How To Use Differin Adapalene Gel Like A Dermatologist

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Want to know exactly how to use adapalene like a pro? Today you are going to learn exactly that.

Retinoids are a wonderful ingredient that can completely transform your skin but they can be very irritating, especially adapalene.

This is why today you will learn to use retinoids – adapalene in this case – like a pro to minimize the retinization process and make the best out of adapalene gel 0.1%.

Disclaimer!

this advice is inteded to be just that, advice. it’s always good practice to consult your doctor or dermatologist before you introduce any product into your skincare routine.

Benefits of using retinoids

Let’s start with why you should absolutely include retinoids in your skincare routine.

Retinoids are most known in the skincare industry for their amazing anti-aging properties, specifically, they reduce fine lines and wrinkles by increasing collagen production.

They have several other fantastic properties your skin can benefit from. For example, retinoids are wonderful acne treatments, they can both treat and prevent acne.

Retinoids are also able to stimulate the production of new blood vessels resulting in the improvement of skin color. Plus, they are amazing ingredients to fade age spots and hyperpigmentation and soften rough skin patches.

This article is dedicated to adapalene but if you want to know all the benefits of retinoids and which type you should use I have an entire article dedicated to these wonderful skincare ingredients.

Tretinoin vs adapalene

If you’re interested in adapalene, chances are you know the gold standard for retinoids is tretinoin. So why should you even bother using adapalene?

Personally, I think adapalene is a wonderful choice. First of all, not all skin types are able to tolerate tretinoin since it’s known for causing strong irritation. Adapalene on the other hand is way less irritating compared to tretinoin.

Another reason why I think adapalene is still a great choice is that it is stable in light, which means is not going to make you photosensitive as tretinoin will.

Adapalene is also very stable with other ingredients, meaning it behaves well if used together with other actives, for example, benzoyl peroxide.

If your main concern is acne, adapalene may actually be the best choice for you due to its unique physio-chemical profile. Essentially, it has a greater affinity for pores which makes it more effective in treating and preventing acne.

Honestly, I think adapalene is just not studied as well as tretinoin is since tretinoin was discovered first. Of course, from what we know now tretinoin is superior to adapalene but, as I said, not everyone can use it. Actually, adapalene is not only less irritating but it’s also more available than tretinoin since is now available as an over-the-counter treatment.

Here is a quick table for you to confront the main differences between adapalene and tretinoin:

Properties	Adapalene	Tretinoin
Research and studies	Well-studied for acne, it seems to have good anti-aging effects	The gold standard for anti-aging, it can also treat acne
Stability in light	Stable, will not make you photosensitive	Not stable
Stability in formulation	Very stable with other ingredients	Not stable, difficult to formulate
Irritation	Irritation can occur but is less likely or milder	It tends to be very irritating, generally non-tolerated by sensitive skin types
Availability	Also available over-the-counter	Only available by prescription

Best practices when starting a retinoid

Before we actually get to the juicy part, which is the complete skincare routine for minimizing the irritation and maximizing adapalene benefits it’s important we discuss some things you need to know before you start.

1. Consistency is key, you need to build your tolerance to adapalene

Consistency is vital with retinoids. It is preferable to use this ingredient every single day but you first need to build up a tolerance to it. It means do not overdo it, especially in the beginning.

Is way better if you start slowly, maybe using it only 2-3 times a week at first to see how your skin is going to react. If you exaggerate you will need to stop using adapalene for at least a few days because it’s vital your skin barrier remains intact during this process otherwise you will cause more harm than good.

For these reasons, I suggest you start by using it for only 3 nights – or every other day if usually, your skin is not sensitive at all – for the first two weeks.

Basically, when the irritation stops you can try and use it every day.

2. Do not pair it with other retinoids as it will just cause more irritation

If you are starting adapalene you want to stop using every product that contains retinoids, including retinol.

You do not need them, it’s not going to give you greater results it will just increase the likelihood of irritation and inflammation.

For now, get rid of any serum, moisturizer, or toner that contains retinoids. If you really don’t want to waste it you could use it on your hands, neck or decollete for example.

3. Do not overwash your face, it can cause more irritation

Overwashing your face can strip your skin of all of its hydration which you absolutely need especially when starting adapalene or any other retinoid.

If you have really sensitive skin, consider washing your face only at night with a hydrating cleanser.

4. Adapalene will not make you more photosensitive but you still need to wear sunscreen every day

5. Avoid waxing facial hairs

When waxing facial hairs, for example, our little girly mustache, the wax is going to get rid of some layers of the stratum corneum (the outer layer of our skin).

When using adapalene or other retinoids skin turnover is going to accelerate, meaning they get rid of more dead skin cells than normal. This is incredible if you want glowing skin but if you also wax your hair you risk losing too many layers and damaging your skin barrier, therefore finding yourself with huge irritation.

6. For the first weeks try to avoid make-up or at least consider a more minimalistic make-up routine

7. Do not use salicylic acid with adapalene

How to apply adapalene like a dermatologist

When you first start

1. Wash your face with a gentle cleanser

For this step is key that we provide our skin with moisture and hydration. It’s important to choose a gentle cleanser that doesn’t contain any actives. This means, for the moment, stop your acne washes.

If you don’t have a gentle cleanser here is my top recommendation:

2. Apply moisturizer to wet skin

I know it may sound counter-intuitive but applying a moisturizer both before and after your retinoid – a technique called “sandwiching” – can actually help you minimize irritation. This is because you’re not applying adapalene directly to your skin but after the moisturizer which will dilute its concentration.

3. Use an ointment around your eyes to protect them

By using an ointment on your eyes and more sensitive areas such as around your nose you will minimize irritation. The skin around our eyes is especially sensitive to retinoids since we have very thin skin there compared to our cheeks for example.

These are my favorite ointments, they are super available and cheap!

1. Vaseline
2. Aquaphor healing ointment

Each of these is great, choose the one that inspires you the most or that you already have, there is not much of a difference between them when it comes to this purpose. I personally use the Aquaphor one if you’re curious.

4. Let your face dry

This step is super important again, to minimize irritation. The presence of water on your skin before you apply adapalene will make the product penetrate better which can be good but can also be more irritating. So avoid it.

5. Apply a pea-sized amount of adapalene 0.1%

A little bit goes a long way with adapalene gel, you really do need just this much. You only want to create a thin layer, that is all you need.

Lathering adapalene or any retinoid for what matters is only going to irritate and inflame your skin more without any additional benefits, it is absolutely useless and a waste of product!

More on products choice later!

6. Apply a rich moisturizer

For your moisturizer, you want something rich, even if you have oily skin. You need to keep your skin barrier happy and this step, along with your cleanser, is what you need to concentrate on.

I have a few great products for you to choose from, each of these is going to truly help your skin thrive while adapting to this new powerful ingredient.

After your skin tolerates adapalene well

My product recommendations are the same. In this case, what changed is that you should be able to tolerate adapalene better which means you don’t necessarily need to “sandwich” it between moisturizers.

If your main skin concern is acne you can introduce benzoyl peroxide into your skincare routine to help clear your acne.

By the way, if you want to know more about benzoyl peroxide and other acne ingredients you may be interested in these articles:

• The Ultimate Skincare Routine For Acne-Prone Dry Skin
• The Best Skincare Routine For Acne-Prone Sensitive Skin
• Life-changing Acne Skincare Routine For Oily Skin

1. Wash your face with a gentle cleanser

2. Use an ointment around your eyes to protect them

3. Let your face dry

4. Apply a pea-sized amount of adapalene 0.1%

5. Apply a rich moisturizer

Skincare routine for the morning after retinoids

While applying retinoids the correct way is key for having the best results while minimizing irritation, your morning skincare routine is also super important and you want to do it right.

1. Gently cleanse your face

In the morning you are free to use cleansers with actives to address some of your skin concerns, for example, you can use salicylic acid and benzoyl peroxide washes.

I would still be careful. I suggest you introduce them again into your skincare routine after your skin is adapted to adapalene. I think it’s best you start with the most simple routine ever for the first few weeks since your skin needs to adjust and you don’t really know how it’s going to react.

I suggest you start like this:

1. Gentle cleanser
2. Moisturizer
3. Sunscreen

I know it may look boring, but when you first start you need to make sure your skin barrier is healthy so that your skin is able to tolerate adapalene.

2. Serum

As I said, I would only introduce actives when your skin is able to fully tolerate adapalene. Once it is you are free to use a serum to address other skin concerns you have.

For example, you could use a vitamin C serum such as CeraVe vitamin C serum. I love this one because with vitamin C the packaging is really important if you don’t want it to oxidize and CeraVe did a wonderful job for a fair price, I love it.

That was a quick suggestion but let’s not get carried away, I could talk about serums all day 😂.

3. Moisturizer

Of course, moisturizing is key even in the morning time. Since I’m not too fond of super heavy moisturizers in the morning here is a quick suggestion to keep your skin plump and juicy but not greasy: Aveeno calm and restore oat gel moisturizer.

Of course, if you wake up and feel like your skin needs a little bit of a boost – and it probably will happen since retinoids can be super dehydrating – feel free to switch to a richer, more heavy-duty moisturizer like the one I suggested for your night time routine.

Personally, I also use the cicaplast B5 in the morning I just apply a thin layer compared to the evening and it does not make me great at all!

4. Sunscreen

Apply your sunscreen generously, you need two fingers of it to be able to do its job! If you have oily skin or you feel like too heavy products can make you look greasy you can absolutely use a more rich sunscreen and skip your moisturizer.

For this purpose, I think La Roche Posay toleriane moisturizer with SPF, it is absolutely phenomenal.

Right now I’m using and loving the viral sunscreen by Beauty of Joseon, it is absolutely incredible but if you like the matte look it may not before you.

Another great option for you is the Hero Cosmetics force shield superlight sunscreen, this is studied for acne-prone skin and is also fragrance-free and reef safe which is always a plus!

All of these sunscreens are formulated with top ingredients and do not leave a white cast at least non on my skin but I have pretty fair skin and to be honest, I can’t promise the same for darker skin tones.

How to handle retinization

As we already covered, is best to start slow and built up a tolerance to adapalene little by little. To do this, if you have super sensitive skin, I suggest skin cycling (here is a guide to skin cycling step-by-step).

This is a fantastic way to start but in the long run, I think it won’t allow you to rip all the benefits of adapalene since retinoids are best when used every single day.

Also, a crucial element to avoid irritation as much as possible is to be able to protect your skin barrier, if you want to know how I have an entire article on skin barrier 101, what is it and how to repair it.

Alternative night use

I honestly prefer this method to skin cycling because it allows you to use your retinoids more or to pair it with another treatment if you feel like you need to. It depends on your skin goals.

I did not come up with this method on my own, I’m pretty sure I learned it from a Youtube video I just can’t seem to find it again.

It basically works like this: it is a three-night cycle where you use a treatment of your choice for two nights – or two different treatments each on one separate night – then you have a repairing night where you focus on skin barrier health and you give your skin time to heal.

1. Retinoids (adapalene in this case)
2. Retinoids again or another treatment
3. Repair night, no actives
4. Repeat

Every skin is different you may enjoy this cycle for your first period of using adapalene and then you may be able to use it every night or maybe you won’t. It’s perfectly fine, it’s important that you use retinoids as often as your skin can take it.

When to expect results

Now for the fun part, when will you be able to see results from using retinoids? It depends on your goal, here you can quickly reference the timeline based on your skin concerns.

• Acne: results in 2-3 weeks (this largely depends on your acne type, if you have severe acne it might take up to 3 months)
• Smoothness: results in 4-6 weeks
• Hyperpigmentation: results in 8-16 weeks
• Wrinkles and fine lines: results in 16 weeks

This is what you can expect in general, it does not mean that you won’t see any improvements before the indicated time but in some cases, you won’t, it all depends on different factors such as your skin type and the gravity of your concerns. You just need to stay consistent and not give up, results will come.

Which adapalene product should you choose?

There are many on the market. I referred to Differin because it is the most famous one but they basically have all the same ingredients. Think of it like they are the same product but from different brands.

Here I listed the ingredients for you. As you can see, the only one slightly different is Differin but they are basically all the same.

Ingredients	Differin	La Roche Posay	Acnefree	Walgreens
Active	0.1% adapalene	0.1% adapalene	0.1% adapalene	0.1% adapalene
Inactives	carbomer 940, edatate disodium, methylparaben, propylene glycol, purified water, sodium hydroxide	carbomer homopolymer, edatate disodium, methylparaben, poloxamer 182, propylene glycol, purified water, sodium hydroxide	carbomer homopolymer, edatate disodium, methylparaben, poloxamer 182, propylene glycol, purified water, sodium hydroxide	carbomer homopolymer, edatate disodium, methylparaben, poloxamer 182, propylene glycol, purified water, sodium hydroxide

You should choose based on what is available to you and what price you are most comfortable with. Since it is very cheap and easily available I recommend Differin adapalene gel 0.1%.

This post was all about how to use adapalene and retinoids like a pro.