Fed up with keratosis pilaris

[fruitandvegoverload]

I'm so fed up. I've battled kp on my arms and legs all my life, I've tried bloody everything. I've tried all the usual creams, I've tried chemical exfoliation with urea, I've tried proper bar soap instead of shower gel, I've tried physical exfoliation with scrubs and mitts, I've tried not exfoliating and just moisturising, I've tried sun exposure, I've tried gluten and dairy free and I eat a healthy unprocessed diet. I've spent a fortune trying new wonder products that seem to work at first but never do completely.

I hate the way my skin looks and feels. Today I've exfoliated with Q&A aha scrub, rubbed with a scratchy mitt and shower gel and moisturised with Garnier Body Food (the most effective cream I've tried is CeraVe smoothing but it's too expensive for a less than perfect result). My skin feels relatively smooth now but as you can see it's so red and spotty. I know I've aggravated it by scrubbing but if I don't it feels so rough. 

I just want someone to tell me what to do to get rid of it but I know nobody can. I've read umpteen threads on Reddit and here and everyone has different suggestions that worked for them which then don't work for me and cost me yet more money. I suppose I just want to have a moan and see if anyone can identify. I'm feeling quite depressed about it especially as the weather's getting nice and I hate getting my limbs out.

@Ivyy thank you for recommending Dr Dray, I just watched her video on keratosis pilaris and it was really useful. I thought I already knew everything about tackling kp but I did not know that I should be applying moisturiser to wet skin and not towel drying! She recommends using CeraVe moisturising cream (not the SA one) right out the shower and the SA cream twice a day to dry skin, so I will use that before bed and in the morning as I shower later in the day. She didn't mention physical exfoliation at all in the video, or using products like glycolic acid.

Things I've been doing wrong: using a harsh body scrub before showering, scrubbing again with scratchy gloves, using scented soaps and shower gel, towel drying vigorously, using the wrong creams at the wrong time. I'm going to stop all that now and take her advice and see how I get on.

I've had sand paper arms and legs since I was a kid. & I used to habitually pick at it. It went when I did a strict raw vegan diet for 12 weeks, no grains, dairy, seed oils bar flax, no upf, filtered water only. It was tough but I lost weight & kp drastically reduced. The only other thing that ever helped it was sun & sea swimming. Great thread, good luck op and place marking this in case kp decides to pay me another visit.

Mine was worse in my 30s, I found the best thing was regular use of the highest strength urea cream and no exfoliation. Mine improved dramatically of its own accord in my 40s so I assume age/hormones, but I see you are 50s so probably not much help.

Sorry it is horrible!

I think my young dd has it too, her arms are really rough to the touch. (Obviously I never comment on it and she is totally not bothered, but I feel somehow guilty for passing it on.) Really good response above about consistency being key - I'm going to bear that in mind and try to stick at the urea and squalane

When I was a little girl my nan commented on my skin while she was giving me a bath, 'what are all these red spots? You didn't used to have these!' in an accusatory way. Then when I was a teenager at school another girl touched my arm and exclaimed 'urgh! Your skin feels really rough!' I think I internalised these remarks and that's part of why I hate this otherwise harmless skin condition so much.

I do have other, more serious problems by the way, including having a chronic illness that has made me disabled. That doesn't stop kp being an absolute bastard though.

This is very interesting, maybe it wasn't just diet that helped. I think I do a lot of those Dr Dray recommendations as well - I dry brush, use perfume-free/ph-balanced/sensitive shower gel (also have eczema and thrush issues), put on almond oil on wet skin. I wouldn't rule out hormones affecting it as I am in menopause and use hrt.

Yes this is what helped me and my teen. Ameriolate didn’t work but this stick did wonders in a couple of uses

I think Sali Hughes has KP, she has written a lot about it and has managed hers successfully.

If you haven't already, use an African net sponge in the bath/shower every day and then wipe glycolic acid (the one from The Ordinary is the best) over the affected areas with cotton wool everyday. Worked for me, but be religious with it. Good luck!

@fruitandvegoverload have you used the cerave sa body wash and moisturiser together? Completely got rid of mine after it got much much worse after pregnancy

Revolution had a great AHA lotion that’s now sadly discontinued, Ameliorate didn’t do much for me and is pricy. I’m using Q&A salicylic acid cream which smells really sickly and isn’t doing much. The Dove Pro Age lotion seems to work for me but again not keen on the scent.

I find the sun really helps, even with SPF on.

I think this is the best advice. The ordinary do a 7% (I think) glycolic acid

It's been a week since I started this thread so I thought I would provide a little update. My skin is SO MUCH smoother and less red already! I'm so pleased. Thank you to the posters who recommended Dr Dray as it's listening to her advice that’s helped me.

What I've been doing: I've been concentrating on repairing my skin barrier and moisturising. I have resisted the temptation to do any physical exfoliating with scrubs or scratchy mits and have just gently used a wet flannel. I've stopped using fragranced soap containing shower gel and used E45 wash instead. I've turned down the shower temperature and spend less time in there, and I've moisturised with CeraVe moisturiser while my skin is still very damp. I've stopped rubbing myself with a towel. I'm using CeraVe SA cream twice a day. I've spent short periods with my arms in the morning sun.

I've got some of The Ordinary glycolic acid today and will start adding that to my regime too. But I'm so encouraged at the improvement in my kp already so thank you everyone

Photos of before and after (the red ones are before) 😂

Another after photo ( it wouldn't let me post 4 at once)

That’s brilliant OP!

Based on this thread I’ve bought the Inkey List glycolic stick for DD to try on her legs. Will report back on how it goes.

I knew I'd forgotten something! I started taking vitamin A as well.

KP on my legs is similar to yours OP. I started using the KP bump eraser scrub in the shower, dry off then followed by the Ordinary Glycolic acid on a cotton pad all over the leg then followed by 40% Urea cream, every other day. The results within 2 weeks were miraculous.

My mum insisted mine was because I wasn’t washing myself properly in the shower! So I spent years trying to scrub it off!

So I'll be stopping the Ameliorate until the winter as I burned so bad yesterday because of it 😅 I know it has a warning on there but I wasn't even out in the sun long and it was only 19! 🫠 I'll see how you all get on with the other products. What a waste of £30 😑