Retin A Cream

I was reluctant to go the Retin A route to be honest. I had used skinceuticals retinol 1 % for over a decade and still often experienced flaking. Wasn’t sure how bad the peeling would be with Retin A and I was worried. However I knew that Retin A could do more for my skin that retinol so I took the plunge.
I used a .05 very very sparingly on only problem spots at first and still experienced peeling. Deep peeling ! Yes like a snake shedding it’s skin. I was prepared and had an arsenal of moisturizers ready.

This stuff is strong and you need to start off slowly. Patience is needed. Sometimes the results aren’t immediately pretty. But it works.

It’s been a year now and my skin has improved dramatically , but I only used it sparingly once a week working up to bi weekly after 6 months.

My tone is clearer. Age spots have significantly lightened and others are gone. My pores are smaller. My skin laxity has really improved. As far as crows feet , I am still wary about using this anywhere near my eyes. I still peel using this so I’m not sure that putting it near my eyes would be wise ...That’s my year 2 goal !!!

If you have the patience and can put up with some flaking and peeling , get this ASAP. It is a game changer for your skin.

My name is Tamara, I'm 58 and I can definitely recommend Retin-A tretinoin cream for ageing skin, but first visit your derm better to get recommendation from him/her. Doctor recommended me start from low-tretinoin concentration 0.02% and after go deeper with 0.04%, 0.05% and 0.1% cream/gels if would be necessary/required.
After I started using it for in 2 months my skin became more youthful, without pigmentation, brighter, wrinkles and fine lines became less visible and its only within first 2 months of usage, I'm very impressed! Thank you, tretinoin! I want to use it all my life, would recommend it to everyone who has signs of aging, acne, wrinkles, color fading, discoloration etc problems. My doctor says that they don't prescribe Retin-A for anti-aging purposes, only acne treatment. So I got it online from a reliable supplier via google, you can simply Google the keyword "okdermo" to find a reliable source in internet. They also have different strengths and brands. My favorite by Johnson&Johnson manufacturer.
Hope this helps!
Tamara, with fair love!

I've asked my doctor to prescribe me Retin-A Tretinoin for anti-aging in September 2017. I live in sunny California and I waited till November when the sun is less harsh to start.
I've been using Tretinoin 0.025% for a bit more than 9 months.
I have sensitive rosacea prone skin and it took me some time to build up my skin tolerance to this cream. I've started by using it ones a week (my skin was pink and peeling terribly) and built it up to three times a week without any visible irritation.
Do I notice any improvement? - It keeps my rosacea fully invisible, but I don't see any anti-aging benefits, quite the opposite:

- My skin DOESN'T LOOK ANY YOUNGER. I do look younger in general, but while using Retin-A my laugh lines and forehead wrinkles got worse. I can't blame it on Retin-A, it can be just a natural aging process that accelerated over this year. But definitely, Retin-A hasn't slowed it down.

- Retin-A made my skin VERY DRY (that might be a reason for rapid aging). I never had a dry skin before.

- It also made my skin EXTREMELY SUN SENSITIVE. I can't walk in the sun without a parasol (sun umbrella) without burning my face. I do use SPF40-50 sunscreen daily, but my face physically hurts under sun rays. My skin wasn't sun-sensitive ever before, it never burned on any beach/surf holidays prior to Retin-A, but now a walk in the city under the sun is a very dangerous activity for my face. In as few as 20 minutes, my skin is burning and peeling. I took a week-long break from Retin-A before going for a mountain hike, my skin has never seen so much damage as after that hike... I did wear a hat, a sunglasses, and reapplied SPF50 physical sunscreen, but high points of my face that were not physically covered got to look like I've put a superglue on my face and that glue has dried under the sun.

- Through the time of Retin-A use, my skin has acquired a LIZARD-LIKE SURFACE. It's scaly and textured. I haven't had texture and tiny random wrinkles before. I can see that on the nights when I use Retin-A I wake up with particularly bad (scaly) looking face. I always put a moisturizer over the Retin-A.

- I see older YouTuber's doing a Retin-A brake and they all tell (and show on their own faces) the same that IF YOU STOP FOR A MONTH (or two weeks for some), YOUR SKIN WILL GET BACK ALL THE WRINKLES and you will have to build up your tolerance to the Retin-A once again.

Retin-A hasn't given me any benefits I was looking for. It has restricted my lifestyle. I'm not ready to part with the holidays, always stay indoors or carry an umbrella every single day to commit to a skin harming product that doesn't provide long-lasting (or any in from what I've seen) benefits.
I'll update on my skin post-Retin-A in a couple of months.

As of September 15th, 2018 I can say that my skin definitely improved after I stopped Retin-A. I'm not a sun-sensitive anymore, I don't have more wrinkles, I have less. My skin isn't as dry as it used to be. Overall I'm very pleased that I've ditched that medication.

I feel like Retin-A has played a dirty trick on me. And I'm stuck with it for life.

I was put on it in my late teens for acne. It cleared my skin. My skin looked good. Plump clear always a little red swollen andpeeling for the years I was on it -they say that dissipates but it never really goes away completely. But I was willing to put up with that for clear skin. Then after a few years I stopped using the drug. No reason I just ran out & I hadn't had too much acne so I figured no big deal. Then the problems started.
My skin was OK for a few days after stopping. Then I started to notice a little roughness. And a few pimples. And then a lot of roughness. And then A LOT of pimples. I used more HA serum. Cerave moisturizer. It didn't help. I tried AHA. BHA. Benzoyl peroxide. Lactic acid. Urea. Oatmeal. Clay. Witch hazel. Washcloths. Cotton pads to get my skin soft and smooth. My skin was still rough like a lizard and very acned. It was more acned than it ever was before starting the drug. My skin never looked like this before Retin-A it just had pimples but not this many. And it was smooth and soft.
After 4 months of being off Retin-A I finally went back to my dermatologist. She told me it's common for people after they stop using Retin-A for their skin to experience a REBOUND EFFECT like when you take Anti Inflammatory's for arthritis and when you stop taking them you get MORE pain than you had before. She said when you stop REtin-A, a lot of people have worse acne than before and the skin also gets very slow at exfoliating itself. Because the drug has been doing it for them for so long! She then wrote me a prescription for Retin-A without even asking me if I wanted to use it again. I told her I'm not sure I want to use it again and asked her how to restore my skin to the way it used to be. She told me to go back on Retin-A. And never stop using it.

I use it now. I have mild swelling, redness, peeling that never quite goes away. An occasional pimple. If only my dermatologist had told me this BEFORE prescribing it to me years ago, I would have never gone on the drug.

After having used Avene Eluage Cream (Retinaldehyde) for 8 years I decided to move on and I asked my GP a prescription for Tretinoin Cream 0.02%. Just for anti-aging. I have dry, sensitive Rosacean skin and I can't tolerate many actives so I knew there was a possibility my skin would not like Retin-A. However, knowing it's the best anti-aging treatment out there, I just wanted to try and see. So I got my prescription (I only have to pay €15 for a tube).

I already knew the "guidelines" of using Tretinoin the right way to minimise risk of irritation, redness and flaking:
-start with the lowest strength
-build up very slowly; start with once or twice a week for at least a month; then slowly increasing frequency
-wash face with a mild cleanser and wait for 30 minutes
-apply a pea-sized amount on dry skin; for less risk of irritation mix or buffer with a gentle moisturizer
-moisturize extra
-wear a stable, high SPF/PPD sunscreen daily
-lay off any other actives/exfoliants/harsh products for a while
-take a step back if you notice any sign of irritation; don't think "it's part of the process; it means it's working and just push through"!
(https://www.makeupalley.com/user/notepad/tetrakis)

Some mild peeling isn't uncommon when starting Tretinoin but ongoing/severe flaking is a sign of misusage/overusage and is counter-effective. So the first night I did my PM routine and applied a tiny amount mixed with my moisturizer (Eucerin Q10 Cream or Avene Tolerance Extreme Cream). It felt good; no irritation or redness at all. And I continued for the next month; only using twice a week. Still no flaking, peeling, redness or irritation. Amazing! I did notice my skin becoming smoother and I didn't even had to use my Metrocream anymore.
In the next 2 months worked my way up to 3-4 times a week (still mixed with some moisturizer) and my skin still loved it. I also applied it around my eyes and on my neck without any irritation. As I know 3 x a week is still effective I didn't and don't feel the need to increase frequency and risk irritation. I'm using Tretinoin Cream for a little over 2.5 years now and I still love it. My very finicky skin loves it and I'm very grateful for it. My skin is incredibly soft and smooth and I no longer have Rosacea pustules and papulas. And at 48 I still don't have any forehead lines, crow's feet or such though of course other factors like having good genes contribute to this as well;-)
I really love my Tretinoin Cream. It works and it's cheap. I use 3-4 tubes a year which costs me €45-€60 a year. I'd say don't waste $$$ on overhyped and ineffective "anti-aging" creams and ask a prescription. Try it but be very careful. Vitamin A acid is very powerful and you really have to build up very slowly. Be patient. It's a marathon, not a sprint. Tretinoin doesn't work overnight and it isn't a miracle worker. It takes at least 6 months to notice real benefits and it takes years or even decades for it to thicken the skin (Tretinoin thins the epidermis but thickens the dermis) and to notice the true anti-aging properties. Last but not least: it's not for everyone. Some people just cannot tolerate it so they would have to use other anti-aging treatments/actives like vitamin C. And/or another form of Vitamin A like Retinol or Retinaldehyde. Maybe less potent, but still effective.

When and if you feel it is time to get serious about skincare, whatever your concerns/needs, Retin A is the first course of action.
I considered removing one lippie because of the “learning curve” and potential risks (peeling, burning) that come along with it, but considering this is in theory only available under a doctor’s care I feel it covers itself.
I’ve been very lucky with my skin my entire life, because I got my mother’s skin and her strict tutelage along with it. I’m 48 years old and I’ve never touched my mother’s face. You’ll just have to take my word for it that she’s not a crazy person, just a woman who knows the principles of good skin care. And among those are “we don’t touch mommy’s face”. We also don’t touch our own faces. We clean our face every night and use a good moisturizer. Covered with Vaseline when it gets very dry.
Other than that we TRY EVERY SINGLE PRODUCT THAT CROSSES OUR PATH NO MATTER HOW OBSCENE THE PRICE OR CLAIMS.

Which is exactly what I’ve done, with varying degrees of success.

However, when it came time to take my skin seriously I stopped all (almost all) the nonsense and started using Retin A. As directed. Like a grownup.

This wasn’t so easy for me because I’m lazy and impatient, a combination that rarely yields great results in any arena.

But I knew the day of reckoning would come so I got a prescription (0.05%) and started applying on dry skin after cleansing and waiting. Then waiting before applying whichever serum/cream/oil I’m into at the time. I apply this, as I do all face care products, from the boobies up. I started slowly, about twice a week, because experience has shown me (many times due to my usual “guns a’ blazin’“ approach to everything) that peeling really sneaks up on a bitch; one day you’re a relatively normal person and the next day you look like Jeff Goldblum transitioning into The Fly.
And whataya know that slow and steady thing really works. I have had minimal peeling and now apply this once ever two or three nights. I can only speak for myself when I say I don’t feel there’s much benefit to nightly use as opposed to bi-nightly.

Over the last several years I’ve used Retin A for a month or two but about six months ago I decided to get serious. Despite my age I have very few gripes or “go-to trouble spots” to reference, and I am using this as more of a preventative measure than reparative, but I do have slight elevens (I’m very angry especially when asleep). My skin has improved as much as good skin can improve - it is definitely smoother, more firm, certainly line free. The elevens (Goddamn them) are still there but softer.

There is no disputing that Retin A helps cells/ collagen regenerate. It also enhances the efficacy of other products, even on nights it’s not used. I love vitamin C topicals and I use those on “off” nights because the combo can be a bit strong.

SPF and caution are the two keys to success with this wonderful product. And patience. Lots of that too. But you will be rewarded greatly. Even if it’s years from now.

I really hoped this would work for me because I am over-50 and aging rapidly since menopause (I've read collagen drops by 30% within the first few years after menopause). I see so many YouTubers, including YT dermatologists, rave about retin-a but I have tried both retin-a and otc retinol several times and both make my face feel like I have a horrible sunburn.

The times I've tried retin-a (.05, then dropping down to .025, then retinol) I worked my way up very slowly (taking at least 2 months to work up to a 3x per week application), I always buffered it with moisturizer, applied sparingly, waited an hour after moisturizing before applying, etc, but it always wound up making my skin feel burned, especially on my cheeks. I even tried backing down to just once per week and I still got the burning sensation. Each time I stopped using it it took 1 month for the burning sensation to stop. I'd rather look older than deal with the burning, no mater how "good" it is for anti-aging.

This product helps to speed up the fading and healing of my acne scars. New scars peel away completely within a week. Old scars are more stubborn though but definitely faded significantly.

Definitely recommend Retin-A Tretinoin cream for aging skin, firstly recommend to use low-tretinoin consistency 0.025% and after go deeper with 0.05% and 0.1% creams and gels. My skin became more youthful, without pigmentation, brighter, wrinkles and fine lines became less visible and its only within first 2 months of usage, i’m pretty impressed! Thanks Retin-A! Will use it all my life, would recommend it to everyone who have signs of aging, wrinkles, color fading, discoloration etc problems. My doctors say that they dont prescribe Retin-A. So I got it without doc (thanks google). You can Google the keyword "RET247GET" to find reliable sources. Hope this helps! Cyntia.

This stuff is such a pain to use! After you use it your skin peels for days. I originally bought if for clogged pores that nothing would help with and it didn't work as amazingly as I had hoped. So for a few months I used it for an acne spot treatment, which it worked amazing for. But the last couple months I've been been using it for pitted scaring and amazing isn't even a big enough word! For the last 20 years I have had pitted scaring (on my nose of all places) and even though I've mastered the art of covering them up (spackling miracle-blur) it has caused me so much anxiety and caused me to feel so self-counciousness. I have 3 holes right down the middle of my nose for everyone to wonder what the hell happened (acne happened, don't pick your acne) and I was starting to lose hope in fixing them (ps don't dermaroll your nose). I use 0.05% 1 or 2 times a week, or when ever I have time to look peely-freaky for the next couple of days and I pretty much shed an entire layer of skin. A few months of this and the scars are a third of what they were! SO amazed! They have become not that big of a deal at all. Oh and I forgot to mention I've never been to the dermatologist but heard people online highly recommending this guy on facebook under the name "Online Retin A" and think I paid about $33 and it took 2 weeks to get from Bangkok, Thailand to Canada. I'm not sure what people usually pay but this seemed very worth it to not have to pay to see a derm. Overall, it's very inconvenient stuff to use but totally worth it:)