Acne.org Products
Hi everyone,
I'm in desperate need of advice.
Il quickly sum up my acne story:
Hit teenage years so as expected developed lots of acne on face and back. Incredibly oily skin (would wash and within 5 mind face was greasy amd oily) Tried many many things from Dr before begging them to refer me to a dermatologist. Who said my oil glands were over working. So I was prescribed roaccutane which was the best drug ever, my skin was clear and healthy in matter of weeks. I was told originally that this would last for life.
So for over ten years I've had good skin. Until this last year. I started to develop acne on my neck and jawline (which I never had before) so put it down to my dairy intolerance. It then spread up onto my face. So to rule out lifestyle.. I eat healthily and drink lots of water. I used everything simple branded but it got worse. Also my oily skin problem is back.
So went to Dr as have been very depressed. Brings back all those years of being bullied at school and it's so visible to see.
So he started on acnecide....then onto duac.....then zineryt....then benzoyl peroxide....then a tablet antibiotic but my acne was still bad and the BP just blistered my skin and yes although it dried out... underneath the acne was still there. So I stopped all treatment to see where my natural skin was at and I was back to day one if not worse.
So as I told the Dr the only thing that worked in past was accutane he then put me on isotrex. Which is a cream retinoid like accutane.
I wanted to do everything I could so After reading many things online I opted to get a non comedogenic wash as doesn't block pores etc so I use cetaphil and a moisturiser that was water based, fragrance free, sensitive skin friendly and non comedogenic which is neutrogena oil free moisturiser sensitive skin.
Sadly the moisturiser makes my skin incredibly shiny. But kept at it as thought it would make my skin healthier.
I'm 3 weeks in with isotrex. My acne on my face got SO much worse and my neck has developed into cystic acne. I read online that you need to persevere as it brings out the worst then treats it.
So wanted to ask any users how you found isotrex? Did it eventually clear?
Also I want recommendations on skin moisturiser for oily skin.
Is it worth keeping to non comedogenic??
Very sorry for long story I'm just so depressed, not going out, I've lost all confidence
Would love to hear from anyone. Thanks
Hi, your story sounds similar to mine, except that I haven't tried accutane. It's driving me crazy and I think it's almost an obsession by now but I have learned many things. For example, I suspect that the origin of my acne (jawline neck, and lately expanded to cheeks) is my hormones because it's getting worse when I ovulate (higher testosterone levels) and I am using a high androgenic birth control (skyla).
I don't really know how to fix this because this method was my only option, so I tried to treat it topically. That's when I stopped using anything that contained oil (i was using green tea tree oil and vitamin E), changed my washing powder and got rid of the fabric softener. This made a huge change and the spots in my neck that were very deep and painful started to heal. Then I discovered the apple cider vinegar and started using it as a toner (1:1 ratio in water), this is the best this I have ever tried, my skin is radiant where there are not spots, so it's not treating my acne (I think) but my skin has never been softer). At this point, I was very happy and just waiting for the scars to fade but then an oil-free moisturizer in case my skin would get too dry. I got Neutrogena oil free moisturizer sensitive skin and it felt good on my skin so I started using it morning and night. Shortly I got Cetaphilto stick to a very gentle routine, and I have been using it for a week now, but it made me break out badly and I am full of blackheads, but I kept using it thinking it was something else because everyone says it's great.
Then today I decided to look at the reviews in here and discovered it has sodium lauryl sulfate! That's like poison to my skin, so I am stopping it today and now I am tring to find an SLS free cleanser.
Good luck!
I have had Roaccutane treatment also, which unfortunately didn't work for me. A few years ago my doctor referred me to a laser clinic for scar treatment. They told me I needed to clear up my acne before they would do treatment. I was devastated. I went back to my doctor who gave me Isotrex. He did warn that my skin would get worse before it got better. Stick with it, it does work! It did take about 8 weeks before I saw noticeable results.
I wanted to love Cetaphil as it sounded like a great and gentle product. My skin did not like it though - it made my face really oily. I've since read on here that it isn't good for acne prone skin. I use Garnier Pure Active Blackhead Scrub to control my acne and oil (I know, it's a cheap supermarket product, but it works for me) but this would be too harsh on your skin with using the Isotrex. Have a read about Madara Purifying Foam. I think this will be gentle on your skin - cleaning but without stripping all the natural oils. I love this brand as it's organic and not tested on animals! There's a review on the Madara website saying the product has been great for her son's acne.
A really good oil control moisturiser is The Body Shop Seaweed Oil Control Gel Cream. I have't found anything as good at controlling oil as this. I use it every morning!
Good luck with your treatment and I hope you manage to find something that works for your skin 