hey yall. so ive had acne since about age 9. it continued getting worse and by the time i was 15 it was severe and cystic. i started a 6-month course of accutane and due to issues with scheduling and time, it took over a year to complete and i never even finished the course. i would take my whole month and then have to wait 3 months to get a new pack of pills. my skin cleared but never even got dry. i used a light moisturizer and was fine. it was just normal. that combined with a suicide attempt and lots of other personal mental health hospitalizations, i havent really had time to go to the dermatologist. (i dont believe the accutane and suicide attempt were related as i was off it for 3 months at the time and have had other attempts not on accutane at all)
now at almost 18, my acne is moderate, not cystic, but still annoying and painful. i am so thankful its not cystic anymore, and i dont expect or demand completely clear skin- i wouldn't care about a few pimples now and then. i have perfected my routine after all these years and use retin-a, but i dont wanna deal with this anymore. would a 2nd course even do anything for my skin long-term? or is it a lost cause at this point? i thought accutane would be my saving grace but im still dealing with acne and feeling pretty awful.