Well for those who remember me, WHATS UP! For those who donat, hereas a little background:
My name is Jim and Iave been suffering from acne since I was about 14/15, I am now 25. My memory isnat the greatest, but I can recall in high school beginning to wash my face and worry about acne, but when I look back at the very few HS pictures I do have, I cant really see my acne. So either I was imaging it was a lot worse than it was back then, or its just not showing in the pictures.
Anyway, my acne definitely got worse after high school. My acne has gone up and down from moderate to severe since then. Iave also had acne on my back and shoulders, only to have it clear up seemingly on its own. Since leaving HS I have been wearing concealer or powder on my face to cover up the redness. I can only recalls two times that my acne seemed to improve so much that I did not have to wear any makeup. Those periods seemed to last at most 3 months, only to have it come back. The most recent episode happened over this summer. I had my acne cleared up with regards to active acne. I had red spots/scars, but no active. This lasted like I said, maybe 3 weeks and then it came back the worst its been in at least 4 years and this lasted about 2 months. Now it has slowly gotten down back to aoenormala levels.
As far as treatments have gone, I have tried a lot. Iave been on Danas BP regimen a few different times with varied success. Iave been about 4 different derm prescribed products as well with limited success. After my acne flared up these past few months to levels I havenat seen since I was maybe 19,20 I decided to go to the derm again, and since my mom works in a derm office, its easy to get in. So I went in to see him, he put me on a benzoyl peroxide wash and some pills. 6 weeks later I see him and he agreeas that the improvement is not there and he is beginning to worry about scarring and such. So, he says the A wordaaAccutane.
He tells me about it (I have researched it numerous times before already) and says he thinks it would be my best option since Iave tried other things and because the acne on my back is so varied, I got small whiteheads, big ones, pimples with no head, etc. So he sets me up with another appointment to come talk to a nurse because acutance is fed regulated now so I have to read this packet and agree to this system called iPledge; it basically is an agreement I must sign saying I read the side effects, agree not to have a baby, not drink alcohol, take vitamins, take protein shakes, yadda yadda. I get my bloodwork done a week later and the prescription is written. He prescribes me (1) 40mg pill a day. I took my first pill October 21, 2008.
This is my logaaa.
Day 1
Side Effects a None
Acne a Normal
Day 2
Side Effects a None
Acne a Normal
Day 3
Side Effects a None
Acne aNoticed a few new whiteheads on my chest. Could just be normal though.
Day 4
Side Effects a Eyeas feel a little itchy, little tired but Iam at work and sitting at a desk for 9 hours can be tiring
Acne a Seem to be breaking out around my chin a little more
Good luck to you too Cosette.
Day 5
Side Effects - Well today, I felt real sleepy around 3 and slept for 4 hours and woke up at 7. Now this happens to be sometimes, so I am not sure if its acctuane or just coincidence. My skin is definitely drying up, especially around my mouth and chin, and on my nose. I also seem to have a mild cold, and again its the season and peolple at my work are sick so I dont think its accutane.
Acne - breaking out a around my mouth and chin more. My back acne seems normal, not breaking out anymore than usual.
I've only taken 5 pills and something is definitely happening. I'm not sure whether to be happy or not. One one had, if I am going to have the initial breakout, I'd rather have it early and get it over with because I hate the it! On the other hand, I was hoping since I was on a relatively low dose of 40mg, that I might be able to avoid the side effects and initial breakout at the cost of taking a little longer to get clear.
Day 6
Side Effects - Skin drying around mouth, chin, nose still. Had a minor headache the entire day. Felt a little lethargic. My nose is also really dry, but I might have a cold. No joint paint of anything.
Acne - still seem to be breaking out around mouth and now forehead as well a little bit. Nothing out the ordinary on my back...typical breakouts.
Misc - Below are progress pics I will be taking, with the lighting and webcam I have, its hard to take pics that show the acne good but I am trying to make the pictures look as HORRIBLE as I can so that we can really judge progress (IE, if I have the lights brighter, it hides the acne). Also there is a pics of the supplies I am using and finally a pic of my tv just because I think its pimp, lol.
Hey Jim, I'm on my 11th day of accutane and experiencing similar side effects. Not sure where you are located, but here in the northeast with the winter setting in, all the moisture is sucked out of the air and that definitely adds to the dryness effect. Do you notice you have any trouble getting to sleep? The past few nights ive been tossing and turning, not being able to get a real good nights sleep. I blame the tane haha. Im definitely breaking out as well, all the dormant zits are coming to the surface, which on the one hand is good that im getting it over, but sucks because it just seems to go down hill. Hope you have good luck with your course bro, all the best. Killer tv btw. -Ian
Day 8
Acne - Breaking out around chin a lot, nothing much as far as breakouts anywhere else. Back seems to be stagnant for the most part.
Side effects - DRY skin on my chin, around my mouth, nose, and the spot between my eyes, i HATE IT, especially my chin. No joint pain....I do seem to feel a little 'weird' when looking at a computer screen, not really a head ache, not really light headed, just weird.
Misc - No, I have no had trouble sleeping at all, although I've always been a good sleeper.
Hey Jim, I go for my blood work tomorrow and hopefully start my tane on Friday. I was given 60 MG a day.
I saw that you use the Cetaphil Moisturizer I really like that, but I have never used there cleanser how is that? I also saw that you used blistex for the lips, I love that product.
But why did you have neosporin? and what was the other product?
Hey Jim, I go for my blood work tomorrow and hopefully start my tane on Friday. I was given 60 MG a day.I saw that you use the Cetaphil Moisturizer I really like that, but I have never used there cleanser how is that? I also saw that you used blistex for the lips, I love that product.
But why did you have neosporin? and what was the other product?
Good luck man. Kinda wish I was started on a higher does....seeing im breaking out anyway, might as well get it all out in one fell swoop.
Cleanser is gentle, does't remove makeup very well unless you rub it in good (i wear concealer to hit the red spots). Where as with Dan's cleaners, a 10 second wash and all makeup is gone.
The neosporin is just another lip balm and the other thing is Eucerin redness relief. That little thing costs like $12 but I think its the best mosturizer you can use (at night) aside from going pure petroleum jelly.
Day 9
Acne a My God, my chin is just breaking out like crazy, bunch of little pimples everywhere, I hate it!!!! Rest of face isnat too bad, got 2 on my cheek and one on the side of my nose (I donat know how a pimple can even form there, it like a millimeter of skin sitting right on top of bone)
Side Effects a Still got that weird feeling sorta. Wathching TV tonight, everything seemed a little hazy. Not blurry, just like not totally clear. Headache is gone and no joint pain. My hair has always been thin, so I canat tell a difference if there is one. My nose is still dry but I am not sure if that is attributed to the accutane or the cold I believe I caught from someone at work. Oh yah, how could I forget, the skin around around my mouth, my chin, along the sides of my nose is DRRRRRRY and PEEEEELING. I hate it even more cause for the past like 8 years I have wore concealer to hide try to hide some of the acne and redmarks, so its like I can just stop wearing it now. But with my skin being dry, it is so obvious I have makeup on cause you can see it on each scale of skin. But I mean what can I do? My options are either wear no makeup and have me feel horrible because I know everyone can see all my acne, or wear makeup and have most of my acne hidden but feel horrible because I know anyone who looks at my face can totally tell I and put makeup on.
Day 11
Acne - Same story, breaking out around my chin. I find that it seems like I break out during the day and it begins to heal to some degree at night. Like right now, its just about midnight and I looked at it and it didn't look as bad as it did this afternoon. But I know when morning comes, it will look worse. Back is same, no change. Seem to be getting a few whiteheads on my nose...where as my nose has always been reserved for black heads.
Side Effects - DRY DRY DRY, I can't say it enough. no matter how much mosturizer or lip balm I put on. The sides of my mouth are the worst, it actually hurts to smile.
Misc - When I woke up this morning, I expected my chin area to look worse, but it looked better than it did when i went to bed. Just wanted to note this in my log for future review.
Day 15
Acne a still getting around 4-5 new whiteheads or bumps everyday. Seems like I heal early day and then get worse later in the day. Back in the same, nothing different from the norm. All blackheads are relegated to my nose but I have had a few whiteheads pop up on my nose now too.
Side effects a Dry skin. But I have to admit, waking up this morning, I was not as dry as I had been for the past 6 days, which is good. During those days, if I smiled, I could feel my skin cracking apart and it expanded. Now as I type this, it still has that tight feeling, but not as bad. Same with my lips, they are dry, but not as dry. Oh, and I noticed that my ears are also peeling a bit. Also got that dizziness feeling when looking at the computer monitor and such, which is a common side effect it turns out. But doesnat help me, considering I am a network admin and must look at a screen for 9 hours a day.
Whats going on, I will definitly be keeping up with your log. I also thought I was the only guy to use concealer because I have lots of small red marks, it does work like a charm. Im on day 40 and still have very dry skin, what I found to work well it use lotion or moisturizer then apply it, but still like you said mid day or later it usually does start to peel some. Best of luck to ya man ill be checkin in.
Thank-you for the comments both of you. It's good to know people are reading this. Although, I really want to do this for myself, so that when I am clear, 1 year, 3 years, 15 years from now when I have forgotten about how bad my acne was, I can come back here and see how bad it was. Like dont you ever wish you would have kept track of something? Because time and your memory can play tricks on you and when you think back, you might think whatever it was was worse than it actually was, or maybe you forget how bad it was. This way, I have text and pictures to remind me.
Day 16
Acne a Pimples for the most part seem to be going away or at least not coming up as frequently. My chin is definitely better than it was 4 days ago. My back, I dunno, sometimes I look at it seems like its doing better and then other times, it seems worse.
Side effects a Yesterday, I wrote that my skin didnat seem as dry when I woke up and the same goes for today. Its still dry, but not that unbearable dryness. Lips are also dry, but not as bad as a few days ago. Still get that funny feeling of dizziness almost while looking at monitors. My dry nose nose is almost gone too, but Iam thinking that was attributed more to catching a cold than the accutane.
Misc a Overall, my face looks and feels better than it did during days 5-14. I am trying not to get my hopes up because it is so early. And I donat know if the reduction in dryness and acne is my body becoming accustomed to the accutane or because of the moisturizing regime I have been on is finally beginning to gain ground with regards to the dryness battle.
Day 17
Acne a Just a few new pimples, actually just felt one right beneath my lower lip. Got another one on the right side of my nose, its like one of those big red ones that never turn to a whitehead but are easy to pop because the pore is just sorta semi-clogged or something, Iam not positive.
Side effects a Skin overall is not as dry as it has been. Still can feel dryness along each side of my mouth. Also, went home for lunch today and my mustache area (had I had mustache) was peeling pretty good. Its not a dry peel, if that makes any sensea..just a peel. Still got that dizzy feeling when looking at computer monitors. No joint pain or any of those other bad side effects.
Misc a I spent literally 2 hours today reading RCRangers accutane log. And my acne is prolly half as bad as his so I have high hopes. And I donat mean to be critical or insensitive, but his acne is what I call severe. I get real irked when people who have 1 or 2 little whiteheads say they have severe acne and they complain and say they cant bear to let their face be shown. I understand severe can be situantional based on the person, but I think before anybody is allowed to classify their own acne, they must look at pictures as to what constitutes severe, moderate, and mild acne.
And you might be saying, aoewell jim, does it really matter if someone with mild acne considers their acne to be severe? Are they really hurting anybody?a And to you, I say yes they are. Because many times, these people give false hope to others who do have severe acne. Letas take Bob as an example:
Bob has 2 teeny weeny whiteheads on his face. Bob has never had acne before so when he seeas these, he freaks out! Bob comes on acne.org looking for a cure to his disfiguring acne condition. Bob remarks, aoeMy face looks horrible!! Can someone help me, I have a party to go to next week and I canat bear to be seen like thisa. After some browsing, Bobas finds a post where someone has used product XYZ to clear their acne. Bob tries this out and in 5,6 days, his 2 little whiteheads, which probably would have gone away on their own anyway, are gone. Bob comes back to acne.org, aoeOMG, I tried product XYZ and my pimples are gone!!! Itas a miracle. My face was horrible but I just used this, drank water, and my face is totally clear nowa
Now meet Joe. Joe really does have severe acne. Joe visits acne.org, search for aoesevere acne remediesa and comes upon Bobas thread. Now Joe, assuming Bobas acne was just as bad as his, thinks he has found a cure. Joe now gets his hopes up. Joe tries the same product only to realize the product has either made his acne worse due to the initial breakout that happens with most or has done nothing. Joe now feels even more depressed and hopeless; he feels that nothing will ever work for him.
And this is how we get all these so-called home remedies as well. People with hormonal acne or people who just get one pimple every 6 months, think they found a new magic cure because they stood on their head for 2 hours every night and their pimple disappears in a week. Even though the former did not affect the latter, the person assumes it does and comes on here and posts their new home remedy. Now, all us acne sufferers, desperate for a cure, spend money and waste valuable time trying a new home remedy that by all accounts, has not been proven to really affect acne at all.
So yes, mis-stating your severity can directly and indirectly cause others undue heartache and grief.
Steps off soapbox
Day 22
Acne a Over the past few days, my acne has pretty much the same. No real improvement, but no real worsening either. Still getting a few pimples every day.
Side effects a Today is the first day that my face doesnat feel dry and cracked when I move my mouth. By no means is it aoeback to normala, but its not nearly as bad was it was during days 5-15. Still dizzy feeling when looking at monitors, but thatas all. No aches and pains.
Misc a I donat know how to feel. The nurse told me for a few weeks my acne would get worse and then all of a sudden, like a switch, it would start rapidly improving. And while, when comparing it now to my initial breakout period, its looks 10X better. But when comparing it to how it looked before I started acutance, its about the same. So sure, it looks better now than it did 2 weeks ago, but it looks the same as it did 4 weeks ago.
Not really, its a little redder than normal in the spots where it was extremely dry a week or so ago, but that is to be expected. The product is called Eucerin Redness Relief or something along those lines, so I think it is specifally made for redness. But really, I like it because its a good moisturizer than doesn't get all sticky as your rub it in more. It does give a shine, and they even recommend to only use it at night. But I actually use it in the morn and then put some coverup on anyway, so the shine goes away.
I recommend it highly, but the price may turns some people off. It comes in a little bowl and it costs around $13 I believe. But with each thing they do give you a coupon for like $4 off or something.
Day 41
Sorry for the lack of updates, but there really wasnt too much to report and now there is some. I went to do bloodwork to get my 2nd round and my triglycerides jumped from 120 to just about 300. So derm was worried, told me to eat healthier, and get another test in 2 weeks which I just go today. He kept me at 40mg and wants to see if my levels go down before increasing it.
With my face, I think it looks better, but comparing the pics, they make it look worse than it did before. Side effects are really just dry lips and now my skin seems to peel once every 5 or 6 days. While the peeling is annoying, I am very thankful that I have not had any of the more serious side effects, yet, at least.
Hey guys, sorry no update. Well I went to see the derm 3 weeks ago and my liver wasnat going so good. It was around 80 and normal is between 20-40. So he took me off it and told me to get another test in 2 weeks.
Well I just saw him last night and my liver is back to 25, so he put me on a measly 20MG.
As far as acne goes, I heard tane stays in your system for 30 days, so my face is still OK. My back/shoulders has improved a lot, but like I told the derm, my back seems to have a mind of its own. It will (and has 3 times before) broken out real bad and then healed on its own without any intervention or change from me.
Day 130
Whats up everyone. I've been gone for awhile. Mostly cause the more im on here, the more I think about my acne.....ok, maybe im just lazy. But anyway, Im back.
Quick Recap:
-started on 40mg for 2.5 months
- liver was too high, doc took me off it compeltey for 2 months
-resumed with 20mg
- still on 20 mg
Im doin real well. Except for dry lips, I'm cool. Had dry skin earlier on in the process but not now. Check out the updated pics.
Before:
Current
