Today I went to see a dermatologist. Actually I desperately needed his help a month ago, when my acne was very bad. However I was able to book an appointment only a month in advance, for today. Appointment was kind of long. When he found out about my PhD research he was extremely interested and started talking a lot about his research, which was completely unrelated to my acne. I was very polite and listened to all that, but because of that he ran late for his other appointment and really had to rush at the end. I didn't have a chance to ask him all the questions I had. His diagnosis was that my acne is not hormonal but instead behavioral, and is mostly contributed by stress and my PhD. So he diagnosed me with acne excoriee, or in simple terms "picking acne". And he is convinced that I have a habit of scratching and picking on my face mostly when I'm studying and also when I'm asleep, and that I do it unctuously. From my point of view that is completely absurd. This is my last year of PhD. Of course it's stressful, but it is exactly the same level of stress as the last 3-4 years. When I was on the pill there was no problem. So why now? Anyway, I will really try controlling my hands and make really sure that I don't touch my face. Also, I don't pick pimples. The possibility of scarring really scares me.
The dermatologist actually completely agreed with my family doctor (they are working in the same clinic) that my only solution is a low dose of isotrtetinoin also known as Accutane. He assured me that there is extremely small chance of me getting any side effects of being on Accutane, and he promised to monitor me closely, i.e. appointments and blood work every month. He really thinks that there is more benefits for me than risks and I can just be very beautiful.
He also mentioned, of course, that everything I read on the web is completely unreliable and that there are no studies confirming that diet works for acne. Nothing new for me there either :) Anyway he gave me two weeks to think about it. I didn't really argue with him, it's absolutely pointless. In the beginning of our meeting I really tried explaining to him that my acne started when I stopped birth control pills and that bcp was the only thing that ever helped me with acne. So it seems that it's hormonal. I also pointed out that I'm really looking for alternatives other than Accutane. Anyway, it was disappointing :(
Oh, he said I have grade III acne. A month ago my doctor diagnosed me with level IV acne. So 1 grade down in a month is not bad! (Unless they both used different grading scales :)
I'm actually very glad that I met this guy only today and not a month ago when I was very desperate to try almost anything just to get rid of pimples. I'm loving my diet and I won't go on Accutane, ever. Even if there is 1% chance of getting the horrible side effects, it is still a chance and I can be the one falling in this unlucky 1%. So that's going to be a no to Accutane for me. I am still going to see him in two weeks. I don't really know why I'm going there, but I am.
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