12 replies to this topic

[S*hope]

I have been on Accutane since december 2011, and before that I have NEVER EVER had scars from acne.

My skin is acne free now, all the red marks from my IB are fading, but every mark suddenly started to look intented !!! .. I started from a scar free face and now I have icepick scars, rolling scars, even boxcar scars on my cheeks. It is sooooooooooooo frustating. I'm so depressed, and I look at my self in the mirror every hour. Sometimes my scars look very bad (evening) other times they look moderate (in the morning).

I can't live with these scars, I REALLY CANT !! .. Even foundation can't cover them :'( - Is there any hope that this depressed scars will look better in the next few month on accutane, or after I'm off accutane? My derm said accutane will help with the scarring. And that I just have to give it time.

Anyone .. please - I need hope. So depressed.

Thanks.
(english isn't my native language, sorry for any misspellings)

[jp69702]

I really don't know what to tell you since I have never been on Accutane. I am so sorry you have to deal with the scars. It was a battle for me when I first noticed my scarring but now I have learned to live with it. It will get better with time, I promise!

[FruitBiscuits]

i am sorry to hear...accutane surely clears acne, but it also thins your skin..and slows your healing process...so it causes scarring...

you should wait at least 6 months to do scar treatments...because your skin is still sensitive...let your skin heal first. don't forget to apply a lot of moisturizer and maybe take vitamin and zinc to help your healing process.

i know it's depressing, but hang in there...like jp69702 said...it will get better with time, too =)

[S*hope]

Thanks jp69702 and myskin2012 . I really hope they will look better with time and when the redness is gone. I apply oil free moisturizer all the time, and take vitamin C as well. I know I have to wait 6-12 months before any scar treatment. I even don't know what kind of scarring I have???

Right now i just HOPE that my scars will look better, when I come off accutane, and my skin will return to normal, and heal normally again. AND THAT MY ACNE WON'T RETURN , hopefully

I want to show you a picture of my scars , but how can I upload a picture. The picture button says : URL ?? What is that

[S*hope]

Help with posting pictures :S

Edited by S*hope, 01 May 2012 - 02:14 PM.

[girlie]

SHope

If you are still on Accutane, get off it!

I got the same thing u did, and many others also, its a sign of Vit A toxicity, and it's cumulative

Do NOT take any form of Vit A in supplement form or topical form. Do NOT take cod liver oil or flaxseed oil

Evening primrose is ok. or Borage oil internally

Like you, I never suffered any kind of indented scarring, until Accutane

Here it is 20 years later, and I am finally about to address the Scarring via dermarolling

In your case, wait the full 2 years for your skin to recover (Iknow that sounds like a lifetime, but you dont want to make it any worse!) , your skin is incredibly 'impressionable' right now.

Read some of Lamarr's posts. He got the same thing too.

[paquita]

Your skin will get better once the red marks fade but you will most likely have some scars

I think you need to see a psychologist if you feel depressed and like you can't live with your scars

I live with them and it's fine. Yes they bother me especially when I know I'm under harsh light but not to the point I wanna stop living. We all gonna lose our best looks at some point in life. What you will realize is that most people really don't care much about scarring except for yourself. My luck with guys was about the same before and after accutane. That help me as vain and silly as it sounds.

I have never had any procedures one even though I have read this board When I first joined horror dermabrasion and acid stories were common. I have always been scared of making my skin worse. Also I have never been fully convinced with any success story here. It's not that I don't believe them its just that the light has always been inconsistent in the before/after pictures. I know the effects of light, I usually check my skin and it can go from perfect smooth skin to Frankenstein depending on the direction of light.

I have been on Accutane since december 2011, and before that I have NEVER EVER had scars from acne.

My skin is acne free now, all the red marks from my IB are fading, but every mark suddenly started to look intented !!! .. I started from a scar free face and now I have icepick scars, rolling scars, even boxcar scars on my cheeks. It is sooooooooooooo frustating. I'm so depressed, and I look at my self in the mirror every hour. Sometimes my scars look very bad (evening) other times they look moderate (in the morning).

I can't live with these scars, I REALLY CANT !! .. Even foundation can't cover them :'( - Is there any hope that this depressed scars will look better in the next few month on accutane, or after I'm off accutane? My derm said accutane will help with the scarring. And that I just have to give it time.

Anyone .. please - I need hope. So depressed.

Thanks.
(english isn't my native language, sorry for any misspellings)

[S*hope]

Hey Girlie
I stopped taking Accutane last week. Thanks GOD !! I'm so tired of that, and all the sideeffects.
It's so sad, that 6 months of that drug --> Acne scars for life !!

I really wanna hear how it's going with the dermarolling. I have read a lot about skin needling, and want to try that, when my skin is back to normal. Do you think the effect of dermarolling is permanent? I mean when you broke down the scar tissue, will it not rebuild? .. I have heard good reviews about dermarolling. And I have read Lamarr's thread about dermarolling. Really promising. But it takes time and passion.

2 years??? .. OMG I thought 6 months would be a lifetime , then my derm said 1 year would be safest. But Lamarr started to dermaroll about 9 month after accutane (I think)

Hey Paquita
I already see a psychologist cause my acne scars have really destroyed my life: social life, school life, family life, myself. I can never be the one I was before i got acne scars. I feel like I have lost something. I get tears in my eyes when I look at my scars. And when I try to use foundation, concealer and powder to cover my acne scars up, I feel like a knife in my heart when I can se my scars right trough all my make up. That's so depressing.

My psychologist always tells me that most people really don't care much about scarring. But I insist that all the people in the bus is starring at my scars, when I enter. And how can they not care about a person with holes in the skin !

You are absolutely right about the lightning. The light at the toilet in my school is SOOO bad. It really emphasizes my scars, and they look SOO DEEEP. I hate to go to the toilet now

[Supbro93]

Hey girl, don't let this bring you down, it will get alot better when the red marks fade. Remember that you are your hardest judge, and ye i can relate to the lighting. Annoying, but everthing will work it self out soon

[S*hope]

Hey guys !
I'm back and have been off accutane for 4-5 months .. and I just wanna update you

Today, I could not be happier. My red marks are (almost) GONE and my scars look thousand times better, it is certainly not something anyone would be noticing anymore, and they were really bad during my course. I'm so glad when I look at my skin. AND I amazingly get compliments for my skin It is acne free and soon completely scar free and my skin is getting better and better with time. Soo just wait and be happy and patient .. it's all gonna be much much better !!

[awesomenesssquared]

Hey guys !
I'm back and have been off accutane for 4-5 months .. and I just wanna update you

Today, I could not be happier. My red marks are (almost) GONE and my scars look thousand times better, it is certainly not something anyone would be noticing anymore, and they were really bad during my course. I'm so glad when I look at my skin. AND I amazingly get compliments for my skin It is acne free and soon completely scar free and my skin is getting better and better with time. Soo just wait and be happy and patient .. it's all gonna be much much better !!

Thank you thank you for updating this!

I am currently on 5th month accutane and it seems like accutane is uncovering so much scarring I never really saw before accutane. It is getting me quite depressed. I hope that 4-5months after my course they will look much better too! so i can access the damages and determine if excessive surgical scar treatments are the way to go or to just live with it. Its just really tough looking heavily scarred, especially when lights create shadows on my face =(.

thanks again, go live life agaiN! Like you my life is on hold due to these scars....especially my social life...but I will pull through.

Edited by awesomenesssquared, 07 October 2012 - 09:53 PM.

[S*hope]

The time when I was on accutane , was one of the toughest periods in my life. I spent hours each day searching for scar treatments that REALLY worked. I became more and more depressed. Started to go to a psychologist. Began to isolate me etc. It was really hard ! :'( And the light was a night mare .. mirrors too !!!
..
But today I am a completely different person. I am so happy and back to myself. I never thought I would have a normal life again. Your scars will definitely be better. No doubt about that. The skin will naturally develop in a positive way, when you are off accutane. But it takes time and it takes patience.

Good luck with everything. Wish you all the best !!

[blahblah82]

Not going to dismiss anyone's negative experiences with Accutane, but for me it was my saving grace. Accutane is the ONLY medication that has been proven to effectively cure the most severe forms of cystic acne. IMO the the side effects (ie depression, suicidal ideation) are a by product of the severe acne itself. It has been demonstrated in many scholarly articles that the psychological effects were incorrectly attributed to accutane. As far as the scarring that is "caused" by accutane, that's ridiculous. Its the cystic acne itself that is causing the scarring and it presumably could have been worse if accutane therapy was not started. I can't speak for anyone else, but for me it was the ONLY thing that worked, and so I find it a little disturbing that some people would so adamantly dissuade others from looking into it. Everyone has to make their own informed decisions and weigh the risks, but the hyperbolic statements that accutane is the devil is just flat out ridiculous.