i started my first night of retin-a about an hour ago, and although i am very nervous of the peeling ive heard more positive things about it than negative (the stuff that im on is actually called tretinoin) i only had a few questions that hopefully some of you will be able to answer.. first, i am not using the stuff for acne, i have a scar above my upper lip from impetigo and im mainly using it to get rid of the scar, and i also have a few sun spots on my face and this is what my dermatologist prescribed to me. but my question is, will i have an initial flare of acne even though my skin is clear of pimples in the first place? also, can i still use self-tanner while im using retin-a?

please reply. thanks so much!

If you don't have acne I highly doubt you will have an initial breakout period. These happens because of the bacteria and other pore cloggers deep in your skin are being revealed as the tretinoin peels the top layers of skin. I don't really think you should use a self tanner with the tretinoin since it wont last that long anyway. Good Luck!

P.S. I've also heard that this is prescribed for wrinkles, I doubt it causes breakouts in those cases either.