Hello hello everyone! Well, it's the ned of week three and there's absolutely NOTHING good to report. I thought it couldn't get any worse than last week, well this week blew last week outta the water! I have never in my life has acne this bad, it is terribly devastating really. Nothing cystic, just SCABS all over my face. I mean...it's like mosquito bites that you've scratched and scratched til they bleed, except they're on my face. They're even itchy and I can;t keep my hands off of them. It's a really bad cycle, I've got to leave them alone or they're never going to get better. I'm telling you, this is not easy, not that I expected it to be, but this is crazy! I wouldn't even go to Walmart with my mother tonight because I refuse to be seen in public looking like this. Tomorrow is my 20th birthday, and I'll be spending it at home, not seeing anyone that I don't have to. Oh well, I guess every day is one day gone, one day closer to the end of this experience. As for the side effects besides these massive scabs on my face, they're not so bad really. I have a few random scabs on my arms, and one perfectly round, loonie sized reddish dry spot near my armpit, but neither of these are itchy so I don't care. My nose is completely messed up, not with acne, but with this sunburn-like peeling that leaves the skin underneath raw to the point of oozing (If you get sunburned like me, you'll know what I'm talking about.) It is the worst to try to cover up with makeup, hence me not going to Walmart tonight. Of course there's the dry scalp, eyes, and nose, but the lips are the worst. They actually have little raw cuts at the bottom corners. OUCH! I only had one nosebleed, but it was minor, and strangely enough, the rest of my body seems to be doing well in terms or moisture. I had slightly dry skin to begin with, but so far, it's only my face that's taking the abuse. I did start taking vitamin E though, hopefully it helps.
Oh, to top this off, I don't have a dermatologist. I forgot to mention this in my first week. My general practitioner prescribed this drug to me, and it was the first time I'd ever met him! The story: it's impossible to get a doctor where I live, and so it took us two and a half years to even find a doctor to take us (we moved here three years ago). The doctors are all so overworked because of the shortage, that they really don't care much, especially this guy. It's really a sad situation, but anywho, back to the story...I went to him for a routine physical and asked him to refer me to a dermatologist. He said he would, and I asked him for something to tide me over until I could get into the derm. He asked me what I'd already tried, I gave him the long long list, and he prescribed Accutane right then and there, no if's and's or but's. And I was expecting some silly topical cream! He then proceeds to tell me that since this is what the derm would do anyway, that he didn't need to refer me to one. So here I am, stranded in skin hell without a derm, and with a useless doc. The people at his office are so burnt that when I went in for my two week blood test, I asked the nurse when I needed to come back and she told me "I don't know, but people on ACETONE usually come in every month or so." hahahaha ACETONE?!? Yeah, so now I'm really scared, rightly so I believe, but I'm sure I'll get through this. I refuse to stop the pills and wait for a derm appointment, especially after this "initial breakout" I really don't need to endure another one in three months. Anywho, good luck to all, sorry about the length of this update but I needed to vent. Feels good! Oh, and I've decided that I HATE Cetaphil moisturizer...it leaves my face all goopy and sticky all of a sudden. If anyone out there knows of something else I should try, please e-mail me at [email protected]. Thanks guys...lotsa luv! ~Katie |
