Comments on: ZOMG! I hope I’m not pregnant.

By: nolageek

nolageek — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 18:59:58 +0000

Well, I try (to hide the self-consciousness.) :)

I do hear good things about Vitamin A, but you have to take like 50 pills a day to match Accutane – it’s more for mild cases or I’ve heard people use it after being off Accutane for a year or so as a maintenance kind of thing. I went to Bed Bath and Beyond and bought a bottle over the weekend for 1.98 for a 100 gelcaps. Cant beat that. :) But, I wouldn’t want to megadose without seeing a doctor.

By: Jason K

Jason K — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 17:14:53 +0000

Well, you hide the self-consciousness very well. :)

So if Acutane does get pulled (what bad timing), do you think you can be successful with the vitamin A? Have there been any people who’ve been successful? I guess you have to be careful with A since it’s fat-soluble and not water-soluble.

By: nolageek

nolageek — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 19:25:58 +0000

@Jason K

It’s always affected my self-esteem on certain levels. I’ve always been very comfortable around my friends, but I can be shy or just plain anti-social when around new people. This is made worse when I’m having a bad breakout. I just become very self-conscious.

RE: Diet: Not specifically, that I’ve ever noticed. I’ve been eating pretty good since I’ve moved to DC.. more salads and much less crappy fast food… and I’ve had the same issues as always. It actually got much worse after I started working out last November, from all the sweating. My biggest problem is that my skin is just really oily. I can jump out the shower and take a 20 minute nap and when I wake up, my forehead and scalp will be greasy as hell. That’s the one thing I’ve noticed since I’ve starting taking a lot of Vitamin A – my skin is much less oily, even after sleeping a full 8 hours or a full day of being awake. I’m still breaking out, but not as much. I think that’s a good sign of what’s to come since Accutane is synthetic Vitamin A.

By: Jason K

Jason K — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 18:20:57 +0000

I had no idea it affected your self-esteem that much. I know you’ve tried everything in the world over the years, so I’m not making recommendations. I’m just asking this out of curiosity. Does diet (or certain types of foods) ever affect it, either in a good or bad way?

By: nolageek

nolageek — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 04:31:17 +0000

Thanks. If it works, you have no idea how happy I will be. It’s just one of those things that’s been on my mind constantly for so long, I wonder how it will be to not have to think about it anymore. I really just can’t wait to be able to cut my balding-ass hair as short as it needs to be. :)

I’ve been taking megadoses of Vitamin A the last week or so, and it’s having a similar effect as Accutane (which is basically a VERY high dose of synthetic Vitamin A.) My mouth is dry, my skin is noticeably less oily and my acne has gotten a little worse — all classic side effects when you first take Accutane. I was going to get off of it these last few days, but figured I’ll stay on since it’s doing something.

I’m taking about 100k IU a day (about 10 gelcaps.) I think Accutane can be from 300k-800k IU, depending on the dosage you get.

I refer to this as “Accutain’t.” :)

God, I want to go into a time warp to straight to Monday so I can find out if I can pick it up.

By: Richard

Richard — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 01:29:28 +0000

I’ve known a bejillion people who’ve gone on Accutane–including one of my brothers. You’ll want to stock up on Chapstick, but otherwise, it’s a life-changing experience. Congrats!