I love skincare and it's what has helped my acne and self esteem and the community is great, but it's also what's ruining self esteem now. It's too much now. I see countless photos of normal ahh people with normal ahh skin and texture and lines, some of them BARELY visible, and yet they ask what they can do to get rid of them. Umm...nothing? Embrace your normal skin?

It's gotten to a point that we no longer understand what normal and healthy skin looks like. It's not the one on the interent and ads people. It's the one you already have. Let skincare be fun and a helping hand, but don't let it ruin your self esteem making you think you're not doing enough or you don't have enough. You don't have to have skin like a baby's butt forever.

Idk I just wanted to get this off my chest because it saddens me that so many people, including me, were tricked into this type of mindset. And it's taken the joy out of skincare.

18(F)

For years I've had stubborn chin acne and bumps around my mouth area. I have no idea on how to get rid of these I never tried getting rid of them because I didn't care back then, but I'd like to try now

For reference, I ALWAYS brush my teeth Before washing my face. I don't catch sunlight often due to my job being indoors and I am, quite frankly, sedentary outside of work.

I think my skin type is combination? Mostly dry, though.

AM routine:

1. Wash hands and rinse face using only water

   1. Eqqualberry swimming pool toner
   2. Purito bamboo panthenol cream

(On occasions, 4. Skin1004 Madagascar centella spf)

PM routine:

1. Orien mugwort cleansing oil

2. Round Lab cleansing foam

   1. Eqqualberry swimming pool toner
   2. Dr althea 345 relief cream

This has been my skincare routine for more than a year now. I have frequent breakouts around my mouth area. 1 just starting using azelaic acid (good molecules), hoping to see results, but I'm also looking for any tips/possible solutions here in case that product doesnt do anything

Pls give recommendations on how to clear up chin acne, scars, and those weird skin bumps. Discoloration/ hyperpigmentation around the lips too

I know this isn't a severe case of acne, but it has never once cleared up since I became a teenager and am now entering my adult years.

My skin is normal to combo, oily tzone and dryer cheeks. All the products are puchesed for the first time.

Here are the newest products I bought because I wanted to switch out the older ones and try something new. I'm using them all for the first time. Share your opinions. I gave small reviews of the products I previously used.

Tirtirs Milk Skin Toner > Haru Haru Black Rice Probiotic Essence (I bought the Haruharu one because I wanted to find a new toner that's similar to the Tirtir one. I like the Tirtir, it's nice and hydrating, but, to be honest, I kinda got bored and wanted to try something new haha. I've seen a lot of peoople price the Haruharu one so I wanted to try it out)

BOF Ginseng Cleansing Oil > Haruharu Black Rice Moisture Deep Cleansing Oil (I had no issues with the BOJ oil cleanser, I just wanted to try this one and see if it's as gentle as BOJ one because you can never have enought gentle oil cleansers)

Aestura 365 Barrier Repair Moisturizer > Illiyoon Ceramide Ato Concentrate Cream (I'm looking for a verymoisturizing and hydrating cream and I bought first the Aestura one, but it was not enough for me. I don't have dry or sensitive skin but I do use salicylic acid 2-3x times per week plus tretinoin 0.1% so I need a very good moisturizer. Aestura was just not the one for me, so I'm giving this one a chance. Also, the price is way better for the amount you get)

BOJ Revive Serum > Skin1004 Probio-Cica Intensive Ampoule (the BOJ was okay, I liked it, but I wanted to try something new and see maybe it gives me more hydration which is the main goal I have right now)

The TOCOBO spf I got as a gift from the site I ordered from which is great since I'm almost out of SPF. We'll see how it feels.

Could this be just a sunburn?

I hate my hands and am very self conscious.

They have been this way since childhood. Extra wrinkly. I got made fun of in school for having "old lady hands".

"That's just how you were made" is what my parents always said. But is there a solution? I just turned 33, for reference

TL;DR: 25F with dry, acne-prone skin. Recently stripped my routine down to just hydration and soothing basics. Skin is calm but I want to target pore size, brightening/PIH, and anti-aging. Do I risk adding actives back in, or leave it alone?

My Skin Type & History

Type: Dry, sensitive, and acne-prone. My skin feels tight after almost every cleanser, and I get occasional flaky/gritty skin on my forehead, but no intense overall oiliness.

History: Struggled with acne since age 11. I used to do a complex, multi-step routine (heavily inspired by Ashley Mixon), my skin was glowy/shiny - like light reflective, but I still had redness/sensitivity, acne, PIH. i felt like I was using a ton of products and not seeing any crazy results.

Past Actives: Used a custom prescription (0.05% Tretinoin / 2% Niacinamide / 8% Azelaic Acid) a few years ago for about 6-9months, just didn’t see much if a difference so I stopped using.

Current Routine (K-Beauty Focus)
My skin has been much calmer since cutting back to these basics:

AM: SKIN1004 Centella Ampoule Foam → CosRX Snail Mucin Essence → SKIN1004 Centella Soothing Cream → Beauty of Joseon Sunscreen.

PM: Anua Heartleaf Cleansing Oil → SKIN1004 Foam → CosRX Snail Mucin → Dear, Klairs Midnight Blue Calming Cream.

I also just started using the thayers milky toner mist here and there for added moisture, I like it so far I think.

My Goals
I want to target brightening/PIH, pore-minimizing, gentle exfoliation, and anti-aging without triggering breakouts or ruining my skin barrier.

The Dilemma & Ingredients I'm Considering:
Ingredients I dislike: Vitamin C and Niacinamide generally don't work for me and cause breakouts - I’ve tried a few formulations (though I’m mildly curious about the Then I Met You Giving Essence despite it having niacinamide). I didn’t really like the anua azelaic acid and everyone raves about it. I’m wondering if azelaic acid is another problem ingredient for me?

What I'm eyeing: The Farmacy Brighten Up Toner (TXA/Azelaic acid blend) for gentle exfoliation and brightening.

The Tret Route: Considering going back to Tretinoin, potentially paired with Azelaic Acid.

My question for you all:
Since my skin is doing pretty well right now, should I risk incorporating new products to reach that next "glass skin" level, or should I just quit while I'm ahead? If I do add something, what would you suggest based on my sensitivities? I prefer K-beauty, but mainly I want clean, high quality, evidenced based ingredients. I don’t have the skin type where I can just play around and slap anything on and have it work for me so I am very careful trying products - hence why I went back to basics with my routine. I still want a mostly simple routine, I want core, holy grail, multi use products. I don’t want to have to get a million things in order to get all the ingredients I want. I have considered skin cycling again, I work night shift at the moment so skin cycling is hard/confusing with an ever changing schedule, but I am transitioning to dayshift so I night be able to try that again. I am happy to take advice, discuss products/give me recommendations, but if you do have suggestions, let me know how to best incorporate them. :)

hi! please reco me some ua whitening products that works for you also for lessening the hair growth and chicken skin of my ua. Im really insecure about it especially the chicken skin feeling. Thanks!

I'm 20 now and I think I'm having acne worse than my teenage years. I was mostly clear for a solid year until now, I keep getting acne along my hairline, forehead and chin. I had some acne on my cheeks but they're gone now, left brown spots that have been there for months. I don't think this is from anything recent, been on birth control for several months and was fine till the last month/month and a half. My nose is really oily, no pimples but the fact it just looks slick with oil all day is making me upset, my glasses slip down my nose sometimes. Stress levels and diet have been consistent. I feel like maybe there is some product overload because I've been exclusively using the same cleanser, moisturizer, benzoyl peroxide and salicylic acid for years or poor health habits. Genuinely considering Accutane for the oil but I think my case is pretty clinically mild.

Here is my routine:

AM

CeraVe oil control foaming cleanser

Some by Mi 30 day miracle toner (started about 1 month ago)

Benzoyl peroxide 10% on active spots (been using for years)

Salicyclic acid 2% on nose (been using for years)

Anua Niacinamide 10 + TXA 4 Serum

Neutrogena Hydro Boost Water Gel

Biore sunscreen

PM

CeraVe oil control foaming cleanser

Some by Mi 30 day miracle toner

Differin Adapalene Gel on chin and forehead (used 2x a week, might stop because a few days ago it made anything I put on the area burn)

Salicyclic acid 2% on nose

Anua Niacinamide 10 + TXA 4 Serum

Neutrogena Hydro Boost Water Gel

Ocassional Mediheal sheet mask

Even though my skin seems to tolerate tretinoin well, with little peeling or burning and decent results, it often feels tight, reactive, and easily thrown off by small changes. It doesn’t necessarily look irritated, but it also doesn’t feel as resilient or comfortable as I would expect.

Not sure whether I’m mistaking a compromised barrier for skin that simply needs any change. Could the persistent tightness and sensitivity be signs that my barrier isn’t recovering properly, even without obvious redness, peeling, or burning?

For those who have experienced something similar while using tretinoin long-term, how did you distinguish between normal adjustment and a compromised skin barrier? Did reducing tretinoin, changing your moisturizer, or like any changes in the routine make a difference?

I’d appreciate hearing about your experiences, especially from people who went through a similar phase and eventually figured out what their skin needed.

I do NOT pick at them at all or mess with them in any way. Benzoyl peroxide 5% and climdamycin 1% are the only actives in my routine. My skin is clear otherwise, it's just the occasional stubborn blackhead or two that drives me mad. I wouldn't even be so bothered if they werent leaving permanent scars.

I've read salycilic acid and retinoids can treat them and I'm looking into adding those, but it's wild to me that tiny blackheads can appear out of nowhere and damage my skin permanently.

Young Goose sells a sunscreen with pretty natural ingredients and it also has ectoin, which is supposed to help block blue light and plllution. Does anyone have any info on this if it is true, and do you think it’s worth the extra price?

Thanks!

My sister’s wedding is in exactly one month, and I really need some help figuring out what’s going wrong with my skin. ​My skin type has always been on the dry side, but overall it was pretty clear and low-maintenance. Recently, I started noticing some mild hyperpigmentation, so I decided to finally build a proper, basic skincare routine​(Cleanser moisturizer sunscreen). However, ever since I started this routine, my skin has gotten noticeably worse instead of better. I've developed tiny bumps across my face and new dark spots, bumps and hyperpigmentation that weren't there before. ​I’m really stressed because I want my skin to look smooth and healthy.

I bought a bar soap specifically meant for facial cleansing from a farmers market about a week ago and it seems as if my sebaceous filaments on my nose got worse. Should I just swap back to using a regular cleanser? I don’t know if it’s the bar soap that’s making it worse. It could also be because I might be using Paulas choice 2% bha exfoliator too much, idk because I use it every day once but peoplle are saying to only use it once a week. I got it like 3 weeks ago and they haven’t cleared up.

I heard some people say that oil cleansing really helps. Should I do oil cleanse then follow up with the bar soap?

I’ve noticed an increase recently in these little non-acne-related micro spots of redness all over my face, but especially around the nose and cheeks (I’m calling it hyperpigmentation but never really had it before and I’m not sure what it is.) And I have older regular acne scar hyperpigmentation too.

Also at 39yo the pores and general skin texture/quality just ain’t what they used to be. Skin moisture, oil levels, elasticity, and lack of acne/whiteheads/blackheads is otherwise good I think (for my age.)

I’m already using tret and vitamin C. Maybe I should up my tret %? Different Vitamin C brand? I’m thinking of adding glycolic acid as well.

Current routine:

Morning

• Wash with CeraVe Hydrating Facial Cleanser with Hyaluronic Acid (sometimes with a silicon facial exfoliator pad that I use every 2-3 days)
• Bliss Bright Idea Brightening Serum Vitamin C & Tri-Peptides (apply to damp skin)
• Beauty of Joseon Revive Snail Mucin Ginseng Hydrating Serum (sometimes I don’t wait until the vitamin C is fully dry to apply)
• Stream 2 Sea Kids Mineral Sunscreen SPF 45, Broad spectrum with Zinc Oxide, Chamomile & Calendula (applied to fully dry skin)
• Missha M Perfect Cover BB Cream SPF 42

Evening

• Wash with CeraVe Hydrating Facial Cleanser with Hyaluronic Acid
• Beauty of Joseon Revive Snail Mucin Ginseng Hydrating Serum (applied to damp skin)
• Tretinoin 0.025% applied liberally to face, neck, and backs of hands (every other night)

OR

• Estradiol 0.01%, pea sized amount applied around eyes, lower face, and neck (every other night, when not using tret). This one’s somewhat new. Maybe linked?
• Cetaphil moisturizing lotion, normal to dry skin

picture 1 indoor lighting and picture 2 in sunlight

really affecting my confidence. I look like someone punched me in the face. please tell me this is fixable :,)

My skin is actually only dry around my eyes, temples and under eye, a bit between them. It’s a side effect from my eczema injection. The rest of my face can get a bit oily, and my dermatologist has me using salicylic acid face wash twice a day, I use tretinoin .05% nightly. In the morning I use clindamycin lotion (both are for my rosacea). I do not put the tretinoin near my eyes.

The worst of it is my under eye area, and as I said, it’s caused by the injection I have to do every two weeks for my eczema. I tried Cetaphil healthy radiance whipped day cream with spf and niacinamide and that stuff is horrible. If it gets near your eye it burns so bad! I tried it because I heard that niacinamide is good to use in the morning if you use tretinoin at night. But idk if it’s that or the spf in that cream, but if it gets at all close to your eyes, you’re gonna have a bad time. Maybe I’m being dumb, but I think if you’re gonna make a face cream, it should be able to go all over your face? I wasn’t rubbing it into my eye. On my temple and under my eyes, but not up to my lash line or anything.

Anyways, I’m just looking for something that I can use on the dry skin around my eyes that won’t make my oily skin greasy and won’t burn my eyes.

I've been happy with my skin for many years at this point. I have a routine that's been a cornerstone for a while, and I occasionally add in/take out products out of curiosity. My skin has become very resilient since I fixed my moisture barrier. I get compliments on it from time to time too. Anxiety/stress is a huge trigger for a handful of conditions for me though, especially reflux and panic attacks. Not really skin, however.

But, due to unforeseen circumstances, I have to look for another job asap. And I'll be alright, I already have more interviews lined up this time than I probably even need, but I've got like cPTSD (/j) or something from being utterly unable to find work for a literal calendar year, 365 days almost on the dot. I'm sorta disabled and I can really only work remote while living in a hyper car-dependent area, and I had to melt my 401k and entire savings to afford bills in 2025. By the time I got an offer I had already spent the last of my funds on my bills and rent.

Like 24 hours after I got that news my hair/scalp and face just got insanely oily out of nowhere, and has been for the last week and a half ish. I had to cut out all my actives cause my moisture barrier was struggling and my skin felt really tight, which I haven't experienced in legit like 7 years. So now I'm just doing maintenance moisturizing, no actives, and it's slowly healing up lmao.

Sometimes shit is just out of your control. Hormones, medication, climate, anxiety, whatever it is. It's just SUCH a shock to the system when it happens so suddenly. More of a vent post than anything, I haven't had this sort of thing happen in a while. This ain't the place for it but I'm sure people here can relate to some degree.

Anyhow, I'm waiting on an order of Kikumasamune high-moist lotion since I haven't used it in a couple years and I wanted to give it another shot, especially considering the price to volume. My hada labo hyaluronic lotion came in too, which is perfect timing because my skin drinks that stuff up and I was almost out. I refuse to spend money outside of that because I have no idea what my situation will be in 3 weeks lmao

Any of you have a nearly-overnight skincare scare like this?

I notice after putting retinol on my neck the next day it feels tight even when I'm just typing or doing something random. Should I just stop putting it on my neck? I know it's sensitive area but its not an issue with my face. I wonder if it's doing more harm than good, I am moisturizing and putting PDRN on my neck and face but does not seem to be helping.

So I had a large under the skin cyst thing developing on my nose. Naturally, I smothered it in benzoyl peroxide cream (Epsolay). Yes I know I used too much, but it kept it at bay. I like that the white cast hid some of the redness too. Been applying it twice a day for a couple weeks.

But now, there's a caked on layer of dried BP on the side of my nose that has slowly built up. It's only visible when I wet my face, and I'm having a hard time getting it to flake off.

Have rosacea and don't want to irritate my skin with intense scrubbing or anything like that.

Anyone experienced this before and know how to gently remove it?

So I’ve been experiencing hormonal (significant/triggered during pregnancy and REALLY bad during pregnancy) and has lessened somewhat postpartum (no breastfeeding). I am currently 19mo postpartum, first what seemed to really help was with the assistance of the product of Naturium TXA serum daily along with some spf on my face and those particular areas/upper cheeks. This improvement could also be partially attributed to hormones starting to level out as I only started approx 3-4 mo post partum since I wasn’t breastfeeding.

Since then, I tried Anua TXA SERUM without ANY CHANGE/BENEFIT and was complete waste of money. I’d prefer to avoid having to deal with my high deductible for dermatology appts and I’m hoping i don’t have to escalate to hydroquinone(especially since I tend to leave derm appts lacking answers, given usually a steroid (I also have atopic dermatitis/eczema recurring in random spots on my body so I’ve just given up).
Anyway, given TXA (minimum of 5%) seems to have resulted in improvement (I think Anua’s txa is less than 5%, I am thinking I need to invest in another TXA product (maybe medicube’s txa &niacinamide serum or purito 6% txa and 10% niacinamide)—please give feedback and/or if any suggestions/recommendations.
I also have read that azeliac acid can be helpful or maybe a Glutathione based patch product? I could be completely wrong. Anyone have any suggestions or recommendations? Also for reference—this is like, at least 50% improvement from when it was at its worst, but I still can’t cover it with makeup, shows straight through.

As the title mentions, my skin gets quite greasy after applying certain moisturizers! I’ve tried: CeraVe Ultra Light Moisturizing Gel, The Inkey List Omega Water Cream, Byoma Moisturizing Gel Cream, and so many others. Even when I was young, pre-teen/teen years, I tried a Clean and Clear oil free moisturizer sample I got for free and it made me feel so greasy. Mostly in my t-zone, right between my eyebrows, but really everywhere. I also look like I just got pulled out of a deep fryer, too.

The weird thing is, my skin is quite dry. I have psoriasis (thankfully I haven’t gotten any plaques on my face from itching too much) so I know my skin is dry. I also get flakies on all parts of my face. I haven’t had as many lately, as I’ve been focusing on using hydrating products, but I still get them when I forget to wash my face for a few days.

My question is: why do I get greasy when I use lots of different kinds of moisturizers, whether they’re gel/water creams or lotions? It’s such a weird thing and I’ve never understood it. I’m not looking for medical advice, just general advice from regular people like me. I appreciate any words of advice or recommendations you can offer!!

the photos show my current routine, the products i’m looking into, and my skin right now. i’m 18 and i’ve managed to lower my horrible cystic acne but i still have all these clogged pores and sebaceous filaments and things and it’s just really brining my mood down. if you guys have any advice for my routine or products that would be so helpful. i would say i have oily skin mainly and i have a tendency to touch my face.

In the AM I do the face wash, toner, and SPF
For PM i do the oil, wash, toner/sacylic acid, and moisturizer
occasionally i do the clay mask

Overall, i love my face wash and oil and spf but im struggling with toners, serums, and moisturizers.