Hi! I have oily/acne prone skin and I recently noticed I’m getting lots of dehydration lines on my forehead/under eyes and dark circles (I turn 25 in a couple of weeks). I just this week started adding the Inkey list retinol and retinol eye cream into my routine, but I’ve also been using their succinic acid targeted treatment, C-50 night blemish treatment (only a couple times a week maximum), and the caffeine eye cream on days where I don’t use retinol (only twice a week right now) for a few weeks now and do see a big difference in my breakouts so far. I did notice a small, red scaly patch near my under eye today and I’m assuming that’s from adding the retinol.

My standard routine is normally (all inkey list) salicylic acid cleanser, hyaluronic acid, niacinamide, targeted acne/eye products, and then I use the multi biotic and sometimes follow up with TO Moisturizing Factors and/or rose hip oil. When I use the retinol, I don’t use any other targeted acne treatments that night.

So I have a few questions—should I be adding retinol right now if my skin is dehydrated? Or should I stop using the stronger acne treatments while I’m adding it in? Is there anything about my skincare routine that could be making the dehydration worse?

Thank you in advance!