Hi sophie
How's it going?
My skin brief.
I got acne about 4 years ago. Killed my self esteem/confidence leading to me suffering from anxiety which held me back from life.
Laser, microdermabrasion treatments, accutane, countless other things later my skin at this point isn't that bad apart few red marks and the odd spot but i still have anxiety which is unfortunate but again, i'm dealing with that through councelling.
saying that, i don't think it was the severity of my skin problem that's lead me to this point i think it's more to do with how i now percieve myself.
and i'm rambling.
What about yourself?
Hi sophie
How's it going?
My skin brief.
I got acne about 4 years ago. Killed my self esteem/confidence leading to me suffering from anxiety which held me back from life.
Laser, microdermabrasion treatments, accutane, countless other things later my skin at this point isn't that bad apart few red marks and the odd spot but i still have anxiety which is unfortunate but again, i'm dealing with that through councelling.
saying that, i don't think it was the severity of my skin problem that's lead me to this point i think it's more to do with how i now percieve myself.
and i'm rambling.
What about yourself?
I'm not bad thanks , taking each day as it comes ! I got mine 4 years ago too , tried endless topicals and antibiotics over 4 years and all just cleared if temporarily but always came back ! How long till it started coming back after you took roaccutane ?
Have you ever tried birth control ?
I've been on dianette for a month and starting roaccutane on 28th of aug so a week today !
Its really killed my self esteem and I've been on anti depressants for last 6 weeks to try n control my low moods and anxiety , I'm receiving weekly counselling too. And yeah it's def held me back in life , I've been signed off from work , have deferred my nursing training till next year . Can't really go out anywhere apart from gp, dermatoligist and counsellor . Pretty shit but if I finally get this sorted I'll be able to have my life back !
Near the end of my accutane course and a few months after i had clear skin and then i noticed a few small blackheads on my nose and a couple spots here and there. Never as bad as i used to get them although at this moment i have a few red spots on my jawline which is kinda depressing. Not sure if it's because of the bio oil that i'm using.
I'm a guy so no birth control for me haha
Sorry to hear about your anxiety i can honestly say i know how it feels,
It's been really hard for me aswell.
I find myself avoiding most social situations to the extent of walking down a busy street or going to see a friend.
It's really shit.
I feel like im wasting my life.
I'm glad you're on Accutane though it really is a miracle drug. My acne got pretty bad before it started clearing up which i assume you've heard a thousand times before.
What mg was you put on?
Near the end of my accutane course and a few months after i had clear skin and then i noticed a few small blackheads on my nose and a couple spots here and there. Never as bad as i used to get them although at this moment i have a few red spots on my jawline which is kinda depressing. Not sure if it's because of the bio oil that i'm using.
I'm a guy so no birth control for me haha
Sorry to hear about your anxiety i can honestly say i know how it feels,
It's been really hard for me aswell.
I find myself avoiding most social situations to the extent of walking down a busy street or going to see a friend.
It's really shit.
I feel like im wasting my life.
I'm glad you're on Accutane though it really is a miracle drug. My acne got pretty bad before it started clearing up which i assume you've heard a thousand times before.
What mg was you put on?
HOw come your using bio oil?
Sorry about thinking you were a female ! Lol silly me !
I'm sorry to hear about your anxiety too , it def sucks and I feel like I'm wasting my life !
I was gonna suggest if its bothering you go on a second Course of roaccutane as I hear that this can sometimes solve the problem
I've been told by my derm that diet has nothing to do with getting spots also So I'm totally going to stop fretting about that !!
I ended up starting tonight as derm pushed my start date to today , I've only started on 20mg a day as I only weigh 43.5 kg but its getting put up to 40 soon and Ive def heard it gets worse before better , that sucks but at least I'll know it's working I guess !
I bought bio oil a couple weeks ago to use as an alternative to moisturiser in the hopes of fading a few red marks on my cheeks. I'm gonna give it a couple weeks and see how my skin reacts otherwise i'll just be defeating the purpose and getting more spots.
I would definitely consider going onto another course but i'm not sure how long you have to wait, I've been off accutane for more than 6 months. My doctor is terrible at referring me - I had to see a private derm to send my doctor a letter.
The derm started me off 10mg and gradually put me up to about 60mg over a period of six months.
but good luck with your course though i'm sure it will all work out 
Hi. I'm Mike
Near Eastbourne (for now)
Yeah, acne drove me batshit mental with frustration for about 12 years now. I've finally got to a stage where I CAN get clear skin, but it's quite a balancing act to keep it that way. Any sleep loss and general tiredness really drives my oil production and inflammation up, which can be tricky if you have a busy week; and it is annoying when one bad nights sleep leaves your skin in repair mode for the rest of the week. I figured I'd share all the things that have helped me improve after about 5 years thorough research:
Sleep: One of the biggest factors for me, as I mentioned. The adage: 'an hour before twelve is worth two after' seems to be very true for me. It's worth trying to get to bed before 11pm as often as possible, because your whole body will thank you for it for years to come.. unfortunately, I am easily distracted and frequently don't follow my own advice even when not busy. Waking up naturally rather than by an alarm helps, but is rather beyond your control.
Regular exercise: Reduces stress and tension, makes me feel better, gets sweat to clear out my pores. If you can afford it, I recommend getting a good exercise bike at home so you can watch TV whilst getting some good cardio. A solid half hour or maybe more in your evening downtime will pay dividends.
Cleansers: Morning and night wash with hot water. Salicylic acid or Glycolic acid based cleansers have always been most effective for me, since they get my skin peeling. I've found Neutrogena and Simple seem to be the best brands for me. Rubbing colgate tooth paste on my skin in the shower seems to help a bit too. It stings somewhat, but the anti- bacterial agents seem to do some good. Don't overdo it though (once every 2 days should be ok), or your skin can get a little reddened. I've also tried those mudd pack things (spread over your skin and leave to dry). They seem to help a little with blackhead, but I can't leave them on too long, or they oil they draw out starts sitting in the pores too long. 45 mins seems best.
Buff pad: Basically a mini scouring pad for your skin (only softer) I only use this on my cheeks (I have combination skin, and predominatly get acne on my forehead and a tiny bit around my nose). It just gets some of the peeling skin off while I'm in the shower so my skin doesn't look too flaky. I'd avoid using something so harsh on acne prone areas. Also, wash it out thoroughly with soap and cold water before and after using, to prevent bacteria growing in it. A smooth beaded scrub (sharp beads will irritate) is a better choice for removing peeling skin on acne prone areas. Just be gentle and patient as you do it.
Hair products: I use none. Drop all conditioners (I recommend this to girls too), gels, waxes etc. I have it on good authority from someone working in the toiletries and cosmetics industry that all these carefully worded claims of hair conditioners 'locking in moisture' are complete bollocks. No liquid left in your hair for 10 or even 30 minutes will magically alter the structure of dead keratin. All these products actually do is coat your hair with waxes to add some shine and make it stick together more, which will easily clog up your skin through the day. All I do is wash my hair at least once daily with a shampoo formulated for greasy hair. At the moment I'm trying to figure out whether I respond better to a Neutrogena T-Gel version (dark brown liquid, quite pricey) or Head & Shoulders Citrus Fresh for greasy hair. I'm leaning towards Head & Shoulders.
Pharmaceuticals: Anti-biotics have never worked for me. I've never tried accutance due to the many potential adverse side-effects and I was put off by how much a previous dermatologist tried to evade my questions about its side effects when I did look ask about it. The only thing that's worked at all is topical retionid creams (Differin being my favourite). Unfortunately, these creams do very little to prevent my breakouts, they just help clear them a little faster (assuming I get my lifestyle back on track) by ramping up the skin cell turnover rate. I was also on citalopram 10mg (type of anti-depressant) for almost a fortnight before I stopped taking it. I quit half because I noticed my skin getting worse, despite having plenty of time to sleep, not being ill and not slipping up on my routine; and half just becauseI knew the pills wouldn't really fix anything or change my core beliefs, no matter what chemical effect they could have on my brain; so I figured I was better off without them and just focusing on fixing as much as I could, whilst hopefully learning to deal with what I couldn't. Admittedly, if you've been on anti-depressants for a while, you can't just quit without following a doctor's advice; but they may or may not affect your acne as they did mine, so if you want to come off them, it may have an added benefit
Sunlight: A couple of days out in fresh air and sunshine definately helps clear my skin. Obviously, be careful about getting burnt
Supplements: Due to the sunlight reaction, I recently started taking Vitamin D3 capsules (5000UI/ day). I also take a high stength cod liver oil capsule, and 30mg zinc and vitamin C tablets every day. I'd recommend chewing up the zinc tablets and choosing capsules rather than tablets where possible, as I think they abosirb better. I'm pretty confident the vitamin A in the fish oil along with the D3 provide moderate benefit.
Moisturisers: I use a spot prone skin moisturser with salicylic acid in it on my clear facial areas if they get dry. Unfortunately, some of these moisurisers can make your skin even dryer and a little greasy to touch if they don't absorb well, so I tend to try to remove flaky skin before I go out rather than rely too much on moisturiser. i never put moisturiser on acne prone areas.
Diet: I get quite annoyed at doctors and the dermatologist I saw who brush off the acne/ diet link. I kept a diary for over a year of what I ate and how my skin behaved; and EVERY TIME I ate sugary snacks, or drank more than a pint or two, my skin flared up. So I KNOW diet has an enormous impact on my skin, at least; and I'd confidently bet them a £1000 that my skin would go haywire within hours after a packet of biscuits. I wonder if I could find a derm who would agree to this bet? From my research, the reason there's no documented link between acne and diet is because there are almost no studies (I am aware of 1 on chocolate, one done this year on insulin resistance: http://www.ncbi.nlm....pubmed/22447309 ; and I think there may be 1 or 2 more) that have ever looked into it. Of course, you will see no link if you never look! The fact that no dermatogist can give a satisfactory answer to 'What is the root cause of acne?' is also a pretty big stumbling block for their dogma. But I'm drifting from my real point: Derms and doctors don't know as much as they'd like you to believe, and many can't stand admitting they don't know or could be wrong. I've only ever found one doctor who could admit he didn't know without getting annoyed. So, I recommend you try what I recommend here for at least 6 weeks (I actually saw improvement in less than 3, but it's easy to miss an acne triggering ingredient like glucose syrup in what you think is a 'safe' food, unless you've had practise knowing what to look for on the labels and what amounts your body will tolerate); and if you see no improvement, have to be very strict here. These days I subscribe to: 'If humans didn't eat it ~ 1000 years ago, I'll avoid it'. I generaly avoid processed foods. I never eat more than 3g refined sugar per day, and try to keep it down to 0 as much as possible (refined sugar really breaks me out). You just have to get used to checking labels on EVERYTHING (even yoghurt usually has added sugar) I avoid white flour, bacteria rich, soft cheeses e.g. Brie (hard cheeses like cheddar and emmental actually dry my skin more if eaten in large quantites, because of the Vitamin A content, I guess, but I wouldn't recommend eating too much cheese for the sake of your arteries). Some yeasts seem to break me out too. The yeast in wholemeal bread appears fine, but autolysed yeast (found in some crackers) breaks me out. I eat plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables, fish and lean meat. Regular pasta has never caused me problems, but I'll go for wholemeal given the choice. Lots of water to flush out my digestive system. I snack on fruit and nuts instead of chocolate or crisps (check dried fruit bags for sugar crystals too). I avoid even dark chocolate, since coca seems to encourage inflammtion for me; no coffee either. Milk (plain {no added sugar} soy milk with added calcium is an alternative if you're someone who finds dairy breask them out), fruit juice (provided it is pure juice, not a 'juice drink') is fine too. Chips and potatoes and the batter on fried fish or chicken appears to have no effect on me, but it might be worth dropping different fast foods for a week or more to test for yourself. I generally avoid all sauces, since they usually have lots of sugar. Squash is terrible too, even so called 'High juice' is about 30% refined sugar and will rot your teeth to the gum (I had to have 4 fillings after drinking that stuff regularly for 2 years). Alcohol is generally a no-go for me now, too. Basically, you will need to learn to It sounds like a lot of trouble, but once you get used to it after about 6 weeks, it all becomes second nature and it won't bother you. Overall, I feel physically better since the change, so I think you'll find it's worth it.
Getting older: I used to get moderate, maybe even severe acne in my late teens. now I'm 24, it rarely goes above mild/ moderate for more than a day or 2. So, sorry to say it, but teenagers may have to be quite patient for clear skin (lifestyle changes and pharmaceuticals could still help quite a lot though). The best bet is to ask your parents when they started to clear. My dad's skin started to improve around 23/ 24, but he never made the changes I did
Alternative therapy: As a last ditch attempt, I tried out Chinese Medicine. Long story short, it was a collosal failure; and an extortionately expensive one. I made the mistake of trying this place based on a 'friend of a friend' recommendation from my mother. Bad decision. I think these places function be whacking on fees as fast as possible, before you realise the treatment doesn't work and quit before wasting more money. Despite the receptionist's claims when I called up to argue for a refund (after their 'treatment' made my skin about 5 times worse in the space of a few days and only returned to it's previous state a couple of weeks after I stopped) that she'd "never had a call like mine in all her 14 years working there!"; it was transparent she was was practically working off a cop-out cheat sheet with all the crappy excuses for why they couldn't refund me and how I had to continue (at further cost to me; as I pointed out) for "possibly several months" before seeing results. Avoid. Avoid. Avoid. They are legitimised theives. I should point out that this was one of the 'better' places, with some proper safety regulations (RHCM), so I doubt any other CM clinics in the UK will be any better.
Reliable resources: WebMD and http://dermnetnz.org/acne are dependable (my GP actually commended dermnetnz when I brought some printouts to a consultation once). Acne.org has been a big source of ideas to try
I hope you enjoyed my bible. I think that's everything I've learned. If I think of more, I'll add it. Best of luck to you
I`m not from London but from Brighton so near enough.
Had cystic acne for many years. Apart from the odd outbreak now and again, I thankfully no longer have severe acne but I am still trying to come to terms with how having acne has affected my life and what it has done to me psychologically. Currently having counselling and I am waiting to commence CBT. It is getting easier though.
Anyone who wants to chat about either my or your experiences of acne, feel free to post on this thread or PM me.