28 replies to this topic

[sharonamor]

Hi I have not posted on here in a very long time ...Today I feel so sad I am still crying and feeling like shit after 10 years of cystic acne my face is full of scars and the cystic just won`t stop coming.I have seen soooo many specialist drem's always the same thing they walk in and look and 'say go on Tane' thats the choice I walk away crying upset same shit just another doctor I WILL NOT TAKE TANE SO I LIVE WITH THIS I have tryed so many thing from wash`s to pills to you name it ..I AM so sick of this controling my life I called In to work sick today I just want to hide in my house I feel so hopeless will this ever end whats wrong with me? I don`t know what to do anymore crying and feeling down is no life I hate to go to work or out my face looks like shit Makes me feel sooo bad ...ok sorry Im just feedup with this Thanks sharon ...

[incharge]

im sorry you have to deal with all of this, i noe that cysts can be painful and annoyin...
i think its good on you that you wont go on accutane tho, if thats ur decision then stick with it, docs now days juss seem to hand out medz without caring about ur personal needs, in any case i wish u luck with findin a treatment

[SCAR]

[i'm exactly like you.

i know how you feel
i've been called ugly so many times

i've tried everything

rightn ow i'm eating only fruits and veggies and tofu and carbs
hopefully that'll help

try it.

i think acne comes from our food
it fucks us up

[Tokra]

Sorry .. But I was in the same position as you are in. Ive had cystic acne for 9 years. In 2004 my dermatologist said "accutane" no more antibiotics which kept me clear for 1 year.

5 months ago, my cystic acne left my face. I do have scars, and 1 or 2 whiteheads a week.

Every day I check myface for my cystic acne to come back, it hasnt yet. All i have are scars.. they are small, some are big.. but i can cover them up with make up.

It will get better down the road, All ive noticed is im much more calmer, not stressed.

[tt55]

cystic acne does suck...

unfortunately after trying sooo many drugs....reading many post on this forum....

there seems to be only to effective options in dealing with cystic acne:

cortisone shots and tane...

[JR86]

Hi I have not posted on here in a very long time ...Today I feel so sad I am still crying and feeling like shit after 10 years of cystic acne my face is full of scars and the cystic just won`t stop coming.I have seen soooo many specialist drem's always the same thing they walk in and look and 'say go on Tane' thats the choice I walk away crying upset same shit just another doctor I WILL NOT TAKE TANE SO I LIVE WITH THIS I have tryed so many thing from wash`s to pills to you name it ..I AM so sick of this controling my life I called In to work sick today I just want to hide in my house I feel so hopeless will this ever end whats wrong with me? I don`t know what to do anymore crying and feeling down is no life I hate to go to work or out my face looks like shit Makes me feel sooo bad ...ok sorry Im just feedup with this Thanks sharon ...

i'm just wondering why you won't take accutane, you seem like a good candidate for it. honestly, it might be the only thing that will stop your cystic acne since it hasn't responded to anything else.

[duane]

there seems to be only to effective options in dealing with cystic acne:

cortisone shots and tane...

not true. i've been able to control my cystic acne with bp and sa. see "my dkr log" link in my sig for more info.

[JR86]

there seems to be only to effective options in dealing with cystic acne:

cortisone shots and tane...

not true. i've been able to control my cystic acne with bp and sa. see "my dkr log" link in my sig for more info.

are you sure they were cysts, and not just big papules? cysts are basically impossible to treat topically.

[Enlightened]

Sorry you feel so bad, i've been there and its tough. But the more positive you are the better, stress and sadness will make your acne worse.

Derms are no good if your not willing to go on anitibiotics and accutane.

Pick yourself up, tell yourself you will beat this if its the last thing you do.

It will be no use to sit at home and cry, it will make you feel worse and worse.

You can do it, you can beat it, I know you can. You know I believe every disease in this world has a cure unless it is terminal. Please never give up.

This is a great site for anyone seeking an alterative way to control cystic acne.

http://curezone.com/dis/1.asp?C0=1852

[pause/break]

my heart goes out to you and anyone who suffers

[lollypolly]

You're not alone. There have been so many days I've wanted to hide myself away. At work I hate it when people talk to me closely face to face as I feel so uncomfortable. I never look in mirrors unless I'm in my own house. I hate getting my picture taken and I've not gone out with my friends if my face is too bad. None of my friends or family understand which makes acne a very lonely place to be sometimes.

You can't give up hope. I'm with you, I won't touch roaccutane even though I was prescribed it. Instead I'm focusing on the holistic side of things, watching what I eat and trying to keep myself as destressed as possible.

The only advice I can give you is to try and maintain your psychological and physical health and don't get yourself too down. When I'm feeling down I go on youtube and look up my favourite comedy sketches and treat myself to a manicure or massage and just for a while it's out my head. It's and old adage but the more you stress about it the worse it gets and I know it's near impossible not to get upset about it but I hope you can try.

[Brandy]

Hi I have not posted on here in a very long time ...Today I feel so sad I am still crying and feeling like shit after 10 years of cystic acne my face is full of scars and the cystic just won`t stop coming.I have seen soooo many specialist drem's always the same thing they walk in and look and 'say go on Tane' thats the choice I walk away crying upset same shit just another doctor I WILL NOT TAKE TANE SO I LIVE WITH THIS I have tryed so many thing from wash`s to pills to you name it ..I AM so sick of this controling my life I called In to work sick today I just want to hide in my house I feel so hopeless will this ever end whats wrong with me? I don`t know what to do anymore crying and feeling down is no life I hate to go to work or out my face looks like shit Makes me feel sooo bad ...ok sorry Im just feedup with this Thanks sharon ...

For cystic acne, Accutane is often the only thing that will tame it.
But if your mind is made up on not using it, you might consider giving Dan's regimen a try. Some people with some pretty tough acne have gotten results with it.

Also, if you are female, have you looked at hormonal treatments? birthcontrol pills? Maybe even Spironolactone?

Good luck to you. My heart breaks reading stories like these.

[benwolves]

Why not just do 16 weeks of tane? 16 weeks of tane of 10 years cystic ance? Hmmmm, tough one that.

As you are female you also have loads of BCP options plus Spiro.

[J3N]

Have you ever checked with your doctor to see if you have some kind of hormonal imbalance?

[Joe Zit]

I really do feel badly for you and I hope that you experience remission from your cystic acne at some point.

I suppose the question that I must ask is why are you so dead set against accutane ? If properly monitored, the risks are minimal unless you are pregnant, and if you do develop liver problems or find yourself depressed, then you can always go off it.

The pros and cons of tane have been discussed countless times on this board. Essentially there are several conclusions that can be made:

1. There can be (not will be) serious side effects, hence the need to monitor the total well-being of the patient.

2. In many, but not all, cases there is total remission.

3. In some but not all cases there is partial remission and in some but not in all cases the medication is ineffective.

Nothing else has worked for you. You sound like an excellent candidate for this treatment option. Try it for five months, monitor it carefully, and see if you don't see some improvement.

I do not know why so many people are afraid of accutane. It certainly has helped me and it has helped others.

Like I said unless you are pregnant or plan to become pregnant in the near future what have you got to lose ?

All the best to you...I hope things work out for you,

Joe Zit

[SCAR]

listen
i've been dealing with this for 10 years too..
i seriously think it has somehting to do with the food
maybe we are allergic to something in our diet and we dont know

i stopped having dairy products and it seems that my cysts have reduced in numbers
every time i would have a cheese pizza
2 days later i would have like 5 new cysts
life sucks
i feel ya

anyone agree with me on this ? it has to be food.
bp and sa and tane only masks the problem

[tt55]

listen
i've been dealing with this for 10 years too..
i seriously think it has somehting to do with the food
maybe we are allergic to something in our diet and we dont know

i stopped having dairy products and it seems that my cysts have reduced in numbers
every time i would have a cheese pizza
2 days later i would have like 5 new cysts
life sucks
i feel ya

anyone agree with me on this ? it has to be food.
bp and sa and tane only masks the problem

i agree that certain foods do make acne worse... i think shrimp makes my breakouts worse... but i am allergic to shellfish...

you should goto ENT doctor (allergy dr) get an allergy test to see what your allegeric too..
i am allergic to almost everything...

the one thing about tane...it makes your skin less sensitive and allergic... i remember i use red and itchy when i had bad breakout... barely happens now...

[Tokra]

I doubt its food, the makers of accutane say that there are no evidence that acne is caused by the foods you eat.

What I do believe is your body produces harmful poisons that should be passed out through your system. Drinking lots of water flushes out the poisons, that probably cause acne.

But whatever, everyone has a theory, mine is what i have described above.. and both my parents had acne. I was the first born.. my brother and sister have clear skin.

[JBCL]

I know how you feel-it's terrible to have cystic acne...I've been really down for the past 2 weeks I've had a major breakout that just kept getting worse-I haven't left the house during the entire time! today was my first day out! ...I've been taking otc products and prescription meds(even accutane,which helped clear my skin when I was on it but it eventually came back and I tried a second round a few years ago but could not finish because of the side effects) on and off for years-since 1988 when my entire face was broke -every inch covered in painful zits during my freshman year in college-not fun!...I don't know if this will work for you but the last couple of days I decided the @#$% with everything...after reading articles on megadosing I decided to try taking 2 pills of vitamin A and 2 of zinc and witch hazel to dab on my pimples(I was using salicylic acid but it just made it worse) and 10% bp,which I think is too strong actually for me, and washing with dove soap for sensitive skin then hydrin-5 lotion(any lotion with lactic acid would do just fine)...the difference is great for me! I can actually leave the house and not feel too self-conscious-I was skeptical but figured why not-I've tried everything else so I had nothing to lose....it's only been 3 days but it's better than any prescription meds I've been on....keep your chin up though it may be difficult (I know how you feel-I've been there way too many times)

[alternativista]

Hi I have not posted on here in a very long time ...Today I feel so sad I am still crying and feeling like shit after 10 years of cystic acne my face is full of scars and the cystic just won`t stop coming.I have seen soooo many specialist drem's always the same thing they walk in and look and 'say go on Tane' thats the choice I walk away crying upset same shit just another doctor I WILL NOT TAKE TANE SO I LIVE WITH THIS I have tryed so many thing from wash`s to pills to you name it ..I AM so sick of this controling my life I called In to work sick today I just want to hide in my house I feel so hopeless will this ever end whats wrong with me? I don`t know what to do anymore crying and feeling down is no life I hate to go to work or out my face looks like shit Makes me feel sooo bad ...ok sorry Im just feedup with this Thanks sharon ...

Have you considered allergies? My horrible cystic acne turned out to be caused by oranges, and to a lesser extent, other citrus. Accutane won't help with that, and no doctor ever once mentioned to me the possibility that it could be allergies.

You might try avoiding common allergens. Although, it can be hard to tell with cysts since they take so long to come and go, I pretty much always had some no matter what I ate. A coworker who had the same issue suggested I avoid oranges.

Also, even allergy tests aren't that helpful, because I had one last year in which they tested various common allergens on a blood sample and rated the reaction on a scale of 1 - 5. I had a lot of 1s and a couple 2s. But that rating doesn't necessarily translate to severity of how the allergic reaction manifests itself, i.e the cysts. And for me, oranges were a 1, and I have no noticeable reaction to the things rated as a 2.