OK this has nothing to do with explorers, but I was feeling good recently so I thought I'd share (especially since I've had two list members inquire about my use of accutane after mentioning it just once in the Colorado Colors Run 2000 thread). I've had acne since I was about 11 or 12. Really started flaring up bad in the past few years (as those that had been on the Explorer runs had noticed). Nothing worked, must've been on 10 different medications over 10 years. Started accutane (which you've heard a lot about in the news lately, since its involved in many lawsuits of people who were on the drug and killed themselves, bla bla bla) around late August, early September. Anyways, its like THE acne medication, runs in the hundreds of dollars (thank goodness insurance covered it!) and requires blood tests once a month, otherwise liver can start going bad (as mine did) and you won't know it until you get really ill. Anyways, during the Colorado Colors Run 2000 I had just started it, so those of you that were there will recognize the first set of pics (from the slice in my forehead from when I was spitting out my toothpaste at the KOA) :). Been 19 weeks now, I'm off it (because most people can't be on for more then 5 months otherwise your liver starts to have problems). Don't get scared by the before pics, cause they get better :).
So here we go...
BEFORE PICS (roughly the beginning of September, 2000)
http://www.pcisys.net/~mattbert/progress/week1-front.jpg http://www.pcisys.net/~mattbert/progress/week1-left.jpg http://www.pcisys.net/~mattbert/progress/week1-right.jpg

AFTER PICS - taken last Saturday
http://www.pcisys.net/~mattbert/progress/week19-front1.jpg http://www.pcisys.net/~mattbert/progress/week19-right2.jpg http://www.pcisys.net/~mattbert/progress/week19-left2.jpg

The acne still isn't all gone yet, but you can tell theres a definite improvement. For a complete week by week picture documentary, check it out... http://www.pcisys.net/~mattbert/progress/

Rude comments unwelcome, polite comments are :). Feel free to email me at matt@explorerforum.com, everybody else does! :).

When Rick asked me to moderate this forum I'm not sure this is what I was expecting.

Matt, great "After" pics for someone who can't even brush his teeth without wounding himself http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/images/smilies/biggrin.gif

Looks good! Acne sucks....I have a good friend from college who got adult onset acne at age 25 and I mean BADLY. She is also on that med. It has helped her out and she looks great. It has made her sensitive to the sun though....

Originally posted by HIX
It has made her sensitive to the sun though....
Yeah I have the same problem... thats why on the CCR2000 run I was putting on sunscreen like every hour and still came home with a horrible sunburn. It's not so bad now, but I still get sunburns pretty easy while working on the truck, etc.

Matt, it does look like a great improvement but at what price? What does it do to your liver? I've never had to deal with your problem anymore than as a typical teenager but I don't understand risking a body organ for skin appearance, know what I mean?

I'll just drink my way into my liver problem.... ;)

Originally posted by GJarrett
Matt, it does look like a great improvement but at what price? What does it do to your liver? I've never had to deal with your problem anymore than as a typical teenager but I don't understand risking a body organ for skin appearance, know what I mean?

I'll just drink my way into my liver problem.... ;)

yeah, thats why they have you do blood tests to make sure nothing is really going wrong... one month my counts of something were up slightly higher so they knocked down my dosage as a precaution before any harm could be done. My liver is in perfect functioning order (so says my blood tests anyways). You sound like my dad! LOL.

Excellent, Matt. I agree, as long as the doctors monitor the blood, you should be OK with the Accutane. It's working great. I'm continually amazed at what modern medicine can accomplish.

Now, if you could just get a lift kit... :)

PS, check here:

http://www.capederm.com/info_accutane.htm

for more info on accutane.

[Edited by Tom Wilk on 01-09-2001 at 05:23 PM]

Matt, There is that popular birth controll pill that also does good with your complection. Some insurances will no longer pay for it, even if you have been on it before this discovery....

Originally posted by Teri (Perry's Teri)
Matt, There is that popular birth controll pill that also does good with your complection. Some insurances will no longer pay for it, even if you have been on it before this discovery....

If your referring to ortho tetracycline, sorry I can't take it, its for girls only :).

Looking better Matt. I had it bad as a teen also(overactive oil glands) and the military paid for me to take it while it was still in its approval phase. This was back in 1985. Of course they poked, proded and pestered me almost to death while using it. It dried up the oil glands and damn near everything else while doing it. I had nosebleeds when I got into a hot shower and it was colder in the room. My lips got so dry I had to Carmex them every couple of hours or they would crack....etc... Although it didn't completely stop my problem, it sure did help. I still get it a bit today, but I know not as bad if I hadn't taken that med. I have no other problem..liver, kidney, etc. and I have the normal reaction to the sun as I did before.
I just started taking Sporanox for nail fungus( this I got from being in the military). I was over in Korea for a year and while training you don't always have a chance to change sock, shoes etc. Well, with the constant rain, hot weather, I must have gotten it. I have tried the over-the-counter stuff for a while with no results. I'm hoping this will cure it for good.

Originally posted by Goober
I just started taking Sporanox for nail fungus( this I got from being in the military). I was over in Korea for a year and while training you don't always have a chance to change sock, shoes etc. Well, with the constant rain, hot weather, I must have gotten it. I have tried the over-the-counter stuff for a while with no results. I'm hoping this will cure it for good.

Sporonax works. I used it for nail fungus as well, and after about 3-6 months, they were good as new. No side effects to speak of either.

Matt, looks really good. I too had bad acne although I went to the natural route. Once I heard all of the side affects to some of the other stuff I just couldn't do it. I am useing vitamin and face wash from a company called USANA. I looked as you did in the first pic and then two months later I am pretty much all taken care of. right now even some of my scars are going away. Since then I have started taking some of their other vitamins. I can't belive how good it feels to be heathy. Never thought I would say that. Anyway If any of you are interested in doing the natural way I sell the vitamins now. You can contact me if you have any questions.

Looks good Matt.

Smooothhhhh

I am using something called Proactive! Very good cleaner and medicine for the face.

I'm on Accutane to now. Ain't fun stuff but it works!
When I first got it and read the package and it says "Minimal Bone Changes" I was like oh great this should be fun.

Matt,

I took that same medication when I was in high school. Although my acne was not on my face. Pros and cons of that. The only think I hated about that drug is that it really dried your skin out. I mean really dry. My lips kept drying and cracking. It was terrible, but it worked.

Good luck with it.

BC

Originally posted by MyExp
Matt,

I took that same medication when I was in high school. Although my acne was not on my face. Pros and cons of that. The only think I hated about that drug is that it really dried your skin out. I mean really dry. My lips kept drying and cracking. It was terrible, but it worked.

Good luck with it.

BC

I agree, dry as a bone... they originally to drop my dosage because I go SO dry. It was so bad that dispite using moisturizer 8-10 times a day, I was still so dry and tight I could barely open my mouth, and when I did it would cause what resembled stretch marks, like wrinkles around the mouth. Lips are bad, btu I use aquaphor after each shower and that lasts throughought the day and night :).

Originally posted by Gimp
Originally posted by mattadams
I use aquaphor after each shower and that lasts throughought the day and night :).
Matt,
What is this Aquaphor? I haven't heard of that.
My drugs dry me out so bad that a simple scratch can turn into a large wound. I go through a 17-oz. bottle of Vaseline Intensive care every 2-3 weeks. I'd love to find something that I only had to use once a day.
Is it over the counter? Prescription? Liquid, cream, ointment, etc.? Oral or topical?
Thanks

Gimp, it's similar to vaseline, but better. I'm told you can get it at your regular walgreens or drug store or whatever, but I've never been able to find it. I had to get samples of it from my dermatologist, and they've lasted me plenty long. You may want to ask a pharmacist, typically if they don't have it they can get it. It is more expensive then Vaseline though... it comes in a white package, aquaphor is in blue... i think its made by the people that make excedrin or something like that.

I have to ask a question and please don't get upset with me. To each our own. Anyway...I wanted to ask why in the world someone would consider putting something on their face if it hurts and or dry's out your skin? I have had very bad acne..just as bad as matt. I tried a ton of drugs and all this other stuff but the thing that upset me was that it burned, I got sunburnt really easy and also my face was so dry it would kill me just to shave. So I did some reseach and found out that acne is cause by a few things. Most of it is the diet and lack of nutrients. I started useing this face wash along a vitamin. The face wash does not burn and it makes my skin very soft, before when I would shave it would hurt like hell, now I don't have that pain anymore cause my skin is much heathier. Also the vitamin not only helped my face but my hands and other skin......no nasty calesses on the hands or dry skin. I don't know who said it but why in the world you want chance damaging your liver? I know I am prolly on a soap box right now but I just don't understand why you would all deal with the pain. I spend around $50 on the face wash and that lasts me a two months and then another $27 on the vitamins and those last a month. My acne was gone in three months and my face looks better than ever. I get this stuff through I company called USANA that makes high grade vitamins. I am also a distributor for them so I can get you anything you need shiped strait to your door. I know I may come off a bit strong here but I jsut hate seeing peopel damage their body when you can get the same result but in a more heathy way. Let me know if anyof you want more information. I can tell you all about it. On the flip side of all this the more stuff you buy you can also get money back. With what I buy and sell I make $200 a week on this stuff and only spend about $20. whatever your decision I hope it works out the best for you and makes you happy. hope I didn't offend anyone.

it doesn't offend me at all, I get asked that question a lot. Like I said it was one of my last options... I hated having acne, and I had been on everything I could find... everything from over the counter topicals to pills to prescription topicals and pills, even trying proactiv like someone else mentioned and even going on the "natural cure" for about 9 months. NOTHING WORKED, and what was worse was that not only did most of this stuff not work, but it woul dmake it worse and worse, and the more I tried the more red and irritated my skin would get and the worse I would break out. I've tried some natural products that were recommended not only by my dermatologist but several other acne sufferers such as yourself who had been "cured" by going the natural way, but it didn't work for me one bit. didn't make it worse, but certainly didn't make it better. Unfortanetly my skin just wants to have acne and I have to do whatever I can to make sure and fight it whenever possible.

That is cool. you are the first one to ever give me an honest answer. Everyone else I have asked that question doesn't know why they are doing what they are. Well one thing I can tell you is that when it all goes away if you feel that it is comeing back let me know. once mine went away I stopped all the stuff I was on and it came back. Right now I just take the vitamins. So what I guess I am trying to say is that if it comes back afterwards let me know. It is very posible that the stuff you have tried that didn't work wasn't strong enough. in which case the stuff I use could be preventitive maintnece. Hope you get the results that you wish! ;^) congrats on a new you!

Hey Matt

Looks good,

I went through a course of Accutane in the early or mid eightys 82-83 - when it first came out anyway. It was the best. My story sounds similar to yours having gone through all of the topicals, and treatments that the doc could come up with - with no results. I had blood tests every 30 days or so ( which was a whole lot better than having him lance me 15-20 times every month)and everything was fine. According to the doc the side effects were temporary, and he was right, shortly after stopping the meds the dryness, and sun sensitivity were gone. Good thing for me as at that time I worked outside most of the time.

So good luck, glad its helping you too.

Matt- that is a terrific improvement! Congratulations on finding something that works.

Sideswipe- Is Sporonax a prescription or over the counter? Just thought I'd ask before I run to the nearest Walgreens.


--mark

Nitelife, I had to get a Dr.'s prescription for it. And if you do not have health/presciption insurance, better hold on to your jaw when they tell you the cost.....normal run is three months, four in some cases at about $200 per month.

Thanx, Goober. Will call my doctor to discuss this as an option. Hope my health plan covers this, ouch. Yeah, I picked up a few things from my days of highschool football- pride in excellence, teamwork, maximum effort...oh yeah, and foot fungus.

--mark

Another Accutane success story...

I also was previously on Accutane early freshman year of college. I tell ya, it worked wonders, although I went through Chap Stick and Carmex like you wouldn't believe. God, now that I think about it, those were the most miserable months of my life...definately worth it.

I have the occasional "flare up" now (really hard water isn't great for your skin...can't wait till I move), but the Benzyl Peroxide takes care of it just fine.

Congrats, Matt, on your "facelift." ;)