skin allergy reaction

yeahimhere

gah! I've never had any problems using moisturisers or face washes before but seemed to have developed an allergic reaction recently.

I used a new face wash last week and over the next few days my face became red, little rough bumbs and now looks like my face is burned. My skin is now flakey and i can't get rid of it.

I've an interview tomorrow and don't want to go in looking manky (nothing looks worse than putting makeup over flakey skin!)

Does anyone know of any quick fixes / something that could take down the redness / flakyness or do I just have to wait?

I read that the ingredient salicylic acid is one of the most common offenders of skin reactions(so wasn't suprised when I found it was one of the ingredients in the wash I used), is there any others I should look out for to prevent this from happening again?

Gauge

I feel for you I had a similar reaction to a wash with salicylic acid. If it's really bad you could go to your doctor and see what they recommend.

In my case there was major skin peeling/redness/stinging and like you've mentioned, it just looked burned. Unfortunately all I could do was wash it with lukewarm water (anything else hurt like hell) and slather on moisturisers like E45. It took 2-3 weeks to get back to normal and makeup was out of the question because it just sat there on my face and looked awful- I'm sorry I can't recommend a quick fix, but if it's any consolation my skin looked quite nice when it healed up! Drink a lot of water and maybe take a supplement that promotes healthy skin and healing such as Vitamin E or Zinc.

I've been using a cleanser called Cetaphil which is very gentle and doesn't contain salicylic acid or foaming agents. It's suitable for use on babies but it comes highly recommended as a good cleanser for acne (I'm not sure if this is actually what you're looking for- just guessing based on your mention of salicylic acid) and you should be safe from reactions. You could find it online or some Boots have it for €15 a bottle- might be worth a try to see if your skin can handle it.

Hope your skin clears up quickly!

mashling

The last time that happened me (moisturiser with cucumber in it was what did it) i used Elizabeth Arden 8 hour cream. I'm pretty sure it helped, but as its expensive, maybe E-45 would do just as good.

yeahimhere

thanks gauge and mashling for your replies!

I took some anti-histimine yesterday which seemed to take down the redness.

@ Mashling - I slathered my face with 8 hour cream this morning before I went for my interview, it created a barrier between my face and the make up I put on so my face didn't look as flakey! I've since washed it off so my skin could breath (I know it probally wasn't the best long lasting solution but it sorted it in the short term! I got the job, yay!)

@ gauge: i must look out for Cetaphil, I've never heard of it before but I must start using it. I've never come across this kind of reaction before but I never want it to happen again If it's safe for babies, it OK with me!

My skin seems to have sorted itself out a little bit, I think im over the worst. It's still rough, like a rhino's backarse! But at least the redness has gone.

God, I feel so sorry for anyone who deals with this often, it really knocks your self confidence when your face feels and looks terrible!

Thanks for your help guys!

yeahimhere

Gauge wrote: »

I'm sorry I can't recommend a quick fix, but if it's any consolation my skin looked quite nice when it healed up!

Just to mention that my skin is actually looking like it might heal quite nicely and it starting to have a glow I didn't have before! Maybe during a reaction, your skin is fighting so hard to heal itself, it ends up overhealing and looking better than it did before.....fingers crossed!