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Hello, and welcome to my accutane log!! I've been reading these OBSESSIVELY since I tearfully decided to take the plunge during Xmas break, and now I'm finally starting one of my own. I am now on Day 11-started this late.
*Note: I'm Latina with medium olive skin-think210 in Maybelline, 127 in Makeup Forever, W4 in Loreal True Match, and NC30 in Mac. PIH is a huge problem for me.
Background info:
In middle and high school, I had max one bad cystic pimple on my chin during my time of the month, but I had CLEAR skin (albeit not poreless and perfect). I always thought my skin was dry growing up but now I think it was actually normal... I never wore foundation makeup until my senior year of high school when my friend introduced me to Maybelline Fit Me Foundation, which evened out my skin and made me look great and DIDN'T BREAK ME OUT. I used this foundation religiously from senior year of HS to my sophomore summer of college. Even though I had HORRENDOUS skin care habits (ex. didn't remove my makeup regularly), nothing bad happened!!! I still can't believe my skin didn't break out during that glorious period. Maybe bc its super light? Then sophomore summer, I decided to try a high end blurring foundation from a french brand once the heavy makeup trend became popular.....the nightmare began.
I began breaking out on my cheeks, somewhere I had never broken out before. I fell into a vicious cycle of using the makeup to cover up my acne, not thinking about what I was doing. I then switched to other high end brands, and continued to break out, even if they were oil free. Admittedly, I now realize my skin care routine wasn't thorough enough(didn't have several steps), and I likely was leaving makeup in my pores.Nevertheless, these cysts on my cheeks were NASTY and began leaving red hyperpigmentation and even some rolling scars!! It was funny because people at school complemented me on my skin and underneath it was a battleground. I carried on like this until AFTER MY SENIOR SUMMER OF COLLEGE when I switched to high end powder makeup-didn't help. I now HAD to cover everything every day, and still do. I literally revamped my skincare routine and washed, cleansed, and moisturized . I tried vitamins, cod liver oil, cutting out dairy,mandelic acid peels, lactic acid peels, more water, and quite a few TCA peels, which helped with skin texture but not with the PIH on my cheeks. I spent so much money at Ulta and Sephora.
I was dumb and tried to fade the scarring, which didn't work-I should have focused on the acne first. My cheek PIH takes SO LONG TO FADE with my medium olive skintone. So it looks like I have so more active acne then I do now.... it sucks. I think it's because the cheek skin is thicker? I broke down in front of my parents over Xmas break and decided that I had to take the accutane plunge. I took a very high dose of Doxycycline over Xmas and topicals, and decided to go on tane when I broke out in moderate pimples near my mouth ON DOXY.
UGHH THIS PAGE DELETED THE REST OF MY TEXT. I'll finish posting tomorrow. Anyone else start accutane in January?? Please reveal yourselves. I need some tane support.
Hey thanks for following my log! 
We started the same day! How long did your skin remain clear after your first course of accutane? I'm worried about a relapse. Did your PIH fade on accutane or after?
Day 12 Update on Myorisan (Accutane)
So I just started actually taking the full 80 mg dosage today of Myorisan...I was taking only 40 mg to start off since I worried about the side effects since I'm only 110 lbs and 5 ft 3. Figured I should take it as it was prescribed so here we go.
Current Side Effects
Lips: If there isn't a layer of chapstick or aquaphor on them, they feel horrible and so dry. The sides are sore and split a little, and there are visible flakes that won't go away. I think I need a lip scrub.
Face: Literally just the remnant of one cyst and pink marks on my cheeks from past acne. No noticeable initial breakout yet, and my cheeks are actually FLAT, not bumpy, and look good with makeup.. My first week on accutane, my skin was DRIPPING IN OIL when I wore my liquid makeup, but now my skin is more balanced. Perhaps purging of oil? Forehead and nose are slightly flaky, but my face actually isn't dry yet. I expect that to change now that I'll be taking the 80mgs.
Body: About the same, normal to dry skin everywhere
Eyes: Dry bc I wear contacts. I'll have to buy some eye drops soon
Trying so hard to stay away from alcohol so my labs will look good! Turned down a bar crawl tonight because I know I can't stop at just one drink 
My social life is going to go to shit ugh.
Anyone else out there? :DD
My oily skin came back within like a month or two after I stopped. My skin was definitely improved though. I dont get anywhere as near as many pimples that I use to get before accutane. I would say like three months after I stopped accutane was when I got my first pimple. The pimples I started getting were sporadic and about four months later I went back to my derm. She gave me tazorac and aczone again. She said she would want me to wait a few more months before I started accutane again - If I wanted to go back on. She thought another course would solve it. She insured me that most people dont need more than two rounds. Well I decided against it for three yrs. I mean my acne wasnt bad since it was one pimple at a time. IKept up with the aczone and the tazorac and dealt with my oily skin by using blotting sheets. This past year my acne crept up again. It Was rarely a day I didnt have at least one pimple. Than in October I was having like three at a time. Like everyday i woke up and there were new ones. And they were like the deep ones that hurt that have no head. SoBy this pastDecember I was over it and decided to go back on Accutane. Looks like we will be done at the same time. I wear contacts too but no issues yet.
Its good that you at least were able to have less pimples pop up after your course! It's so disheartening to have multiple surface in one day. You must have really oily skin, wow. I'm hoping that Aczone and Tazorac work better after accutane...they literally didn't do much for my pimples except dry out the top and leave the rest. I would be ok with like three small pimples a week after accutane. Pretty sad huh? I hope this will be your last course!
Day 15 Update on Myorisan (Accutane)
WARNING TMI
Soo. DANDRUFF is my newest side effect...... 
I go to work yesterday and use the bathroom. I part my hair looking in the mirror and I see so much nasty dandruff on my scalp-like a layer that i could scratch off ...it looked HORRID. For damage control I swiped off as much as I could and combed my hair to the back of my head. I bought a tea tree oil shampoo so hopefully that will help. Half my job is people staring at the back of my head when I show them lab data or reports on my monitors so that's just awesome 
I think accutane is exacerbating issues I already had with dryness. I already dealt with minor dandruff before if i didn't wash my hair well enough, and now I'm going to have to wash more. I already had dry eyes before accutane and now they're getting worse. What will I get next, eczema??
I'm going to muster up the courage to post pictures soon.