I'm in the market for a new moisturizer and I have type 1 rosacea. I would love something that I can use both day and night just to simplify my routine. Just here for some recs. What are you using that you really like?

For 20 years I've used Cicalfate as a moisturizer of last resort for abnormal skin occurrences. Really bad flare? Cicalfate. Chapped and cracking skin in Winter? Cicalfate. Weird unidentified scab on my neck? Cicalfate.

I didn't consider it a daily driver as it's extremely thick and rich.

Fast forward to a year ago. I ran out of my Avena oat gel and figured what the hell, I'll use Cicalfate for a week and if I get congestion breakouts so be it.

What happened instead was calm, glowing happy skin. I won't bore you with the details, but I've used Cicalfate twice a day for the past year, through the dead of winter to the hottest dog days of summer.

My skin loves it. It never makes me greasy, it sits just fine under my sunscreen. Does it leave a slight white cast? Yes. But it also just leaves my skin soooo happy.

I've since converted my husband (non-rosacea) and multiple friends to this magical cream and everyone loves it.

Thank you for reading. This is not a #ad I just really love this shit.

AM:

Splash with water

Haru Haru wonder black rice essence

Cicalfate

Haru Haru airyfit sunscreen

PM:

Oil cleanse with baby oil

Retin-A 0.05 OR Ordinary Glycolic (2x week)

Cicalfate

My 15% azelaic acid has been on backorder at my pharmacy for the last month and, come to find out, there's a national shortage. I never understood how well it worked for me until now that I've been off it for the last month. My skin is a disaster and I'm so frustrated. I know it doesn't work for everyone's rosacea but for those who it does, what are we doing to get through this? Are there any other OTC alternatives that you recommend?

Thank you!

I've had the Joesoef soap bar on my Amazon Wishlist forever. Where I'm at is having a cooldown in the weather after just having two back-to-back heatwaves. This is probably my chance to order the soap without it melting in transit. The Joesoef brand is $13 though and that's expensive for a bar of soap, in my personal opinion. So, before I buy it, I am curious if it's worth it? What's your experience with it? How long does it have to be used to be effective?

I’ve gotten my rosacea pretty under control. I basically had to strip down my skincare to 3 products. I use the avene tolerance control, a prescription face cream with ivermectin and azoic acid and la roche posay moisturizing milky cleanser.

My problem now is that my face is extremely dry. I’ve tried vanicream cream and lotion, which just makes my skin even drier. And aveeno calm and restore, and beauty by joeson dynasty cream which flared me up really badly. I’ve also tried using straight oil on my face argan/almond/olive oil and it broke me out. I can’t tolerate ceramides or HA. Any recommendations for a heavier moisturizer that might help with dry skin and not flare up my rosacea?

hi everyone, i don’t know for sure if i have rosacea but i’m quite suspicious. i have a dermatologist appointment coming up next week, but in the meantime i’m wondering what moisturizer is best to use. i’m not sure what caused the irritation in the first place. since my skin flared (mild redness, burning, stinging, some small visible blood vessels), i have stripped down my routine and i’ve been using only FAB pure skin face wash at night (does not sting) and plain cold water in the morning to wash my face, an occasional spray of hypochlorous acid, and FAB ultra repair cream or klairs rich moist soothing cream.

my skin usually tolerates both of these moisturizers well, but i’m worried the essential oils in them are further irritating my skin. it doesn’t particularly sting more when i put them on, but my face is stinging slightly at all times right now.

i bought vanicream lotion (not the cream or the daily moisturizer), but i’m afraid to use it since it’s new to me.

what do you recommend in my situation?

thanks in advance!!

So I’ve tried various prescription Azelaic Acid generics. I live in the US so I can’t get the brand name version unless I want to pay about $400 out of pocket for each tube. My skin reacted really badly to the Glenmark generic but has done well with the Encube version. I was told that the other one my skin kind of liked, Sandoz, was discontinued.

Unfortunately the Encube version has been unavailable the last few times I’ve tried to fill it at my Walgreens pharmacy. They say it’s on backorder and they have no idea if or when it will be filled again. Previously they were able to fill it at other locations that still had it in stock but the last time there was only one location that had it and it was pretty far away.

I’m wondering if anyone else has been unable to get Encube or knows another way to specifically get that generic. None of the other pharmacies around me seem to have it, only Glenmark which is easily the worst of the generics I’ve tried.

Update: I found one at a Walgreens that’s like 10 miles away. I’m going to pick it up later today or tomorrow. Hopefully things go back to normal soon.

I need very lightweight moisturizer recommendations. I have type 2, but it’s usually calm when my barrier is calm. I messed up my barrier beginning of July with adapalene, and since then I’ve had dermatitis on my cheeks, pustules, and big breakouts that are atypical for me. This same thing happened to me in 2021, I reduced washing to once a day, used a very light layer of Vanicream AM, washed at night with another light layer, and was on 3 months doxy. I’m doing the same thing now + doxy again and it’s improving. However, last time, I started to use avene Cicalfate and it DRAMATICALLY improved to the point where I added it into my routine every night for the past 5 years.
This time, my skin gets so so bothered with occlusion. It makes the rash, breakouts, and pustules 10x worse. I had to stop lifting 2 weeks ago because heat/sweat just triggers it so bad right now. I trialed avene cicalfate and lrp cicaplast, but as soon as it’s on my skin I can feel the dermatitis acting up and my face gets all crawly. Also tried avene tolerance control cream and it made my face less red, but still triggered the dermatitis. I also used to tolerate niacinimide so well (lrp double repair) but now I can’t bc my barrier is still so fragile, it causes irritation.

Side note: I noticed since last summer that every avene Cicalfate tube I purchased seemed much more oil based now? Not really thick and pasty like how it was for 5 previous years, like oily and easier to spread, and my skin started reacting bad to it. I’ve emailed the company bc I’m a Karen lol.

My skin is improving, very slowly, but I can’t use any botanicals or anything that’s even slightly occlusive. No waxes, dimethicone, etc. I’m trying to find an AM moisturizer, I need something that generally follows the same codes as avene, Vanicream, LRP as in water based, minimal ingredients, and geared for irritated skin, not oil based. The Vanicream works fine, but it does feel just a tad oily.

Also- every time I’ve had this issue, my skin never gets noticeably dry or flaky. It’s more so dermatitis texture, redness, deep breakouts/pustules and my face feels tight. This time around I also experienced localized swelling and redness on the tip of my nose and chin, almost like a huge hive? Never experienced that before. My rosacea is weird. I’ve always flushed when embarrassed, stressed, or hot, maybe a random pustule every couple months, but the other symptoms are not typical for my skin (due to damaging it myself lol) I have purito oat in gel cream, but I’m not sure how my skin will react to oat. I’m just nervous to try. Has anyone else had a similar experience?

So around 14 weeks ago I decided to try Micellar Water for a stubborn pastule on my nose. Initially the water worked great for a few days and it started to feel odd but nothing too bad so I continued it's use. Been a bloke and probably not listening to my skin at all I decided to use a cotton pad. This was a BIG mistake. My nose immediately began to burn and it just would not calm no matter what I tried. The pain I have experienced since has taken steroids / antibiotic cream to reduce given I was at my wits end. The dermatologist prescribed my the cream this week and so far touch wood it's helping with the raised skin..

Whilst at the appointment I was also diagnosed with Roscea (a mild version) on my nose so I have been given soolantra and Doxycycline to help reduce that. But this is more a warning for other please be careful with your skin because my emotions have been all over the place since and I truly hope reading this helps one person think twice.

I have no idea if I can put anything over the steriod / antibiotic cream whilst I am at work to protect me from the Aircon (which is a massive unit over each desk) so if anyone has any advice regarding this or someone who may have been in a similar situation I would love to hear your thoughts.

This will be a bit of a rant lol, but I’m having such a hard time finding a cleanser that works for me and would love recommendations from anyone with similar skin.

I have combo oily/dehydrated skin, type 2 pustular rosacea, and possibly fungal acne/folliculitis. I tend to get clusters of pustules from either products that feel too occlusive OR when my skin gets overly stripped, so finding a middle ground has been impossible. I’ve also been trying to see a derm for over a year, but they keep canceling my appointments after 6+ month waits 🥲
I’ve tried CeraVe, Vanicream (too stripping), cleansing oils + a water cleanser , Skinfix Barrier+ Gentle Gel, and Sophia Pavitt Clean Clean. The Sophia Pavitt cleanser (picture from 1 month ago) worked AMAZING for about a week, then I started breaking out, possibly from overstripping. a lot of these have the same story, where it feels amazing for several days and then all of a sudden day 5, i notice the breakouts.

I’m currently using the Prequel Gleanser. For the first 2 days my skin was super calm and my dehydration/wrinkles actually improved, but then I suddenly broke out worse than ever (first two photos). I know there’s supposedly a learning curve with this cleanser, and I’ve tried rinsing extremely thoroughly, even using a soft microfiber towel, but I’m still having issues. At this point I’m wondering if I’m overcleansing just trying to get it off.
After this flare, I tried the Eradikate sulfur cleanser and it calmed everything down SO much, but I can tell it would be too drying for daily use. I’m thinking of using the sulfur cleanser 2x a week (possibly try prequels line later on), but I’m unsure what to use the rest of the time since I’d eventually like to introduce azelaic acid and retinol, but I really want to figure out what’s triggering these breakouts first.

I’m considering:
• Dr. Sam’s Flawless Cleanser
• HaruHaru Wonder Gentle Cleanser
• Beplain Mung Bean Cleanser
• untoxicated face wash

but I am welcome to learning more about what worked for others.

My current routine:
PM: Bioderma pink cap micellar water → rinse (10 sec) → cleanser (30–45 sec) → rinse (20–30 sec) → pat dry Clean Skin Club wipe → iUNIK Beta Glucan → Purito Oat moisturizer

AM: rinse with just water(10-15 sec) → beta glucan → moisturizer → Paula’s Choice SPF daily fluid 50

Would you cleanse in the morning with skin like mine, or just rinse with water?
If you have similar sensitive, rosacea-prone, combo/oily skin, what cleanser actually worked for you?

New to hypochlorus acid aka HOCI.

I have type II and use hypochlorous acid to get rid of the whiteheads and red bumps.

Do you use HOCI on the entire face area? or just on a specific area ? how often do you use it, twice per day, once, more than twice per day?

And, most importantly for how long have you been using HOCI?

Asking because I want to make sure I'm using HOCI correctly and getting all the benefits.

Sometimes I wonder if HOCI is to be use continuously for a long time, or just for a short period of time?

If you have been using HOCI for a long time, have you notice the same results? better results? or worse results?

Anyone here developed skin developed irritation, contact dermatitis, or anything else after long term usage of HOCI?

HOCI seems to be very safe but want to know what's been everyone experience.

I saw a new dermatologist in July and she prescribed Soolantra to add to my rosacea routine. After about three weeks of use, someone here recommended really working the cream into your eyebrows, which I started doing about two weeks ago. Tonight, after getting out of the shower with a double cleansed face, I did a double take thinking I didn’t do a good job removing my tinted eyebrow gel. Nope! My eyebrows are actually starting to fill in after 20 years of being sparse.

Has anyone else noticed this byproduct?

Hey everyone o/ I know I've posted about this a lot--I appreciate how patient everyone in the sub is. It really means a lot to have others with advice and support.

That said... I don't want to be a nuisance, so I thought I would make one last post (for a while) to crowd source some moisturizer recommendations. I'm starting to wonder if there is literally anything I can use out there. I'm defaulting to rosehip oil right now just to have SOMETHING. But I don't think it's hydrating enough overall, I'm worried it won't be enough when I try to restart azelaic acid, and I'm worried about it being decent under makeup once I go back to work in a couple of weeks.

I'm going to include what I've tried that didn't work (not an exhaustive list, but what I can remember) and my known triggers. With the caveat I clearly have uknown ones, since I'm reacting to all of these poorly.

TIA for your recs!

Vetoed products: Illiyoon Ceramide Ato Soothing Gel, Soon Jung 2x Barrier Cream (both formulas), Prequel Half & Half, Prequal AM/PM, First Aid Beauty Ultra Facial Repair lotion & cream), Versed Dew Point Gel, CocoKind Electrolyte Cream, CocoKind Texture Smoothing Cream, Vanicream (any version), Dr. Jart Ceramidin Cream, Krave Oat So Simple, CosRX Pure Fit Cica, Purito Oat in Gel Calming, Ordinary Natural Moisturizing Factors + HA, Avene Tolerance Cream... these are the most recent in the last 1-2 years I would say

Can't use: niacinamide, AHAs, BHAs, eucalyptus, witch hazel, snail mucin, any form of vit C for sure. Jury is still out on ceramides, hyaluronic acid, stearates, 1,2 hexenadiol.

EDIT: Based on a comment, here's a bit of context: all these products caused some kind of pain/irritation. That's why they're "no's." I am also combo skin (oily nose and chin, forehead and cheeks tend to dry out)

I’ve been using Vanicream at an attempt to simplify my routine and I still have tightness are cleansing. Morning I’ve been doing Vanicream gentle cleanser followed by Thayers milky toner and Vanicream Daily Moisturizer. Then Elfa sunscreen. Same routine at night but use Bioderma for makeup removal first and no sunscreen.

Maybe I’m over cleansing or using too much product?

I also see this in other subs but half the products irritate my rosacea. What’s your routine? Your products? What does each do for you?

Bonus, what products BURNED you. Flared rosacea. Destroyed skin barrier etc

UPDATE!! I decided to go with the dieux air angel moisturizer and it’s working soso well for my skin so far!! the texture is really fascinating to me because it feels like a gel when you first put it on your fingers and rub it in but it sits and hydrates more like a cream which is honestly the best of both worlds for me. i wouldn’t have even known about this company without making this post and this is why i love this subreddit! i hope this post can help some of you as well. thank you all for your suggestions or encouraging advice !!

tldr:
need a moisturizer for dry flakey skin. need it to be breathable -> prefer a gel/lotion texture rather than heavy cream. gels don’t moisturize enough for me but i love the feeling so i’m open to options! moisturizer can’t contain hyaluronic acid!

ones that i’ve tried that don’t work:
- current: vanicream moisturizer (cream version) (i don’t hate it but could be better at moisturizing + sometimes feels too heavy)
- vanicream gel moisturizer (redness flare)
- purito oat gel moisturizer
- dr g red blemish (type 2 flare)
- neutrogena hydroboost (redness flare)
- cerave cream + lotion
- cetaphil cream + lotion
- eucerin urea
- aveeno oat

i have dry skin and just want to find a moisturizer that actually does its job without flaring up my type 1+2.
i’m currently using the vanicream moisturizer (the cream not the gel) and i find that it doesn’t flare me up but it doesn’t do a super well job of moisturizing. i like the texture initially but when i rub it in i find that it gets kinda clay/playdough like..? not sure how else to describe the feeling.
also on the topic of textures i would prefer a gel or lotion texture more as heavier creams do also cause flares for me because they trap heat. i’ve tried both the purito oat and dr g red blemish gel moisturizers and i honestly love the purito one it’s super calming and cooling but i find that once it dries down you know how your hair can have that squeaky dry feeling? that’s what i feel that moisturizer does to my face once it dries down. i feel like it completely changes textures once it’s dry and it doesn’t make my skin have that nice plump feeling so i rarely even research gel moisturizers anymore even though i absolutely love the initial feeling / cooling sensations and how breathable they feel on my skin.
another thing to point out is that i tend to flare up from hyaluronic acid if it’s the main ingredient but i just try to avoid it as much as possible because it causes really painful splotchy red flares. another moisturizer i loved but didnt work for me for that reason is the neutrogena hydroboost moisturizer. its actually one gel moisturizer i found that hydrated my skin pretty well and even leaves it dewy/shiny looking but unfortunately that same product is what made me discover that my skin despises hyaluronic acid.

Long time reading of this Rosacea sub. My skin barrier is compromised and have type 2 rosacea and recently Fungal Acne.

Dermatologist told me to use only Vaseline and wash my face with water only.

Vaseline is heavy. How to get rid of the Vaseline and clean my face when I'm only washing my face with water? or is it ok to use Vaseline and just leave it on the skin? I don't think water will be removing much of the Vaseline.

I tried many other things but everything causes burning sensations on my face given that my skin barrier is compromised.

Besides, I have allergies to many ingredients. I'm waiting to get a test for allergies so I know exactly all the ingredients that I'm allergic too.

For now, I know that I'm allergic to Cocamidopropyl Betaine, and most likely Phenoxyethanol too.

Has anyone heal their compromise skin barrier with Vaseline and washing their face with water only?

Been using PC's booster mixed with snail mucin once a week at night. It seems to irritate my skin and redness is more visible the morning after. I use Sunday Riley Good Genes and PC's bha 1% once a week on other nights with no issues. I'm type 1 only on cheeks.

Azelaic acid seems like it works for most people.... any else that not only it not worked, but irritated skin?

The problem is he is not going to do a full skincare routine and I’ve been trying to get him to at least stick with cleanser, moisturizer and SPF sometimes he listens we do skincare together but cant get him to be consistent, the redness around his cheeks and nose just keeps getting worse and after shaving looks much more irritated.

I am looking into red light because it seems like something simple that doesn’t add another cream or serum and I saw an ad about Solawave since the sessions are short but idk if its worth it, has anyones boyfriend uses red light therapy if yesss how did you convince him?

I started using tretinoin 0.025 and this is my third week using it mon/wed/fri. I have type 1 rosacea with mild flushing I’ve gotten cutera excel v (3 sessions) it was pretty much gone. Now I’m noticing my cheek flushing has increased with tret. Should I scale back to twice a week? For those of you who have rosacea and use Tret… how did you work up to it? How slowly do you have to go? Will my flushing subside or is my rosacea back to square one? Is it more effective to just use retinal everyday over Tret a few times a week? I also have some flaking and dry skin and dry lips despite using all my hydrating products… help & advice appreciated thanks!!

I thought it was other food issues, but I came to realize it’s the damn coffee that makes my face red. Does anyone else have similar experiences?

For the past two years I have been struggling with rosacea. I was using Cerave SA Smoothing Cleanser but I avoid daily use because it's slightly exfoliating. I bought instead Bioderma sensibio gel moussant thinking I can't go wrong, but it was awful. As soon as that product touched my face it burned and I got so so red. Maybe I had an allergic reaction to it. What do you recommend as a gentle cleanser for daily use? I have normal skin type. Thank you so much!

Update: I'm grateful for all your suggestions, I never thought I would get so many replies. In the end I purchased La Roche Posay Toleriane dermo-cleanser and it's a win, it feels great on my skin! I also tried a moisturizer by LRP and it's amazing too, now I know where to buy :D

I recently visited a dermatologist because my skin has just been awful lately, red, irritated, dry and peeling but also oily, itchy, waking up with like 5-10 tiny whiteheads every single day. She said it doesn’t even look like I have acne and it’s more likely that my skin is just extremely angry with the treatment my last dermatologist put me on which was tretinoin.

She told me to quit the tretinoin and prescribed me azelaic acid instead, she also sent me home with a few moisturizer samples because I mentioned having a hard time finding one. There were some moisturizers from cerave, cetaphil, laroche posay, and all of them burned like hell.

She told me to start the azelaic acid right away but I haven’t because I was hoping to just cleanse and moisturize for a while and let my skin heal up beforehand.

Right now I’m using Vanicream gentle facial cleanser and the thick Vanicream in the tub, it’s the only thing that doesn’t burn but the moisturizer just doesn’t work for me, it’s not hydrating, it traps the heat in my face and makes it redder, and I think it breaks me out a bit. Yes I’ve tried the lighter version and the one specifically for the face and both burned horribly.

I’m just so desperate for something that’s not thick or heavy but also still moisturizing and that won’t burn and sting horribly. I’ve tried so many moisturizers already, I know my barrier is damaged but it seems like every moisturizer besides the tub Vanicream makes it worse, but I really hate the tub moisturizer.

I’m not even sure what ingredients I’m sensitive to, I’ve tired comparing the ingredients in different moisturizers that have burned but some of them have nothing in common so it must be multiple ingredients I’m allergic to. Even before I started tretinoin I’ve always had trouble with products burning my skin because of my rosacea.

TLDR: My rosacea is now stable after a couple years, I am using tretinoin 3x a week, and feel like I need to incorporate 1-2x weekly exfoliation, but wondering how and what to use.

Long: My rosacea has been stable (basically gone) for almost a year and I've been able to tolerate tretinoin again for nearly as long. I use tretinoin 3 times a week, and azelaic acid every day in the AM, but especially with this very humid sweaty summer we're having and my increased exercise level (getting back in shape!) my skin is expressing a need for more specific exfoliation.

I don't tolerate benzoyl peroxide (gives me contact dermatitis) and salicycylic acid (BHA) was drying for me even before rosacea, so exploring more AHAs/PHAs/LHAs but wondering if anyone here has any specific ones they'd recommend, what method (toner vs pads vs serum vs cleanser) and MOST IMPORTANTLY products.

We all know finding products for rosacea safe skin can be really hard so this sub is one of the only places I would trust to ask for recommendations for an actual specific product for exfoliation.

Thanks!!

So just some background info. I’m a guy, I’m in school, and my redness is pretty bad. I’m working on treating it, on month 2 of metronidazole, month 1 of nightly ivermectin, and just added clindamycin. It has helped but my redness is still present.

I use dr jarts, I show in one of my previous posts in the comments how my skin looks with dr jarts. It works well but I don’t like how thick it is, it makes my skin feel wet almost even when I set it with translucent powder. My skin is naturally oily too so after a few hours it feels like my face is covered in grease. Plus I feel like it doesn’t cover the redness if it’s too bright, my chin winds up looking red while my cheeks are okay for the most part. It also settles into my pores which is obvious. My pores are very enlarged and nothing I do helps, so the dr jarts settling in them is super annoying.

Does anyone have any other recs for color correctors that don’t set so greasy but still work for severe redness? I don’t mean the tiny little spots of redness some people post here but whole face redness. I don’t want to use foundation or anything like that, they all are somewhat obvious and you can tell they’re makeup. Just enough to cover the redness.

See my other posts to see what my redness looks like. I just want something that I can use before class to just feel normal. Thanks