Lots of good information. I had been wondering about the pillows/pillow cases in hotel rooms, since it seems to worsen when I travel and I can smell the bleach on the pillowcases. Also at home I use a hypoallergenic pillow - no feathers for me.

The gut connection: my understanding is that's why my doctor is giving me a breath test. Some % of rosacea is caused by gut bacteria and if I have it, then a course of a very specific antibiotic may clear it up. I am hoping this is the case. Since this all started last year when I took two courses of antibiotics, it would make sense. (And yes, I loaded up on the probiotics during and after -- did not make a difference).

As for sunlight/sunscreen/vitamin D - I am not vitamin D deficient, which is a miracle considering I'm fair and I live in a northern clime. I use high SPF sunscreen designed for sensitive skin on my face each and every day. I did consider that I'd developed an allergy to face products so I experimented and went without any face products (other than plain water) for awhile (and also did same rule-out test on hair products) -- still had the flushing.

However it does seem that sunlight triggers or makes the flares 10X worse -- I'll look like i have a nasty sunburn but it's not sunburn. If I get a flush while on the beach that's when it looks like pustules. Otherwise, no pustules, no acne, just flushing.

And not just my face. My hands too. It's the involvement of my hands (which started at the same time) that makes me wonder.

You mention problems around your eyes. I have a condition called blepharitis, which is kind of a sebhoreic (sp?) dermatitis similar to dandruff of the eyelashes. My lids can get a but crusty and I constantly feel there are things in my eyes...and it's tiny flakes of skin (sorry gross). blepharitis is sometimes associated or appears with rosacea. I wash my lids twice daily with baby shampoo as per my eye doctor's suggestion. I also have heard that connection between uterine fibroids and skin conditions. I think it was one of those "medical mystery" columns in either the NY Times or WaPo. And I recently read about a TV news anchor who had to quit due to the blushing/flushing issue. Good luck on getting this resolved.

I don't have rosacea, but reading this has been very interesting. For addressing certain types of non-hay fever allergic reactions, nothing beats Benadryl. I am highly sensitive to the stuff (makes me groggy), so I buy BABY Benadryl. This helps me calibrate the dose since a so-called adult dose is four teaspoons. I took it quite awhile to counteract the side effects I was getting from a prescription drug I was taking. I take Loratadine for my regular allergies, but would take baby Benadryl for any type of allergic reaction. The downside is that you have to take it every four to six hours, but I never had to maintain that amount in my bloodstream.

Hope you get sorted out. Autoimmune reactions can be complex and not necessarily textbook.

I was diagnosed years ago and used various prescription products, none of which worked too well. I had heard people call in to QVC saying Philosophy products worked wonders with their rosacea and figured I would try them. I have hardly had any problems since! Might be worth a try.

Good morning Shiny, My heart goes out to you. I have a couple of very red places on my face and neck (psoriasis). You asked about makeup products. I have found using Bare Minerals 'Well Rested' covers the redness very well. Don't rub it, use a brush and pat it on. http://www.sephora.com/baremin.....Id=1221621 Also, I'd like to remind you about Vitamin C essential oil...it can cause photosensitivity so be careful of applying to the skin prior to exposure to sunlight. Good luck to you.

I developed rosacea around age 35 and have tried about every recommended solution over the last 10+ years: IPL laser, topicals like metro gel and noritate, oral antibiotics (Oracea), special face washes. Nothing worked long term. The gentle cleansers like Cerave did not clean the makeup off my skin, though it is very gentle. My food triggers are tomatoes, red wine, and peppers. It's hard for me to avoid coffee/tea and exercise, but those make me flush as well.

The most long term success has been a combination of washing my face less, juicing, and eliminating wheat (has reduced both my joint pain and face bumps). I recently tried washing with tea tree soap (known to kill Demodex) and all the bumps around my mouth and chin went away, but it was very drying on my cheeks where the rosacea is worst. Might be better in summer. I'm now using the oil cleansing method and having pretty good success with keeping the redness and dryness at bay (castor oil/sunflower oil/lavender essential oil blend).

I also have some mild rosacea and the only thing that keeps it under control is Cerave, recommended by my dermatologist. I use both day and night formulas and have been very satisfied.

Also, I have to add that when I eat cleanly and drink lots of water, my skin is so much happier.

Donna - I read on the web that some use liquid Benadryl on their face (rather than ingesting it) and this helps. Have you ever tried that?

Ruthe (and others who recommended Bare Minerals) - I have never been able to use BM or any other mineral/powder foundation. My skin is too dry. The powder just settles oddly in my wrinkles & fine lines and draws attention to them.

Nebraskim - I have had dry eye syndrome/blepharitis for a long time now (15 years). I have that whole drill down when my eyes get crusty. Which they don't provided I minimize contact use. But now that you mention it, d'oh, I wear my contacts much longer on these business trips! Thanks for pointing this out. Now I'm going to go google this uterine fibroid connection...

Shiny, I suspect the Claritin is working to constrict the blood vessels (allergy meds are vasoconstrictors), whereas vasodilators like wine, coffee, exercise etc which are often rosacea triggers, increase blood flow. The olive oil is soothing and healing to dry skin. With rosacea, it's often a three way battle between fighting the bumps, redness, and dryness.

I also use the Covergirl foundation which has the Olay serum blended in and really like the coverage and it is non irritating.

A few other OTC products that have worked for me to reduce redness and dryness are the Dr. Weils mega mushroom line from Origins, Cover FX Calming Primer (Sephora), Dermamedics Calm and Correct Serum and Cream (from the derm dr, very soothing but it contains parabans, so I stopped using it). When my face is super dry, the Eucerin redness cream stings, but other times it was ok--it seems more for redness vs. dryness.

Re: sunscreens, one of my worst episodes was triggered from La Roche Posay Sensitive sunscreen. The derm dr told me the chemical sunblocks Avobenzone and Oxybenzone are known irritants and triggers for rosacea patients and to only use chemical sunblock. These ingredients are often used in skin treatments, like BB cream and anti aging products, so you may check out the labels on "sensitive skin" products. I use Elta Md and Clarins sunblock with no reactivity.

Do you have any auto-immune or rheumatoid arthritis symptoms? The reason I ask is that you look like you have a classic lupus butterfly rash.

Calming angry and reactive skin is so individual, but I've had great luck with argan oil. Of course only the expensive stuff seems to really work (Josie Maran), but at this point, I'm happy to have found something that works for me and pay without grumbles.

Hi Shiny --

I've had rosacea since my early 20s, but the flushing hands is a new twist; I'm so glad you're working with a derm to try to get some clarity as all this can't be fun. /understatement

My only advice on that front would be to move on if what s/he recs isn't working for you. Trust your instincts!

I def notice a hormonal connection with my flareups and like you perimenopause is throwing some curves. And to MG's point, I'd try to rule out lupus as well.

So much great advice upthread. My extras:

• After a couple of years of of using mostly organic skincare, I realized the essential oils in my products' formulations were doing more harm that good. Citrus and lavender oils are esp bad, sigh. The skincare pros were saying the ingredients were good for sensitive skin but...not so for mine.

• Almost all chemical sunscreens trigger me [Neutrogena's line is usually ok]; the ones in foundation products are especially bad so no dual products for me there. I've switched to a physical sunblock for everyday use -- as a bonus zinc is an anti-inflammatory.

• You're getting good coverage with not much makeup so that's a real plus. I'd cross-check ingredients with the Paula's Choice Beautypedia database in case there are any rogue elements.

• If you want extra makeup recs in your back pocket, I find that the Laura Mercier and Bobbi Brown SPF-free foundations I've tried are ok for me. I love mega-eco Alima Pure mineral powder, but when my skin got extra dry I gave up using it "straight" (I still mix it in with moisturizer if I get a flare up since it is so pure)!

• My go-to skincare line is derm-developed Epionce. [Frequently eligible for discounts at online beauty/skin sites.] I found that while the CeraVe and Eucerin stuff I tried didn't trigger me, they also don't have m/any of those "extras" that help with anti-aging. I'm not a big product or makeup person so I'm looking for ones that do a lot!

Shiny, I know this site is "alternative" medicine, but I've used so many of the remedies suggested with success, I thought you might take a look.

http://www.earthclinic.com/cures/rosacea2.html

Latest update: the claritin + olive oil (twice a day to wash my face) routine continues to seem to be working. I just got back from business trip. As I said, airplane + hotel + etc (change of location, habits) was seeming to trigger the facial flushing. But not this trip.

Who knows why -- and I do see my dermatologist in another week, so I'll get her input. For now I will just say this: I conclude that this olive oil routine is worthwhile no matter what. My skin has not felt this good in a long time.

I'm not sure how much the claritin is helping. I assume it is, but not sure.

My head is spinning from all the great advice here... I am taking copious notes on all the recommendations and going to do my research, and experiment. CeraVe came up a lot so I will check that out.

Briar -- thanks for the head's up on sunscreens; I checked for those ingredients but either couldn't read the fine print or the fine print was on the packaging long discarded. Totally curious now so will have to do some googling.

Textstyle - I'm open to the apple cider vinegar idea. I don't know if I've tried tea tree oil, but it did occur to me that when I was a teen with a bad sunburn, a friend suggested I jump into a bath filled with a box of Lipton tea bags, and it was incredibly soothing and took down the burn. That recollection has been on my mind a lot lately, and I had contemplated treating a facial flushing episode with tea bags. Which sounds like a bad joke. And joke aside, it's just awkward when you're on a business trip / in public. I do think that would be soothing. Or is tea tree oil something different?

MG & Vix -- you know what they say "it's never lupus." Ha (nervous laughter). I've been with the same GP for 15 years, I trust him, he has said for all those years I may have an autoimmune issue-- but the tests are always nonspecific. No arthritis. He referred me to the dermatologist. I am inclined to figure it is "just" rosacea and/or fluctuating hormones and/or the prolonged effect of those two courses of antibiotics I took, shortly before this flushing started happening.

Shiny, just looked at your pics. I'm curious what your dermatologist thinks, but that does look like rosacea. My face does that as well when I don't follow the recommendations for avoiding rosacea triggers.

shiny, tee tree oil is not "tea". It is the oil of a specific tree (from the bark I believe). I think it is antiseptic/anti-bacterial in nature. I would test it on a small area first just to be safe. For me, the orange oil works better for minor skin issues I have, but I realize we're all different.

The apple cider vinegar I believe is an aid to balance the acid/alkaline of your body. This is said by many natural practitioners to be the crux of many diseases in our bodies. The real "live" apple cider vinegar has some beneficial bacteria in it. I've taken it before for several days in a row without issue (other than the taste). I use it now in some salad dressings and cooking too. But I'd go easy on it at first to try it - and be sure to dilute it quite a bit with clean, filtered water and rinse your mouth afterward (the acids can be hard on your teeth if you let them sit, just like vinaigrette dressings can).

Applying ACV topically very diluted could make it seem a bit worse at first due to the drying out of the top layer of skin (it's like a light acid peel), which will later likely flake off quite a lot. Maybe do it over a long weekend when you don't have to be out in public much?

It still seems to me that whatever is going on is coming from inside so the ACV seems like a good thing to at least try. Even applied topically, your going to absorb it too.

Can you give up all alcohol, caffeine, chocolate and most sugar/heavy carbs for a couple of months? Maybe you already tried that? My DH even gave up coffee after seeing how much better he could feel without it. We drink green tea now, mostly just a couple cups in the morning. And an occasional coffee out is now a "treat" instead of a daily habit.

I know that having something so visible is very frustrating but I think you will figure it out.

I've hot lots of hot-flash facial redness, and my dad had rosacea. You look just like him, to me. Hope the Claritin keeps working for you, you look great in the last photo.

DermalMD Rosacea Serum is best for rosacea and this only my third day of using this serum but I have to say I am impressed with it already.. I have had problems with my complexion for years and have used numerous products with very little results. This is by far the best. My complexion is already starting to improve greatly.. I can hardly wait to see how well it works with continued use!

Shiny, thanks so much for this thread: I'm learning SO much. Thanks to everybody upthread for their great new (to me) ideas.

What seems to be working for me (under medical supervision): a series of laser treatments; frequent, regular acupuncture; taking thyroid, and large doses of ranitidine and cetrazine hydrochloride daily; treating outbreaks with topical benadryl (Metrogel worked until I developed an allergy to it); cleansing and moisturizing with cetaphyl; using a zinc oxide formula sunscreen to protect from sun, cold, and wind. Good luck; it IS a drag.

One more rider on the rosacea train. I was diagnosed about 25 years ago. I use a lot of products on my face and am pretty lucky to keep the red under control, but one thing I've learned recently is I can only use zinc sunscreen. Any chemical sunscreen is a disaster that makes me red and hugely bumpy for weeks.

The Andalou is a pretty nice, inexpensive product but only comes in one color. The Suntegrity is great, comes in 5 different skin tones but is expensive.

I have never found an untinted zinc sunscreen that doesn't leave me with the "white mask"--I don't care how fine the zinc is or the catchy name they are marketing it under, it has left a white cast on my skin.

All great things to try but I will tell you my story, too-worth considering.
I did have problems with my face skin, too. I thought was a rosaceea/allergy so have also tried some of the trick above-with various results but never pleased.
But then, I've started having flushes(like you in nr 1!) because of stress: like an unwanted tel. conversation, or so. Face, neck and chest-no hands fortunately, but still, enough of a goodie, you know.
Then I was adviced to see rather a psychiatrist than a dermatologist. And, the first(and only) medicine I've got there (Cypralex or Escitalopram) was something to increase my suspected low levels of serotonine -AND it was really like magic! This was 2,5 yrs ago, and never looked back.
My rosaceea is still there (but less than you have in nr 2!) so almost unnoticeable now with only a few drops of yellow based foundation on top.

Should have written that you should thoroughly investigate this subject and consult with your docs first, before acting anything on your own risk alone, please. Just my personal experience.

Oh Shiny, you're getting deluged with information here. I'm reluctant to add to the torrent, but I must, because I remember how it felt to have this thing that everyone said had no cure. Like you, I'd always had clear, non-problematic skin--slightly dry, sensitive around the eyes, but otherwise good. Then two winters ago I developed rosacea: flaming red cheeks, tiny bumps and a sandpapery feel. I immediately researched everything I could about possible causes, and decided that some made more sense than others. My outbreak started after the holiday season and too much indulgence in sugar, alcohol, and other things that I know can promote the growth of yeasts, so when I read that some scientists think rosacea is an irritable response to certain yeasts that flourish in skin oils, something clicked. I eliminated sugar and alcohol completely for a few weeks, and ate lots of salmon and green vegetables, lots of water, too. I decided to act on the recommendation to use a shampoo containing selenium sulfate (Selsun Blue is one) at least once a week. (I used it twice a week for a month, then began alternating with a plain, mild shampoo.) I stopped using all commercial skin creams, threw out all my make-up, and sanitized or replaced brushes. I changed my pillowcases often, washing them in very hot water and ironing with a hot iron. After washing my face (with a very gentle, pure soap) I moisturized it only with olive or coconut oil. Within a week, the redness had diminished. After 3 weeks, the roughness was gone. After a month, there was no sign of rosacea. I replaced my make-up, continued with the selenium shampoo and coconut oil routines, and have not had any recurrence of redness since. I know that what works for one person may not work for another, but thought I should tell you about my experience, just in case. Good luck, Shiny!