Baldness or Acne? (Accutane related)

Hi. I've been an acne sufferer since I was 15 and I am now 25.
Throughout the years I have tried countless topical medications to treat my condition but unfortunately none of them have worked. However, last year I tried 20mg dose of accutane daily. It worked perfectly, for the first time in my life I had clear skin, but there was one little side effect. Alopecia areata! Yes I got those bald spots all over my scalp and I had to shave it every couple of days so that they won't stand out.

Anyway, I decided to tough it up and not quit my accutane course right away. I continued my 20mg dosage for 6 months and then I quit. After that I treated my alopecia and fortunately my bald spots grew back. Soon after I quit accutane my acne came back though, and I'm (foolishly?) considering starting another accutane course.

I'm fairly certain that if I start another accutane course my alopecia will come back, but part of me is thinking what's the use of hair if I have an acne ridden face? It seems like I have to choose between the 2 (acne or baldness) and I need some help before I make my decision.

Any input would be appreciated.

A couple of questions about accutane

Hello, I'm considering going on a low 20mg course of accutane and see how it does against my mild/moderate acne but I have a couple of concerns from one of it's possible side effects: baldness.

1. My family unfortunately has a history of alopecia, my dad has Alopecia universalis (not even one hair on his body!) but fortunately my condition is not as severe as his. I only have mild alopecia in my beard area which is unnoticable if I shave it every day...What are the chances that taking accutane would make the situation even worse? and if it does become worse will my hair grow back after I discontinue accutane?

2. What's the point of taking blood tests? and how much time has to pass between every test? (1 month? 2 months?)

3.how long is the average accutane course? and how much time has to pass before I start another course (if my first one fails, of course)

Am I starting to develop an allergy against BP?

I've been almost 6 months on the regimen. It has worked great at first but recently ( the last month to be precise) My face has been getting really red and swelling. I use DK's cleanser and moisturizer every morning and the good thing is that there is no redness or intchiness after I use them.
At night though when I use DK's cleanser+BP+moisturizer my face starts to sting a lot and the redness since last month is becoming unbearable. I don't even talk with someone any more with out getting comments about how red my face is....I think that the cause is the BP. And I am to afraid to quit using it.

what do you people propose I should do? stop using the BP and suffer from acne? or continue using it and suffer from the redness?!

Is there any point of adding jojoba oil to DK's moisturizer?

Ever since I changed the moisturizer that I use from cetaphil to DK , I stopped applying 3 drops of jojoba oil daily to my face since it is one of the ingredients in the DK moisturizer. Recently though, my face has been turning red and I was starting to wonder why, is it because the amount of jojoba oil in the DK moisturizer is too low? should I start adding 3 drops again everyday to my face? what do you think?

Also does any one know the expiration date for a small bottle of jojoba oil? I bought one about 6 months ago and I've already used a quarter of it. By this rate it should last me about another year and a half. Should I continue using it untill it's empty or should I buy a new bottle every 6 months/year?

A month has passed since I started the regimen and I'm still flaking hard

Hi,

It's been about 4 weeks since I started following the regimen, I appllied the cleanser+BP gel+moisturizer relegiously since day 1 but the flaking just doesn't seem disappear. My skin just isn't getting accustomed to it.

Here's what I do everyday;

Morning:
DK cleanser (wait 10-15 minutes)
DK BP Gel (wait 10-15 minutes)
The Bodyshop Aloe Soothing Day Cream + 5 drops of jojoba oil

Evening:
Exact same as the above

Am I doing anything wrong?

I thought that the flaking is just an initial phase which I would go through, but that just doesn't seem to be the case. Although on the other hand my face has cleared up from all that nasty acne considerably after starting the regimen. I guess that all that flaking is the lesser of two evils since I can cover it up by moisturzing my face, and "gluing" the flakes back, but still I'd really like to have a solution to it.

What would you people suggest? should I just change my moisturizer? should I decrease the number of BP applications to just once per day? (I'm afraid of doing that and then breaking out again, since Dan says that the BP is the secret ingredient of the regimen).

Any advice would be much appreciated.