Two Weeks After

Its been two weeks since I threw away my last 3 accutane pills. And since I was in the desert and suffering from crazy eczema, and hiking in the desert drinking a gallon plus of water a day, I didn't feel bad skipping out on a day and half of accutane.

Things are going well. My energy is good. My skin is good. Joints are getting better. Brain is still improving.

Most importantly, occasionally I am thinking of myself as someone who doesn't get acne. Having acne was such a constant thing, then all the acne medications were something that needed my attention, now occasionally, I think/worry about my skin, but then I don't need to. So much will be freed up if this treatment continues to work.

The dermatologist gave me some cleanser and told me not to moisturize my face unless its dry. He said there's too much moisturizing going on under false information, and that this topic should be on Oprah. So I'm cleaning my face really for the first time in 6mo. I used to just use a wash cloth to get all the dead skin off.

My desert eczema is clearing up since we go back from the southwest. I was diagnosed with Polymorphous Light Eruption. This is the most fun to say ailment I've ever been diagnosed with. Say it out loud. You'll enjoy it. Basically, I'm allergic to the sun. Ha!

Ok so i am in

Ok so i am in utah. Its like 100 degrees everyday and super dry. I have some rash on my arms. I threw away my last 3.
-Renee

35 days left-blood test-absorption

I went for my blood test at the end of my 5th month today. I am going to take an additional month of accutane, 6 months total. I feel pretty down in the dumps about it. Although I know its what I should do since I've continued to get some cysts, but I'm not optimistic that this additional month will cure me so that I don't need a second treatment. I guess I just hope that it delays a second treatment.

For the past couple weeks, I've been taking my accutane with oil, which helps with its absorption, which I just learned. I am having a resurgence of side effects. I feel so tired, achy, and kinda down in the dumps. I am going to take a nap today, which I haven't needed for over a month.

Looking back on my treatment, this has been really hard. I think while it was happening, I didn't really appreciate how bad it was making me feel, especially emotionally. Looking back at the winter, I'm surprised it went as well as it did. I guess I'm lucky.

It feels really hard to generate the energy and motivation to get through this last month.

Pimple and Cyst- mid month 5

Why am I still getting stuff???!!!!

I got one pimple/blackhead thing on my temple today. One pimple on my scalp yesterday. And a small cyst is living in my cheek for the past few days.

Why is this happening on the accutane?

Was it the pizza from this weekend? Why am I so stuck on this dairy and acne relationship?

On the plus side most of my bad side effects are gone. I don't feel 100% physically, but I am feeling so much better!

Special Occasion-beginning of month 5

I had two beers tonight, right in a row with dinner. Its wonderful. I've had so little to drink through out this ordeal. I want to sorta celebrate and have a lovely evening with my husband on our back porch. It was the first beautiful evening and we could eat outside. It was worth it and I loved it.

No Whey! No Milk!

So I bought 4 different almond milks and 1 hazelnut milk today. (I can not eat too much soy because of its relationship to my migraines (soy become MSG when processed)) I will be performing taste tests and reporting on the different tastes of the 5 nut milks here. However, nut milks have only 1 gram of protein per cup, compared to the 8 grams of protein per cup of skim milk. This prompted me to do more research about weather or not I could maintain my protein intake by using a whey supplement? Well in short, No Whey!

This is the most prolific article I've found about the dairy acne relationship. It covers both the growth hormones that are NATURALLY occurring in pregnant and lactating cows (this is not an issue of the growth hormones injected into cows, its in all milk, made worse by artificial growth hormones), but it also suggests that the protein whey contributes to the acne as well.

So my protein options continue to narrow. I have until now lived happily as an omnivore that consumes little meat. But my vegetarian sources of protein are now left to beans and wheat gluten. I'm afraid to read about them....

Does a Body Good?

The more I investigate this idea of milk causing acne, the more I believe that it may be contributing to my condition.

I started drinking skim milk (which according to Dr. Weil's website is the most aggressive culprit) when I left home for college. At home my parents always had 1%.

My acne really started to get bad about 2 or 3 years after I left home for college. I had some problematic acne as a teen and took some antibiotics, but I never had these cysts until college. I always thought it was so strange that this acne started to attack, just when I thought I was becoming an adult.

To some degree the severity of the acne could follow my milk intake. About two years ago, just before I went to the dermatologist because my acne had become so unbearable and disfiguring, I had started working out and drinking extra protein, mixed with milk! I loved drinking milk. Protein makes me feel good, triptophan makes me feel good. I always thought I was doing something good for me.

So as of today, I am quiting milk.

I am trying to determine the difference if any, between milk and cheese, but the main suspect in this dairy equation seems to be the hormones that are naturally occurring in the cow because she is constantly pregnant and nursing.

Although I can not find any fool proof published evidence of this, here are the best sites I've found, but if you just google "milk acne" this information goes on for pages.

http://www.acnemilk.com/

Dr. Weil

I don't know how to give up cheese completely, but luckily I don't consume too much of it. Even so, I will cut back.