Hi everyone,
After a bit of procrastination in starting, I finished my Efudex about 2 weeks ago.
First, I just wanted to say how sorry I am for all of those that have what must be a severe reaction and a lot of discomfort, but for all the people who are thinking about doing the treatment, and get put off by reading some of the entries on this forum, I just wanted to tell my story.
I was instructed to apply the cream twice a day for 3 weeks. I did my whole face as I just wanted to get the whole thing over and done with ASAP. I used the smallest (half pea) amount of cream, and to be sure it covered my whole face I just wet my fingers with some water after I had applied the cream and rubbed my fingers over my face.
After 1 week my forehead, cheeks, nose, upper lip and eyebrows were quite red and felt sore (it felt like the skin was cracking) when i put the cream on, but on a score of 1 to 10 for pain it was only about a 2. I used the Olay 30+ moisturizer (the highest SPF in Australia) which is really lite on the skin and not at all greasy. Although I was quite red and blotchy I was able to cover it quite well with makeup (I use Estee Lauder Futurist). At night I cleansed with an oil based makeup remover (shu uemura) and moisturised with Avene Rich Hydrating cream for sensitive skin.
I had an appointment with my Dermatologist after the first week and she was very happy with my progress, she told me to only apply the cream once a day or even miss a day if it started to get too sore and red. Over the next 2 weeks I may have missed about 3 days and perhaps only applied the cream once a day on about 5 occasions.
By the end of the 3 weeks the redness was starting to go brown with a flat, dry scab (of sorts). I was and am still using the Olay during the day and at night I used (and still use) Bio-oil. After one week of healing my skin was peeling, but not severely. After two weeks my skin is almost completely healed and I only have a few faint red spots that I can completely cover with makeup. My skin feels fantastic and I think looks better than it did 5 years ago.
I am so happy I did the treatment and would do it again if I had to.
So, I just wanted new readers to know that not everyone has the reaction that you see in the photos that some people have posted, but I also think its good to go into it with the knowledge of what the worst, and the best possible scenario could be.
If your wondering, I have very fair skin (blue eyes, dark blond hair), and seem to be prone to skin rashes (so sensitive skin) and freckles (but not so much now I am in my 40s).