. When you are first starting out it's good to apply it over moisturizer but this slightly decreases the efficacy and once your skin is used to it you should be putting it on clean dry skin. Apply moisturizer afterwards. For normal tret wait a few minutes for your face to dry before applying tret, but with tret micro you can apply to wet skin because of the extended release mechanism.

WHAT IS PURGING?- Purging is a thing that happens with retinoids or other exfoliants. It looks like a breakout, basically. Increased numbers of whiteheads, blackheads, cysts, and comedones. The reason it happens is because of the quicker skin cell turnover rate, as mentioned in the intro. This is a normal part of using tret and seeing a breakout does not mean you are doing something wrong or you need to quit tret.

PURGING VS IRRITATION- If you are using tret for acne, a purge is going to look like the acne you already have flaring up and getting worse for a temporary period. It should not look like: redness, burning or stinging, and breakouts in unusual areas. Example- if your chin and cheeks are your usual "problem areas" for acne but you never break out on the forehead, tret should not make your forehead break out severely. Some mild breakouts on different areas of the face are normal because we often have blackheads/comedones in many places, but if your forehead is usually clear and after starting tret you see big angry whiteheads on your forehead, your skin is probably irritated.

WILL I PURGE?- There is no one size fits all answer to this, you have about a 50% chance of purging. If you are using tret for the texture/anti aging benefits and you dont struggle with acne, you probably won't purge. If you do use it for acne, there is a good chance you will purge. Some people just don't purge at all, though. You might get lucky and have a mild purge, or it might be worse- in either case, expect it to start clearing up by months 2-3 of using tret. Purging fucking sucks but it will be over eventually and your skin will be better than ever. If you are a skin picker, DO NOT pop your pimples! Tret makes your skin more sensitive and squeezing at pimples runs a high risk of creating a scar that can last for a year or longer.

THE REST OF THE ROUTINE
KEEP IT SIMPLE STUPID- People will make you believe that you need 50 products at a time to get good skin. Tret is best accompanied by cleanser, moisturizer, and sunscreen. Adding in other active ingredients is going to fuck with your skin, ESPECIALLY if its sensitive, and its going to take up more time in your day. Salicylic acid, azelaic acid, vitamin C, etcetera- all of these do what tret does with enough time but its more money out of your pocket and more time spent in the bathroom glooping shit on your face. Just be patient and keep the routine simple. Unless your skin is a special case or you have really severe issues, all you need is tret, cleanser, moisturizer, SPF and patience.

CLEANSER- You need to cleanse everyday because over the course of a day your skin is shedding off layers. You also collect dirt/dust on your face from walking around and doing things. You don't want to let a layer of dead skin cells sit on your face all the time because it causes dullness, oiliness, and clogs pores. If you suffer from dry skin be careful of overcleansing since some cleansing products can be quite stripping. Buy a gentle cleanser or a gel based cleanser and if necessary only cleanse once per day- if your skin feels too dry, in the morning opt to only wash face with cold water or micellar water, which is a very gentle watered down cleanser. What keeps my skin hydrated is using Neutrogena's hydroboost cleanser which includes hyaluronic acid. This ingredient draws moisture from the outside and pulls it into the skin, keeping it hydrated and plump.

MOISTURIZER- It is very worth it to experiment with moisturizers to find one that works for you. Try to find one that includes ceramides. which help in keeping the barrier intact and the skin hydrated. If your skin feels oily and gross shortly after moisturizing, its not a good fit for you. 30min after moisturizing your skin should feel very soft, hydrated, and plump. Not greasy. Protip- apply moisturizer to damp skin after washing face to get better absorption and hydration.

SUNSCREEN- Sunscreen is a must with using tret. Tret is shedding off a layer of skin to reveal fresh, new skin. If you use tret with no sunscreen you are pretty much frying this nice new layer of skin with UV light. Tret will also make you sunburn easily- no tanning. Using no sunscreen increases your risk of worsening hyperpigmentation, scars, freckles, age spots, and wrinkles. So use at least 30spf whenever you go out, preferably 50spf. For sensitive skin bros, stay away from sunscreens that have "avobenzone" and "oxybenzone" in the ingredients list- I tried a sunscreen by Eucerin that had these and had an allergic reaction where my face went red and swelled up. There are chemical and mineral/physical sunscreens. Chemical sunscreens are typically more sheer/liquidy/shiny where it doesn't look like you're wearing sunscreen. I would recommend using Asian or European brands of chemical sunscreen as they are more "cosmetically elegant" and have better, more modern UV filters. Mineral sunscreens use titanium and/or zinc oxide as their UV filters, which are extremely effective at protecting you from the sun and aren't irritating to sensitive skin. The problem is that they leave a white cast, so when you wear an untinted mineral sunscreen everyone can tell you have sunscreen on. You will look like a ghost, so please get a mineral sunscreen with a tint that matches your skin tone.

I am happy to answer any questions you may have. Thanks for reading if you made it this far.

so what's your routine?
morning cleanser and moisturizer
night cleanser moisturizer and tret?

 

[its_over]

so what's your routine?
morning cleanser and moisturizer
night cleanser moisturizer and tret?

bump

 

[RealNinja]

so what's your routine?
morning cleanser and moisturizer
night cleanser moisturizer and tret?

bump

Morning I wash my face with water and then moisturize and apply sunscreen. Night I use an oil cleanser to remove sunscreen then use moisturizer and tret. Sometimes at night I also use Aveeno “eczema therapy” cream which has petroleum and colloidal oatmeal if I feel that my skin needs more hydration.

 

[XtrovertNTnormalfag]

How long to wait to apply moisturizer after applying tret?
I usually wait 15 minutes is that ok?

 

[beebeem_]

Accutane mogs + saves time than this gay ass cream

 

[jflkiefmaxxing]

Tret is commonly recommended to .org users for its power in reducing acne, anti-aging, and improving skin texture. However, there is a good bit of misinformation and I decided to write a post about the nuances of tret and how to use it without fucking your shit up and making your skin worse. Yes, this is an essaypost. Yes, you will read it from top to bottom or else your sister will be raped by Indians.

HOW DOES TRET WORK?- Tret's mechanism is pretty simple- it increases the rate at which your skin cells shed off and regenerate. The old layers fall off and a new layer comes to the surface. All the shit and gunk inside your skin gets pushed up from within, eventually leaving you with clear skin.

TYPES OF TRET
CREAM: tret in cream form is easier to apply and generally less drying than the gel form. Some cream formulations can clog pores due to ingredients used in the base formula so be wary of that if you are prone to it.

GEL: tret in gel form is generally more drying so maybe better for you if you have oily skin or live in a hot/humid climate such as the slums of Mumbai. The main complaint that people have with this form is that it can dry down quickly so its harder to apply.

TRET MICRO: tret in micro form is basically extended release. So it works more slowly over time instead of starting to work right after you put it on your face. Less irritating than other forms, but also more expensive.

STRENGTHS- the most commonly seen strengths of tret are 0.025, 0.05, and 0.1, ordered from weakest to strongest. These all do the exact same thing just in different amounts of time. 0.025 gives the same result as 0.1 but more slowly. Be warned that the higher strengths are more irritating and its a bad idea to jump right into using 0.1. Be patient and start with 0.025, move up in strength when your skin can handle it.

SKIN BARRIER
WHAT IS A SKIN BARRIER? - Your skin barrier is basically your skin's ability to hold it's own moisture inside. When your skin loses this ability, it is very bad and you need to fix it.

HOW DO YOU BREAK A SKIN BARRIER?- Broken skin barrier is caused by overuse of actives, overcleansing, or lack of hydration. When you begin using retinoids or other exfoliating active ingredients, you have to step up hydration to match because they are drying to the skin. If you have never used tret before and you were to start using it every night right off the bat you are probably going to break your skin barrier.

IS MY BARRIER DAMAGED?- Signs of barrier damage include redness of the skin, swelling, a "tight" feeling face, breakouts, peeling, and stinging or burning when applying skincare, even basic shit like cleanser and moisturizer.

HOW DO I FIX A BROKEN BARRIER?- Quit using all actives including tret. Moisturize heavily and only cleanse your face with water. At night, "slug" by covering your face with a barrier repair product such as La Roche Posay Cicaplast, Aveeno Calm+Restore Skin Therapy Balm, or plain old Vaseline. Wait 1-2 weeks before slowly reintroducing active ingredients.

STARTING OFF WITH TRET
FREQUENCY- It is important to take it slow with the frequency, aka how often you are applying tret. The first 2 weeks of using tret you are going to apply once every 3 nights. You should also buffer it through moisturizer to decrease your chances of skin irritation. Routine should look like this: cleanse, moisturize, wait 10 minutes, apply tret. You don't want to apply tret when your face is wet with product because moisture increases the efficacy of tret and it will be drawn into the skin quicker, thus increasing irritation. The point of the every 72hr application is to make your skin stay retinized while also taking it easy on your barrier. If you stop using tret for longer than 4 or 5 days your skin will likely deretinize and you will have to restart. If everything goes well after the first 2 weeks, move up to 3 times a week, then 4, then 5, then everyday. Take as long as you need to properly adjust to daily application. The eventual goal should be to be able to apply tret every single night to clean dry skin, not buffered with moisturizer.

HOW TO APPLY- All that is needed is a pea sized blob of tret. Dot this evenly around your whole face and rub it in. Avoid getting right up close below your eyes and dont put it on your upper eyelids like a retard. Tret migrates a few inches underneath the skin but some people get dry and irritated eyes from putting it too close to their undereyes. Definitely do not get it on your lips either and avoid getting it too close to your mouth in general since the areas around the lips can peel from this. When you are first starting out it's good to apply it over moisturizer but this slightly decreases the efficacy and once your skin is used to it you should be putting it on clean dry skin. Apply moisturizer afterwards. For normal tret wait a few minutes for your face to dry before applying tret, but with tret micro you can apply to wet skin because of the extended release mechanism.

WHAT IS PURGING?- Purging is a thing that happens with retinoids or other exfoliants. It looks like a breakout, basically. Increased numbers of whiteheads, blackheads, cysts, and comedones. The reason it happens is because of the quicker skin cell turnover rate, as mentioned in the intro. This is a normal part of using tret and seeing a breakout does not mean you are doing something wrong or you need to quit tret.

PURGING VS IRRITATION- If you are using tret for acne, a purge is going to look like the acne you already have flaring up and getting worse for a temporary period. It should not look like: redness, burning or stinging, and breakouts in unusual areas. Example- if your chin and cheeks are your usual "problem areas" for acne but you never break out on the forehead, tret should not make your forehead break out severely. Some mild breakouts on different areas of the face are normal because we often have blackheads/comedones in many places, but if your forehead is usually clear and after starting tret you see big angry whiteheads on your forehead, your skin is probably irritated.

WILL I PURGE?- There is no one size fits all answer to this, you have about a 50% chance of purging. If you are using tret for the texture/anti aging benefits and you dont struggle with acne, you probably won't purge. If you do use it for acne, there is a good chance you will purge. Some people just don't purge at all, though. You might get lucky and have a mild purge, or it might be worse- in either case, expect it to start clearing up by months 2-3 of using tret. Purging fucking sucks but it will be over eventually and your skin will be better than ever. If you are a skin picker, DO NOT pop your pimples! Tret makes your skin more sensitive and squeezing at pimples runs a high risk of creating a scar that can last for a year or longer.

THE REST OF THE ROUTINE
KEEP IT SIMPLE STUPID- People will make you believe that you need 50 products at a time to get good skin. Tret is best accompanied by cleanser, moisturizer, and sunscreen. Adding in other active ingredients is going to fuck with your skin, ESPECIALLY if its sensitive, and its going to take up more time in your day. Salicylic acid, azelaic acid, vitamin C, etcetera- all of these do what tret does with enough time but its more money out of your pocket and more time spent in the bathroom glooping shit on your face. Just be patient and keep the routine simple. Unless your skin is a special case or you have really severe issues, all you need is tret, cleanser, moisturizer, SPF and patience.

CLEANSER- You need to cleanse everyday because over the course of a day your skin is shedding off layers. You also collect dirt/dust on your face from walking around and doing things. You don't want to let a layer of dead skin cells sit on your face all the time because it causes dullness, oiliness, and clogs pores. If you suffer from dry skin be careful of overcleansing since some cleansing products can be quite stripping. Buy a gentle cleanser or a gel based cleanser and if necessary only cleanse once per day- if your skin feels too dry, in the morning opt to only wash face with cold water or micellar water, which is a very gentle watered down cleanser. What keeps my skin hydrated is using Neutrogena's hydroboost cleanser which includes hyaluronic acid. This ingredient draws moisture from the outside and pulls it into the skin, keeping it hydrated and plump.

MOISTURIZER- It is very worth it to experiment with moisturizers to find one that works for you. Try to find one that includes ceramides. which help in keeping the barrier intact and the skin hydrated. If your skin feels oily and gross shortly after moisturizing, its not a good fit for you. 30min after moisturizing your skin should feel very soft, hydrated, and plump. Not greasy. Protip- apply moisturizer to damp skin after washing face to get better absorption and hydration.

SUNSCREEN- Sunscreen is a must with using tret. Tret is shedding off a layer of skin to reveal fresh, new skin. If you use tret with no sunscreen you are pretty much frying this nice new layer of skin with UV light. Tret will also make you sunburn easily- no tanning. Using no sunscreen increases your risk of worsening hyperpigmentation, scars, freckles, age spots, and wrinkles. So use at least 30spf whenever you go out, preferably 50spf. For sensitive skin bros, stay away from sunscreens that have "avobenzone" and "oxybenzone" in the ingredients list- I tried a sunscreen by Eucerin that had these and had an allergic reaction where my face went red and swelled up. There are chemical and mineral/physical sunscreens. Chemical sunscreens are typically more sheer/liquidy/shiny where it doesn't look like you're wearing sunscreen. I would recommend using Asian or European brands of chemical sunscreen as they are more "cosmetically elegant" and have better, more modern UV filters. Mineral sunscreens use titanium and/or zinc oxide as their UV filters, which are extremely effective at protecting you from the sun and aren't irritating to sensitive skin. The problem is that they leave a white cast, so when you wear an untinted mineral sunscreen everyone can tell you have sunscreen on. You will look like a ghost, so please get a mineral sunscreen with a tint that matches your skin tone.

I am happy to answer any questions you may have. Thanks for reading if you made it this far.

Just realised I’ve broken my skin barrier and most likely my whole body. My face irritates to simple moisturizer. I broken it using active products years ago and now my face can’t hold oil anymore and is super dry. Are there any more repair products for my body as the Vaseline works fine.

 

[jflkiefmaxxing]

Just realised I’ve broken my skin barrier and most likely my whole body. My face irritates to simple moisturizer. I broken it using active products years ago and now my face can’t hold oil anymore and is super dry. Are there any more repair products for my body as the Vaseline works fine.

Bump

 

[RealNinja]

Just realised I’ve broken my skin barrier and most likely my whole body. My face irritates to simple moisturizer. I broken it using active products years ago and now my face can’t hold oil anymore and is super dry. Are there any more repair products for my body as the Vaseline works fine.

What’s your moisturizer? A lot of moisturizers are not gentle and have added ingredients like niacinamide, ceramides, etc and other shit that can be irritating to damaged skin. Go get vanicream moisturizing cream, it’s the one in the tub with the pump top. This has never failed me, its soothing even when my skin is badly damaged.

Diaper rash cream with zinc is also very soothing to irritated skin. It will not make your face burn, it’s meant for use on babies. Very cheap too. Smear it all over your face at night. Aveeno eczema therapy cream is also good, it’s like Vaseline but with colloidal oatmeal added in. I got mine from target.

Wash your face gently with water. While it’s still wet, apply a moisturizer like the vanicream I mentioned. After moisturizer, use one of the occlusives like Aveeno eczema therapy or Vaseline.

 

[jflkiefmaxxing]

What’s your moisturizer? A lot of moisturizers are not gentle and have added ingredients like niacinamide, ceramides, etc and other shit that can be irritating to damaged skin. Go get vanicream moisturizing cream, it’s the one in the tub with the pump top. This has never failed me, its soothing even when my skin is badly damaged.

Diaper rash cream with zinc is also very soothing to irritated skin. It will not make your face burn, it’s meant for use on babies. Very cheap too. Smear it all over your face at night. Aveeno eczema therapy cream is also good, it’s like Vaseline but with colloidal oatmeal added in. I got mine from target.

Wash your face gently with water. While it’s still wet, apply a moisturizer like the vanicream I mentioned. After moisturizer, use one of the occlusives like Aveeno eczema therapy or Vaseline.

I use cera ve moisturising cream but in general even my prescripted oilatum cream will irratate on occasionon my face. I’ll cop the Vani cream and Aveeno Cream. Dumb question but which one is for face and which one is for body