Having used the Skin So Soft Facial Hair Removal Cream 3 times previous with no adverse effects, I felt perfectly safe in using it again. I originally purchased this tube of cream in early December of and last used it on February 23. Since I'd experienced very mild reddening and irritation the last time I used it, six or seven weeks prior to this usage, I waited an extra couple of weeks before using it this time. I did not use any other cosmetics, defoliants/depilatories, soaps or creams on my face before using the SSS FHRC. I applied it, timed approximately 56 seconds, and then washed it off, according to the product directions.
As soon as air hit the areas where I'd used the cream, I was hit with the worst facial pain this side of a car wreck. I was missing an entire layer of skin, with raw, red dermis exposed where that skin had been. I did not use ANY OTHER PRODUCTS with this cream, I did not do anything contraindicated in the packaging, and I used it for less than HALF the recommended time. The packaging says to leave it on from 2.5 to 8 minutes. Less than sixty seconds certainly seemed within a reasonable amount of time to safely use the cream.
Five hours later, after applying neosporin with pain relief, the pain finally subsided to the point where I could hold the phone to my face to call the AVON 800# for help/references/etc. That night, approx. 3A, there was a selection on the 800#s main menu for "medical emergencies, " and I was connected with a young man who said that he was "poison control and medical emergencies." All that he offered was "put neosporin on it and we'll have somebody call you tomorrow about this." He never said that I should drag my a* to the hospital at 3A (and the hospital in my town is in no way equipped to deal with chemical burns or dermatological issues, it's mostly a first-aid stand, so I would've had to drive 20-40 miles in the middle of the night to get to a hospital, IF THAT HAD BEEN RECOMMENDED) to have this professionally treated. Put some neosporin on it and go to bed. That was all the help I got.
Fifteen hours later, when the first person I spoke had said that I'd get a response within EIGHT HOURS, I called the direct number in Cincinnati, as the menu for the 800# (1-800-FOR-AVON) NO LONGER OFFERED A MEDICAL EMERGENCY OPTION. Seriously. And when I got to the Cincy number's computer, IT offered a medical emergency option, so I selected that, and got VOICE MAIL. So I left a very specific voice mail that I had been promised a callback about this injury, and heard nothing more for the next 20 hours. Then some snotty woman who called herself "Mary Anderson" called me to tell me that SOMEBODY ELSE would be calling me.
So I waited ANOTHER day, and by then, I'd lost two more layers of skin, gotten shrieks of horror in reaction to the burns, and pretty much lost my patience with Avon. Nobody called. So I called the 800-FOR-AVON number, got a girl who called herself "Jenny" at their Avon.com call center, she spent about 20 minutes supposedly trying to contact people on my behalf, and promised me that someone, possibly herself, would be getting in touch with me first thing today.
Sensing a pattern here?
After I got off of the phone with Jenny, I didn't quite believe that her inquiries were going to yield any results, as three of the phone numbers she'd told me to call were DISCONNECTED, so I called the only one that DID ring through, the "Sales Associate Complaint Line", and left them a message that I was going to call a lawyer. So this afternoon, I got a call from a woman named "Montez" who told me that they'd be MAILING ME A "SURVEY" to fill out.
Period.
No apology for having lost two and three layers of skin, no recommendations for how to keep from being permanently scarred by their toxic chemicals. She did take the time to blame me for not going to a hospital to seek treatment, so thoughtful of her, but that was the extent of it.
So if y'all are ever considering buying Avon products, since they NEVER list the ingredients on their cosmetics, shampoos, facial products, ANYTHING, you might want to run it by a dermatologist first. Avon doesn't care if they destroy your face, as long as they get their money. And no, I probably won't be getting my money back FOR this shit. Avon doesn't deserve to mutilate people and get away with it. And as soon as I can find that most elusive species, an "honest lawyer, " I'm going to make quite the pest of myself in the corporate hide of Avon.
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