Just been diagnosed - Help me

[Whyme]

Hi there, I've been diagnosed with Rosacea. My face only flushes when I drink alcohol. I have these small lumps all over my face and some on my neck and chest. Have been taking 50mg of Doxylin and applying Rozex .75% gel twice a day for the past three weeks. It doesn't appear to be doing anything. I've stopped using my cleanser and moisturiser. I'm only using sunscreen as I'm worried about how the antibiotics warn of avoiding excessive skin exposure to sunlight. I've been reading other posts and I'm totally confused and don't know what products I can use on my face. I hate the fact that my skin looks like this, I wouldn't go out in the public except for the fact that I have to pick up my children from school. I've always had great skin, never really had pimples as a teenager. Already self concious and now I get this. Can someone please help me???

[CrabbyCathy]

Hello! And welcome!

It really is important to keep the skin clean and moisturized, not to mention removing the sunscreen residue. Did you stop using your regular products because they were aggravating your rosacea? Perhaps you could list them for us (cleanser, moisturizer, sunscreen, etc.) so that we can try to help. Oh, and what type of skin do you have?

Both oral and topical rosacea prescriptions can take from 2-4 months to work; sometimes an improvement is seen in 3 weeks, but usually not. I know it's hard, but you have to keep using them for at least that long to say if it's working for you or not.

Some cleansers that members use are: Cetaphil, Eucerin Redness Relief, Neutrogena, Free and Clear (liquid). Here is a link to a thread on gentle cleansers.

viewtopic.php?f=11&t=263

Some moisturizers: Cetaphil, Cerave, Eucerin Redness Relief, Olay (fragrance-free Active Hydrating Cream & Complete), Rosa Relief, plain jojoba oil.

Unfortunately, it's a process of trying and eliminating; I tend to test new products on a quarter-size area of skin on one side only to see if I am going to react favorably or not. I personally use Liquid Neutrogena Facial Cleansing Formula (Fragrance-free) and Cerave cream in the tub, not the lotion version.

[Whyme]

Hi Cathy,

Thanks for your reply. I have fair skin, that can feel quite dry if I don't moisturise. The products I was using on my skin were: Cleanser - Ella Bache Floral Oil, Moisturiser - Estee Lauder Idealist & Estee Lauder DayWear Plus and Clinique Superpowder Foundation. Currently I have been using: Cleanser - The Body Shop Aloe Gentle Facial Wash, Moisturiser - Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturising Lotion, Sunscreen - Ego Sun Sense Daily Face Matt Formula Oil-Free Base followed by Clinique Superpowder Foundation. I have still been taking Doxylin and applying the Rozex Gel twice a day before moisturising. I don't really see any improvement as my face, neck and chest are still covered in bumps and my skin is now starting to feel very dry. Is it true that you need to avoid skin products containing alcohol and oil? I have tried Cetaphil face wash but I stopped using it because I thought it contained alcohol. Thanks for your advice, I really appreciate it.

[Lisamouries]

Hi Whyme.
Sorry to hear you are having such a rough time. Cathy is right though, it does take a bit longer than 3 weeks for the antibiotics and topicals to kick in.

Reading your list of moisturisers I think you might find that you need to go really back to basics. Some people here do react to Aloe Vera (well I did anyway, made me go REALLY RED) but it might be more to do with the fact that it has other ingredients in the mix. I'd say, stop all these moisturisers/creams and try the really simple products as listed by Cathy. The jojoba oil might be a good bet. Try a small patch first.

The problem with Rosacea skin is that sometimes the products you use to be OK with all of a sudden aggravate so usually the less products you apply the better, at least till your skin settles down. The difficulty of course is that you need to moisturise a lot as topicals like Rozex can be very drying.

I know this sounds very confusing but you have to be patient and allow your skin to heal.

[CrabbyCathy]

What Lisa said! The products you're using can be quite fragranced, or despite having the word "gentle" in the name, not really be gentle to rosacea skin, unfortunately.

Not all alcohols are the same; Cetaphil, for example, contains cetyl and stearyl alcohol, which are nothing like rubbing alcohol, for example. Cetyl alcohol is "a fatty alcohol that acts as a gentle humectant (promotes the retention of moisture in the skin), lather booster, and emulsifier (binding and thickening agent)" and stearyl alcohol is a natural fatty alcohol also, very similar to cetyl alcohol.

Rozex Gel is like MetroGel, isn't it? Some have found that it works better applied on top of a moisturizer; rather, their skin isn't as dry. Let me see if I can find the link for you. Or, perhaps you could try a cream form of topical metronidazole?

http://rosacea-support.org/moisturise-b ... atter.html (that link mentions finacea, if you scroll down, a member mentions metrogel)

[TheQueenCity]

Hi Whyme!

I was just reading over your post and thought I would pop in and tell you my experience with the Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion. I used to use the DDML, in fact I was able to use it for an entire year without any problems at all! Well, I had a really bad flare and my skin started to reject everything including my DDML. I realized it was the lanolin alcohol I was reacting to. It made my face feel itchy and crawly feeling...if that makes any sense! It also started making my face get itchy bumps along my jaw line...within about 10 minutes of applying I would start to get the itchy bumps and the itchy/crawly feeling everywhere! I do have to say though it is extremely moisturizing! I did love that about DDML. Thanks to the recommendation of Cathy I am now using Cerave cream in the tub. Since Rosacea, my skin has became very very very dry! The Cerave cream is very moisturizing, but I need more oil in a moisturizer, so I get about a quarter size dollop (yes, that is a lot, but my skin drinks it up) of the Cerave cream put in the palm of my hand, add about 7 drops of Sweet Almond Oil to that and mix very well. I would experiment with the amount of drops of Sweet Almond Oil as well. I started out with 4, then worked my way up to 7. My skin seems to like the Sweet Almond Oil. I have tried Jojoba oil, but it clogged my pores. The Sweet Almond Oil hasn't clogged my pores or caused any breakouts. Of course everyone's skin is different so experimentation is what it takes. Hope this helps you! I understand how frustrating it can be. This board has been an absolute wonder!

Take Care!
Chantel

[rosaceafree]

I had a long reply to another post, but I just have a few more things to post. I have had a long (5+years) struggle trying to figure out this "rosacea" that I have that doesn't respond to ANY kind of rosacea treatment (they all make it worse). As many rosaceans know, certain foods can cause issues...but for me it's not the food, it's the food additives. As long as I try to avoid most things with preservatives, dyes, and other junk, I don't get any of the pustules or flushing. I thought sugary foods were an issue, but it's just the food-coloring in most sugary candy that does it. I can eat plain sugar and plain chocolate with no problems (check labels! dyes and preservatives are in SO many products!) And also very interesting, I have found that many vitamin supplements (even dye-free ones) cause my face to get itchy pustules and flush. I am not certain which specific vitamin or mineral causes it, but I am determined to find out one day! Makes you wonder if any rosacea-drugs are even needed, if we could all just find out the CAUSES of the redness and flushing - we wouldn't need them! I have been completely rosacea-free since finding a great cleanser/lotion combination: Burts Bees Milk & Shea body wash and Vanicream Lite Lotion. I swear by both of them, and encourage everyone to pitch the chemically based products they're using and give them a try! That combination, along with avoiding food additives, and I wonder if I really ever had "rosacea" : ) Oh, and I haven't found a single SPF lotion that I can use - I think they are all evil and even the "senstive" skin ones and ones developed for rosacea sufferers are junk - they all break me out in rashes and redness eventually. And don't use ANY make-up either - all of it is a potential irritant to skin. Just keep it simple & natural - cleanse, moisturize, done. *Chemicals to avoid in foods/lotions/cleansers: all "laureth sulfates", parabens, benzoates, formaldehyde-releasers (google it), un-natural fragrances (chemical fragrances), dyes. And this means everything in the home you come in contact with - shampoo/conditioner/hair products/hand soaps/household cleaners/etc. Great products do exist, it just takes time finding them! Good luck to all!

[CrabbyCathy]

Welcome!

I agree, it does take time to find the correct regimen for each individual, whether it be food, product, vitamins, etc. If only it was simple and one thing worked for everyone!

I noticed the Burt's Bee's you mention is a body wash---you use it on the face?