Ok I just finsished a course of accutane, it was an absoloute pleasure and I would happily stay on for another year if they let me!!!
Ok, I am now aware my skin will return close to normal within the next month, healing will start again and I am well aware there is no better time and now to start looking an creams which will help heal my scars. I have some bright red ones on my temple, which I know will calm down but I want to give them a helping hand.
I also know that a retinoid type treatment will help reduce the chances of my acne returning! What are the best out there?
I am a competitive weightlifter and I know I will continue to have problems with spots (which I can deal with as long as my cystic acne does not return) until I give up the sport, mainly because of my diet. The INSULIN response from carb intake, IGF-1, extremely anabolic and mix that with already having high testosterone and genetics predisposed to acne, we are going to encounter some problems.
cheers.
PS. for those worried about using accutane, I will tell you now, I messed around for a year wondering should I use it or not. I should have taken it from day one and I wouldnt be left with these scars on my face. There is so much scaremongering on the forum and I can tell you now, 95% of the issues those are having on here is non accutane relate, more anxiety related.
Ok, I am now aware my skin will return close to normal within the next month, healing will start again and I am well aware there is no better time and now to start looking an creams which will help heal my scars. I have some bright red ones on my temple, which I know will calm down but I want to give them a helping hand.
I also know that a retinoid type treatment will help reduce the chances of my acne returning! What are the best out there?
Hello there!
Retinoids will definitely help improve scar appearance as long as the scarring isn't very deep (if they are, I'd look into laser options instead!). I would recommend any brand of tretinoin (brand names Aberela, Airol, Renova, Atralin, Retin-A, Avita, Refissa, or Stieva-A). There's also Tazorac (tazarotene) which serves as an equally effective retinoid. Contrary to some popular belief, there is no scientific evidence that tretinoin is less or more effective than tazarotene.
That being said, Differin (Adapalene) is a bit different to its cousins Tazarotene and Tretinoin. This is due to the fact that Differin is a synthetic retinoid and the other two are natural Vitamin A derivatives. Differin is meant to activate the retinoid receptors in the skin. I personally prefer the true Vitamin A derivatives, but Differin can also work effectively (especially if the other two are too harsh for your skin). Differin is by far more gentler!
I personally would recommend a low-strength dosage (0.01% or 0.025%) to start of with. Your prior treatment with Accutane won't make your skin more tolerable to high potency topical retinoids. I think it would be smart to gradually progress from lower strength to more potent retinoids over the months.