The First Day

I’ve often told my husband that I wish it was common for women in America to wear burkas. No, I’m not ultra conservative, I just have adult acne. And I know my acne is not the worst case recorded in history, but for my fellow acne sufferers, you know how much it can affect your self-confidence. Hence, the burka comments. If I wore a burka, no one would notice the acne, and I’d be able to show off the one feature that I like- my beautiful, blue eyes.

It’s not just a cosmetic issue, but the acne is also pretty painful. In the past year, I’ve been diagnosed with a new kind of acne hell called pyoderma faciale (I guess it’s a fancy term for rosacea). It’s like I hit 30, and my body is like, “Oh you thought you had it bad, well let me show you what else I can do to you.”

So today I went to my dermatologist. This was after talking with my gastroenterologist and a dermatologist in Chapel Hill that specializes in another skin issue I’m dealing with (more about that later), and they approved me to go on isotretonoin (formerly known as Accutane). Isotretinoin has a bad rap. You absolutely cannot get pregnant on it, because it can cause severe birth defects. There are some other serious side effects. It can be really harsh on your body. But it’s my last resort. It’s either this or long-term antibiotics to keep my skin issues (not just acne) under control.

I really wanted to document my experience with isotretinoin for anyone thinking about going on it themselves. It’s one of the reasons that I’m willing to try it. I’ve seen a lot of success stories on the internet. So here’s to the first day. I’m calling this day one of my journey. I won’t be starting for another month, because I have to get another negative pregnancy test before starting the medication, but I’ll be updating as I go. I’ll also be telling more of my story along the way.