Well thanks for the positivity...

I'm sorry to hear it didn;t work for you, although some people do need a second course! Perhaps it's something to consider?

I'm considering it, but the dermatologist won't put me right back on it unless a couple of months have passed and the topicals don't work.

I'm going to start using Differin and Duac like I used to before I got on accutane. I've heard topicals work better once Uve done a course.

The problem is that my insurance expires in December and I am not looking forward to the whole ordeal.

Accutane has a physical toll on your body (which I'm sure you will notice towards the very end of your course), so I'm not super excited about starting a second course.

What I'm using for my redness:

Im sorry that just sucks

Im finishing up my 6th mnth and ive never been clear but im throwing in the towel

how long did u stay clear?

I hope the topicals work for you

My Dr is going to put me on topicals 3-4 weeks after my course

IF that doesnt work im going to try spiro or bcp..not doing tane again..evvverrrrr

Have u tried a different moisturizer

are these the ing

http://www.cosdna.com/eng/cosmetic_455150295.html

there are a few red flag ing that could be causing issues for problemtatic skin

ive learned tane doesnt mean u can use anything on your skin

when i try topicals i plan to ask for atralin

its a gentle retin-a with some kind of acid (forget the name/spelling) to add moisture hydrating

u may not need a sep moisturizer..less ing and products to worry about

GL!

Kim

The eucrin nigh redness cream hasnt helped me at all and it has almost finished.

I used a hyorolic acid cream before that which was awesome so I'll go back to it.

Currently I'm using the Skinceuticals heavily.

I actually didn't fill out my prescription in the 7day period and I got locked out of the system. I was without accutane for 2 weeks. I got a pimple.

Now I'm completing my last month....

Why Accutane is not as powerful anymore?

I keep reading more posts about having breakouts as soon as stopping it.

I took only a 4 month course once and it kept me clear for about 2 -3 years, but sure using topical benzoyl peroxide treatment as soon as my face could could handle some irritation.

And I agree with the poster who says that going off Accutane doesn't mean that using anything on the face is ok .

I know people need to moisturize with heavy moisturizer while on Accutane, but I think asking the dermatologist for advice could be a good thing.

Also , I took Accutane before everything came to light about the harmful side effects, so, sometimes I wonder if the drug is not that powerful anymore, but that is what I think.

Take care

I was using aquaphor at night and cerave during the day while I was on my course. Coconut oil on the body. Cerave Sunscreen on sunny days, but I was never really exposed to the sun.

In addition to them I started using all the other moisturizers to start treating the redness towards the end of my treatment. I still have 1 month left.

Sorry to scare you guys, but 2 weeks of being locked out of the Accutane system and only moisturizing (no topicals) showed me that I can easily form a tiny pimple. It wasn't a nasty cyst or a pus filled one, it was like a clogged pore/white head, so it's not that bad....and it was only 1 in 2 weeks....I used to get serious pimples like every other day.....

I love Accutane and I want to get on a 2nd course so badly, but my hands, knees and back are already hurting as if I'm developing arthritis. You will see. I didn't believe it'll happen to me either.

I'm actually considering more expensive treatments down the road when I'll loose my insurance, like the blue light treatment with the Levulan cream. Right now Accutane costs me only $40 (the doctor's visit, the lab-work and the medication) per month, while Levulan would cost me about $400 per treatment, which is usually done once a month and 3 treatments are enough to put you in remission for at least 6 months. Without insurance Accutane costs like $2,000.

But before I go down the road of expensive treatments, I'll keep seeing my doctor regularly to stack up on Differin and Duac (and maybe other gels as well). Whatever she recommends.

I think the cheapest and most effective way of treating my acne is through diet. It's actually the hardest treatment to adhere to.

GL

I was going for hydrafacials a bit which run from $100-$150 depending on your area

Its a facial with NO extractions

use suction to get the gunk out than the blue and red light

I wish I stuck with going once a mnth but when my skin started acting up badly was too ashamed

but my skin was awesome for 2 weeks after

think light def helped

gl

kim

Hm, interesting, i'll consider it. But a facial every month for a year is 1800 (i live in NY). If I do Levulan I'll pay only $1200 a year, maybe $1600 if I really need the 4th treatment as a touch up months later.

Levulan has given many people great results though, so I really want to give it a try over facials. I should have tried it years ago when it was offered to me, but I found it to be too expensive.....and they say money can't buy happiness.

That's the cream that gave me a lot of plumpness and very rested look, even when I haven't slept enough:

http://www.drugstore.com/products/prod.asp?pid=87778&catid=182924&aid=338666&aparam=87778&kpid=87778&CAWELAID=120142990000043044&CAGPSPN=pla&kpid=87778

That def makes more sense

the facials you would need to continue

I would give it a hot also!

I live in Northern NJ..about 30min outside NYC

Kim

CRAZY I had that creme in my hands today!!!

so afraid what to do/try

the vanicream lite moisturizer I am using isnt hydrating enough

always so scared to try anything new

Kim

Oh my God, girl, give it a try. The ingredients are safe, I even bought one for my mom for Mother's Day.

Levulan is super powerful though, it actually is used for photodamaged skin and precancerous formings too........... It's a really strong solution to the acne problem.

Id put it in the category of Accutane, though it works superficially, not from the inside out. It's like a nuclear bomb as your face reddens from the burning sensation, but it heals so nicely as the time goes by.

I live on Long Island and here everything is so expensive

I feel you man currently on my 3rd course. Not sure what I'm gonna do if I have to take a 4th... Not a good feeling.

Im guessing you are taking supplements for the joints

I'm pretty much done with Accutane and now Im focusing on maintaining a vegan and gluten-free diet along with regular exercise, vitamins, enough sleep and having a more optimistic outlook on life in general. I tried doing this before and while I was on Accutane, but I was never able to be completely strict and abide perfectly.

Accutane helped me so much to get to where I am today. It was a neccessary emergency solution to a big problem and now I can try to go the natural route again WITHOUT the frustration

I hope my skin stays the way it is right now, but if my efforts are not enough I will get on a 2nd course.

GL keep us posted

Im in Norther NJ so I feel your pian as far as living in a costly area

I cant imagine agreeing to go on a second course of tane

Im only 3 weeks off now but the thought makes me shiver

seeing new derm hpefully this week to ge another post tane opinion/regimen

GL

kim

I got more Accutane from my last appointment!

I am going to go over the max range limit by a little bit, but they said it's OK because I was a more serious case.

I'm so pleased that I'm getting all the medication possible. Yay to another month of accutane.

Lately I've been using my concealer as a foundation a lot as there is so much redness and I don't even have to use blush.

The redness is fading but at a very slow rate and there's nothing to be done about the scars. Hydration, nutrition, exercise and moisturizers/seruma go a long way to make the uneven skin texture less noticeable, but nothing can mask/hide the scars.

They'll be there unless I get under the knife/needle.

TANNING.

I am probably one of the palest people in my town right now and I'm not even Irish.

Accutane has made me very cautious of the sun, so I am rarely if ever exposed and when that happens I have 50 SPF.

PROBLEM: I'm so pale that it doesn't look natural especially now over the summer.

I need to get a self tanner- any recomendations? I'm so afraid I'll break out, but there is only 1 way to find out and I'm willing to take the risk.

I'm also willing to have Mystic Spray tan done, but even though its ingredients are supposedly "safe" Im still suspicious it'll break me out/clog my pores.

Any advice?

Thanks!!!

I got 2 affordable self tanning gels, one of which is waterproof.

Quick update on my vegan diet... It's been a long journey until I got to the point of eating mostly uncooked organic "clean", vegan, gluten-free and obviously dairy-free diet, but I did it........ I really hope this will be the last thing I have to do in my life for my acne.

Oh, I forgot to mention I run every day, take supplements and a couple of days ago I started having a cup of green tea in the AM. Maybe I should also start drinking only bottled water instead of filtering tap water... And there goes the hole in my wallet.

The struggle is real.

Last dr. Appointment regarding accutane is approaching. I wonder what she'll prescribe me for maintenance. Any suggestions?

I was going to ask for duac and Differin.

My doc put me on epiduo. It dries quickly and it's not irritating. I use it once a day in the morning.

The problem is that when I start sweating at the gym while I'm running my skin gets a little itchy and it makes me feel uncomfortable. That's what it used to happen when I was using Duac. Both creams have benzoyl peroxide which is known for those side effects.

I will see if washing my face with a gentle face wash before my workouts does the trick.

PS I broke my diet for 2 weeks and didn't work out, so I hope I don't have any pimples coming up in the following 2 months (one of my old derms told me that it takes 2 months for a pimple to form).

You could always switch to a retinoid to avoid the itchies. Not a fan of BP for that same reason.

I'll ask her next time. Epiduo contains a retinoids and benzoyl peroxide, But the retinoids don't kill the bacteria, they only exfoliate your face, so I need to substitute BP's effects with another less invasive product.

I have used a BP wash/soap in the past, so I am thinking to ask her to prescribe me that... I want to keep my routine simple.

Currently I am using CeraVe face wash 2x/day and CeraVe moisturizer (at night). I use the green Skinceuticals serum in the morning for the redness.