arfenton

I am a black female, and used to have horrible dark spots due to acne on my face. After trying every product on the market, I researched and found a dermatologist who specialized in black skin.

I went through a round of 6 chemical peels every two weeks (dermatologist performed, NOT a beauty salon). The beauty salon stuff just doesn't work - still, DON'T let a hairdresser put chemicals on your face!!! My dr showed me horrifying pictures of beauty salon peels "gone bad". These poor women were scarred for life.

My dermatologist also gave me a customized formula that he calls "triple bleach" cream. It's fantastic, it has a very strong level of hyrdoquinone, but with steriods and an analgesic to stop black skin from overreacting to it. You see lightening effects within 3 days, even on very dark skin like mine.

After two months, my skin was GORGEOUS, better than when I was a child. People actually stopped me on the street to ask what product I used. The only problem was that for about 6 months my overall facial skin was much lighter than it's natural shade. I had to buy all new makeup and lightened my hair to soften the lightness. Then it gradually darkened back to the natural color and I had to buy all new makeup again.

Be VERY CAREFUL about who you allow to do anything on your face. Believe it or not, our skin is more sensitive than our lighter friends, and that's why we are more susceptible to scarring and discoloration that can take years to go away.

I have also tried Retiin-A + a hydroquinone product in the past with good results, but my skin FELT raw, oversensitive and awful after about a month.

This is what I have found:

1. NEVER PICK AT PIMPLES.
2. Over the counter creams (black opal, etc) are a WASTE OF MONEY. They don't penetrate your marks enough to remove them.
3. Drinking a lot of water REALLY does make a difference!
4. No matter how dark your skin is, use the strongest sunblock you can get your hands on, every day. I am told that Black people will never age if we do this, and your skin won't have the "sun excuse" to get all blotchy again. There is a product called Solbar Sunblock 50. It's great and not greasy. It doesn't sting after chemical peels either. It does have a strange (but not bad) "hospital" smell though.


Good luck!

Arlene