I've been dealing with different types of acne for about 5-6 years now, I'm 23 and I deal with mostly cystic acne on my forehead. I have other issues on the occasion but now 90% of my issues are with cysts on my forehead. I can get up to 5 or 6 cysts at a time and they are definitely painful and sensitive. Last year I was on doxycycline and epiduo for about a year, and it did not improve my skin too much. Half the week was good and then I the other half was usually not very good.
I switched dermatologists about 1 month ago. He took me off doxy and gave me Differin to use at night and benzefoam for the morning. He did not think I needed anti-biotic to start with. He is very into Differin and said I have to be very patient with because its a gradual process. I've been on Differin for 3-4 weeks and I am still getting cysts and when I do get them the differin does not help them out at all.
My question is, has anyone had any positive experience with Differin for cystic acne? Am I continuing to waste my time with another ineffective drug for my cystic acne? Any insight or experiences people have had would be appreciated.
I should also mention that both of my dermatologists I've had did not suggest accutane because they believe my issue were not severe enough to the extent that accutane is needed.
Hey, I've been using differin for just over three months and it does work, I know pretty much have no active acne and just some redness and scarring left over, I'd say I noticed a difference after about two months but it's weird sometimes you see improvement then the next day you don't but you need to give it time, be consistent and use it as directly, don't use to much. In terms of cysts, I had like this one under my skin that seemed to join together under my skin, it was weird it wasn't always painful, but inflamed and had been there for months, it has gone right down, I can still feel it a bit when I'm washing my face, but my derm said it will just take time to totally go away. Some people love differin and others hates it. I have a blog tracking my weekly progress, my derm says it take 3 - 6 months to see major improvements, but you should start to see things getting better before the three month mark, if it works for you, I hope it does. I know it can be hard at times to stick to something when you don't think it's working, I was like that at first, but I'm glad I did. Just go easy at first, but I'd say if you can tolerate it then it's best to use every night, as long as you only use a small amount you should be ok.
Gill
