Beverly L. Held, MD

I have had acne since I was 9 years old. It started on my forehead and by the time I was a teen it progressed to acne rosacea. When I was 22 I finally could afford to go to a dermatologist and she put me on Solodyn which was great for about a year, but my acne came back with a vengeance. I was given clindamycin and finacea topicals which did nothing for me. Then I was put on some other antibiotics for a few years which didn't do anything for me either. Finally my dermatologist said it's time to move to the big dogs. I am 27, still living with cysts around my jaw, neck, cheek area, which she stated is hormonal acne. The "isotretinoin" treatment was 5 months for me. It took a month for me to get a government i.d number, and being a female I had to pass a pregnancy test, so during that month she put me on more antibiotics so the purge wouldn't be severe. 1st month was 40mg a day, with a small steroid for the purge, then she bumped me up to 40mg twice a day for the last 4 months. It has been a roller coaster ride of changes. Everything dries out. Everything. My eyes, my ears, my nose, my vagina. I can go a week without washing my hair, I can wake up with the same makeup as the night prior and it look just as perfect. I'd wake up with lips so chapped they would bleed. Boogers in my eyes from being so dry. Nose bleeds. Vaseline and castor oil became my best friends. It worked. Accutane worked. It takes alot of patience. But I'm so glad that for now, I am done. I am going to be put on retin-a to really smooth out any little acne scars I have left. But accutane has really changed my life. Updated on 25 Feb 2018: It's been a little over a year that I stopped taking Accutane. Side effects, muscle twitching. Everywhere, all day everyday. It's really strange. My primary care gives me medicine for muscle spasms because it's really annoying but I am just living with it. Skin is still clear but I am also on Retin-A .08% and it's pretty pricey. When I go a few days without using it I do get some artificial little pimples but nothing compared to the cysts I used to get.