Sudden dry skin, ugh!

What do you use for a cleanser? I find that Cetaphil works the very best for me. I'd definitely quit exfoliating. It's probably irritating and drying out your skin. If your moisturizer is stinging you, then it must have an astringent or AHA ingredient in it and you might want to find something that doesn't.

You might also start taking a fish oil or flax seed oil supplement. It really works wonders for skin and hair! Might take a couple weeks before you notice any results, but it's worth a shot!!

If it doesn't clear up, I'd head for the dermatologist. No use in suffering longer than you have to, ya know?

also, you might wanna explore using a gel type moisturizer. i used to have dry skin (flaky, and it felt like it's "stretching";) but it was still oily. normal moisturizers often just gave me pimples. now i use a gel based moisturizer which helped a lot.

also: what do you use to wash your face? a lot of soaps and such really take it out on your skin, so a gentle face wash will help a lot!

i'm sure with you a lot of it could be hormone based, since you're still young... i had all kinds of issues until only ~2 years ago (i'm turning 25 this year!), so it's quite normal to get new issues seemingly out of nowhere...

one more thing: try not to cover your face with make up. i know with bad skin you dont have much choice, but keep in mind this often adds to the problem, so try to minimize it, as much as possible (eg. clean your makeup, as soon as you get home etc...). if you have to use it, try to go with better quality.

for me, avoiding foundation helped a lot. i still use it now and then, but mostly just use a good powder. clinique is not cheap, but they make a really nice powder that covers a LOT better than most powders i tried...

Cetaphil is excellent!  My dad developed sudden skin allergies in his 50s to anything containing dyes or perfumes.  His doctor recommended he switch to Cetaphil products, and they have worked great for him.  I bought their facial moisturizer for my BF, because he gets very dry skin in the winter (he's outdoors all day for work) and refuses to use anything that smells "girly," lol.  It's very light, so it shouldn't clog your pores like some heavier moisturizers.  I use Dove moisturizer in the winter, which is also very light, but I have oily skin, so I only need it in the winter.

I would also recommend cutting back on the exfoliant.  If it's scrubby and you use it too often, it can dry out and irritate your skin.  Also, if you've been spending a lot of time in the sun, that can cause your skin to dry out.  Maybe after your skin gets back to normal, you can cut back to exfoliating once a week, and I think there are good exfoliants out there that aren't the scrubby kind, but use more natural exfoliant ingredients, like cucumber.

Good luck!  I had a small breakout on my chin a few weeks ago, so I used some benzoyl peroxide cream, and after 2 days my chin was so dry I had to stop using it, so I feel your pain.

 Yeah, cut back on exfoliating, make sure you're using a gentle cleanser, and get a really good moisturizer (I second the recommendation for a gel-based moisturizer).

I have to plug my favorite skin care brand - I never wear makeup and hate things like cosmetics stores, but I actually splurge and go for the Biotherm brand face products, which I discovered while studying abroad in Europe (my host sister was a beautician, and she INSISTED that this cheap scroogy girl splurge on something to fix her skin problems). This is the moisturizer: Aquasource Non-Stop

The price tag kind of blew my mind, but you only have to use a teeny tiny fingerful every time you put it on, so that tub lasted me a good 2 years. $32 over 2 years isn't at all bad. I'm sure there are other brands that are equally effective. I also really like their "Hydra-Detox Bio-Defensis purifying cleanser" (exfoliating gel) and the "softening cleansing foam for dry skin" (really gentle, non-drying face wash). Again, they're not cheap, but they last forever. If you can get a sample or something that would probably last you a few months. :-p

I have very sensitive skin, but these products seem to do nicely to keep everything in balance without over-drying, stinging, etc. I just have to be very conservative with the moisturizers since I tend to get really oily skin.

Also make sure you're washing your face in room temperature water ONLY (no hot or cold water - it dries out the skin) and using sunblock every time you go outside (and then washing it off with a gentle cleanser when you come back in). I'd also recommend washing your pillowcases, perhaps even without soap, just to make sure they're rinsed super-thoroughly (detergent can also irritate/dry skin).

 Hope ya feel better soon.