A few weeks ago, I was binge watching a show on Netflix called Diagnosis. It’s a documentary series about a doctor who uses crowd-sourcing to help people with rare diseases find a diagnosis. At my last dermatology appointment for my five month check-up, I felt like one of these patients. My dermatologist took a look at me and said, “I think we might need to stop the Accutane. It looks like you have an abscess on your chin.” I had a really bad pimple pop up there a few days earlier. She drained the abscess and cultured it. And then put me on (once again) another strong antibiotic. Side note: one of the reasons I went on the Accutane was to try to avoid having to be on long-term oral antibiotics.

Leaving the office that day, I felt very defeated. My dermatologist decided to keep me on the Accutane for now, but she wanted me to see the head of the department of dermatology at MUSC. She basically said, I don’t know what else to do to help you.

But, that’s not the end of the story! I went home and obeyed doctor’s orders. I took my antibiotics and waited to hear from her with the culture results. It took a week and a half to get the results, thanks to Hurricane Dorian that pummeled the southeast. When she called me, she told me the culture was negative. Great news! And by that point, I hadn’t had any new breakouts on my face. I think I’ve finally turned the corner. I still have a lot of scarring on my face from the breakouts I’ve had the last few months, but I’m encouraged and hoping that things are looking up.

I have my appointment with the head of the department of dermatology tomorrow, so I’ll get to see what he says. If I learned anything from the Diagnosis documentary, it’s that two heads (or three or four) are better than one. If you’re ever unsure about your doctor’s advice or not sure they have the diagnosis right, seek a second opinion. Your doctors actually appreciate another doctor’s opinion.

One last thing: I don’t share a ton about my faith on this site, because I want this to be more about my medical journey, but A LOT of people have been praying for me through this journey. And I definitely think that helps too. In fact, I broke down one day at work. It’s hard to work in the medical field when you face is all broken out. I was feeling really down that day, and I told my co-worker how I was feeling. She prayed for me right there on the spot. I’m so thankful for friends that care about my struggles, even if they’re kind of silly.