Genuinely can't tell if the tretinoin is working

[Sunly]

Been on tret for 5+ weeks now and I am not noticing any differences


Start around August 1st:

Around 2-3 weeks in:

Now: 5-6 weeks in

Genuinely, what am I doing wrong, or is it too early to see any results whatsoever?
(PS. My skin has gotten a bit smoother but the acne literally will not stop forming)


Here is from about 5-6 months ago, before I got kicked out of house and high cortisol caused hormones to get fucked up (entailing acne formation) but I just got my bloodwork and my cortisol is really low now, so I can't decide whether to blame it on hormonal acne anymore. I think it's purely the tretinoin fucking me up. (The second I hopped on tret my skin purged even worse than the pictures above, and now its sort of stayed in this cycle of continuous acne)

My skincare routine goes as follows (which I do religiously every day)

(Morning)
1. Cleanser (10% benzoyl peroxide)
2. Moisturizer (based bodyworks)
3. SPF 70+
4. Chapstick

(Night)
1. Cleanser (10% benzoyl peroxide)
2. Moisturizer (based bodyworks)
3. 0.025 Tretinoin
4. Chapstick

(I might eventually get a exfoliator for dead skin) self reflection brought me to maybe assuming 10% benzoyl peroxide + tret is a shit idea

KEEP IN MIND IM EXTREMELY HEALTHY, MY VITAMIN D LEVELS SUCK FOR SOME REASON
I also drink 3-4L of water a day + supplements im deficient in, so i'm not a fucking dumbass who forgets to take care of my internal system.

 

[fattofat]

Since you're on 0.025% tret you won't see the big change that others have until months in

 

[Sunly]

Since you're on 0.025% tret you won't see the big change that others have until months in

do u think its a good idea to up dosage, or should i wait a bit longer

 

[fattofat]

Once you reach the 2 month mark and you're not purging or experiencing and negative sides and your skin is tolerating it well then I would say yes you can up the strength

 

[India lover 52]

tret is extremely cope for acne i guess it works but in your case it will probably take over a year to clear that fully

isotret is the gold standard for acne tret is more collagen/anti aging/post isotret maintanence

 

[India lover 52]

do u think its a good idea to up dosage, or should i wait a bit longer

most likely will only make you purge harder and worsen acne