Why You Should Be Using a Retinoid in Your 20’s

I’ve been dying to add a retinoid to my skincare routine for a while now, but the process has always been outlined as less than simple. Retinoids require prescriptions, and prescriptions require a visit to the doctor.

And I don’t know about you - but my schedule is packed enough as it is.

Enter - Dear Brightly.

Let’s break down this whole retinoid situation and my experience with my first ever retinoid!

 

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What is a retinoid, why use one?

Retinoids are known to be one of the most effective topical skincare products you can use to fight wrinkles, acne, uneven skin tone, dark spots, and enlarged pores. I don’t know about you - but that basically covers all my skincare concern bases.

The long story short here is that retinoids are both diverse and powerful - they target a ton of different concerns and some of those concerns are issues that you’d need multiple products to fight. A retinoid is sort of like your one stop shop when it comes to topical treatments.

Should you be using a retinoid in your 20’s?

Um, YES. Many doctors recommend starting to use retinoids in your 20’s to prevent signs of aging early.

I’ve definitely preached about this on the blog before - but we only get one skin. And once that skin is creased, it only continues to create. It’s way easier (and less expensive) to prevent signs of aging rather than to try to reverse those signs later on.

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dear-brightly-review

What is Dear Brightly?

Dear Brightly is essentially the modern way to do retinoid treatments. Your average path to a retinoid involves physically making a doctor’s trip to have them prescribe the right retinoid, physically heading to the pharmacy for pickup, etc.

I’m basically not game for anything that requires me to put on real pants and leave the house (lol) so I found Dear Brightly’s method intriguing.

Dear Brightly makes retinoids more accessible. My first step was to create an online account and upload a series of photos of my face. I then filled in a questionnaire about my skin concerns and skin type. A doctor was assigned to me (yes, an actual board-certified doctor) and reviewed my photos and information, ultimately prescribing me a personalized retinoid prescription. I can also 100% guarantee it was personal to me because all the products that arrived in the mail days later were targeted for dry, sensitive skin (definitely my life story). The whole process felt both thorough and custom - just as if I had done this all in person, except I never had to leave my house.

The fancy word for this? Telemedicine.

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My experience so far

My experience with Dear Brightly as a company has been five stars across the board. The process was absolutely seamless and the personalized prescription was dead on.

In terms of actual results, I’ll be fair, I’m only one month into using my retinoid. I’ve definitely noticed some changes in overall texture to my skin (improvements!), but the little fine lines I see in spots will take more time than a month to vanquish. Make sure you’re following me on Instagram so you don’t miss any updates as I continue to use Dear Brightly!

Have you tried a retinoid? Tell me about your experience in the comments below!

Retinoid c/o Dear Brightly. This is NOT an affiliate code - but you can use "GLOWLIKEBAGELS" at checkout for 10% off!