5 genius tricks for surviving your first 5 weeks of retinol
Genuinely helpful product, notoriously awful side effects. We’re here to help you break through to the other side…
1 Hit pause on your other actives
This includes any cleansers, serums or moisturisers that contain AHAs or BHAs. Too many exfoliating ingredients + retinol = a recipe for redness and inflammation. It’s best to cut these out a week before you start to use retinol, advises dermatologist Dr Uchenna Okereke. Once your skin starts to adjust, usually after about four to six weeks, you can add them back in one at a time.
2 Ease into it
“Start off using retinol just one night a week,” says dermatologist Dr Elyse Love. “Then go to twice a week for two weeks, then three times a week for three weeks, and so on.” The goal is to work your way up to nightly use without irritation. For people who are ultra-sensitive (hi, we see you) and can’t get past the twice-a-week mark without their skin staging a revolt, don’t worry – you’ll still get some benefits even with a lower frequency, says Dr Love. Her motto? “Some retinol is better than no retinol.”
3 Build a “sandwich”
Hear us out – pretend your moisturiser is the bread and your retinol is the filling. “At night, first apply a thin layer of a gentle moisturiser, wait a minute or two, apply a thin layer of retinol, and then seal it all in with another thin layer of the same moisturiser,” says Dr Love. The “bread” here creates a buffer that slightly dilutes the retinol, making it more tolerable to your skin during those initial few weeks.
4 Add other ingredients
Try a moisturiser with ingredients like niacinamide and anti-inflammatory vitamin E (try The Inkey List’s Vitamin B, C and E Moisturiser, £4.99) that will beef up your skin’s protective barrier. Using one before and throughout retinol treatment means your face is less likely to turn flaky.
5 Try short contact therapy
This application method is ideal for anyone with extremely sensitive skin. “Apply your retinol to clean skin and leave it on for one hour,” says Dr Love. “Then wash it off and moisturise your face. Over the next several weeks, you can slowly increase the amount of time the retinol is left on the skin, with the goal of working up to overnight use.”