Uneven Skin Texture

[rachellxo22]

Looking for advice on how to deal with texturized skin on my cheeks. I also have rosacea so cannot use any harsh products that will make the redness worse 😞 

[Kayzen21]

The Ordinary serums. 

[rachelh96]

Honestly, try aloe or cucumbers on your face! For rosacea, I would try avoiding all chemical products as possible! Natural ingredients is the way to go! I would also suggest looking at your skin care routine and changing products that are too heavy! 

[WinglessOne]

@rachelh96  Quick clarification: EVERYthing is made of chemicals. Honey is made of chemicals, and bees are fuzzy little chemists. Aloe vera and cucumbers contain chemicals. Heck, the human body is a walking breathing chemical factory. There's no such thing as "natural vs. chemical" anything. 

Maybe you meant "avoid all harsh products"? Even then, some natural ingredients can be very harsh, depending on a person's skin sensitivities. Example: lemon juice is natural and too harsh (way too acidic) for many people to apply directly as-is to their face. There are some other "natural ingredients" my skin won't tolerate. 

I'm not saying all this to pick on you. I just want to make sure folks understand that natural ingredients are, in fact, chemicals, and that "all natural" =/= better for everyone. 🙂 

[quspork]

What is your current skincare routine, @rachellxo22?

[rachellxo22]

right now, in the AM is:

- Cleanse with Cetaphil Gentle Skin Cleanser

- Treat with Azelaic Acid (Ordinary), Just ordered Paula's Choice and will swap those

- Moisturize with First Aid Ultra Repair 

- Sunscreen (Elta MD Ultra Repair) for post procedure as I am in the middle of a series of IPL treatments. 

PM

- Cleanse with Cetaphil Gentle Skin Cleanser

- Dr. Jart Facial Barrier Mask (every other day)
- Treat with Azelaic Acid (Ordinary), Just ordered Paula's Choice and will swap those

- Moisturize with First Aid Ultra Repair 

I have tried some mild exfoliators (most recently, facial radiance pads) and even those made my skin burn. 😞 

[WinglessOne]

@rachellxo22  Since you've been diagnosed with rosacea, can you get treatment options from the doctor that diagnosed you? That's often the best way to go, especially if the doc is a board certified dermatologist. An effective treatment often depends on the root cause of the issue. 

Your little bumps could be acne. Or they could be a reaction to one of your skincare or makeup products. Salicylic acid could help treat them, since BHA's good at degunking pores. A gentle AHA like lactic acid or mandelic acid could help by removing dead skin cells from the surface of your face—though you may want to discuss that with a doctor to find out if it's safe to use AHAs during you IPL treatments. Same goes for BHA, actually. And since you mentioned the FAB Facial Radiance Pads made your skin burn... you might wanna consider salicylic acid—there's 0.5% in the Paula's Choice azelaic acid booster (that's my favorite OTC azelaic acid product) so you may be covered there—or a super gentle exfoliant like The INKEY List Polyhydroxy Acid (PHA) Gentle Exfoliating Toner 3.4 oz/ 100 mL . I still recommend asking your doc about it, though. 

If your bumps are acne caused by one of your makeup products (I always forget the name of that skin condition), you'll need to narrow down the culprit and stop using it, at least temporarily. 

You mentioned using sunscreen for post procedure. I hope you plan to keep using sunscreen after your IPL treatments are done. 🙂 Otherwise you'll invite UV rays to redo the damage IPL removed. 

[Skunk12puzzola]

@rachellxo22 hi, I suggest you to check out la roche posay, it's a french brand that does skincare for problematic skin.