Hello Friends!

Sorry it's been a while since I last posted an Accutane update. Family life has been keeping me busy with the holidays here, birthdays, and doctors visits... sooo many doctors visits. Thank the Lord our deductible is paid for the year!  I also lost track of where I was in sharing so I decided to round it up to my one month on Accutane.

Today does officially mark my first full month of being on Accutane. Actually, I should be a bit further along but I'll get into that in a second. I can't believe it's already been a month and at the same time I can't believe it's ONLY been a month!

I can't speak for others but for me it's been a roller coaster. My skin and self have had a few ups and downs and not all of it has been easy. The first few weeks were a breeze but as time went on I started experiencing aches and pains all over. I was warned of this and already knew I would totally get that side affect cause I already have neck pain...yea? It has been more unpleasant than I anticipated. For me I would describe the aches as a soreness you would feel the day after working out when you haven't worked out...ever. Only it never goes away. I also started getting headaches more often. Again, I'm already prone to headaches so this was pretty crippling for me. It affected my vision and there were days I didn't want to move or even speak. I've spent a great deal of time this past month in and out of doctors offices trying to work this out. Being a hypochondriac doesn't help me out either!!! It turns out I have tension migraines, I should have know that and the Accutane only aggravated them further. So after a long discussion with my dermatologist, she decided to give me a break from Accutane for a week to see if my headaches would go away. Which, thankfully they have. For the time being I will be doing only a half dose, instead of taking 30mg twice a day, I will only take it once a day. In the future that may change but for now I'm so relieved this was resolved. Apparently in Europe and everywhere other than the US Accutane is given in smaller amounts for longer time spans vs larger doses for shorter. Both give the exact same result only one is harder on the body.

Left: One week on Accutane. Right: One month - My skin is less swollen, red, tighter, smaller pores. and smoother.

Other negative side affects? Just really dry lips, that need constant moisturizing every 15-20 minutes. Dry eyes, I've woken up a few times feeling like my eyes were replaces with raisins. lol! My moods also seem to be all over the place. I'm pretty good about keeping them in check but it does get the best of me from time to time. I was warned about this side affect too. Thankfully I have an amazing hubby that has been patient the whole way through.

While I am far from the finish line I'm still staying positive about this medication. Despite this difficult set back, I can already see changes and it's been really encouraging. My skin is softer, my pores (which are very large) are greatly shrinking, and my acne breakouts are fewer (and smaller) everyday. When I do get a breakout it comes and goes as quickly as it came.

This one was quite wordy. I do try to keep my posts short. Hope this was helpful to anyone dealing with acne. I still completely recommend giving Accutane a try. Have any questions? Feel free to ask!

Take Care & Enjoy,
♥ Heather