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 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.

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!