Hi,

I have KP for about 3 years. It is all over my back, shoulders, arms and butt. It's really harsh, I've got tons of red dots and bumps all over my back, and they're really stingy. The bumps and dots are really dense. It causes me deep frustration and I can't even think of taking off my shirt or something like that. I am really ashamed of it and it badly hurts my self confidence. I can't think of having relationships with girls and exposing my body to the other sex, because of this gross phenomenon.
I don't know which treatment would suit me best, because there are so many, and I wouldn't know where to begin. I'm really depressed and would be really grateful for a good and comprehensive advice.

I've already used some sort of cream a long time ago but It didn't help. I also tried using a sea buckethorn soap, and it did worsened my KP (it caused some KP in my LEGS which I never had before), but no further progress. I think I need the most intensive treatment, one which will exfoliate and peel my skin from the very foundations of it, and will allow a formation of a totally new skin layer, and then using some kind of stuff that will prevent the excessive build up of Keratin and the formation of KP + maybe laser hair removal in the places where I have KP, that will prevent KP from being created since there will be no more hair there?
I would really really be happy to start an instant treatment, that will be very intense and agressive, but will show results faster (I really don't mind using all kinds of very concentrated/potent acids and stuff like that, that would totally kill my skin, cause I just want the KP out, and ASAP, don't care about factors like money/pain/damage).
I thought about having a serious, professional deep skin peeling, something really thorough, that might be a bit expensive but at least can help me get rid of it (or is it? you tell me ... ). Here is a pretty old picture( from the winter), and my KP is totally flamed here, now it is a bit better but still awful and severe.

have you herd about the dermabration aha treatment? it seems very promising.
i can send you a link to the web site if you send me a private message with your e mail address.

__________________
Anyone who trades liberty for security deserves neither liberty nor security.
Benjamin Franklin
************************************************** *******

You can use %35 glycolic acid or combination acid (%25 glycolic acid+%35 lactic acid) peel gel. (35-40 USD per bottle of 100 ml at Skin Laboratory). I used %35 glycolic acid for a month but not regulary. Appearence of red dots were lessened. If it is used twice a day and regulary i suppose it will work. By the way, if it causes burns on your skin, best thing to be used is vaseline after you apply it . vaseline works much better than all the other expensive lotions and creams.

Yeah I heard about it, but i think it's not enough intensive for me .. you see, my KP is really severe (look at the picture, it's totally flamed, and it also really itching), but I'd be happy to get a link to the site to have a look (my email is orichamo@gmail.com)

this sounds a bit more powerful, does it peel deep layers of the skin? cause I've never of 35% acids.. I think I'll go for it, but when can I get it? pharmacy?
sounds more like something a laboratory can provide me with :P.
Anyway seriously, I think i'll get it, but what about options like mechanical/chemical/laser(is there such a thing at all?) skin peeling professionally at a cosmetician or doctor? what do you think about that?

wow ...you dont just want to start with something that powerful.
your skin must first get used to the aha.

if you start using 35% aha this is what is going to happen
- your either going to burn yourself and possabley scar your skin forever.
-or your going to burn yourself and then give up on a treatment that could have worked for you had you tried it in a lower dosage.

__________________
Anyone who trades liberty for security deserves neither liberty nor security.
Benjamin Franklin
************************************************** *******

You're right, but I'm so tense and eager to get rid of this, it's been that severe for years now! So how should I start using it, anyway? And where can I get all the needed products?

Since You Stated Money Is Not An Issue , Maybe You Should Set Up An Appointment With A Cosmetic Surgeon That Does Skincare Procedures Onsite.

orichamo,
you've had kp for this long. is a little more time investigating going to hurt?
did you get my e-mail?

Attached Thumbnails

 

__________________
Anyone who trades liberty for security deserves neither liberty nor security.
Benjamin Franklin
************************************************** *******

hmmm... I guess not, but I don't wan't to go through all the "trial and error" stage .. I just want a treatment that will 90% help me, I rather learn from others' experience than trying myself and get disappointed..

Orichamo,I really don't think you should start with a 35% aha because the keratin plugs need time to get dissolved and your skin needs to get used to such a high percentage otherwise you will just get burned.I don't think your kp is as severe as you think it is so try with aha 15 and 20 but don't expect overnight changes.I think my kp was more severe than yours and it took me about 5 months to get rid of all those nasty bumps.You have to be patient and persistant with the aha treatmnet if you want results.Here are my pictures,I hope this helps:

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Exfoliation Treatment in Stages

Here is a detailed account of how treatment works when one commits to a regimen of effective exfoliation. This is based on my experience in treating my case of KP and observations of others, and your experiences may differ. It may take a month or more just to accustom your skin to your exfoliation routine and build up to a frequency that will be effective, and only then can steady treatment begin. And not everyone who has KP will be at Stage One when starting. Some people may have milder KP or will have achieved some lessening of symptoms by using other forms of exfoliation. And most people have different severity of KP in different places on their bodies, so the timing for results will vary in each place. Other factors like delay in treatment (for how many years has your KP been left untreated and slowly worsening?), age of the sufferer (young people have a faster skin cell turnover than older people), and environmental conditions (obviously you will get faster and easier results if you're in a warm, moist climate versus a cold, dry one) can also affect treatment duration considerably. Choice of method matters, too, as physical/mechanical exfoliation is often faster than chemical means, especially when it comes to smoothing bumps. However, once you find your effective treatment, KP usually dissipates in a predictable pattern.

I hope this information will help those who are not sure how exfoliation actually works to fight KP, and what results to expect at certain stages.


Stage 1: Before Treatment

This is severe KP that is about to "Cold Start" on treatment. That means that the sufferer has not been using any prior method of treatment, probably for several years, and the disease has progressed to a terminal, chronic state.

Ideally, this person would use a means of physical exfoliation here to remove these bumps. A scrub, loofah, dermabrasion, etc, would eliminate this surface disfigurement quickly, more efficiently (and affordably) than a chemical method, and increase the likelihood of success for treatment. People take different approaches and sometimes just want to try one product, or physical methods are not available to them, whatever the case may be.

Condition:

High, sharp bumps are present. These may or may not have visible hair growth, depending on the height of the bump and other factors. This follicle is in profound distress. The pressure from accumulated dead skin cells and other material creates congestion and irritates the follicle. If a hair is trapped below the surface, there will be even more cause for irritation. The follicle responds by becoming inflamed, with red or hyperpigmented discoloration. This originates at the follicle and will spread outward as the clogging worsens. It takes a round, "spot" shape because it spreads equally in every direction from the round shape of the follicle.
In this congested, thickened state, the skin is completely unable to function. The pores may even form blackheads, and the skin is disfigured by bumps. There are accumulated layers of dry, dead cells, and the surface is discolored and has none of the normal moisture or softness that human skin is supposed to.
Most importantly, the follicles are plugged. Their openings at the skin surface are blocked by tight masses of keratin, and covered by tightly integrated piles of even more keratin (the KP bumps). The follicle is supposed to be a well-like structure, a hole that channels downward, open, deeply below the skin's surface. A KP-affected follicle is something like a well that is packed full of concrete, and covered by a small mountain of more concrete.

Skin Surface:

Skin is textured like sandpaper, covered in thousands of spiny bumps. Around each bump is inflammation in the Red Dot pattern. The skin is so irritated that even the areas between the follicle bumps are pink or reddish from the spreading inflammation. This makes the KP area patchy red or very dark.
The follicles are completely jammed and sealed off. Debris only "moves" upward when it is forcibly pushed up by the new debris that is still being deposited below. (The inside lining of the follicle sloughs new cells daily, and these have nowhere to go.)

Because this disease looks so horrendous from the outside, the sufferer is often unaware of the equally dreadful conditions that exist below the skin's surface. Many people attempt and succeed at treatment of the visible bumps, only to be dismayed when this does not resolve the condition to any satisfaction. Treatment must be total, from the height of the bump to the depth of the follicle.





Stage 2: Initiation of Treatment (Approx. One month)

KP is best treated with slow but persistent exfoliation. Ideally, the skin should be sloughed just slightly faster than new debris can accumulate below the bump. This allows gradual reduction in bump size without causing rawness or irritation.
The first improvement will be the loss of the sharp tip of the bump. KP forms, clogs, and builds a bump from the inside out, but exfoliation happens from the outside in. It must address the surface problems (bumps) before it can reach the deeper issues (clogged follicle).

Skin Surface:

At this stage, the skin will feel slightly smoother, but will look no different. This is because no treatment of the follicle has occurred yet. It is still jam-packed with dead material and has no opening through which to extrude it.
Here, physical exfoliation will yield fast results, smoothing the skin a little more every day, but it is still a gradual process, as the bumps are large and have much surface area that must be removed.

It is possible for the keratin plugs to be so tight and hard in the follicle that chemical treatment (exfoliants, moisturizers, etc.) will be unable to loosen them and allow them to be removed. This is especially the case with KP that has been untreated for many years, and when bumps are not kept in check with any regular form of physical exfoliation. For this reason, physical exfoliation prior to the onset of chemical application is often essential; it eliminates the possibility of this type of impasse or stalemate in treatment.





Stage 3: Progressing Treatment (Approx. 8-10 Weeks)

Bumps are very shallow and nearly flat. But the follicle is still effectively sealed off, and the trapped debris still has no way of leaving. Because of this, the follicle remains very red and irritated. However, the reduction in bump size may relieve some of the pressure below the skin. This can cause a slight reduction of inflammation, though the sufferer probably will not notice.

Skin Surface:

The skin will feel smooth, and the sufferer will probably say, "My bumps are gone," while they are actually still present. The bumps are so flat that they are not visible in normal lighting, and can no longer be felt. This change from the previous, sharp texture is so dramatic that the sufferer will think his skin is completely smooth. However, many people discontinue treatment at this point (!!) because the red dots are still very dark and obvious. They may even appear darker and more pronounced than before. This is because the areas between the follicles may have lost some of their redness/inflammation. Because the dots are now surrounded by lighter or pinkish skin, the contrast is greater and they may appear to be "worse."

Despite how smooth the skin is at this stage, it is still in a very diseased state, and no improvement has been made below its surface. This is only about the halfway point of treatment.

Stage 4: Far Into Treatment (Approx. 10-12 weeks)

The follicle has been "tapped," or partly opened to the outside, and this will be the first clear sign of visible improvement. Debris can escape outward and will be removed artificially by the exfoliant, so the follicle can slowly relieve itself of congestion. It begins to relax as the swelling is reduced. Hair begins to grow more freely. Physical exfoliation methods can achieve this state and relieve mild and even some moderate KP. However, there is still a lot of dead material in the follicle, and it remains irritated. It can take months for the follicle to clear completely.
So begins the second half of treatment, the battle below the skin's surface to rid it of all signs of KP.

Skin Surface:

Skin will feel totally smooth, as bumps are almost completely gone. Red dots will be slightly fainter and smaller, but still very obvious, especially on the lighter skin tone around them.
Some people actually maintain this condition indefinitely by using a physical means of exfoliation a few times a week. It is very possible to "plateau" at this stage and not improve further if one does not continue an active regimen (exfoliation at least once a day). Treatment tends to be slower here because the exfoliant is not being applied directly inside the follicle, but must seep into it from the surface.
Many sufferers will become frustrated at this stage and discontinue treatment entirely, because the skin still looks so spotted and unsightly. By this time, too, sufferers will have totally forgotten how bad their skin used to look and feel, so they will minimize the improvement that has happened.

At this stage, chemical exfoliation becomes very relevant, and physical exfoliation methods should be discontinued. Dermabrasion is the most effective form of a scrub type of exfoliation, and can achieve this "tapped follicle" state in about 6-8 weeks of daily treatment. After this has occurred, Glycolic Acid and similar treatments are ideal and can be very effective now that the follicle is exposed.

Stage 5: Nearing End of Treatment (Approx. 3 Months +)

The follicle slowly becomes more clear, and loses its pocketed shape. But it is still caked with sticky, dead material. Liquid exfoliants can penetrate the opening and make the clearing process steady and progressive, while physical scrubbing and abrasion methods will only s****e across the follicle's opening, yielding slow results (if any).
There will be new and rapid hair growth over most of the sufferer's KP areas, and the skin will have more normal color and texture. The pores will be much clearer and the skin will require less upkeep, as it is now functional and able to keep its own condition.

Skin Surface:

With glycolic acid treatment (or similars), skin retexturing will begin. The skin will feel soft and smooth. Red dots will be faint and small, localized to the base of the hair. However, there is enough clogging still in the follicle to allow a hair to be trapped below the skin's surface. Especially in severe KP that has been left untreated for many years, the hair may have receded well into the base of the follicle, and may take several more weeks to erupt.
At this stage, only the most severe KP skin will persist. Most other areas on the sufferer's body will be clear of any sign of KP and will need maintenance care rather than active treatment.

Note that as KP is successsfully treated, the red dots will not simply fade away. They actually shrink in diameter, so that they are small and close around the follicle. Truly eradicating KP means removing the cause of the inflammation. The follicle congestion is the target of treatment; the inflammation and red dots are just a reaction to that problem, and will disappear naturally as the follicle is cleaned out.
Conversely, the very presence of inflammation is a direct sign that the follicle is blocked. The famously maligned "Red Dot" pattern of KP should not be regarded as part of the disease. It is only the body's helpless reaction to the problem, and is useful as a measurement of KP's severity and the condition of the follicles. The same is true of hair absence. Close observation of the skin (I recommend a magnifying glass) will show which follicles still lack a visible hair, and are therefore retaining enough debris to hold that hair down.

Stage 6: Final Treatment Period (Approx. 4-5 Months)

In this last stage, the follicle will be relaxed and attempt to return to a natural size and shape, but it may be permanently enlarged, especially in older people. As treatment continues, some follicles will still have some congestion. The stubborn areas of KP (that used to be the most severe) will reduce to minimal patches of small, faint, pale red dots. These areas will still need careful, dedicated exfoliation at least twice daily, while most other areas will only need maintenance care.
Depending on how long the follicle has been blocked and inflamed, it can take an additional few weeks for the remaining red dots to dissipate. This is because it takes time to clear out the last bit of congestion in the follicle. The red dots are not "scars," but active irritation that is very responsive to changes in the skin. If red dots persist, it is solely because there is still dead keratin inside the follicle.

Skin Surface:

This stage of tiny, pinkish dots around the follicle may last a few weeks, and the skin will be smooth and almost normal-looking. It may be re-textured in a grainy pattern of tiny, wrinkled lines, or it may be featureless. There may also be open, visible follicles in the surface: tiny holes with a hair growing out of them. This is more likely in a warmer climate, when the skin can become very clear and smooth.
It is important to continue active treatment until all signs of redness are gone, and the skin will continue to improve in color and texture over the coming months. Because glycolic acid increases skin cell turnover, the skin will start to regrow after product application. Other treatments like Retin A (in the proper potency) can have this result as well and bring about a very normal appearance with even tone and softer texture. Different areas of KP skin will reach this level at different times, so maintenance treatment requires careful observation and a regimen that tailors more or less to certain places.

Some cases of KP are so severe and quick-forming that the follicles will re-clog almost daily. There, it may not be possible to eliminate every last trace of pink/light red around the follicles, because there is no way to keep ahead of the new, dead skin debris that is constantly being deposited. This never allows the follicles to be completely relieved of irritation, so some faint, small red dots may persist. However, even severe KP can be reduced to smooth skin with only faint discoloration, and over time it may clear completely. Just as KP takes years to worsen to a severe state, the skin will slowly improve with more time and become adapted to regular exfoliation.

Wow Aynas, great post!

Thanks for sharing!

You should blog it !!

Thank you very much Aynas, I'm sure your way of treatment can help me, but still NOBODY has answered my first and most important question- will a one-time, most intense peeling/exfoliation treatment (a very serious, professional deep skin peeling done by a cosemtician/doctor, that will peel the skin from the very foundations)

I don't think that even the deepest skin peeling will get rid of your bumps.The top layer of your skin will be removed but not keratin plugs because they go much deeper into the follicles and can't be removed by peeling.Keratin needs to be dissolved and no peeling will be able to go that deep.Try to squeeze a bump and you'll see .

but the bumps are formed on top of the skin, they are only like hills of excess keratin, aren't they? basically peeling/exfoliation removes everything within the range it peels... yet i'm concerned about what happens next, cause KP will occur again even after exfoliating/peeling the skin.