I don’t use Rapamycin at all because of what it did to my skin, so you’re asking about my skin as it is now (once I stopped the Rapa, it very quickly returned to its normal state).
Hopefully this is what you need in a “testimonial”. As I don’t know why you have a dilemma about using Tretinoin, I can’t promise to say anything that will assuage your concerns—but I’ll do my best.
Obviously, I do not have a controlled experiment about which I can share. I can only tell you that my skin looks pretty much the same as it has since my twenties with respect to its texture, appearance of moisture, pore size and smoothness. I’m 61, so I do not have a perfectly taut face anymore. But, I also do not have obvious wrinkling. My pores are invisible. And my skin feels smooth to the touch. People always comment on it. I am attaching a photo of my face close-up. No make-up or special lighting (which may account for some weird shading). But you can make your own assessment.
Having said all of that, I’m sure some of it is genetic. My father had beautiful skin until he died at 96. That’s also true of my paternal grandmother.
I use a very low concentration of prescription Retin-A cream (not gel which is very astringent) every night.
But Retin A requires a certain amount of awareness so you don’t suffer needless irritation. For example, a couple of years ago I had to have blue light photochemical therapy for a few precancerous spots on my face. They were not easily visible to the naked eye, but under the dermatologists lens apparently they were going to be problematic. Anyway, the 13 minute procedure was excruciating. And I’m certain it was because nobody warned me to temporarily stop using Tretinoin.
If I do it again–which the dermatologist says I should as a preventative measure–I would stop using it for a week before.
Tretinoins make skin sensitive to chemicals and UV light. For the same reason, I never have anything on my face waxed (on the one occasion I had my eyebrows waxed, I had what looked like third degree burns after it).
I have a very low maintenance skincare regime. I basically wash my face with water (Literally. A warm, wet washcloth) when I wake up, and wear Oil of Olay Total Effects SPF 30, (Fragrance free).
I also wear very strong sunscreen (titanium dioxide-based) when I workout outside-- as I swim and run-- but remove it after working out and reapply Olay. (I live in Florida, so there’s no escaping sun exposure). Other than that, I just put Retin A on before bed.
