LL
Why this?
I am a 53 year old fair skinned gal who has been dealing with actinic keratosis on my face, particularly on my nose, for years. I have been going into my dermatologist every six months to have spots frozen. Last month I got a new doctor and she recommended I do this topical treatment to get the underlying cause of the AK. I looked at a few blogs and got lots of useful information but no one told me how long, after treatment, I would blotchy and sore. That is what I want to know - when will I be my normal self again?
So, I decided to start my own blog and post pictures along the way.
Day 1- I put the cream on my nose this morning - immediately my eyes burned, but that only lasted an hour or so. I did not put anything on my nose except the cream. Doctors orders. Most people say by day 4 you notice the red blotchy spots. I was redder by the end of the day. I did stay outside during lunch longer than I should have, but it was a cloudy cool day. I just put on my night time dose and again, my eyes burned. I am not getting it anywhere but my nose. At least the burning does not last long. Let's see what tomorrow brings!
Day 5: I am starting to feel and see the effects of the cream now. My nose burns a bit, like a sun burn and is much more red, but no bumps or peeling, I think it is taking longer than "normal" to work, which might mean I have to put the cream on longer. Not sure. Will try to get a photo in the morning. 
Two more days!
So, I decided to start my own blog and post pictures along the way.
Day 1- I put the cream on my nose this morning - immediately my eyes burned, but that only lasted an hour or so. I did not put anything on my nose except the cream. Doctors orders. Most people say by day 4 you notice the red blotchy spots. I was redder by the end of the day. I did stay outside during lunch longer than I should have, but it was a cloudy cool day. I just put on my night time dose and again, my eyes burned. I am not getting it anywhere but my nose. At least the burning does not last long. Let's see what tomorrow brings!
Day 2. Just put my face on. Nothing on the nose except the cream. It is not really red at all. Guess the redness I saw yesterday was either in my head or from a little sun. The eye burning was less this am.
Day 5: I am starting to feel and see the effects of the cream now. My nose burns a bit, like a sun burn and is much more red, but no bumps or peeling, I think it is taking longer than "normal" to work, which might mean I have to put the cream on longer. Not sure. Will try to get a photo in the morning. The cream no longer burns my eyes but the creases around my nose burn some - more than the rest of the nose, must be a sensitive area.
Day 6. Well I'm feeling sunburnt but not looking bad. A little worried I'm not looking like the other photos I've seen on line! 
Today is day 9 and I am sore, it is like a bad sunburn with tight skin. A friend joked I looked like a drunk or like my nose has measles! It seemed to take a long time to work but my doctor says everyone reacts differently. My big concern is still, when will I be back to normal? Will stop treatment day 14.
As the end of day 12 approaches I am glad it is almost done. Besides the fact that it looks horrible, it really hurts. I can't sleep. Wearing my glasses hurts, talking hurts! At least it has been rainy and cloudy out so there is no sun to avoid.
It is not pretty, but here is day 12. I am glad it is only by nose and it is apparently working!
