Life Saver - Olney, MD

I had acne since about sixth grade. Although it was relatively minor , it had a big toll on my confidence. I never EVER skipped washing my face, so I thought it was pretty unfair that I got acne while some of my friends had glowing skin and didn't have to try. By the time I reached the spring of my junior year, things took a turn for the worse. I don't know if it was because of stress or just my genetics, but my skin was worse than anything I've ever seen before. I had massive cysts all over my face, especially on my cheeks. I never got cysts before that, and I never got acne on my cheeks either, so I got very concerned. I had tried a whole range of acne medicines, from drug store acne kits to prescription medicines from my dermatologist. I could tell that everyone noticed the huge difference in my skin, it was so bad. I even heard that one boy was openly making fun of my terrible case of cystic acne. I was scared to try accutane when my derm first started talking about it, especially because of the whole birth defects thing. Ive always wanted to have a lot of children, and heard some rumor about the effect of it on children. None of this is true. The most important thing before you start accutane is to not go online and scare yourself. it is a miracle drug. Yes, there are some experiences that are bad, but they are super rare.
Anyways...
So I started my first pack of accutane in April. Getting on accutane is so hard for girls because of all the pregnancy tests you have to take, but it is worth it. The first two-three months were very hard for me. I broke out very badly and my cysts got worse. I had, at one point, a cyst the width of a golf ball. my lips were terrible and I couldn't stop peeling them. I got joint pain and some arthritis I think. My make up couldn't even hide it. Fortunately, though, the height of my acne occurred right before the beginning of summer. The last day of school, I bid farewell to my classmates and kinda hid out all summer (btw wear sun screen! some peoples acne scars get worse in the sun). I took a college class and did a lot of studying all summer. I hung out with my close friends, since they were super understanding of the situation, but didn't want anyone else to see how bad it was getting. July is when things started to look up. My cysts smoothed out completely on my face. By the time august came around, I didn't have any cysts on my face, but I had some on my back. I started birth control in early September to help regulate my hormones and aid the accutane (Seasonell, which only gives your FOUR periods a year!!!), and it made me gain a little weight (I went from 105 to 110 in a couple of weeks, but it mainly goes to your boobs), but it did help with the acne, and I know it will help regulate my skin when I get off it. Going back to school was a great experience for me. I got all these compliments on how much my skin had improved, and some people seemed completely shocked. I have about 9 days left on accutane, and it was the best choice I ever made. My skin is completely smooth (it made even my hands/legs smooth!) and my face and back are clear. I'm using stretch mark cream (mederma) and clinique "Even Better" to help with the scaring/red marks, and they are awesome!! I have a little zit I think on my shoulder and something microscopic by my left eye thats almost gone, but other than that, my skin is nearly perfect. I never break out anymore and I'm just so happy all the time now. The only side effect I have right now is a little bit of lip dryness and some eye dryness, but that'll soon go away once I get off accutane. I finally like looking in the mirror. Nothing worked for me before, and I was so miserable with my life. People might warn you about being depressed on accutane, but many people become depressed because of their acne before accutane. I have heard from plenty of people that it took away that constant depressed feeling and they finally felt happy with their lives again. TAKE ACCUTANE. It will change your life!