I once had this icky thing happen at the base of the roes on my right foot–the skin started turning yellow, and then the skin started being eaten away, leaving holes that had tender pink skin underneath. i figured oil would help, but it made it worse. And it started hurting. I use antiperspirant to dry up pimples, so I gave it a try.
It worked like a charm. In one month my foot looked normal.
I’ve used a potent skin cream for another skin condition, and I need to be very careful not to let it sit too long on the skin or it causes the same issues you are having. You might try cleaning it off quicker after application, or just using less of it.
IANAD, but this is what I could find on a site with info on Retin-A:
What is the mythical line that divides “cosmetic” skin tags from “treatement is medically needed?” I’ve been having recurring skin tags in an area that’s normally covered by clothing, and they drive me nuts, especially if clothing snags on them.
When I went to my GP about another issue that was “in the neighborhood” a while ago, he zapped a couple with nitrogen. This made them hurt like mad for a day or two, but they did turn black and drop off as expected a few days later. If I wasn’t in his office for something else, he apparently would not have been able to treat them within the rules of my PPO insurance plan.
I’ve since tried “Wartner” freeze spray, but it doesn’t seem to be as cold as nitrogen, and wasn’t nearly effective. Is ligating the little buggers really the next best option?
Athena, is your ring white gold? I ask because white gold is alloyed with nickel, which I believe at least 10% of the population is allergic to (and apparently the allergy is more prevalent in women). To give it a nice pretty shine, white gold is often plated with Rhodium. Unfortunately, Rhodium is not very durable and must be replated every couple of years.
If you are wearing white gold, the timing of your problem suggests you have worn through the Rhodium plating and are having an allergic reaction to the nickel. A jeweler can replate it, and will have to do so periodically as long as you wear your rings. For a permanent solution, you can have your rings re-set in a Palladium setting, which is an economical alternative to Platinum.
VERY yellow gold. 19.2 carat, and as far as I know not plated with anything.
If I had my way, it would have been 24 carat gold. I’m a major sucker for high carat gold. But my husband and the jeweler talked me down since apparently the life expectancy of 24 carat gold rings is not high. Fookers.
Anyway, I thought of allergies, but I don’t think it is since 1) I have a lot of other gold jewelry that has never given me a problem and 2) I wore the rings for 18 months with no problems. But who knows? If I’m allergic to it, I’m gonna be really bummed. I love my rings. :mad:
I’d suggest that you go to a dermatologist and ask them to do a bacterial culture on your shoulder, chest, and neck. A sudden outbreak of stubborn “acne” could very well actually be a staph infection. It should be cultured to rule that out. A topical cream could help your blackheads.
Maybe your PA is very limited in time, and needs most or all of that time to do your skin cancer screening. It might be helpful for you to schedule an appointment just to talk about your cosmetic concerns. Make it clear that you are that for that, specifically.
If you only have a few, maybe look into laser treatments. We also do that, and it’s better for small areas- the IPL is much more expensive and covers large areas. We use a Diolite laser for that. All I can say is start calling different derms and compare- of course they probably won’t really tell you anything about it over the phone, though. I’d definitely say the more experienced doctor, the better. We actually use a Nurse Practitioner for IPL, but you’d have to see one of our doctors first.
The waits can be very, very long- skin cancers, acne, you name it, they want in. If you’re very concerned, call an office and ask to leave a message for the doctor you want to see asking if you can be worked in sooner. Sometimes it works, especially if you have your PCP call for you.
Man, I wish I knew how to do that thing where you reply to multiple people within one box.
Acne scars can be reduced with acid peels, or maybe you could try “Skin Sand”- you’d have to look for it, but it can be had over the counter and many of our patients swear by it. Neutrogena also makes an acne scar reducer.
One blood vessel disappeared by laser- in my office probably $50-100.
The only problems my doctors have with facials are that people are doing them that aren’t trained in dermatology, and they could mess around with something like a skin cancer and make it unrecognizable to a doctor.
It depends on if it’s really a pimple. Could be a staph infection, could be herpes, could be skin cancer- get it cultured, if possible, and see what it is.
You could try some of the new “cleansing pads” that don’t require water. As long as the lotion you use says it’s “noncomedogenic”, it shouldn’t cause blackheads. As far as I know, there is no treatment for stretch marks, but we’d refer you to a plastic surgeon if you’d like.
You may be allergic to whatever’s under the gold- 19k is sometimes not enough to prevent an allergy to whatever’s underneath it. My earlobes are highly allergic to nickel, and they react to any posts under 24k.
Two things we do for vitiligo- Protopic cream or ointment, or UVB light treatments, which give you a tan and can help match the skin tones. I haven’t personally seen either work very well, but it’s worth a try.
Do you use Retin-A regular, or Retin-A Micro? Putting it on less than 30 minutes after washing (the regular) can make you peel really bad. You could try backing off of it, and using it every 2 or 3 nights. Cetaphil cream is very good for moisturizing.
I guess I’m confused about “under” the gold. My understanding is that gold is a mix of pure gold, silver, and copper, the higher the carat the more of that is pure gold. My ring is solid 19.2 carat gold as far as I know - what do you mean by “under”?
Also, can you be allergic to gold? I know about nickel allergies. I guess I didn’t think that you could be allergic to gold itself.
Anyway, this is all speculation, since I am going to my dermatologist next week to get the mystery solved.
None of my doctors would ever freeze a skin tag. They only freeze seborrheic keratoses (benign growths) and actinic keratoses (precancers). And we would never bill your insurance, either- we’d tell you to either pay for it or if the doctor was feeling particularly generous and you only had one or two he might snip it off for free.
