I've had acne for quite a number of years now and have tried many over the counter products with no success. I took Doxycycline for three months from Dec - March, my skin was 100% clear but the acne came back almost as soon as I stopped (frustrating, I know). My acne in real life is much more worse/red than it appears in photos.
I've been on Estelle and Epiduo for four week now.
Products I am using:
- Estelle-35
- Epiduo (adapalene and benzoyl peroxide) Gel 0.1%/2.5%
- Cetaphil Derma Control Oil Control Moisturizer SPF 30
- Cetaphil Gentle Skin Cleanser
- Garnier Miracle Skin Perfector BB Cream Oil-Free
- Face of Australia Translucent Loose Powder
- Other non-comedogenic makeup products
Day 1
Day 3
My skin has gone from extremely oily to extremely dry. The skin around my nose/mouth is flaking off and I'm having trouble hiding it, even when wearing foundation. It stings for around an hour after I apply Epiduo and moisturizer. My skin is red and itchy. Boo.
Day 8
Little to no flaking of skin, no stinging when applying Epiduo or moisturizer. I'm using a BB cream daily to cover up my acne and it's doing a good job. Skin looks better already but I have more white heads, especially on my forehead. There are a few spots on my back - I think it is because of Estelle because I never get back acne. I am already feeling some of the side effects of Estelle, breast tenderness being one of them. I'm also experiencing dry eyes at some times during the day. I hope these side effects will go away soon.
Day 9
Millions of tiny little white heads/bumps are popping up everywhere on my face, but particularly my upper cheeks and my forehead. It feels absolutely disgusting but luckily they are so small that they are not noticeable. I'm not uploading a photo because it doesn't show up on the camera. I really hope the white heads will dissappear soon because right now my skin literally feels like sandpaper.
Day 12
My skin looks horrible. I have so many white bumps on my face (not sure if they are white heads, they are not painful nor covered by skin. I can't really explain. A few of them can be seen in my photo). My face looks worse than how it was a few days ago, my acne is very red and I refuse to leave the house without foundation/BB cream. I still have my hopes up though, it has only been 12 days.
Day 21
I AM SO HAPPY. I'm now on my second white pill of the first pack! My skin looks a lot better compared to my last entry. I woke up too late this morning, had no time to apply any sort of BB cream/foundation so I left the house with only a layer of moisturizer, light eye liner and mascara. I used to be so self conscious that if I left the house without foundation, I would avoid eye contact, and whenever I saw someone looking at me i'd think they're looking at my acne! I didn't experience that problem today. Overall, I felt quite confident. The tiny white heads are starting to disappear too, but there are still some on my forehead. My boobs are no longer sore either.
Woops. I think I spoke too soon. My skin is not as clear as my last progress image but I guess it's not too bad. Definitely better than day 1. My skin has gone back to being extremely oily though and it is very frustrating because now I need to deal with the shine on my face as well as the peeling skin caused by Epiduo. I finally gave in and used my Neutrogena Grapefruit Acne Scrub (which I used before starting Epiduo). I know it is not recommended to use salicylic acid along with benzyl peroxide treatment but the peeling on my skin was so unbearable that I had to give it a try. It worked.
Your acne and pigmentation look similar to what I had! I'm still struggling with the residual hyperpigmentation, but I've been on Diane 35 (Estelle is the same thing right?) for 9 months now and it's cleared me up! The first 5 months were a roller coaster ride for me, but I think I took especially long 'cause I started off with the generic one before switching to brand name, plus I have pretty stubborn skin.
Good luck 
! And I also have sore boobs, even after all this time. They did grow a lot though 
Thank you so much for this because it gives me hope lol! I'd prefer not to take birth control pills long term because i'm not sexually active at the moment, but I don't see many other options since I am pretty sure my acne is hormonal. I'm going back to my dermatologist mid June (earlier appointment I could get...) so hopefully she can recommend some other things. I'm pretty depressed right now though because my face seems worse than how it started off and i'm also getting acne on the side of my neck/under my ears and a few on my back. Ew!
Your acne and pigmentation look similar to what I had! I'm still struggling with the residual hyperpigmentation, but I've been on Diane 35 (Estelle is the same thing right?) for 9 months now and it's cleared me up! The first 5 months were a roller coaster ride for me, but I think I took especially long 'cause I started off with the generic one before switching to brand name, plus I have pretty stubborn skin.
Good luck ! And I also have sore boobs, even after all this time. They did grow a lot though
Thank you so much for this because it gives me hope lol! I'd prefer not to take birth control pills long term because i'm not sexually active at the moment, but I don't see many other options since I am pretty sure my acne is hormonal. I'm going back to my dermatologist mid June (earlier appointment I could get...) so hopefully she can recommend some other things. I'm pretty depressed right now though because my face seems worse than how it started off and i'm also getting acne on the side of my neck/under my ears and a few on my back. Ew!
Your acne and pigmentation look similar to what I had! I'm still struggling with the residual hyperpigmentation, but I've been on Diane 35 (Estelle is the same thing right?) for 9 months now and it's cleared me up! The first 5 months were a roller coaster ride for me, but I think I took especially long 'cause I started off with the generic one before switching to brand name, plus I have pretty stubborn skin.
Good luck
Any time girl! And I hear ya. I'm taking the pill for contraception and acne, but in a few years I'd like to have kids so it's not something I want to stay on long term. Have you considered spiro maybe? And yeah the initial break out kinda sucks. 
Just barrel through it and hopefully you'll see results!
Ty sosososososoos much. It's only been 20 days and my skin has improved so much! I've uploaded new photos. Hopefully this will last.
Thank you so much for this because it gives me hope lol! I'd prefer not to take birth control pills long term because i'm not sexually active at the moment, but I don't see many other options since I am pretty sure my acne is hormonal. I'm going back to my dermatologist mid June (earlier appointment I could get...) so hopefully she can recommend some other things. I'm pretty depressed right now though because my face seems worse than how it started off and i'm also getting acne on the side of my neck/under my ears and a few on my back. Ew!
Your acne and pigmentation look similar to what I had! I'm still struggling with the residual hyperpigmentation, but I've been on Diane 35 (Estelle is the same thing right?) for 9 months now and it's cleared me up! The first 5 months were a roller coaster ride for me, but I think I took especially long 'cause I started off with the generic one before switching to brand name, plus I have pretty stubborn skin.
Good luck ! And I also have sore boobs, even after all this time. They did grow a lot though!
Any time girl! And I hear ya. I'm taking the pill for contraception and acne, but in a few years I'd like to have kids so it's not something I want to stay on long term. Have you considered spiro maybe? And yeah the initial break out kinda sucks. Just barrel through it and hopefully you'll see results!
Day 63
It has been so long since I last updated. The Epiduo and Estelle are really helping and my acne is better than ever. I still get occasional flare ups but it usually dries up within a day or two. I still experience flaking of skin around my nose but I see no peeling other than that. My skin feels more sensitive than usual and I have to be very careful when wiping my face with a washtowel or it will burn/hurt slightly.
In case you can't tell, left is day 1, and right is day 63.