Hi all,
I havent posted on acne.org for a few months as now unbelievably, incredibly, cant-believe-I-can-actually-say-this-ly I am 100% acne free! Wow, for so many years I looked forward to the day that I could say those words and, indeed, make this post! This wonderful site was a huge emotional aide to me during my 5 year acne journey and, now that Im finally free, I wanted to write this quick post to hopefully encourage others who are struggling to recognise the light at the end of the tunnel.
I wont bore you with my backstory but, in a nutshell, I only first developed acne when I went to university (strange, I know) as a result of taking oxytetracycline for years for blackheads (thanks, Docs). Acne really ruined my university experience for me; its so horrible what this thing can do to you. Over the next three years I jumped from treatment to treatment, health blog to health blog, all of which either didnt work or only cleared me up for a short amount of time.
After I graduated last summer I, finally, decided to go on Accutane and, after popping my first pill in August 2013, its fair to say it was a rough ride but it was oh so worth it. I honestly cannot begin to describe how much it has turned my life around! If anybody is scared about trying the drug then my advice would simply be, dont be. The internet scare stories put me off it for years and now I realise all they did was prevent me from becoming clear. Im sure that holistic natural remedies work for some but they must be a very small percentage of the population (I know, I desperately wanted them to work! And Ive tried pretty much every cleanse and potion there is); Accutane is the only thing which 100% worked for me.
For the record, Ive attached some photos. The thought of even posting these photos online would have filled me with dread but, if they help you guys to see that something will work, then its worth it.
Firstly, heres what I looked like back in late 2011 at the height of my acne troubles: Link removed]
Not nice, eh? Id just started differin and doxycycline and was breaking out like crazy. This time of my life was rough. Really rough. But, it was so worth fighting through to get to this stage.
And heres what my skin looks like now: Link removed]
Its not an understatement to say it has turned my life around. I finally feel FREE!
Please, if youre suffering like I was, dont discount this drug purely because of the online scare stories. The people who post online are disproportionately those who have had a bad experience; people like myself simply disappear and never post a review. You will get the dry lips, sore skin and aching muscles etc, but its oh so worth it in the long run.
Think of it this way: 200,000 people are injured or killed in cars each year, but that doesnt stop us all happily getting into a car to drive to work every day.
So, acne.org, thank you so much for all the support you guys have given me over the years! I cant begin to describe how much it helped! This site is an amazing online resource and were all so lucky to be able to interact with other suffers through this great board.
If anybody has any questions at all about Accutane, or how I found it, then please do let me know I would love to help out!
All the best, there is a light at the end of the tunnel!
Tom.
so tom, what was your skin like before the doxy and differin? ive just started differin and was going to do lymecycline along side it. but i am also thinking just go straight to accutane, my acne is i would describe as persitently mild... it gets worse when i pick at it and i find the marks take forever to heal.
what would your advice be? should i continue differin and see how that goes? or am i damaging my skin more? i feel like i am trapped because i am too scared to do an anti biotic, i did 2 types when i was 19 etc and now i am 26...
so tom, what was your skin like before the doxy and differin? ive just started differin and was going to do lymecycline along side it. but i am also thinking just go straight to accutane, my acne is i would describe as persitently mild... it gets worse when i pick at it and i find the marks take forever to heal.
what would your advice be? should i continue differin and see how that goes? or am i damaging my skin more? i feel like i am trapped because i am too scared to do an anti biotic, i did 2 types when i was 19 etc and now i am 26...
Hi Jack,
I've tried most treatments and, in my experience, antibiotics work great for the first time around, but your body also builds up a resistance to them fairly quickly, leading your acne to come back worse than ever afterwards. Diffierin is very effective, but it takes ages to work (I started in November 2011, it was April 2012 until I saw a noticeable difference), and the side effects were, for me, actually worse than Accutane. It really dried my skin out and I burned instantly upo In being in the sun.
How long have you been on the Differin for and have you noticed any difference yet? If your acne is only mild, then lymecycline and differin should work really well, but bear in mind that it may come back afterwards.
I'm really glad I took accutane, but you couldn't say my acne was mild - personally, if I only had a few spots, I wouldn't take it because while the side effects aren't that bad, they are still noticeable. 6 months is a long to go with peeling lips and nose bleeds!
Red marks took ages to heal with me too - personally I used a mild exfoliator to help, but only do this when you've finished with the Differin.
I'd say it's up to you to decide how much acne is having upon your life and then perhaps mention accutane to your doctor to see what they think - they'll only put you on it if they think it's worth it!
Tom
(For what it's worth, this is my treatment history:
October 2009 - April 2011: Oxytetracycline. I was clear from February 2010 - October 2010, then the acne slowly came back.
April 2011 - May 2011: Lymecycline. I had to come off it due to the metalic taste side effect driving me around the bend.
May 2011 - November 2011: Natural stuff! Tried every diet and potion you can imagine, my acne got really really bad during this period.
November 2011 - June 2012: Doxycycline
November 2011 - December 2012: Differin. Worked really well with the above, completely cleared me up from the horrible summer of 2011 but, alas, all good things must come to an end. My acne slowly got worse (but not nearly as bad as it was) up until...
July 2013 - January 2014: Accutane. Finally, sorted!!)