Hi there,
I'm a 24 year old girl who has had persistent mild/moderate acne for around 12 years. I have about 3-10 active papules and pustules on my face at any given time, many large blackheads on my nose, and will occasionallly get deep, painful hormonal cysts around the time of the month. Most of my acne is concentrated around my chin/mouth and sometimes on my cheeks. It's also on my shoulders and a little on my back. The thing is, this is actually an improvement over my skin as a teenager, but only because I've been using Dan's regimen (It works pretty well, but after years of using the full dose I finally conceded that it was too irritating for my sensitive skin - now I use half the dose and it works half as well).
I'm just tired of living a life that revolves so much around my acne; strategizing the prevention of breakouts, nursing and fussing over the inetivable flareups, hiding away under makeup, slathering on the creams, and feeling helpless and unattractive. So after years of hesitation and paintstaking research, I've decided to give accutane a try.
The low dose option sounded best to me - great results with a much lower risk of side effects. I'll be taking 10 mg/day for a week or two, and depending on how that goes, I'll bump up to 20 mg. I'll still be using the regimen and adjusting it according to my needs.
I'm on day three right now, and haven't noticed much of anything except a slightly itchy scalp. I ended up with a sunburn on my forehead and shoulders yesterday, so I'm a little worried about that, but it doesn't seem to be causing too much of a problem.
Anyways, I'll update this log when I have something new to report. Cheers 
UPDATE - FINISHED WEEK 1
Hello! Week 1 on 10 mg/d is finally finished (feels like I'm on the other side of a millennium), and I have some updates to share.
Non-Acne Related Side Effects
- Lips slightly dry/tight, using a lot of vaseline (it's really not a problem at all so far)
- Slightly itchy scalp (again, totally manageable)
- Dry Eyes (I've noticed that my contacts get uncomfortable quicker, and my eyes will itch a little sometimes)
- Headaches (I'm already prone to headaches and occasional migraines, but I've definitely been having them more frequently. Tylenol clears it right up, though)
Skin and Acne
As for my actual skin, about five days into treatment I broke out a bit on my forehead where my sunburn was the worst. My forehead is usually very clear, with maybe two teeny tiny spots at most during stressful times. Now I have 4 smallish spots and some teeny bumps, which is disheartening, but I don't know whether I can attribute this to the sunburn, the apple cider vinegar I put on it, exam stress, or the accutane (or some combination of these).
It's really not that unsightly because they're rather small, and other than those 4 guys, I haven't gotten any serious pimples this week, just some little actives around my mouth that were already sprouting up before I started the pills. I can't really say that this is totally unusual, because during the course of a typical month I can go up to 5 days without a new pimple, but I know it's just the calm before the storm. I'm dreading week 2.
This morning (day 8) I noticed my facial oiliness actually seems to be decreasing - I am SUPER shiny and oily on my t-zone - and while this may seem like a good thing, it was actually kind of scary. I say this because I can suddenly see what looks like "scars" on my forehead. They're just a some small pits and an indentation, but I have NEVER seen these before! I'm wondering if accutane can exaggerate these things for whatever reason, or if my extreme oiliness camouflaged the real state of my skin. I'm worried that as my oil decreases, there will be nothing to obscure my worse-than-expected skin texture.
Anyway...
I'm kind of sad and scared of what lies ahead... The truth is, I'd have a number of days just using BP and makeup where people complimented my skin on how clear and even it was. I know it was a lie anyway, but at least I could maintain the illusion. Now I feel like the next few months are out of my hands, and I'll have to go to school everyday with god-knows-what doing the tango on my face.
But I guess that's the price I'm paying for [hopefully] clear skin. Still using BP only at night, and my skin is handling it well.
I'll be back soon with updates!
Update! Finished Week 2!
Hello! I'm currently on day 14 of my accutane round. For the last week I've upped my dosage to 20 mg per day (10 at breakfast and the other 10 at dinner) and I thought I'd make a post about my experiences.
Side Effects
- Dry lips ~ They aren't really chapped, per se, but they feel like cardboard and it can get pretty annoying.
- Migraines ~ I've had a migraine or headache probably 5 out of 7 days this week. They don't feel different from my normal headaches, just more frequent, and they've gotten better in the last few days. Might be dehydration.
- Cramps ~ I've been having what feels like light menstrual cramps, even though it's not that time of the month. Weird.
- Dry eyes and Scalp ~ This has actually been better than last week. Not bad at all.
Skin and Acne
There has definitely been a decrease in oil on my face, though it's still relatively shiny. The small breakout on my forehead is almost gone now, but over the last week I've had a number of whiteheads come and go around my mouth, maybe six or seven. Most were small and painless, with the exception of a few nasty ones.
I felt a cyst coming up on my chin about four days ago, painful and red, but it just magically disappeared overnight. I don't often go two weeks without having at least three to five pustules and maybe a cyst, so I'm pretty happy. Whiteheads are low on my list of skin worries right now.
So, Yeah...
As of now, I'm pretty pleased with my experience so far 
I'm trying to remain grounded, though, and not set myself up for disappointment - I've read a lot of blogs where the first two weeks seemed promising and then months of breakouts followed until they were clear. Concentrating on the 'clear' part... ![=]](https://static.acne.org/ipb_uploads/emoticons/default_sideways.gif)
Still using Dan's BP and a little AHA at night without issue - might decrease the BP a little so my makeup goes on smoother.
Until next time 
Update - Week 3
So I just finished my third week of accutane. I had a fairly bad breakout this week - probably as bad or even worse than my typical "bad week". I've had about 4 medium papules/pustules all just under my lips, and then some smaller papules around those. I also got two little pustules above my lips today. The bigger ones are quite painful.
I also had some pimples on my chin that were inflamed one second and totally flat the next. It was so bizarre.
As for side effects, my lips are getting quite chapped, and I experienced some weird anxiety for a few days. I was always pretty anxious in certain situations, but this was more generalized. It could just be a coincidence - I'll have to wait and see if it continues.
My scalp and eyes aren't too dry or itchy, and my migraines are a lot less frequent.
Anyway, feeling a bit down.. it's pretty embarrassing having so much acne right around the lips where it's so obvious and difficult to hide. On the bright side, people may just think I've had a massive herpes outbreak. ..Wait.
I really hope it clears up a bit before school on Monday. I'll update next week after my dermatologist appointment. Chow :3
1 month Complete!
Holy bananas! I can't believe it's been a month already. How in the heck did that happen? And when did I start using phrases like 'holy bananas'?
Well, the past week has been a waking nightmare. I probably had like 15 pimples JUST around my chin/lips throughout the course of the week. Just as some swelling started to go down, more came in to swell it up again. And a lot of the ones that I tried to pop (I know, I know, bad idea) would crust over, then completely refill by the next day, angrier than ever. I'd pop them again, and again they'd ressurect. It probably didn't help that I was putting makeup on them and trying to smooth the crustiness.
And I gotta say, it was pretty painful and generally uncomfortable. Tight, tingling, pulsating, dry, itchy...and by the end of the week, the areas with scabs were starting to just peel off at their own leisure. Flapping around my face. At school. I asked my teacher if I could head out early, I was in such discomfort.
But I know it could be way worse. I mean, at least it was localized to just one area of my face. My cheeks and nose and forehead have remained relatively clear. Still, I was keeping my head down and wearing my hair in my face with such blatant personal shame that a guy actually came up to me and asked if I was introverted, and literally invited me to an introvert club. LOL.
As of this morning, though, I'd say almost all of the pimples have gone down and are just scabs or hyperpigmentation. I still have a cyst and papule on my chin, but they're getting less inflamed by the day. Plus - no new pimples today! Yay! I really hope this was the worst of the initial breakout.
On another note, my lips are as dry and crumbly as a wafer. They're getting more and more chapped, and I feel them trying to split sometimes when I smile. They've also felt kind of numb since the second week - like I've used lip plumping lipgloss or something. Which is funny, because they seem a bit swollen (this is definitely my most glamorous side effect).
I also noticed last night that the veins on my chest and legs were a bit more visible? I don't know if it's just in my head and I never paid special attention before, but god....ew. I'm squeamish, so I really really really hope this is just paranoia (I've read about accutane thinning the skin).
No other side effects apart from those (headaches are gone, eyes are fine even with contacts, itchy scalp is better, anxiety hasn't returned). I got my blood test done and the results are all normal as far as I can tell. I have a doctor's appointment on Tuesday, so hopefully all goes well.
