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Accutane or continue with Differin 6 months???

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(@nas777)

Posted : 10/28/2015 4:17 pm

hi, im 24 years old male, try a lot of diffirent things for my acne like Dan's regiment, salicylic acid, Benzoyl Peroxide 5%, water only cavemen regiment (the worst of all lol), etc.

I always had mild to moderate acne problem since im in a adult years (the acne really kick out when I was around 21). I dont think mine is hormonal, I believe is more a mixed of irritation, oily skin, stress, and most of all some bad products that left my face strip of is protection :(  

My current regiment for the last 6 months was benzoyl peroxide 2.5%/morning  (Dan's one) and Differin gel 0.3%/night 

now let me explain what my skin was looking like and now what happen.
BEFORE: I was having ALOT of scarring et hyper pigmentation (red marks) with the occasionnel break out here and there meanly because of irritation due to salicylic acid. 
RIGHT NOW: Since I started Differin 6 months ago, it was a hard journey at the beginning, and now just a very slow process. My skin definitely have improved. skin is much more soft, I dont really have closed comedeon or rarely, my skin is looking a little bit more even. I'd say I have a 50% improvement in my skin in general. 

BUT the thing is: My skin is way more oily, because I think that it is dehydrated of to harsh product (BP and Differin) so it produced way more sebum. My Hyperpigmentation are still there, maybe a little bit less red but still very noticeable. And to finish with, I still have some pimples, not alot but still like maybe 3 a months cystic type that take some time to flat out and always left me with a red mark -.- 

my question for you guys is simple, I went to my dermatologist today, and she told me a I have two choices: 1- Stay with my regiment and hoping that things get better OR 2- Go on ACCUTANE. 

I heard so much good of accutane and other scary stories. What to do??? I just want some opinion... Do you thing maybe differin will start kick in more ???

Thanks you in advanced 

 

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(@acnehardcase)

Posted : 10/28/2015 9:07 pm

When I was on differen my skin always had a greasy appearance.
I also rarely got blackheads.
after 6 months, there won't be much more improvement. You can continue with your treatment and eventually grow out of it. Accutane is amazing but it's a pain in the butt and very expensive in some instances.
I would say if it's scarring and worsening your quality of life, take accutane. If you can live with it and carry on a normal life, do the topicals.
i hope that helps

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(@chippy1)

Posted : 10/29/2015 4:40 am

hi, im 24 years old male, try a lot of diffirent things for my acne like Dan's regiment, salicylic acid, Benzoyl Peroxide 5%, water only cavemen regiment (the worst of all lol), etc.

I always had mild to moderate acne problem since im in a adult years (the acne really kick out when I was around 21). I dont think mine is hormonal, I believe is more a mixed of irritation, oily skin, stress, and most of all some bad products that left my face strip of is protection :(  

My current regiment for the last 6 months was benzoyl peroxide 2.5%/morning  (Dan's one) and Differin gel 0.3%/night 

now let me explain what my skin was looking like and now what happen.
BEFORE: I was having ALOT of scarring et hyper pigmentation (red marks) with the occasionnel break out here and there meanly because of irritation due to salicylic acid. 
RIGHT NOW: Since I started Differin 6 months ago, it was a hard journey at the beginning, and now just a very slow process. My skin definitely have improved. skin is much more soft, I dont really have closed comedeon or rarely, my skin is looking a little bit more even. I'd say I have a 50% improvement in my skin in general. 

BUT the thing is: My skin is way more oily, because I think that it is dehydrated of to harsh product (BP and Differin) so it produced way more sebum. My Hyperpigmentation are still there, maybe a little bit less red but still very noticeable. And to finish with, I still have some pimples, not alot but still like maybe 3 a months cystic type that take some time to flat out and always left me with a red mark -.- 

my question for you guys is simple, I went to my dermatologist today, and she told me a I have two choices: 1- Stay with my regiment and hoping that things get better OR 2- Go on ACCUTANE. 

I heard so much good of accutane and other scary stories. What to do??? I just want some opinion... Do you thing maybe differin will start kick in more ???

Thanks you in advanced 

 


I'm no expert but used 10% benzoyl peroxide (Panoxyl 10%) on and off for 20years...After using different antibiotics and creams/gels over that time I've got to a point where I'm fed up of putting so much on my skin and wanted to give my skin a rest from all those chemicals....I'm on week 6-7 of 20mg accutane a day and have already started producing less oil....I've had VERY oily skin and over active glands for 20+ years and taking accutane to help shrink my prones and contol the oily skin....I continued to use Panoxyl 10% during the first month of treatment as my Derm said to carry on doing my normal routine until the accutane starts to work and after about 4-5weeks I have been able to start reducing the amount of Panoxyl I use....I would say I'm now using just 20% of what I would normally put on each morning/evening as the accutane has started to reduce the oil I produce.....At my 6week appt last week, my Derm said that she expects the accutane to continue to dry out my skin, so hoping very soon to stop using Panoxyl completely....I've just been given another 3months of 20mg a day and dont go back to the Derm until Jan....I personally feel antibiotics/creams are good "temp" fixes but at some point your body will build up a resistance to the antibiotic......accutane is not an antibiotic so will not have the same issues....Important for you to do your research and read as much as you can about accutane but I would recommend it. Maybe try a low dose treatment at first and see how you get on....best wishes

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(@andrei11)

Posted : 10/29/2015 5:48 am

check out my log, I'm in the same boat as you are and I wish I started taking Accutane years ago.

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(@nas777)

Posted : 10/29/2015 9:32 am

When I was on differen my skin always had a greasy appearance.
I also rarely got blackheads.
after 6 months, there won't be much more improvement. You can continue with your treatment and eventually grow out of it. Accutane is amazing but it's a pain in the butt and very expensive in some instances.
I would say if it's scarring and worsening your quality of life, take accutane. If you can live with it and carry on a normal life, do the topicals.
i hope that helps

yes itdefinitely affect my quality of life on a daily base. The ONLY hope I have withDifferin, is that I read a couple time that retinoid cream can take 6 months to a full year before you can see the full results. Im not sure if its true but I know that its kind of rare to find some people that took differin for more than 1 year....... hmmm still thinking...... Im very scared about the hair loss for accutane because my father is kind of bald but only start to really lost his hair around 35 years old for no reason (he didn't took accutane btw).

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(@kunus999)

Posted : 10/29/2015 10:21 am

Stick with differin. The problem is in the deeper layers of skin, not on the surface, so let the retinoid clear your skin from the inside. I didin't expirenced initial breakout for 2.5 MONTHS. It started slowly in the first week of 3 month. Now Im on my 4 month of Differin, and my skin begins to slowly regenerate (yet I still have some clogged pores that I see through the skin - guess like I need to give it more time, and exfoliate my skin so retinoid will push all the debris on the surface) Someone said that retinoids make you purge 10% every month, and I think that's true. If you don't suffer from major side effects from Differin (like swelling, super red face, constant peeling) it will work eventually. Just be gentle with your skin, stay hydrated, use sunblock and don't lose hope, good luck!

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(@acnehardcase)

Posted : 10/29/2015 12:31 pm

If hair loss runs in the family then I seriously doubt accutane will change your chances. I think that your dermatologist is offering you accutane because he or she understands the limits of the topicals.
kunus999 is mostly right about the problem being skin deep. Accutane and hormonal treatments (for women only) are the only drugs that can reduce the amount of oil you produce. Oral antibiotics kill bacteria and reduce inflammation. All of the topicals are limited to killing bacteria, drying out your skin, and improving the way your skin sheds dead skin cells (unclogging pores). Accutane does it all faster and more permanently then all the others combined.
My story is not that different than yours. I had teenage breakouts then my skin went crazy at age nineteen. Despite my limited success with antibiotics and topicals, it wasn't enough.It was worth it for me and many other people on this forum to take accutane. You'll have reach that decision on your own.

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(@nas777)

Posted : 10/29/2015 1:50 pm

If hair loss runs in the family then I seriously doubt accutane will change your chances. I think that your dermatologist is offering you accutane because he or she understands the limits of the topicals.
kunus999 is mostly right about the problem being skin deep. Accutane and hormonal treatments (for women only) are the only drugs that can reduce the amount of oil you produce. Oral antibiotics kill bacteria and reduce inflammation. All of the topicals are limited to killing bacteria, drying out your skin, and improving the way your skin sheds dead skin cells (unclogging pores). Accutane does it all faster and more permanently then all the others combined.
My story is not that different than yours. I had teenage breakouts then my skin went crazy at age nineteen. Despite my limited success with antibiotics and topicals, it wasn't enough.It was worth it for me and many other people on this forum to take accutane. You'll have reach that decision on your own.

I totally agree with what your are saying and probably the best option for my acne will beaccutane. I will do my blood test tomorrow and then wait for the results. I think it can take like a month to have the results and the prescription, I live in Canada so the good news is that Accutane is free here.

What do you mean by "i seriously doudt accutane will change your chances?"

Like I know when im gonna be around 35 years old, I will probably start to lose some hair like my father, but now im 24 and I dont want to lose them right now because of accutane you know.

Stick with differin. The problem is in the deeper layers of skin, not on the surface, so let the retinoid clear your skin from the inside. I didin't expirenced initial breakout for 2.5 MONTHS. It started slowly in the first week of 3 month. Now Im on my 4 month of Differin, and my skin begins to slowly regenerate (yet I still have some clogged pores that I see through the skin - guess like I need to give it more time, and exfoliate my skin so retinoid will push all the debris on the surface) Someone said that retinoids make you purge 10% every month, and I think that's true. If you don't suffer from major side effects from Differin (like swelling, super red face, constant peeling) it will work eventually. Just be gentle with your skin, stay hydrated, use sunblock and don't lose hope, good luck!

yeah I will stick with it for a month, maybe 2, till I get myaccutane prescription. If I stop having the 3 cyst a month, then I will just stick with differin. But its already been 6 months, so well will see at 7 or 8 months.

But dont get me wrong, I think that differin really did a good job for what he is supposed to do. I know I'll probably have better results if my cleanser didn't strip my skin that much every time I'll wash my face. It fucking sucks because I know my face is kind of dehydrated (really oily but feels tight and little bit dry), and every time I try a different cleanser (more gentle), I got some clog pore 4-5 days later..... ARGHHHHHH
Its like every foaming cleanser is to drying right now, but when I used one for dry skin, I break out in some clog pores.

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(@kunus999)

Posted : 10/29/2015 2:19 pm

maybe try going off differin for like 1 week or less, and focus on treating your skin very gently with just a moisturaizer? Even though I am on my 4 month, when I put too much Differin on my face I will most likely experience some irriation and overproduction of sebum because of dryness, so I take a 2-3 days break from it, and it helps.

I am using this cleanser: "La Roche Posay, Effaclar, Puryfing Foaming Gel" (I'm from Poland and it's quite popular here, not sure about your country) and it's great, maybe it dries my skin a little bit, so I use just a small amount. Good luck!

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(@acnehardcase)

Posted : 10/29/2015 4:16 pm

What I meant was that hair loss is hereditary and basically inevitable. I don't think accutane will change that. I would just deal with whatever complications if any as they happen. Lip and skin dryness is temporary for almost everyone. You'll never know until you try

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