the are around my eyes keeps drying out severely and becoming extremely irritated. people say i look like i have 2 black eyes. at first, we thought it was because i’d been using my sister’s maekup; so i got my own hypo-allergenic makeup (not eyeliner or anything, just liquid foundation and a powder, Covergirl, i think). i’d been wearing it every day and washing my face at night with Dove facial soap and Ponds cold cream for about a month, and now, i’m broken out again. do you think i’m allergic to this supposedly hypo-allergenic makeup? if so, why did i take so long to react to it? what can i do to make it clear up faster? (for now, i’m putting Pons cold cream and Neosporin on it, but i don’t know if it’s actually helping.)
I have really sensitive skin, and my dermatologist had me stop using soap completely on my face. You have what it sounds like I had, which was an allergic reaction to soap and the moisturizer I was using. BTW, my dermatologist told me that Ponds was extremely pore-clogging…you should use Cetaphil or something like that…
When I wash my face, twice a day, I use a loofah or a buff puff, and warm water. I then follow with a toner on a 100% cotton pad, I use Neutrogena clear pore toner (or something like that, can’t remember the name exactly).
well, i don’t think it’s the soap because i’ve been using that for at least a year and haven’t had any problems before i started using makeup and Pons. but still, did it take u a month of using it to break out?
oh, and what did you use (if anything) to help get rid of the irritation?
Hmm - I have had a reaction to hypoallergenic soaps before - albeit a mild one.
What kind of a breakout is this? Have you considered that it may be excema (sp?) ? Which can flare up unexpectedly.
like i said in the first post, it makes my skin dry, itchy, and dark/pinkish kind of like a black eye.
what is excema? and, if that’s what i have, what do i do to cure/treat/prevent it?
-
Your skin can change for about one million different reasons - hormones, weather, diet, etc, etc - what used to work can stop working, or actually cause problems
-
The skin around the eye is very sensitive (obviously).
-
It’s probably not the makeup.
I would suggest that you quit using both your cream and your makeup.
dove soap is an OK choice for those that have perfectly normal skin - in case you were wondering - you don’t.
Change to a very, very mild clenser - BioTherm BioSensitive is good, Vichy Purete Thermale is good, Marcelle has an excellent 3-in-one - there are many dermatologic brands that are good - soaps - including Dove - are too drying for most skins. Also, only wash your skin once a day with product, at night before bed (you do wash your face before bed and aren’t going to bed with eye-makeup on, cus that would be VERY BAD ahem). In the morning splash your face with water and that’s it - no washing product. Most do not need to wash twice a day - typically only those with very oily or acne prone skin.
Secondly, Ponds is a very heavy cream (even if you get the light stuff) and much to heavy for the eye area. Go to your drug store and get a specific eye cream - again the BioSensitive Eye is a good choice - it’s very mild. Marcelle is a good choice - very mild.
Thirdly, consider switching to a better quality makeup - CoverGirl is fine for those folks with normal skin, however, there are many better products out there for those with issues such as your’s. I would suggest Marcelle would be a good brand as it’s very non-reactive.
Finally - if you try these steps and don’t notice an improvement right away (within a week) get yer butt to a dermatologist.
You get one skin - you really don’t wanna trash it. 
i’m gonna have my mom see if my medicaid will cover a dermatologist.
STUPID QUESTION: umm… you don’t think wal-mart would have the products you mentioned, do you? cause i returned something recently there without a receipt and now have a gift card with nothing to spend it on.
Vichy is only available in drug stores, and then, in the US, in fairly limited areas. They WILL ship, however.
Biotherm should be available at good department stores or drugstores. JC Penny maybe? Walmart may have Marcelle - I’m not positive about US distribution.
Stay AWAY from anything like Clean and Clear or Bonne Bell - very drying. In fact, I would give Neutrogena a pass as well. Oil of Olay has some products that are OK - if you can’t find the others, perhaps have the cosmitician at Walmart suggest and Oil of Olay product, or another very gentle brand.
For the time being avoid any eye products with Retinol, Vitamin A, Vatamin C, etc - all of these are designed to resurface the area - too harsh for your current eye state.
Ok, Marcelle is only in Canada - my bad.
biotherm is available in the US what city and state are you in and I can find a location.
Try drinking more water every day. It might not a complete cure for your problem but it is very good for the skin anyway. Don’t substitute pop, coffee or tea for the water. It just doesn’t work that way.
UPDATE:
forget all the special products; i am NEVER using makeup or removers again. when i woke up this morning, my eyes were swollen shut. i put some ice in a washcloth on them. that helped a little. we had JUST taken the last of our 1,025 Advil, but mom finally came home with some, and i took some benodryl too. she finally called the doctor and got a prescription for some kinda of steroid/antibioti cream. my eyes still itch a little and are still a little swollen, but not very noticeably swollen.