Just starting to see some reddening now and feeling a very slight irritation. It's hard to see in the pictures, but there is a line between the whiter area on the top of my head where I previously used Efudex (10-15 years ago) and the redder area on my forehead, presumably because the previous treatment already removed much of the sun damage on the top.
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| Looking like a mild sunburn |
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| Might be significant damage here |
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| AK on cheek is reddening |
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| Areas just appearing on forehead |
Unlike some of the other people who have posted their Efudex experience, I have never really liked being in the sun. But in the 1950s and 1960s there didn't seem to be any real sunscreen. Instead they had "sun tan lotion." So every year when I went to the ocean with my parents I would get sunburned so bad that I would feel on fire on the ride home and then the burned skin would peel off over the next week. (Sound familiar?) I also spent two summers painting houses, one working on road construction, and one as a letter carrier - all without much protection. So I think most of my skin problems now are related to sun exposure before I was 20. There have been a few more recent exceptions, like the time I hiked to the top of Yosemite Valley and forgot to wear sunscreen -- or even a hat! Ouch!
I now do bike rides which sometimes last from before dawn until after dusk. But I use Coppertone Sport SPF 50 sunscreen, which is truly amazing stuff. I apply it once in the morning, and even after sweating all day long, it keeps on working and I don't get even a hint of sunburn.
Anyway, the next few days should reveal how much sun damage actually exists on my face. Maybe just a few isolated areas? Halloween is tomorrow, so it's too bad that I didn't start this a week earlier. I could go to a party without any additional mask needed.
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