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End of accutane with pics, side effects, and what i used

MemberMember
2
(@currydesuu)

Posted : 02/12/2016 2:27 am

I'm here at the end of the SIX MONTHS OF MY JOURNEY!! Wow!! I'm so proud to finally be finished! It was a long journey but I'm finally FINALLY done.
now here comes the story, along with side effects, what I used, and everything in between. I am sure it will help those looking forward to it and those with severe nodul acne as myself.

ive had acne since intermediate school. (Right after elementary) it got progressively worse, and the fact my mom taught me how to pop pimples only made it worse. Anyways, I eventually learned decent hygiene, but it still seemed to be getting worse and worse! I didn't know what was going on. The pimples were getting bigger, producing in the same area in clusters. It started on my forehead, then my cheeks, and then down to my jawline which you will see in the pictures. It hurt when I lay my head on the pillow, and waking up to find blood on the pillow. The feeling of itchiness during the day, and randomly bleeding throughout the day also. During my highschool life I LITERALLY. TRIED. EVERYTHING. Dieting, exercise, every acne drug store brand (including proactive), derm prescribed topical treatments (retinal and plenty others), antibiotics, birth control, you name it. Washed, acne creams, moisturizer morning and night, blotting pads, and it never got better. I finally gave up and two years later I got a job at a skincare company called Origins. I was so embarrassed of my skin, I went to a new derm. She had almost a thousand five star reviews and I thought why not. I made sure to write a list of what i used before I went to my appointment. When she took a look at my list and my skin, she said I was going on Accutane. She described it as a cure for acne. I was just like ??? Why wasn't I told this before?? She said derms seem to don't like to prescribe it because of risks and side effects but explained it all for me in a calm manner. I obviously thought it was all worth it. I signed the papers and started it. 80mg per day. Im around 200 pounds (female) and 5'6''. My weight has nothing to do with my acne also because i lost a great deal of weight and nothing changed. (and it started when i was little). Within the first month I already noticed a great reduction in the swelling of my face and pimples. 3 months in and I could barely take the bone pain. I couldn't even walk in the morning. I would limp everywhere and couldn't stand for a long period of time at work. I also developed hard stool which caused hemorrhoids that lasted for two months. It was my fault for waiting to treat it though. It took two packs of capsules to heal. Also my anxiety levels went through the roof. I have an old background of severe anxiety which I suppressed with meds and therapy, and when it came back I was so scared!! I was having panic attacks and could barely function. I told my doctor of all this and for the last three months I was lowered to 70mg then 60mg. No more bone pain, hard stool, and anxiety. I felt so free. The acne was gone by month 3 or 4 completely and my scars were healing so fast too! I did get a cluster of little non-acne bumps on my face on month 4 but my derm thought it was just exzema related. Also the basic side effects like dry lips and skin. I used to have really oily skin too and now its dry/normal. Now that I am done, i have developed a rash on the back of boths of my hands that DONT itch but hurt. My doctor explained it was an exzema flare up from the medicine and prescribed a topical steroid. Its going away super quick.

All in all, it sounds crazy and scary, but was SOOOO SOOO SOOOOOOOO worth it. My confidence improved VASTLY, the pain i endured on my face and self confidence for YEARS went away, and i dont feel like an ugly monster anymore, and it also doesnt hurt when family kiss my cheeks. All of my side effects were treatable, and not scary in the least (except the anxiety, but that was treatable too). I just CANT believe this worked. years and years ive dealt with this.... it feels like a miracle. 

Now onto the products i used. 
Face: origins face cleansing oil (for dry skin) or frothy face wash (very basic)
M.A.D. cream (for really dry skin)
Aquaphor for my lips (otherwise they would crack)
and drank lots of water.

As for the blood tests, everything was normal throughout my treatment, my lipids were a little  high but my derm told me it was completely normal for people on accutane and wouldnt hurt me at all. She said my liver was just fine. Also I asked her if i could drink alcohol- she said yes but as long as im not abusing it. I drank and my tests were just fine. I cant really think of anything else to say about my journey, but that IT WAS AMAZING!!! Im so excited to start my life now.
 

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MemberMember
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(@delovely)

Posted : 02/12/2016 10:41 am

WOW!!!!! Amazing results!!!!!! I am so happy for you!!!!!
Thanks for sharing your accutane success story with our community. And for leaving nothing out...people need to know what can happen on this drug, but sounds like it was all worth it!!!!

Best wishes for continued success!!!!! :)

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MemberMember
2
(@currydesuu)

Posted : 02/12/2016 4:10 pm

It definitely was!! And I made sure to leave nothing out because I know when I started it I had tons of questions and none were never really answered in detail. So I made sure to include absolutely everything! :) and thanks! 

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