Melasma

[LuciferRising]

I've been using a prescription from Dermatica for 18 months now to tackle this. They do have to change it because you can only use the ingredients for so many months, so I'm now back on normal trent. But it isn't working.

They've tried steroids and all the other stuff.

Is there anything else I can do. Diet? Something else? Some days I swear my cheeks look darker than normal, and other days better. Is it peri?

Just googled diet and now I see there are links between a poor functioning liver and melasma!

I use Dr Brightening dark spot corrector. I've got fair skin with melasma on my cheeks and this has worked a treat for me. You can normally get it on Amazon.

That image is huge🤣

I am struggling badly with it too and I’m getting so self conscious of it. I have a referral for blood tests and to see a dermatologist soon. I wonder if it’s going to be a forever thing 😞 or just for a few years.

I've had patches of it since my youngest was born almost 15 years ago. I've tried some LED light therapy on it but I only tried it a couple of times and I think you would need a long course to see if it really helped as it didn't do anything for me.

I was tempted to try Dermatica but so far I've just been using make up to cover it. I might try the Dr Brightening recommendation now though, I have a friend's wedding coming up and I'm really conscious of how it will look in her photos, even with professional make up as it really needs colour correcting stuff underneath foundation for me to be happy.

The only person who ever says anything to me about it though is my mum who seems to forget I've explained it already and then mentions it again every few months. 🙄

Why the blood tests?

Yep I've got melasma too.
Bloody awful.
I've had it 7 months and sick of it.
I'm in menopause.

Hey OP I can’t recommend anything, other than I have a lot of hyper pigmentation (not the same I know) and I actually quite like it. I also think melasma and hyperpigmention do not look bad at all but rather add unique character to a face just like freckles. I think we’re conditioned to think we all need to look smooth and airbrushed but the reality is most people have scars, colour changes, etc on their face as well as moles and freckles and none of these things are unattractive I don’t think. They’re just part of our faces! Sorry if this is unhelpful or condescending in any way, it isn’t meant to be.
I find it helps to just look after my skin (moisturise etc and make up when I feel like it) and take pride in my appearance (and personality😃) and that has helped me feel a lot better.

@DivorceConfusion that's a great way of looking at things actually.

Since developing melasma, I've studied loads of faces and skin. No one really has perfect skin. I use a bit of concealer as I can't be arsed to cake myself in make up each day.

@Runaround50 ive noticed the same. It’s funny how we apply different standards to others and ourselves. I hated my hyperpigmentation at first (I also have some scarring from acne) and have previously been so self conscious about my skin. Yet when others have some spots/wrinkles/scarring whatever it just doesn’t seems a big deal and people can still look very glamorous and attractive with all those things! So now I try to look at my own face the way I look at other faces, and I try to view my face “as a whole” and part of me rather than zooming in on the bits I don’t like. Sounds simple but it’s helped a lot.

@DivorceConfusion absolutely. I think you are right in that we are all conditioned to look ' perfect' but in truth, no one is. Perfection just doesn't exist.

Thanks for your insightful and positive post ! 😀

It is good insight. I don't cover it up and have always wanted freckles. So I guess you are right.

To try and investigate the cause. I haven't had a baby and I am not on birth control and mine presents as if it is hormonal. I can handle the pigmentation on the other parts of my face but unfortunately, I have a very dark "melasma moustache" (upper lip).