I really want to spread the word about my treatment because I lived with the nightmare of acne for YEARS and feel that no one should have to suffer. Sometimes the remedies can be worse than the acne itself.

My story: My acne started when I was 15 and lasted until I was about 31. I'm 35 now and have had totally clear glowing skin for the last 4 years. I never thought it would be possible. Some years were worse than others but I never thought I would be totally rid of this horror that had taken over my life to the point where I avoided situations like bright lighting, pools, daytime events, etc because of how insecure it made me. I would cake the foundation on every day which probably made it even worse. I had tried everything from antibiotics to benzoyl peroxide, retin-A, adapalene gels, Proactiv, and even 2 rounds of Accutane.

Forget the topical creams and gels, they just irritated my skin and made it red and itchy but never really helped to reduce the acne in any effective way. The antibiotics probably suppressed the acne somewhat, but the cost was worse that the benefit because it gave me terrible candida. Proactiv; just no.

The only thing that had "seemed" to work for me was when I was 18 a dermatologist finally put me on a round of Accutane. But to get on and stay on Accutane is very difficult because many doctors are afraid to prescribe it because of the extreme side effects and you must do monthly blood testing to continue getting your script filled which can be time consuming. I was on the typical dose of 20mg per day for 4 months (they wanted to up me to 40 but I couldn't handle more). For the first 2 weeks my body underwent an adjustment period where my skin became dry and cracky and my bones literally hurt. Also the clogged oil becomes hard and then pushes through. But by the last month I had clear skin. I did suffer the side effects such as hair loss, joint pain, dry and cracking and peeling skin and lips, etc. After the 4 month cycle ended the doctor took me off and I was clear for maybe 3 months. But then it all came back again. I suffered for many more years trying all sorts of different things. Then I went on another round of Accutane. This time the side effects were even worse than the first time - too painful that I couldn't continue so I stopped again. Suffered more years.

Then I read something online about using Accutane differently. The actual name of the medicine is isotretinoin, Accutane is just the brand (that I'm not even sure exists anymore), so I'm going to refer to it as isotretinoin for the rest of the post since the actual brand I ended up using was Claravis (not Accutane). Anyway I read that in Europe, instead of giving 20-60mg per day for 4 months as they do in the US and then stopping you, they sometimes do a micro dose of the medicine for longer so that 1) you don't experience the side effects so badly and 2) the effectiveness lasts much longer after you've stopped taking the medicine.

It was difficult, but I finally found a doctor that was willing to work with me on this. After going through the hoops and waiting period to go back on the iosotretinoin, I started experimenting with the dosage. The dosage that ended up being perfect for my body (I am 5'3 120 pounds) was 10mg every 3 days for a year. Think about that: 10 mg every 3 days versus 40 mg per day!

This was when I was 31. I have not had acne since, did not suffer from side effects and cannot be more grateful for my doctor for taking a chance and doing things differently. I don't think any treatment is one-size-fits-all. I knew a girl who was urinating blood because of iosotretinoin and was near suicidal because they had her on 20mg per day. I happen to think that is an insanely high dose for girls our size.

Anyway, I just wanted to share because I don't want anyone else to have to suffer the way I did and who knows, if it helped me, it may work for someone else as well!  <3