out of desperation, i applied retin a on my cyst. lets see what happens next.

and i spent a good 4hours researching on the cheapest, most effective way to reduce scarring on my cheeks( or remove it for good, since my ultimate goal of being on accutane is picture perfect skin, without any scars) So i am doing post-accutane research early on, and what i discovered is really amazing. Im referring to TCA Cross. lots of people in acneorg who were on it said they spent like thousands on many different scar removals and they didnt work, until they tried this TCA CROSS. it is basically much stronger than a TCA peel using 65%-100% concentration but on individualised acne scars. U will have to read this for yourself. Theres even ways for you to do it yourself DIY(for the daring) at like 35 bucks-50bucks USD for like 10+ times. however if u go to a derm, its gonna cost u 200 dollars-300dollars per time(up to 6 treatments). anyway im going on this stuff after my accutane is over! im so happy i found this, lemme noe wad u guys think k.

the link is here http://www.acne.org/messageboard/CROSS-tre...00-T-t5610.html

hey lex!!!:D good luck with accutane & fading ur marks!(gosh...marks are really bad during accutane...)i think its better to have it done by a specialist...ive hard some scary stories about diy peels..but...who knows..

Ive done even more research. And my advice is: DONT USE RETIN A OR ANYTHING ELSE BESIDES ACCUTANE TO TREAT YOUR ACNE WHILE ON TANE. it just makes ur skin redder.

my mom,sis,friends, teacher have commented on why my skin looks so red. my fren even used the term sunburnt severely. hehe, i decided to splash retin a all over my skin cause i was getting desperate to get perfect skin.

as for the tca im going to save it for 6 months-10months post tane:(((. like next year june or something.

ive read about the lemon and vinegar method to make skin texture even smoother/some ppl even get their scars reduced by 80% on this. but it is warned: dont use while on accutane. GGRRRR. i bought everything today that was needed for it, after my school ended today, and after reading that, i decided to ask u guys. what is ur take on this? (lemon vinegar method is basically putting apple cider vinegar and leaving it on at night while drinking cups of water a day with half a teaspoon of lemon. maybe i can drink the lemon ?(and avoid the topical vinegar on my face?) The best is to use both together, but its not suggested while on accutane, so im in a dilemma. any personal experiences, hopefully?

Skin condition: Cyst on my nose( MASS APPLIED RETIN A FOR PAST 5 days, i shall discontinue now) has 90% gone. now my nose where the cyst was is a reddish smooth patch LOL. all other areas on my face hasnt broken out for 3 weeks or so! skin is looking freaking red all over at the moment. SOBSOB

just to pen down some thoughts,nowadays, after taking accutane, even though my skin is much clearer than before, im like supressed emotionally. its hard to describe but i tend to walk around school with less confidence, not caring much about how i look. school started in feb for me(college) and i started accutane on june. my friend (a girl) told me i looked stronger in the start of the year and recently ive been looking frail and weak, like the life is sapped out of me. I feel emotional like 90% of the time, sometimes even entertaining suicidal thoughts sometimes, but i know deep down i will never actually do anything to cause hurt to myself, its like the thoughts are there. But then again, i may be behaving like this now, but when im like finished and done with my course, ill be up and running again( a new an improved lexy with clear skin). I also noticed i tend to look different when i look in mirrors, weaker, wierder etc.... its like sometimes i dont even wanna look at my facial expression in the mirror, it looks so subdued compared to before and even frail and have a wierd expression sometimes.

i sometimes tend to avoid talking to other people cause my skin is SO red recently(so im gonna take care of my skin more fragilly, cause ive been mistreating my skin with retin a so much lately), and also because i lack confidence(more of inner confidence) and i find it hard to smile and express myself when talking to people with my facial expressions and words. i used to be able to be confident and smiling and using a wide range of facial expressions when talking to people. being happier before i was on tane.

but as i have said, im ultra clearer than before since im on tane, so many benefits. yet i still feel these emotions absorbing me deeper and deeper everyday.


lol. just expressing some thoughts. im off to study! see ya guys

Just two words to describe my skin condition right now. ABSOLUTELY TOTALLY CLEAR. oops that was three words. anyway throughout friday to saturday, my active on my nose has subsided.
SO the cyst that i mentioned about last week, has subsided 90% in about 6 days. Face looking good as of now. But i still have the redness on my face which is the only drawback.

All those suffering paid off. 2 months ago before taking accutane, i was suffering badly from lots and lots of acne, worrying about my skin all the time, and having less time for others. I intially took accutane cause i read someone's log and saw a video on youtube, and pictured myself with good skin there and then, and now im on the way to achieving it.

Now i declare myself completely changed from before, looks and personality wise. With clearer skin, i seldom think and obsess over my skin as before, i tend to pay more attention to life in general. Whoever said confidence doesnt come from looks?For me personally, looks are important for me to have confidence and succeed in life. Ive been told countless times before to ignore my acne and just accomplish things in life and dont let it bother me, but i find that impossible to do. Now, marks the beggining of my life, one which i will treasure and hold dear from today on as my skin continues to improve.

Goodluck to everyone else here! =) and goodnight!

Lexy, it's great to hear how your skin is coming along nicely! I'm happy to hear that you have no actives and are feeling better as well!

Skin doing good!:)

ive been clear since the last time i posted.

But i dont know why, but ever since i became clear(no actives anymore). my skin has gone disastrously wrong, its becoming redder and redder everyday. SUch that when i go under bright bright lighting, my skin looks horrible. THe reddishness is all around my mouth and my cheeks.... OMG ... when will it go away..... this is awful... it may be due to volleyball(but i make sure i do it after 4pm and when the sun isnt glaring but just shining in the sky.

ahh well. im still doing good:)no actives except for a tiny new spot on my left cheek near my eye. its not even slightly acneish, just like a little red thingy.

Gd ur skin clear .....Owell Lex I heard the redish on ur skin will go off when ur off accutane So?? i still got those pathetic spots on my cheeks dunno when will fade sia

This post has been edited by ACNEVAL: Sep 13 2009, 07:13 AM

Hey! I'm happy that you have clear skin now... i know exactly how you feel about not wanting to go to school because of your skin.

I started accutane in Augest - 10mg. I recently got bumped up too 20mg and i'm breakingg outtt.. I feel like CRAP.

While on accutane, Did you ever notice that when you get a cyst (those big pimples that really hurt) after a while they'll shrink but it doesnt flatten out?

A few places where I got cysts, it shrank but it never flatten out into a red mark. It's just a small red bump that doesn'thurt - is this a scar? Did you ever get this?

haha hey! I REMEMBER YOU. u were the first person who posted when i typed the first post of my acne log. back then life really sucked for me, and now everything has improved so much! Well what u said has come true, and the acne has totally gone away. Hope things are going well with u! and dont worry about those spots, just dont touch them and theyll go away. I had like 3-4 spots on my cheeks 3 weeks ago, they took around 10 days to heal, and i picked them to the point it looked really bad, but now its all healed up.

Hey cupcake. I am really glad for you that u have started on your journey to clear skin. I personally started off with 20 mg and that alone caused me to break out like CRAZY all around my mouth area and forehead and cheeks, erm basically everywhere. Life sucked i can tell u that.

And as to your question, no, it is not a scar, i have that too. dont worry! a scar will only be caused if you aggravate your cyst too much. When i get cysts on accutane, i play the waiting game, like 2-3 weeks and dont touch them at all. I got rid of a really huge cyst in 10 days by applying retin a while on accutane.

and dont forget to persevere when you break out like crazy initially, and know things will get better for sure, thats what i did.

yeah n there will be bumps that will fade in a couple of days if u leave them alone as well. wish u all the best, and feel free to ask me anything, since we are on the same dose, just that i started 2 months or so earlier.

OK so guys and ladies, my skin is improving even more lately. U know, the thing is, when i stopped getting actives, i look at my face in the mirror and i still feel my complexion sucks, of course, cause its been so many years of acne suffering and a few days free of acne wont erase that. But everyday that the acne stops coming, my skin is improving by leaps and bounds, i know it will be close to perfect when i treat my scars a few months from now.

As for the extreme redness, ive stopped using moisturizer for the past 3 days, and my skin has improved even more..... but i suggest u try that only after ur skin can tolerate the accutane well enough not to be dry.

Life has improved, things that keep me busy in life right now is beach volleyball that ive taken up with a friend of mine as well as my studies in school. Things have changed since before, im more confident, care more about others rather than obsessing over my skin all the time thinking 99% of the time how oily it is, how bad my skin looks and how people view me in the past.

Life is great, and i know things will get better from here on out. i can only wish that it stays that way even when im off accutane for at least a good 10 years. haha. is that too much to wish for...

anyway, dont isolate yourself too much while on accutane, excercise, stay sporty and go out with ur friends, it helps to take the acne away faster.


take care everyone

Hi, I'm so happy for you! Sounds like accutane is working well for you and that's great. It will keep on getting better from here. Good luck with the rest of it