50 replies to this topic

[Waseem Abbas]

Alright, I have given up on every single anti-biotic available in the market. Im having this shit on my face for 10 years and it never went away permanently. It came back as soon as I left taking antibiotics. Let me name some of the antibiotics I have taken in this long journey.

ORAL:
1. Doxycyclin
2. Ampicilin
3. Azythromycin
4. Minocycline HCL

Topical:
1. Clyndamycin
2. Retinoid
3. Fucidic Acid
4. Azythromycin Liquid
5. Benzoyl Peroxide

These all were pretty fine with killing the bacteria but were unable to prevent them growing again. I just kept changing the dermatologists and today my new derma consultant prescribed this Isotretinoin 20mg/day for 1 month will increase the amount after 1 month and said that your acne is called "Nodular Acne" . I'm so much concerned about the adverse effects as I'm googling and finding some really very swear side effects. Although I'm confident that my consultant prescribed a low amount i.e 20mg/day but I would still be willing to know some of the testimonials.

Today I had my first dose of Accutane 20mg and for some obvious reasons or may be it is just in my head after researching alot, I'm having a headache and its severe.

These are the photos I have taken 3 days back and just today i started accutane

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Edited by Waseem Abbas, 11 October 2012 - 10:45 PM.

[Bobby Stephenson]

Yes! It's so bad I want to punch it! I don't know about severe headaches but on my first day I got pretty dizzy after working out and just passed out at bed time. I was doing 30mg a day and weigh 130lbs. Never had it again though and I am on day 21 with only dry lips and flaky skin from the initial breakout.

[Waseem Abbas]

I only have acne on my face and 1 or 2 may be on head. no where else. I'm not looking for an initial breakout on my face as it is already worse than ever. Don't care about headache as the acne itself is the biggest headache. Looking forward for an early recovery without having an initial breakout.

[jamie o]

Hey mate I noticed that you wanted to see pictures from someone who also started on 20mg/day, seen it on someone-elses log. I was originally meant to be on 20mg/day for five weeks, and it ended up being three months. If you want you can look at my log and ask any questions feel free. I am know on 40mg/day, just started my five month of treatment. I haven't been able to put up any pictures recently because of some internet/computer problems, I'll try and put some up again soon.

My log url address is,
http://www.acne.org/...32#entry3247832

I have about three sets of pictures in the first 24 days, I think, so that should fit in your first month on 20mg/day.

Good luck with your treatment.

[Waseem Abbas]

DAY 3

No noticeable changes yet. Whiteheads are still there around chin and upper lips, i cant shave its grown up.

[Waseem Abbas]

DAY 6

Since I'm on a low dose, 20mg/day and i wiegh around 120lbs. No noticeable changes yet. Skin is still oily, no dryness, no serious breakouts yet. I'm just constantly having 6-10 whiteheads turning into small pustules around my lips and chin every morning i wake up. But one thing for sure, the irritation has been reduced big time since the very first day of accutane. I can wash my face and i feel so comfortable rinsing the water and rubbing my fingers over.

As for the side effects. I just feel dizzy as soon as i take the medication for about 15-30 mins. nothing else to notice, may be im on low dose thats why, or whatever the case is. I will be on 40mg/day after 1 month.

Edited by Waseem Abbas, 08 October 2012 - 03:22 AM.

[Waseem Abbas]

DAY 10

Ok.. The drug has started working. I'm having my initial breakouts cheeks, forehead. I had 3 very calm days after DAY 6, i thought I'm not gonna have any breakouts, but it was the calm before the storm. Skin is getting dry also. No joint or lower back pain. No other side effects noticed. The breakout is severe (not a new thing for me though) but less irritating. I really hope so that IB wont last more than 10 days

[Waseem Abbas]

This is what I am right now. Hope it will get better somebody reply!!!

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[lolies]

It will definitely get better, i'm on day 5 myself and haven't seen an initial break out yet but my theory is that when your skin first dries out all the acne that was already forming comes out faster due to the new irritation of dried skin, in 1-2 weeks when it subsides you should see nothing but steady improvement. Personally I would look to raise the dosage above 20, especially if the side effects are few. Good luck.

[Waseem Abbas]

It will definitely get better, i'm on day 5 myself and haven't seen an initial break out yet but my theory is that when your skin first dries out all the acne that was already forming comes out faster due to the new irritation of dried skin, in 1-2 weeks when it subsides you should see nothing but steady improvement. Personally I would look to raise the dosage above 20, especially if the side effects are few. Good luck.

Thank you for your reply and good luck with your course. I know it is hard to take the initial breakout but reading all logs and experience of people gives me confidence that it is temporary and good days are ahead.


Day 13

More breakouts on my cheeks. More painful cysts. Forhead and chin is calmer today because i have tons of them on cheeks? The pus is forcing to come out and i dont wanna pop it. It's painful really. Lips are still ok, no chapping and cracking. Skin is partially dry but i noticed my cysts and pimple wont last longer than 1 day. The every other day i have new cysts and the older ones are gone dried out, Thats a good sign for me.

[Waseem Abbas]

Ok I had an appointment with my derm and she was worried about my IB. She said you are so unlucky to have this horrible IB and this is why I'm giving you an antibiotic to slow this down. She put me on Azomax (Azythromycin) 250mg twice a day for 3 days and then 1 on every other day for 10 days. So in total 500mg +20mg Oratane/day. She said you dont have to stop oratane becuase you are on low dose and your skin is not so dry yet plus I'm not experiencing any serious side effects. My lips and eyes are pretty fine. No lower back or joint pain. I asked her for steroids but my IB is not swollen.

for DAY 15

More breakouts on cheeks, chin is gone calm, no whiteheads. Forehead has 2 new and is quite calmer than before. the puss-filled ones on left cheek were popped up yesterday and all that bloody puss came out.

[maria11]

hey waseem. hang in there and remember that in a few months it'l be all over and you'll be clear! i know its hard, im going through it too, everyday you keep thinking, when is it going to get better and when will i finally wake up and not worry about my skin anymore!

[Waseem Abbas]

hey waseem. hang in there and remember that in a few months it'l be all over and you'll be clear! i know its hard, im going through it too, everyday you keep thinking, when is it going to get better and when will i finally wake up and not worry about my skin anymore!

Maria, I feel a lot better than the past few days, still breaking out but less irritation and thankfully my skin has not gone so flaky and dry. I just hated those tiny whiteheads popping up every morning on my chin n upper lips, that was painful, but they are gone and my chin is 90% clear now. I dont feel any pain washing my face plus the cysts are drying out fast, i dont see the old ones next day i wake up but new ones. I'm hanging in there with a strong belief that i will be clear. Wont give up inshaAllah.

[maria11]

wow that's great!!
honestly that's really good progress for less than 1 month and on low dose if you are still getting new ones do you think it is the IB? are the new ones smaller and less severe atleast?
i think it's smart you're starting on a low dose because i didn't and 1st month my side effects were really badd, there was back pain, blurry vision, head aches, coughs, even hair loss!
my derm said i'm on a high dose (for my weight) apparently so i should be done in 4 months according to him..

But the side effects haven't been soo bad or as big a deal as some people make them out to beI think I would go through a looot worse to just get rid of this lmao

One thing that I think might have helped (or maybe they just stabilised on their own) was taking the pill with a meal high in fat and protein. Lots of water too. My mom's a pharmacist and she keeps telling me to eat a lot while i'm on accutane lol

Edited by maria11, 17 October 2012 - 02:51 AM.

[Waseem Abbas]

wow that's great!!
honestly that's really good progress for less than 1 month and on low dose if you are still getting new ones do you think it is the IB? are the new ones smaller and less severe atleast?
i think it's smart you're starting on a low dose because i didn't and 1st month my side effects were really badd, there was back pain, blurry vision, head aches, coughs, even hair loss!
my derm said i'm on a high dose (for my weight) apparently so i should be done in 4 months according to him..

But the side effects haven't been soo bad or as big a deal as some people make them out to beI think I would go through a looot worse to just get rid of this lmao

One thing that I think might have helped (or maybe they just stabilised on their own) was taking the pill with a meal high in fat and protein. Lots of water too. My mom's a pharmacist and she keeps telling me to eat a lot while i'm on accutane lol

Yeah it is a great feeling, not having any whiteheads on my chin and today morning i havent had any new ones yayyy!!! the old ones are gone dry, my chin has only 2-3 red spots and is very smooth.

Yeah I had plenty of them (IB) 2 days before on my cheeks, they were not as big as it used to be, medium in size but not severe. And they are drying out so fast. The puss filled ones are also shrinking.

And yes my derm told me the same that starting on a low dose would not cause severe side effects. She says im a candidate of 30mg/day according to my weight but she kept me on 20mg and i might remain on this dose for 2 months or more if i keep on seeing improvements like this. The only side effect i am noticing from past 2 days is a very slight lower back pain when i get up in morning. But at work i dont feel that. My eyes and lips are absolutely fine, im not using any lip balm or vaseline etc.

As for diet, your mom is absolutely right, but you got to avoid junk n processed food. Accutane is a very quick soluble in fats so i take my pills with milk and eat a decent amount of fatty food. But i experienced in past (Pre-accutane) that foods containing high fats saturated/nonsaturated made my acne worse. But I'm keeping an eye on my diet, I'm eating healthy, Green leafy vegs, fruits, fresh juices and a decent amount of fatty food.

So far, today I'm very happy with the results by not having any new ones. My forehead seems a bit dried out but i didnt get any new breakouts on forehead.

[Waseem Abbas]

DAY 17

Things are pretty calm today. I only have 2 giants on my left cheek popped up and will explode soon. Chin is more clearer and smooth, Forehead had nothing new this morning lips and eyes are pretty fine, no chapping. May be its the antibiotic which is stopping the IB? or that was it for my IB? whatever the case is, makes me feel good for 2 days.

[Waseem Abbas]

DAY 28

Ok. I havent updated for quite a while and i have plenty to update. Its 28th day of my journey and I'm almost cleared now. Just a few actives on my cheekbones. Chin is 100% clear, Forhead 100% clear. I am still on 20mg/day and will jump on 40mg/day after 2 days. I'm still taking 250mg of Azithromycine and will continue this for another 1 week. I'm not seeing any serious dryness on my face. My lips and eyes are absolutely fine. I saw some flakes few days back but now they are gone and my skin is more smooth now. I havent seen any other side effects except a very slight lower back pain early in the morning. I'm just loving this "Tripple Action PURIN anti acne face wash" and Vaseline Total moisture. I only have to apply Vaseline total moisture once in a day and wash my face with PURIN twice.

I have my recent photographs of a horrible initial breakout and will shot some latest one with clearer and smoother skin Although my face is full of red marks but no worries, will fade out with time.

Cheers

[Waseem Abbas]

Here are the progress photos for last 20 days (The horrible Initial Breakout). Right now I'm full of scarring and red marks but thankfully clear from whiteheads, blackheads, and cysts.

15th October IB (DAY 13)




30th October (DAY 28)

Edited by Waseem Abbas, 03 December 2012 - 11:33 AM.

[chloelauraa]

Yay I'm glad you're clearing!

[Waseem Abbas]

Finally Month 1 has come to an end and it was a real tough one. Went through a terrible IB, partially dry skin. Painful cysts, lower back pain. No other side effects noticed.
I'll jump to 40mg/day from now on. 20mg AM + 20mg PM. I hope things will remain calm and keep on improving. I have a smoother skin and finally my family told me tonight and they were shocked to see my skin so flat. My sis was just amazed to see the improvements and i got so excited that it finally is working for me.

Day 30

Still calm and clear, getting smoother day by day. I'm loving my chin n forehead. Cheeks left with tons of red marks but when i touch it, it feels great.