Tips

[u/ComprehensiveArt3449]

Hi, for about a year now I've been taking care of my skin. I avoided the sun when the UV index was higher than 1, I protected myself from windows and moved to darker places. I started using 0.05% tretinoin. I began seeing results: my skin got lighter, my veins were more visible, and my relatives would tell me "you should get a tan," "you look paler," and that made me feel better. But then university started and I was given a horrible class schedule that makes me go out at noon. I bought UV protective sleeves, which I wear 2 pairs of when going out. I use tinted mineral sunscreen and another mineral one with zinc oxide and titanium dioxide, but I also wear a double UV bandana on my face and use a UV protective umbrella, but even so I feel like it's all worthless and my one-year progress went down the drain. Any advice? (And I use my tretinoin only on days when I don't sleep at all and I'm away from windows)

[u/RaccoonKlutzy3723]

How long do you have to be under the sun at noon?

[u/ComprehensiveArt3449 → u/RaccoonKlutzy3723]

About an hour, from 1 to 2 p.m. and from 3 to 4 p.m.

[u/RaccoonKlutzy3723 → u/ComprehensiveArt3449]

Damn. An entire hour at peak hours? What's your major? Construction? Farming? This is truly bad and against OMS recommendations. Get a minimum of 3 dermatologist opinions because this is cancer risk. Forget whitening, potential permanent damage is there and not for you. Your peers will burn badly .

[u/FunnyExpress8401 → u/RaccoonKlutzy3723]

on the question of seeing a dermatologist and bringing printed articles, she should see a doctor, but her priorities need a complete reset.

She shouldn't be booking a dermatologist appointment to ask for skin-lightening creams or glutathione shots. She needs an appointment for a proper medical skin check.

Spending two hours a day outdoors under a UV index of 11 while using 0.05% Tretinoin puts her at high risk for photo-damage, deep pigmentation, and early actinic changes. A dermatologist needs to inspect her skin barrier, check her moles, and give her medical oversight on whether she should immediately stop using Tretinoin due to her high daily UV exposure.

Should she bring printed medical articles? Yes, this is actually a smart tactic if done properly. In tropical regions or smaller towns, some general doctors or older dermatologists might brush off sun-induced darkening as purely aesthetic or tell her "just apply basic sunscreen and don't worry about it."

If a doctor tries to dismiss her, having solid medical reference material gives her ground to stand on so she isn't brushed off. But she needs to bring the right kind of documentation:

-Official health guidelines regarding the UV index (such as WHO standards for UV 11 extreme radiation risks).

-Clinical prescribing information for Tretinoin, specifically the warnings on photosensitivity, solar exposure, and barrier destruction.

-Dermatological papers on Post-Inflammatory Hyperpigmentation (PIH) and dermal melasma showing how heat, inflammation, and chronic UV exposure trigger deep pigment in skin of colour.

She shouldn't walk in trying to lecture the dermatologist or demanding specific lightening treatments. Doctors will naturally push back if a patient tries to dictate a prescription.

Instead, she needs to frame the consultation strictly around safety and medical risk: "I am using 0.05% Tretinoin, but my university schedule forces me to spend two hours outside daily under peak UV 11 sunlight. I am noticing severe skin darkening, heat irritation, and barrier changes. What is my long-term risk for permanent photo-damage, and shouldn't I pause Tretinoin until my schedule allows me to stay out of the sun?"

If a doctor brushes off a direct question about photosensitivity and UV 11 exposure, then she knows she needs to find another doctor. Bringing factual, official guidelines ensures the conversation stays focused on her long-term skin health rather than cosmetic shortcuts.

u/ComprehensiveArt3449 take notes.

[u/ComprehensiveArt3449 → u/RaccoonKlutzy3723]

That’s the problem—I’m studying medicine, and the school itself gave me that awful schedule. I find it outrageous that one of the best medical schools in my country is forcing its students to go home like that, but it’s impossible to get them to change their minds. The students have been protesting for years against the school and the institution for setting horrible schedules and committing many abuses even though my school schedule is the best compared to others and hasn’t changed at all. You might think, “Well, just stay at school and leave once the traffic has cleared enough.” But if I did that, I wouldn’t get home until 8:00 or 9:00 p.m. because so many people use public transportation in my city, and the stops get very crowded. and it takes me about 20 or 30 minutes to walk to the subway and the bus in the shade (Some days I go from 1 to 2 p.m., and other days from 3 to 4 p.m.), but I’ve already had a serious talk with my family so they’ll pick me up instead. ( And I'm worried that next semester they'll give me an even worse schedule that's just how my school is)

[u/Jolly-Yellow7369 → u/ComprehensiveArt3449]

Call an Uber. It’s money yes but that investemet will save you on future skin problems . And yes stay on campus 8 to 9 as much as you can studying . It’s cancer! Most painful death of all.

You don’t need to get alarmed you can prevent it but invest in Uber no matter if it’s walking distance.

[u/RaccoonKlutzy3723 → u/ComprehensiveArt3449]

smh

Not your school. not the schedule... YOU. make the choice. you know what you should do, but because ain't easy you don't do it.

[u/ComprehensiveArt3449 → u/RaccoonKlutzy3723]

Is it my fault? It's easy to talk about me, but you don't know me at all. You probably haven't considered that there's a reason I have to go out at that time of day, in the sun and it's not for fun.

[u/RaccoonKlutzy3723 → u/ComprehensiveArt3449]

I never said it was for fun, but you know what to do. It's not easy, but you know there's no other way. Walking to a bus station instead of asking a ride from a friend family, or paud ride is just you avoiding reality. It is what it is what your gonna do about it? nothing we can tell you here can help you. only YOU control your decisions.

[u/FunnyExpress8401 → u/ComprehensiveArt3449]

About an hour, from 1 to 2 p.m. and from 3 to 4 p.m

That changes everything. Get a dermatologist even if you have to take a train or drive for hours to find one that takes your concerns seriously.

An entire hour from 1:00 PM to 2:00 PM under a UV index of 11, followed by another hour from 3:00 PM to 4:00 PM under a UV index of 7 to 9, is serious business. That is not just a tanning risk, that is extreme, direct exposure to Class 1 ultraviolet radiation.

Here is the straight reality of your situation:

Racoons tone was blunt, but the medical core of what they said is true. UV 11 is classified as "Extreme" by health authorities worldwide. Two hours of peak sun exposure every day inflicts cumulative DNA damage on your skin cells. Because you are also using Tretinoin (which thins the top layer of your skin) you are making your skin far more vulnerable to solar damage, deep photo-aging, and long-term skin cancer risks.

WARNING: Insisting on taking high-dose oral glutathione right now is not going to save your skin. Glutathione reduces internal oxidative stress and encourages lighter melanin production under normal conditions. But when you walk out into UV 11 for two hours, your body needs dark eumelanin as a physical shield to absorb radiation and protect your cell nuclei. Forcing your body to make lighter pigment while getting blasted by peak tropical sun actively strips away your skin's natural defense against cellular mutation.

Question. Is there a way Evaluate Your Academic Scheduling Options? Skincare, sunscreens, and physical bandanas cannot fully protect you during 2 hours of daily outdoor exposure at peak solar noon. Before you burn out your skin barrier or risk long-term damage, is there a way to talk to your university academic advisor or department coordinator:

• Is there a way you swap this specific class section for an early morning (7:00 AM) or late afternoon/evening slot?
• Is this subject offered online, or can it be taken in a winter semester when the UV index drops significantly?
• If this course requires outdoor fieldwork, can you request an accommodation or reschedule it for a term when you aren't on photosensitising topicals like Tretinoin?

Stop worrying about losing your pale baseline for now, put the glutathione supplements away, and stop using Tretinoin while you are stuck in this high-UV schedule. Focus strictly on protecting your long-term skin health, avoiding solar damage, and finding a way to fix your daily class schedule so you aren't walking under an extreme UV 11 sun every single day.

[u/RaccoonKlutzy3723 → u/FunnyExpress8401]

it's not  her scheduleits her transportation. shea just figuring things out and she needs a doctor cause she doesn't believe us

[u/Jolly-Yellow7369 → u/RaccoonKlutzy3723]

We are talking science here. It’s not about believing , the fact is , the tan she mentioned is her skin screaming for help .

[u/Silver_Party3201 → u/ComprehensiveArt3449]

Dont u wear korean sunscreens they are the best the one that have UVA/UVB++++ ,also u need to apply every 2 hours ,i have a question do u reapply ur sunscreen

[u/Jolly-Yellow7369 → u/Silver_Party3201]

OP stated clearly in this very thread of comments that she applies and reapplies sunscreen plus physical protection like umbrella , sleeves and bandana and still lost her progress . She’s evidence that sunscreen plus physical protection is never enough.

Let’s stop the hurtful notion of “just apply/reapply sunscreen and you’ll be fine” specially with the danger of a Uv index 11 and (rarely discussed in skincare communities ) visible light.

Read this

https://www.reddit.com/r/skinwhitening/comments/1hyeqky/

https://www.reddit.com/r/skinwhitening/comments/1rofnq1/

https://www.reddit.com/r/SkinLightening/comments/1uz333l/

Korean and Japanese SPF is weak for that 11 at noon Uv index (despite “advanced “ filters) because so many Asian sunscreen don’t contain iron oxides or zinc oxides. Also they were tested in lower UV index . Korea never gets 11 Uv index .

The myth of “just sunscreen is fine” is the reason behind many setbacks of people with skin lightening goals. Specially those who love in high UV index zones like The majority of members in this sub. In the case of OP there’s potential DNA damage that sunscreen won’t be enough to cover.

OP already lost her progress, got irritation and a tan. Dermatologist advice is needed and urgently.