STYLETHREAD -- LET'S TALK SHOP!

rosie_the_riveter · Gucci

Proactiv

RyanJ · Coach

You will probably get a few different responses. My sister used it and she had a little acne and it did nothing. My sister in law used it helped a little and my boyfriend's younger brother used it and his face looks really great. His derm suggested he use it. They do have a money back guarentee- my sister sent her empty bottles back after about 6 weeks and her credit card was refunded. When my sister told her derm she had tried it he said "What? You thought it would work?" and he kind of laughed.

doveanunu · Dooney & Bourke

I have used the knockoff of proactive called 'Acnefree'. You can find this at walmart and it is much cheaper. It worked wonders on my skin. Once i began to use it, I did not break out again!! I have heard that your skin may grow accustomed to the Benzoyl-Peroxide formula. So, after I used it up, i switched to something else for a while. Inevitably, my skin started to break out again. I am now using another Benzoyl-peroxide product. It works wonders. I would totally reccommend AcneFree.

sfcaligirl · Dooney & Bourke

wow, so funny that you started a thread on proactiv- i was just thinking this morning that i wanted to ask for everyone's experiences/opinions.

i've been using proactiv for almost four months and i'm considering stopping my next order (they come automatically every two months). my skin wasn't horrible, but it started breaking out more once i moved to a city (dirtier air=breakouts?). at first my skin kinda cleared, but now it's getting dry and flaky in certain areas. my breakouts tend to be on my cheeks (which has never happened to me until recently) and i guess the proactiv is controlling it, but they never go away completely. the rest of my face is always clear and that where it's getting dry now. i think the proactiv is too harsh. my sister and my friend both use proactiv and have gotten great results, so i'm not sure why i'm having problems. the only thing i can think of is that their skin is more oily in general than mine...

i want to stop using proactiv, but i'm afraid that my skin will go nuts. can anyone recommend a gentler product? also, i really believe that polluted air is making my skin freak out (my skin has always been pretty sensitive). when i went home for christmas for a week, my skin completely cleared up. anyone know of anything that protects your skin from the elements?

doveanunu · Dooney & Bourke

quote:
Originally posted by: sfcaligirl
"wow, so funny that you started a thread on proactiv- i was just thinking this morning that i wanted to ask for everyone's experiences/opinions.
i've been using proactiv for almost four months and i'm considering stopping my next order (they come automatically every two months). my skin wasn't horrible, but it started breaking out more once i moved to a city (dirtier air=breakouts?). at first my skin kinda cleared, but now it's getting dry and flaky in certain areas. my breakouts tend to be on my cheeks (which has never happened to me until recently) and i guess the proactiv is controlling it, but they never go away completely. the rest of my face is always clear and that where it's getting dry now. i think the proactiv is too harsh. my sister and my friend both use proactiv and have gotten great results, so i'm not sure why i'm having problems. the only thing i can think of is that their skin is more oily in general than mine...
i want to stop using proactiv, but i'm afraid that my skin will go nuts. can anyone recommend a gentler product? also, i really believe that polluted air is making my skin freak out (my skin has always been pretty sensitive). when i went home for christmas for a week, my skin completely cleared up. anyone know of anything that protects your skin from the elements? "

Perhaps proactive does work better on oily skin...which is my skin type.

Elle · Hermes

I like Proactiv, though it has not necessarily cleared up my skin. I like the texture of the cleanser and the consistency of the repairing lotion, and that it helps keep my skin from getting flaky. I have had AWFUL problems with it bleaching my towels and clothing though. Nothing else has worked for me either (prescription and non), so I figure if this helps a even a little bit I'll keep using it. If anyone has any other treatment suggestions I'm sure we'd all be happy to hear!

dixiegirl · BCBG

i use it...

i used all three products for awhile & it didn't really do much...i didn't like the 2nd step so i stopped using that & the lotion. using just the cleanser worked WONDERS. my skin really cleared up. if i do get a blemish i use some retin a i had from my derm. and it clear up pretty quick. it's worth a try. it's a good product i just kinda had to play around with it until i could make it work for me.

JackieO527 · Dooney & Bourke

wow I have been contemplating whether or not i should try proactive for the past two weeks.

rocky · Coach

same thing, I tried it and it worked really well at first, and then I developed the immunity and it stopped working. My skin was really bad so I ended up doing acutane, which is great for people with more severe acne. You take it for 6 months and your basically "cured" for life.

Drew · Gucci

Rocky, I hope your "cure" works better than mine did. I have been on two cycles of Accutane; the cycles were 10 years apart and I just finished my second cycle in June (?). I got my first pimple the day I went off Accutane. I now break out only around my period and my skin is definately different. Ok, I'll get back OT now...

I tried Proactiv and liked the products, but they didn't work for me. I too sent back my empty bottles and was refunded, sans S&H.

Proactiv no longer has their patent so the knock-off's are the same ingredients, but obviously much cheaper.

I would reccommend trying ProActiv through their guarantee system (hey, you'll get a refund if it doesn't work for you), and if you like it, just buy the knock-off system (there's a few out there) for about 1/3 the cost.

nycam327 · Nine West

I tried proactiv for a few months. At first it was great. It got rid of all of my large pimples, but soon I started to get alot of little pimples all around my face. I now used a few different products that I got from my derm. They are working so much better and I'm glad I finally went to the doctor. I think Proactive works differently for different people. I know of people that only use 1 or 2 of the steps and they love the products separately. I've never had any derm. or facialist say anything bad about the products. Basically they would tell me, if it works for you great.

lsubatgirl · Gucci

My mom tried it and it made her worse. What did work for her though is the DDF acne gel that sephora carries. It contains 5% benzol peroxide and is $20.00. It also helps me with the ones that I get every now and then. Its good for a spot treatment which sounds like you need.

doveanunu · Dooney & Bourke

quote:
Originally posted by: lsubatgirl
"My mom tried it and it made her worse. What did work for her though is the DDF acne gel that sephora carries. It contains 5% benzol peroxide and is $20.00. It also helps me with the ones that I get every now and then. Its good for a spot treatment which sounds like you need."

That is actually what I am using at the moment....on your recommendation! It has been working great for me. It is quite harsh so I use it every couple of days. Thanks LSU!

lsubatgirl · Gucci

quote:
Originally posted by: doveanunu
" That is actually what I am using at the moment....on your recommendation! It has been working great for me. It is quite harsh so I use it every couple of days. Thanks LSU!"

Yeah I don't use it every day either but that's the way I have to do anything with BP in it. I usually put it on once a day for a few days and then stop and take a break. If I used moisturizer with it I probably wouldn't have to stop. Or I'll spot treat every day and skip the all over application and that works fine.

lynnie · Chanel

www.acne.org has helped me out bunches. Dan's regimine is mild cleanser, tons of benzoyl peroxide, and then a moisturizer. I've been trying to stick to this, but my skin is so flaky now. It's clear though, so maybe my skin will get better used to this. He said that Proactiv is the right idea, but it's too harsh with the combos of medicines, and that the bp lotion can be bought really cheap anywhere else without the weird smell. I bought his bp gel for around $8 and its huge! I reccommend it highly.

rosie_the_riveter · Gucci

I went to Walmart yesterday and bought the acnefree, so I'll let you guys know how that works for me

rosie_the_riveter · Gucci

I used the acnefree system only on my chin for about 3 days and stopped. I dried my skin so bad that I couldn't even smile. My skin looked like crackled glaze

I've decided that my once a month pimple problem is not worth all of that trouble.