Old Acne Scars!! Please help

[muikwai2000]

[SIZE=11pt]Hi gals, I hope you can give me some ideas or advises on how to reduce the appearance of my old acne scars.  [/SIZE]Is it even possible??  I have been living with these scars on my face for the past 15 years /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" /> and have tried numerous products that apparently says it helps to reduce the redness/appearance but to be honest, I didn’t see any good results. I am 32 now, but I believe age shouldn’t stop any ladies from feeling unpretty!  Maybe you have some useful info for me, if yes, please share! Really Appreciate it.

 

[Kraezinsane]

Exfoliate!! That seems to really help me. Umm.. I use all Carley's Clear and Smooth products.. At first my face was a little raw feeling  from all the exfoliation but not it doesn't bother me.. all I feel is soft skin. I really like their perspective on skin care.

 

[muikwai2000]

Originally Posted by Kraezinsane /img/forum/go_quote.gif

Exfoliate!! That seems to really help me. Umm.. I use all Carley's Clear and Smooth products.. At first my face was a little raw feeling  from all the exfoliation but not it doesn't bother me.. all I feel is soft skin. I really like their perspective on skin care.

Hi Kraezinsane, thanks for the quick feedback! I forgot to mention that I have sensitive skin.  Is it okay to exfoliate? 

 

[reesesilverstar]

Glycolic acid lotion every night. Sunscreen in the day. Benzoyl peroxide with clay in it on new ones.

 

[muikwai2000]

Originally Posted by reesesilverstar /img/forum/go_quote.gif
Glycolic acid lotion every night. Sunscreen in the day. Benzoyl peroxide with clay in it on new ones.

I just read up more info on Glycolic Acid.  Amazing stuff from the reviews I read!  I am so going to get one this weekend and start using it. Thanks for sharing! /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" /> 

 

[cutegirl1]

it is difficult to get complete information on Glycolic Acid. thanks for sharing!

 

[Andi]

First of all, what kind of acne-scars do you have? There are icepick, boxcar and rolling scars - there is no treatment that will improve all 3 types equally well. Or do you mean post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation (PIH, these are those red/purple marks that stay for months or even years after a pimple has healed) when you say you have scars?

Second question, what have you tried already? OTC products have limited success if you suffer from either scars and/or PIH.

Third, do you still have active acne? Some treatments don´t much much sense if you still suffer from acne. If you do, it´s best to get it under control before you start any kind of scar treatment.

For treatment of actual acne scars, I would highly recommend checking out the "scar treatment" forum on acne.org! You´ll see pics of people´s scars, success/failure stories on treatments, advice on where to get treated etc.

There are numerous treatments out there, but depending on how severe your scarring is, at home treatments will more than likely give you limited results.

 

[Annelle]

I actually suffer from post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation.  I haven't had a "real" breakout in probably the last year or so.  (I had some tender bumps but they went away in a few days and never formed into anything that really got in the way so I don't count them.)  I've still got discoloration on both of my cheeks though.  They've finally started to fade, but they'll probably be around for at least another 3-6 months before I will finally be able to start feeling like I don't need some foundation before leaving the house. (it's a remarkable difference right now how much difference just a slight amount of coverage makes for my skin to go from red and uneven to perfect looking.  seriously, I have people commenting all the time at how perfect my skin looks, but they have no idea how red and discolored it really is (I know the health of my skin is really good, but I didn't know there was really anything I could do about the hyper pigmentation that wasn't like a Michael Jackson skin color changing treatment.  I know the colors eventually fade out so I don't want to go that extreme).  I just wish they'd fade out quicker than 9-12 months.  (Probably takes a good 12-18 months for it to completely fade out.  I think a few of them actually turned into permanent freckles, because as I've gotten older, I've developed freckles in random spots.  They have also developed in places where I've had major injections before too so I wouldn't be surprised if that was the case.)

 

[Bcflowers]

Hyperpigmentation can be resolved rather quickly with use of a serum that contains hydroquinone  and religious use of sunscreen. If you use a 4% hydroquinone  product, you will see results in six weeks- tops.

 

[Dragonfly]

I totally agree with Andi's post.

Before you make any decisions, consult with your family doctor.If you don't get good advice, seek out a dermatologist.

I had SEVERE scarring from years of cystic acne. I got tons of useless advice from many well wishers.

I ended up having Dermabrasion - general surgery, not spa stuff.

Then I had two rounds of accutane, which finally stopped the acne.

I have also been using Retin A for years - I think it has made my skin look smoother, healthier and certainly has removed mild wrinkling.

 

[magosienne]

I also agree with Andi, great post ! Also don't forget to wear sunscreen, scars are even more sensitive to sun than the rest of your skin, and sun doesn't help scars to fade either.

 

[SecretStopsAcne]

Be it any size or shape of scars, skin creams are commonly used in an attempt to eliminate those blemishes. This is an 'easy to implement' home remedy that is many a times effective in healing acne scars completely. A number of acne scar removal creams are available in the market and mostly do the job of exfoliating the topmost layer of the skin.