Mixing skincare products: Any experience with skin irritation or burning?

Hey everyone—so, I’ve been experimenting a bit with my skin routine. I started by applying some Betrion ointment, then followed up with baby cream, and eventually mixed several different calendula creams with just a tiny bit of baby lotion. Now, I’ve mostly just stuck to using the calendula cream for everything.

I was wondering... is it possible that any of those creams caused some stinging in certain spots, even if I only used a small amount?

The whole reason I’m messing with these creams is because of a small pilonidal cyst. I don't think the cream itself is causing the irritation, though, because it stings in areas just below the cleft and in parts of the skin near the cyst—not necessarily right at the main hair zone, but close enough.

It stings a little less when things are... well, more spread out, if you know what I mean, but there's still that stinging sensation.

Just as an FYI, I actually applied ice to those areas near the cyst about twice.
The reactions after using the stuff:
Betrion—everything seemed pretty much normal there,
Baby cream—I think it sort of cooled the area down, but I can't really remember if it stung before, so maybe it caused the irritation, or maybe it didn't, I guess.
And the calendula cream—I showered today without applying anything, and honestly, it stings more now than it did yesterday. Sometimes when I put this stuff on in the morning, it feels fine, but other times it feels a bit warm, which I don't quite get—maybe I used too much, but I doubt it.

And sometimes the skin or the area around the cleft gets all tight or hard or whatever—it's a pretty uncomfortable topic, I know.

Oh, one more thing—this might be a bit awkward to mention—but I've been sleeping without underwear for a few weeks now to avoid any pressure, so the stinging has actually been happening more often, or rather, more frequently.

😕

could be an allergy

Larry Walker24 said:it might just be an allergy, I guess

I'm kind of stuck on what to do—using the cream seems to take the edge off the stinging a little bit, at least.

I mean, why on earth would you mix creams together? If you take Betrion and smear it on, you're dealing with an antibiotic ointment... and every single time you mix a new cream into that, you’re just diluting the actual antibiotic concentration. It kind of defeats the purpose, doesn't it? Plus, I guess I have to ask—what kind of baby ointment are you mixing this with? Are you just making this up as you go, or were you actually following some doctor's orders?

Maria Thompson6 said:So, what’s the point of mixing creams if you're adding Betrion? That’s an antibiotic ointment... every time you mix a new cream in there, you're basically diluting the antibiotic concentration... why are you even mixing it with baby cream without a doctor's instructions?

Well, I wasn't following any specific instructions, really—I was just told to use either some chamomile stuff or this baby cream.
Since one is flower-based and the other is just standard baby lotion, I figured it might be okay to mix them, but that was like two weeks ago, not yesterday.
I'm not even using the Betrion anymore, I ran out—and back then, the doctor did tell me to stick to either the chamomile or the baby cream. I forgot to mention I had been using the Betrion before, so maybe she would've told me not to use it if I had... I don't know.

Yeah, but I wouldn't mix those two together... I mean, you should probably apply the Betadine twice, and in between doses, maybe just use a little bit of that baby ointment. Anyway, honestly? It might be best to make a tiny incision and really clean things out—especially if there's any inflammation or pus involved. You should grab some zinc oxide paste from the drugstore to help dry it out; it’ll probably work way better than the baby cream if things have started to calm down a bit. 😉😉