Update

Well, it's a been about a month since I last posted.  I've taken update pictures but just haven't taken the time to login and post them.  Since week 12, I haven't really seen much of a difference honestly.

No new breakouts, still just that one on the right side of my chin.  It's gone down considerably, but still there.  The hard scar on my cheek seems to be going away some too.

On my last appointment, she said this is the month I should see a considerable difference.  I go back in next Tuesday for my 4 month appointment.  That Friday, November 28 will be the 16 week mark.  I can't say that I've seen a major difference from month 3 to month 4.

She did warn me in the last appointment that for 6 months to a year after stopping, I can't do anything to my face like waxing, facials etc.  wahhh, The skin will still be very sensitive and can cause scarring.

I just worry about the redness that's still there.  I don't see that going away anytime soon.  Maybe I just need sun on my face with no makeup and it will fade away eventually.

Side effects-wise.  My lips are crazy dry and my nose is super dry.  Its bloody every morning and the skin peels off from the the inside throughout the day.  My back and hips are still bad.  My immune system is pretty low too.  Working out with my joints hasn't been easy.  I stretch a lot which has helped some.  I didn't realize how tight my hips were until I (use your imagine) tried to climb on top of my man friend and hada very difficult time doing that, and then one I did, I couldn't actually move!

Anyway, I will FOR REAL post pictures next week after my appointment.

12 weeks

Sorry for the last post and missing a week.  Man, to have a life, geez!  haha.

I went to NYC the weekend of October 3rd.  Great weekend.  Between the last time I posted and now, I have had extremely chapped lips as as well as a bloody nose.  My nose constantly feels like there is a scab in there about to dislocate.

So as of my last blood work, my white blood cell count was low.  Well, apparently, I've had a sinus infection basically since I got back from Vegas.  I've mentioned I've beem sniffly and sneezy.  Apparently, my allergies, led to a minor sinus infection which led me to a minor middle ear infection.  (minor my ass).  I get sinus infections occasionally, but wonder if the low count effected it more of setting in.

I woke up Sunday morning with my ear hurting.  Thought maybe I'd slept on it weird.  But all day it was bothering me.  Woke up Monday with it bothering me still outside as well as in.  I decided to go to a walk in and she said it looked like my sinuses were inflamed which caused fluid build up in my ear to cause the pain,  My ear was the worst part!  I haven't had an ear infection in over 20 years!

So she prescribed me a nasal spray to use once daily, an antibiotic to clear up the minor infection and ear drops for the pain.  I made sure nothing interacted poorly with the accutane with practitioner as well as the pharmacist.

Anyway.  my lips have been super chapped, as well as inside my nose.  I've had a bloody nose almost every day for the past 2 weeks.  I've been putting moisturizer up there, and it burns at first, but definitely helps.  The lethargy is still at an all time high.  I just have no energy whatsoever.  The joint aches have remained, but not gotten any worse, so that's OK I guess.

I've got these little extra dry tiny spots on my face.  Wouldn't even be able to get them in a picture they're so small.  There are two on my forehead, one on the tip of my nose, one on my ear lobe, and one on my left cheek.  They're smaller than a pencil eraser.  They end up coming off, and I moisturize, but they come right back the next day in the same spot.

I'm now half way though my cycle!  I haven't seen many changes in the past month or so, but nothing else new has come up, so now I guess I just wait for this monster on my chin to go away and the redness to subside eventually.  I wonder if after my course, if any sort of peels will get rid of the red blotchy scars.  Anyone else know?

Her are my update pictures!  Week 12, signing out!

Week NINE!

Good evening fellow tane-ers!

I did my monthly blood work Tuesday morning.  They drew blood from a different spot than normal and it left my arm a little sore.  Weird!  Got the call from the doc the next day.  Cholesterol and triglycerides are still just a bit high, but are leveled off, and my white blood cell count is still a little low.  I know Accutane is supposed to leave you a bit lethargic, and I don't know if the meds themselves are causing thing the low blood cell count or if they're low on top of that, but that has to be why I'm so tired all the time.  I have absolutely no energy or motivation to do anything except get through work, and go home and chill on the couch.

Last week has to be the WORST so far with chapped lips.  They've been peeling so bad!  And I can not keep a thing of chap stick to save my life.  I always have it at work.  Some how leave it there, come in the next day, and boom, gone.  Fine one that I lost a week ago (usually in my laundry), use it for a day, and gone again!  These past 2 months I've probably bought 3 chap sticks, and had 3 or 4 at home that I've had already or some sort of lip salve from a birch box, and now they're all missing.  I haven't had one in about 4 days and I'm dying!  But I then have no energy to stop at the store to buy a new one.  Woe is me.

I go to NY at the end of this week.  Hoping the change of pace perks me up, gets the ball rolling again on the physical activity after all the walking around we'll do.

Oh my, and I can not wait to be able to do some sort of hair removal once this course is done!  I am a brunette with thick hair, I am naturally going to have some unwanted facial hair and plucking is just awful.

Here are my end of week 9 pictures.  No real changes in the past few weeks.  But I guess that's better than getting worse.  Haven't had an actual new pimple in well over a month!

2 months in!

Well I've just completed my 8th week of Accutane.  I had my doctor appointment this morning.  She said I'm progessing nicely, and she said again I won't show real progress until after month 3 or 4.  The massive thing on my chin, she said will take a while longer.  I wanted to ask her to inject it with poison or something!  I told her about my joint stiffness, and since it's not too bad, she said we will just monitor it for now.  I'll do my bloodwork tomorrow morning.

Last Thursday, I woke with super dry skin on my chin.  Strange since I haven't been extra dry in a while.  My ears are peeling too, strange.

I still haven't been eating well, drinking well, or working out like I'm supposed to be.  I just have no desire to do anything.  I guess that's part of the accutane journey as well, lethargy.  All I want to do is just get off work and lay around.

Here are my face pictures from this weekend.  Not much change.  I wonder if this will help with redness and not just the break outs.  I'd like to not put as thick of make up on over the parts that don't actually have a pimple.

Week 7

I've been doing really bad on my eating.  It's crazy, b/c I've always been so health and food conscious, and now that I've been told to eat low carb low fat, I'm pigging out.  Is it just b/c someone said I can't that now I feel I have to?!  That's not usually me anyway!

My next doctors appointment is a week from today.  I'll do my blood work that day too.  Until then, good food and no drinks!

I took these pictures this weekend.  Coloring wise, it looks like my big monster on my chin is smaller, but actual size wise it is not.  My back and hips are still achy, and I really noticed the hips while doing sumo squats at the gym last week.  I don't really want to tell my doctor though b/c I want to keep this up and get rid of my acne for good!

I tend to take these first thing in the morning and I look so puffy and cranky!  haha

Week 6

Not much has changed since last week.  It's a little frustrating b/c even though you're told and you read all over the place that it takes a while to notice any differences, you still want to see it.  I also don't experience too bad of drying out, which makes me wonder if it's working on me!  Only time will tell.

I did go back and look at my starting picture compared to this week and holy wow was I inflamed!  The redness of my face has definitely gone down dramatically and I haven't had any new cystic come up since that first week where my chin exploded, so I've got that going for me, which is nice,  Take a look at this side by side from day 1 to week 6!  The lighting is a little different (not sure why since it's the same bathroom!) but you can still see the drastic purple-redness in the first one.  There's not filter on this either from picstitch btw!

I went to the beach Wednesday and got a little burnt.  I was out for an hour and half, wearing 15 SPF and my chest got red, but it has faded.  The accutane has definitely made me more susceptible to the sun.

Hips and upper back are still mildly achy and my rib cage hurts when I sneeze, which has been a lot since my allergies are going crazy.

Here are my week six pics!

Week 5

I didn't get a chance to post my Friday, week 5 pictures on Friday, but I did actually TAKE this pictures on Friday, so they're still on the same timeline as the rest!

Please disregard that hair!  Woof!  I was out quite late the night before and I look it!

So I went 2 weeks (since Vegas) without drinking.  I went out Saturday night and got a little crazy.  I figure if I keep it to just every once in a while I'm OK.  My doctor hasn't told me to stop drinking and they just said for my triglycerides to cut back.  I ate relatively healthy all week and I have 3 more weeks until I get my blood drawn again so I'm on all the low fat foods!

So I DID start the 60mg last week.  The doctors office said that it was the 30 mg prescription and when I picked it up, it was still technically the 30, but double the boxes, so I guess we were both techinically correct.  I've been taking one with either breakfast or lunch, and one with dinner.  

Last week I said my face had completely dried out.  This week seems like its gotten a little oily again.  Not like it used to be by any means, but a little.  I haven't had any new pop ups this week, but the area on my left cheek (picture 2) feels like there may be something underground brewin'.  I hope not!

I definitely do think that the accutane is doing something to my joints.  My hips feel like they need to pop all the time (I pop them and now I can't and they are constantly feeling stiff) and my upper back hurts.  I also used to pop my toes, and now they won't pop.  I've literally been doing it for 20 or so years!

'til next time, have a good week!

Follow up Friday (Week 4)

Well, my follow up Friday is a day late, sorry!  I had a migraine yesterday and just couldn't bare to walk up the stairs to get my laptop and stare at a screen for 15 minutes.

I went to Las Vegas last weekend.  I can't believe it's already been a week since we were there.  I slept very little, drank very much, and ate whatever the hell I wanted!  I've kept up the eating thing this week : /  I came back sick, and when I'm sick, all I want is comfort, and bad food does that for me!  I have no shame in it, haha.  I start my good eating and working out again on Monday.

My makeup in Vegas was AMAZING.  The dry air kept it in place for a long time!  I stayed up all night and all day from Friday to Saturday night.  I used the same makeup I put on at 5pm Friday, went to a concert, a club, gambled, then went t a pool party the next day and didn't take it off until 5pm the next day and it looked perfect!  Granted, I know I should have washed my face just for cleanliness purposes, but I didn't have the time or patience (or soberness) to do so!  I did this a few times where I normally would have put on fresh make up after doing something into going to do something else, and I didn't have to!

I had my 1 month appointment on Tuesday.  She said I won't start to see any improvements probably until months 3 and 4.  I'm OK with that.  I read that that was what to expect from the get go, and the weeks seem to be flying by anyway.  She noted my 1 cyst and a few pimples and hyper pigmentation from old cysts and said that's normal to still have this as of right now.  I told her my only side effects were the dry skin and chapped lips.  I didn't mention the back aches, mainly b/c I think I'm thinking to much about it.  My back always ached prior to this, I don't really know if it's changed, I'm being a hypochondriac.

I did my blood work Wednesday morning.  I went to a different diagnostic place b/c I couldn't get into the regular place early enough.  I DID NOT like this place.  They were way less organized and the girl who took my blood was not pleasant and a little rough.

They called me yesterday to tell me my pregnancy test was negative, my triglycerides are a little high still but they've called in my prescription.  I'm still staying on the 30 mg, I guess b/c of the triglycerides.  I will be starting a low fat, low carb diet on Monday.  Grocery shopping is on the to do list for today!

So as for any updates, my face is not oily WHAT.SO.EVER!  I used to wake up and be an oil slick.  I'd wash my face and it was oily and my makeup shiny in 20 minutes.  Now I don't even need to wash my face in the morning.  I still do though.  I have had 1 new white head pop up, the same cyst is still annoying me, but nothing new.  Nothing has really gone down any more than from last week.  No changes in my week 4 pictures, but none the less, here they are!

 This is what I consider my "bad side".  It seems to have taken on the worst of my break outs.  That bottom guy is still so painful!  It sprung a small leak a few days ago, but nothing has changed with it unfortunately.

 All of the chin and near the mouth stuff is old, and mostly just coloring.  Up on my cheek is that new white head.  It has popped and is already going down.

 My crooked nose!  Most of the chin is small bumps that have never come to a head, but aren't cysts either.

Straight on is where I think it looks the best, even though this angle makes my head look like a potato!  haha

And just to show you that I'm not a crooked nose potato headed troll, here are some of my pretty pictures from Vegas!  ha! I'm in the yellow skirt.

Follow up Friday-Week 3!

Hey ya'll!  As of today, I am 3 weeks in to my Accutane journey.  I have been very dry this past week.  Lips are quite chapped and I'm flaky on my chin and in between my brows.  The pimples that have popped up on my chin since starting do seem to be going away quicker than what they used to, except that damn blister of a zit that I've had forever!  I wish that thing would get a weak spot, a little piece of skin, SOMETHING that I could work with to make it leak a little!

My nose has also started doing something weird over the past week.  It's like whatever is in my pores is being pushed out.  My pores were looking bigger, and then this morning it almost looks like teeny tiny little hairs are sprouting.  I tried to take a picture but you couldn't tell.  I scrubbed it in the shower and now its gone anyway.

I mentioned in my last post that I was going to get waxed, and I randomly thought to google waxing and accutane and dummy me you can't wax while on it!  Glad I didn't just go and do it!

Anyway, here are my week 3 pictures.  No real changes.

 This one by my mouth was the one that kept me from going earlier to get waxed.  It's pretty much flat now, just a little flaky.  More red than anything

 There's that sucker on my chin that hurts like a mother f'er.  It looks and has the smooth feeling of a blister.  The cheek looks worse than it is in my opinion.  It's pretty flat unless you press on it and you can feel it underneath.

 The chin as a whole.  Also up under my nose I got a couple of white heads that came up and have since popped and gone down.  Those ones on the nose really hurt before you can actually see them!

And straight on.  

I'm headed to Vegas in the morning!  Lot's of sun, booze, bad food, tons of makeup and little sleep.  That should do well for my skin!  The dry weather itself is probably going to make me shrivel up and maybe have nosebleeds (happened my first time there, now with this medication, I bet it will happen again!)  

My next doctors appointment is this Tuesday the 19th to put me on the 60 mg.  I'll prob do my blood work that day too.  I bet its going to say the same thing with my cholesterol b/c I will have been eating bad and boozing it up!  BUT, after this weekend, its lean meats and boring food and no booze for quite a while.  No more ketogenic diet for me.

Follow-up Friday!

One week down of the 30 mg dosage.  I'll have 3 more weeks of this before it doubles.  So here is how the last week has been!

As I said in the previous post, my skin started drying out almost immediately.  It hasn't gotten to bad, but the first couple of days putting make up looked kinda gross.  It all rubbed off and now it doesn't look so dry.  I've been moisturizing my face every time I take my make up.

On Tuesday I had really bad nausea.  I have no idea if this had anything to do with the medication, something I ate or didn't eat, or a combination of the two, but I woke up earlier than normal because of it.  While getting ready for work I had to keep sitting down by I felt so ick.  I ate my regular breakfast and went to work.  I stayed at work for a couple hours and came home.  After I ate some lunch and took a nap, I felt perfectly fine!

My lips finally started getting that dry, crackiness everyone talks about on Wednesday.  I've just been using my regular Chapstick that I have, not medicated stuff, and it seems to be helping.  If it gets worse, I'll look into getting some of the more recommended stuff that I've read about like Aquaphor and Cerave (spelling?)

My body doesn't seem to be drying out anywhere except my face which is nice.  I do feel kind of itchy on my legs and arms like it is drying out, but it doesn't look like it.  I've been lotioning up the bod too tho so it should help!

I wish I didn't know what some of the side effects are because now I'm like "is this from my meds or am I imagining it or has it always been like this?!"  For instance my doctor said I could have muscle aches and soreness as well as joint stiffness.  Well, I've been working out really hard and I'm sore, but am I EXTRA sore b/c of the meds or have I just pushed myself harder?  I also have always popped my hips and most of my joints.  They seem to not be popping as easily, is it the meds or just my head!  I also feel a little extra PMSy.  It's not my time to be PMSing, so is the Accutane affecting my moods?!  I'm sure its in my head!

THE PURGE.  I'm sure everyone who has stumbled across this has read a million other acne and accutane websites.  And everyone has read that pretty much everyone in their first few months breaks out worse before it gets better.  In this first week, my chin has exploded and it is painful!  I'm glad they haven't popped up other places that I normally don't break out and it has stayed on my chin, but it doesn't look good!  Also, some of the ones that I had that were seeming to go down, have gotten more painful to the touch.  Anyone else experience that?

Here are my Week 1 pictures:

My next topic of discussion will be diet and acne, coming up early next week!  I've read so much stuff and it has me so confused!

Day 1!

I got my prescription filled yesterday.  I am starting on 30mg for the first month and doubling after.  I took my pill around 5:30pm.  I took my makeup off around 8pm and moisturized and took the below photo around 11pm.

After 6 hours of taking it, it already seems to be drying my skin out.  Which I guess is a good thing!  You may not be able to tell, by there is some peeling and flaking around my mouth, and even more so when I was waking up this morning.

Since I started taking the meds on a Friday, I will do weekly follow up progress pictures and whats going on dryness-wise or any other side effects on Fridays.  If I'm bored, maybe more updates in between.

In the picture above, on my cheek I have 3 actives, that are all in the process of of going down.  Below that on my chin, there are 2 actives, one has been there for over a month.  Each morning it seems pretty flat, its even still leaking a little but in the afternoon, it has swollen back up!  ugh.  Then on the other side of my chin I've got 3 that have made a fairly recent appearance.  So that's that!

Lab Work and Prescription

Well, I had my blood work done Monday.  When my doctor's office called Tuesday, my white blood cell count is just a little low and my cholesterol and triglycerides were just a little high.  I know that this due to my ketogenic lifestyle.  For those that don't know, and don't feel like reading that long article, its a low carb, high fat, moderate protein diet.  I'm keeping this up until my vacation, then I will cycle back to my normal lean meat, healthy fats and very moderate amount of healthy carbs.  Right now, I have been trying extra hard to add fats into my diet.  So, until my vacation, and up until my next appointment, I'm going to finish off my fattier meats (no sense throwing away good food), still do low carb (less than 20 grams a day), and stop adding fat.  What fat I get will be from the normal foods that I eat.  To add fat, I was cooking my food in bacon fat or oils, adding butter to things, and dipping things in ranch.  Now, while I'm on Accutane, I will simply eat the fat that occurs naturally in whole foods.  Then, next month, much less fatty foods!

My prescription was called in yesterday afternoon and they have to order it.  No call yet that it's ready to be picked up.  The day that I start the medication, I will post the Day 1 starting picture, and follow up weekly with a progress picture.

That's all for today!

Derm appointment and make up coverage!

So I had my dermatologist appointment yesterday morning to re-go over all the side affects and what not of starting Accutane.  On Monday morning, I will go have my blood work done and the results should be back the next day where I can then fill my prescription.  I will be starting with the 30 mg dosage for the first month.  Apparently, in my area, the 30 mg pills are kind of hard to come by, which is crazy b/c since its a weight based dosage, there should be multiple available.  After you have the blood work done and and take the negative pregnancy test, you have 7 days to fill the prescription.  That's a pretty small window of time to possibly not have it in stock at multiple pharmacies.  We shall see how it goes but I'm excited to finally get it started.

So I took some pictures of myself without make up on (eek!), then the different stages of my make up to cover up my acne.  I am in no way a make up artist, so if anyone reads this and has suggestions, I'd love to hear them.  This is my everyday, just going to work make up.  Because I wear so much, I use regular drug store brands.  For going out or long days where I want to look extra cute, I break out the more expensive stuff.  I really like Makeup Forever Matte Velvet.

Also, I hate selfies.  I look horrible in them.  One, they are WAY too close for comfort when you're trying to hide stuff, but also I can't find a good angle!  My nose looks huge in selfies and I feel like its not THAT big in a regular, from a reasonable distance, picture.  And, I make stupid faces, don't judge.  So here we go!

 Here I am fresh out of the shower, where nothing has been applied:

 OUCH!  This cluster on my chin is almost blister-like.  The ones on the cheek are mostly flat now, but can still be felt a little under the skin.  They've been there for a month and a half.

 I realized in this picture my nose is crooked!  How have I gone 28 years and never noticed?!  haha

After I apply all my topicals (which I'm stopping when I start Accutane), I apply primer.  I accidentally bought this thinking it was a different brand and I fell in love!  I used to get very oily in the first 30 minutes after applying my makeup, now I go half the day without having to blot.  It says color correction, but I don't notice that at all.  It leaves a nice silky feeling on my skin, ready for my makeup to be applied.

I do 1 pump and it covers my entire face!

After I let the primer sit for a minute, I apply Neutrogena Healthy Skin in Light.  I would use Medium, but it has disappeared from everywhere.  I've used Neutrogena concealer and foundation for forever but recently changed foundations.  I hate that there are 3 colors of concealers, like fair, light and medium, but a thousand colors of foundation.  I can never get it to match.  I basically apply a thin layer of concealer with my fingers all over the red areas, which is the center of my face, and blend out.  I don't want it to be too thick in 1 area b/c then it makes the finished product looked thicker in that area.  Here I am with just the concealer on.  I'm extra white in it b/c its so light and I'm so tan right now!

After to concealer, I apply Cover Girl 3 in 1 foundation in Golden Tan.  I use my fingers for this as well.  The picture looks kind of yellow, but I can assure you I don't go around looking like a lemon.

No redness showing but gotta set it with powder.  I like using loose powder with the fluffy thing it comes with.  When I try a powder brush, it seems to leave bristle marks in the foundation.  I use Cover Girl translucent loose powder in medium.

Again, looking a little yellow, but its just the lighting in my bathroom I guess.  Not much of a difference between the foundation and setting with powder but its a nice matte finish now.  Pay no attention to my nakey-ness!

From here, I do my blush, contouring and eye makeup, nothing to do with coverage, just tying the picture together!

Again, I make dumb faces, I didn't like any of the ones of me smiling any better so here we are with this face!

So these are my makeup techniques.  And while you can unfortunately of course still see bumps, they're not as noticeable when covered. 

My products used:

Revlon Primer

Neutrogena Concealer

Cover Girl Foundation

Cover Girl Powder

Breakout Background

Hello internet world!


You've probably stumbled upon this b/c you're looking for information on acne and Accutane.  That's the reason I've decided to blog my experience.  I have googled so many before/after/during pictures, experiences, side effects, etc. etc., I thought I would add to the masses and maybe help some others out with what I am about to experience.


Now, I'm new to all this blog stuff, not sure what all I need to link, what it takes to make this look pretty and whatnots, but I guess it will all come along!


For a little back ground on me:  I'm a 28 year old female, who has had cystic acne for as long as I can remember.  It's not awful, I get it mostly on my chin, but no acne is good!  I can remember being in the 4th grade and having this giant thing on my face.  That's NINE YEARS OLD! 


Early middle school my parents took me to the dermatologist for the first time and I got put on tetracycline and Retin-A.  Well, being a middle schooler, I probably forgot to take and use my stuff as directed, but one way or another, it didn't really work for me.  Fast forward through high school.  I had perfected my makeup routine and didn't want to go back to the dermatologists for some weird reason.


Mid-college I started using Proactiv and got on birth control.  Now, I don't know if this actually helped with my cystic acne or if it was just a time in my life when my hormones were working in my favor, but I stopped getting the huge underground pimples that lasted for a month.  I used it for years and still had a lot of breakouts, but they weren't huge and painful, and could easily be drained once it came to a whitehead.  But sometime after college, while still using Proactiv and being on the same pill, the cystic came back slowly.  One a month turned into 3, turned into 8, all lasting for long periods of time.  OUCH!


I decided it was time to see the dermatologist again, why I waited so long, I have no idea.  My first doctor I saw twice.  She barely looked at me, asked what I had been on before, I told her it didn't work, and she prescribed me the exact same thing.  Three months later for a follow up, nothing had changed so she changed me to minocycline and a stronger Retin-A.  Still didn't work so I gave up for a while.


I found a new dermatologist a year and a half ago who really seems to care.  She has tried everything on me (doxycycline (several dosage changes), Oracea, Spirolactone for the oral stuff, and Benzacline, Tazorac and Aczone as topicals.  Sometimes different meds seemed like they were semi-working, but it wasn't what either of us were hoping for.  I also had some bad experiences with yeast infections from the medication, so that was just awful.  I can honestly say I think I'd rather had acne than get regular yeast infections.  UGH, they're awful!  Anyway...


That leads us to this week.  On Friday, I go to take my second pregnancy test and get my prescription for Accutane.  I'm nervous about it, especially the "it gets worse before it gets better" phase, but to (fingers-crossed) be done with this adult acne in a measly 6 months would be amazing.  I do hate that I will be in Vegas in 1 month with what seems to be the worst time for the initial breakout, when I'm trying to look my hottest, but oh well, I have mastered the covered up makeup!


So in this blog, I plan to take weekly updated pictures, talk about pain, changes in moods, what I'm doing to help with dryness, make up coverage, blood work etc etc etc., in hopes that it will help some people also going through/planning to go through this crazy little drug called Accutane the way other blogs, Youtubes, and websites have helped to guide me.


I will take some "before" pictures this week, as well as my cover up make up routine, and then an update Friday of what happens at my doctor's appointment.


Until next time!