Start now while it's still winter so you should be out of the purging stage before it's summer and you will (presumably) be going out more. You can use topical antibiotics in combination with tret (clindamycin, erythromycin) to keep acne more under control.
When you talk about flaking you mean you get dry skin or that your skin is peeling? If it's just dry you can sandwich the tretinoin (moisturizer-> tretinoin -> another layer of moisturizer) but if your skin is peeling you're using too many products. Either use lower strength tret, stop using it every day or cut out other actives from your routine (salicylic acid, benzoyl peroxide etc.) Make sure to only use tret at night and to wear sunscreen in the morning

good luck