A bit of encouragement
I finish my course of Accutane today, and I just wanted to share my experience for anyone currently starting it or thinking about going on it.
I had struggled on and off with acne for years. I did topical retinoids and clindamycin for a while, had a brutal purge, but then stayed clear for about a year before it came back with a vengeance. I tried everything — topicals, diet changes, lifestyle changes, hormone testing — and nothing worked long term, only aggravated it.
I had been considering Accutane for a long time, but I was terrified because of all the horror stories online. I kept convincing myself it wasn’t worth the risk.
Last summer was my breaking point. I’ve always been very extroverted, but suddenly every social situation made me anxious — beach holidays, pub outings after work when my makeup started looking bad, harsh office lighting, public transport, even going to the grocery store or gym without makeup felt impossible. I realised I couldn’t keep living like that and decided to bite the bullet.
I started Accutane at the beginning of November, and while the purge was mentally tough, it honestly wasn’t worse than what I had already been dealing with. Yes, the side effects can be annoying, but for me they were manageable, and I consider myself very lucky that I didn’t experience anything out of the ordinary.
Now, I’m genuinely so happy with my skin. I no longer obsess over all the things that used to occupy so much space in my brain, and I’ve realised how much room there is for more important things when acne isn’t constantly consuming you.
I truly wish I had done it sooner. Every difficult part of the process was worth getting to this point and finally feeling like I have my life back.
If you’re about to start Accutane or are currently on it, I’d really urge you not to constantly Google symptoms or spiral reading horror stories online. Just trust the process, surround yourself with supportive people, and before you know it, you’ll hopefully be at this stage too.
If anyone has any questions, I’d be more than happy to help :)