So this past week I've had massive pustules on my face, neck, and back. A lot of the ones on my face have cleared up, but the ones around my jaw and neck are really painful and angry-looking. I haven't been drinking much water lately, so my eyes are dry as well, and they burn a lot. I probably look like a pothead with my red eyes and generally mangy appearance. Niiice.
My back aches are less of a problem, but every once in a while I have a sharp, stabbing muscle pain in my lower back, often on the right side.
Oddly, and I wonder if this has anything to do with the isotretinoin, my last period ended a few days early, was amazingly light, and had NO CRAMPS. This is especially weird, as I have a Paraguard IUD, which is supposed to make those symptoms worse. Hopefully I'll remember to ask my dermatologist about that.
Other than all that, there isn't much else going on in my life. I'm not sleeping much, but that's to be expected. I'm a night owl by nature, and I have to wake up at 6:30 four days a week for classed, and 7:30 on the other weekday. Saturday and Sunday I (mercifully) have nothing to do. If I get the job I was just interviewed for, I'll be working the graveyard shift at least once a week. Hoo boy, that'll be fun. I almost don't want the job because my grades are fantastic when I'm not employed, but I can't sell my plasma for extra cash as long as I'm on these meds. Unemployment is really not an option if I want to have a life and pay my bills.
Okay, off to read some feminist blogs.
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
Saturday, January 20, 2007
Back at school
Oh man, today has been a busy day. I slept in for the first time since winter break, which was wonderful. I did homework, repotted the plants, played Bejeweled 2 (HULLO I AM LAME), and made myself a wonderful dinner (fettuccine in alfredo sauce with scallops, garlic, and mushrooms). I used my new camera phone to take a photo of my dinner, but the photo was crappy and made the pasta look like brains. Other than the shitty picture, I am content.
So I think I'll volunteer for the Alachua County crisis center come May. There was a training session today, but the three hour bus ride wasn't looking too hot. Better to wait until I can bum rides off Jon, or until he's here to go to the training session with me.
I have a really creepy downstairs neighbor. I think he might be a little slow, but today when I was on my balcony, he came up and asked me what I was doing. The following conversation then took place:
Him: What are you doing?
Me: Repotting my plants.
Him: Oh, like for smoking? (gestures as if smoking a blunt)
Me: What?
Him: What did you say you were doing?
Me: Repotting these plants.
Him: You're growing pot?
Me: No, not pot. Repotting. Flowers. Not pot.
Him: I have some munchies downstairs.
Me: I'M NOT GROWING POT.
Him: Is your boyfriend around?
Me: It was nice talking to you.
He's really, really creepy.
So I saw my dermatologist on Friday. My labs came back with great results, except my lipids went up and my triglycerides doubled. They were low to begin with, so the doctor isn't worried; she says they'd have to be six times higher for them to be of concern. Also, I'm not pregnant, which is no shock, seeing as I haven't had sex in a year. I just like to announce to everyone that I'm not pregnant.
As for side effects, my face and hair are reeeeeeally dry. The corners of my mouth and nostrils peel a lot, and my lips are still chapped as hell. My back is still killing me even now that I'm back home and on my own matress, so I guess I'll have to deal with that for the next five months, too. I also am produing less ear wax. Odd. My face is really irritated and red as well, and the area around my ears and my neck is breaking out badly. Yuck. I'm tired a lot, but that is probably due to the fact that I have to wake up at 6:30 five days a week and have pulled two all-nighters in the past five days.
On the plus side, I'm sweating less. Yay! My face has cleared up dramatically, but I still have breakouts on my forehead. No depression at all, and no change to my eyesight, either.
Okay, sleepy-time.
So I think I'll volunteer for the Alachua County crisis center come May. There was a training session today, but the three hour bus ride wasn't looking too hot. Better to wait until I can bum rides off Jon, or until he's here to go to the training session with me.
I have a really creepy downstairs neighbor. I think he might be a little slow, but today when I was on my balcony, he came up and asked me what I was doing. The following conversation then took place:
Him: What are you doing?
Me: Repotting my plants.
Him: Oh, like for smoking? (gestures as if smoking a blunt)
Me: What?
Him: What did you say you were doing?
Me: Repotting these plants.
Him: You're growing pot?
Me: No, not pot. Repotting. Flowers. Not pot.
Him: I have some munchies downstairs.
Me: I'M NOT GROWING POT.
Him: Is your boyfriend around?
Me: It was nice talking to you.
He's really, really creepy.
So I saw my dermatologist on Friday. My labs came back with great results, except my lipids went up and my triglycerides doubled. They were low to begin with, so the doctor isn't worried; she says they'd have to be six times higher for them to be of concern. Also, I'm not pregnant, which is no shock, seeing as I haven't had sex in a year. I just like to announce to everyone that I'm not pregnant.
As for side effects, my face and hair are reeeeeeally dry. The corners of my mouth and nostrils peel a lot, and my lips are still chapped as hell. My back is still killing me even now that I'm back home and on my own matress, so I guess I'll have to deal with that for the next five months, too. I also am produing less ear wax. Odd. My face is really irritated and red as well, and the area around my ears and my neck is breaking out badly. Yuck. I'm tired a lot, but that is probably due to the fact that I have to wake up at 6:30 five days a week and have pulled two all-nighters in the past five days.
On the plus side, I'm sweating less. Yay! My face has cleared up dramatically, but I still have breakouts on my forehead. No depression at all, and no change to my eyesight, either.
Okay, sleepy-time.
Thursday, January 4, 2007
My skin seems to finally be making a drastic change. No new zits for the past few days, and my skin is starting to heal. It's also a bit flaky and a little dry. I have a lot more blackheads than I'm used to, in places I've never seen them, so that's kinda freaking me out a little. My hair is also less oily than usual, too. Normally, my roots are limp with oil 20 hours after shampooing, but I've gone more than 3 days without shampooing and my hair looks great! Also, I don't seem to be perspiring as much as I used to, nor does my skin react the same way to humidity (by becoming greasy and feeling heavy--sort of like foundation feels).
I've spent the last three days with Jon, which is nice. We've been hanging out at Barnes & Noble, which has given me the chance to read most of Freakonomics, which I recommend. The book goes on a few tangents, without which it would probably be only 30 pages long, but they're good tangents and pretty interesting.
That's all for this update.
I've spent the last three days with Jon, which is nice. We've been hanging out at Barnes & Noble, which has given me the chance to read most of Freakonomics, which I recommend. The book goes on a few tangents, without which it would probably be only 30 pages long, but they're good tangents and pretty interesting.
That's all for this update.
Monday, January 1, 2007
Happy New Year
I'm happy with the way my skin looks today. Yeah, I still have a ton of marks from previous zits that need to heal (that'll take months), but no new zits today, and none yesterday either. Wow.
I need to stop the drinking, too. I've only have about 4 drinks per week, no more than one per day, but I know I should be subbing the wine and Bailey's for water. I'm not drinking enough water at all. I have maybe two glasses per day, tops. Oh well. Once I get back up to UF I won't have any alcohol available to me anymore. The only drinks I buy up there are soymilk and water anyway, so maybe I'll be forced to drink more H2O.
My skin is peeling a bit, mostly around my chin and nose. That's kinda weird, since my nose was by far the oiliest area on my face before I started taking isotretinoin. The pain around my chest has mostly disappeared, too. I'm not sure if I'm feeling a bit down because the drug is finally making me depressed or because I'm forced to spend time with my family and without my significant other, so I'll have to watch that. I'm betting it's the family and lack of companionship.
Not to much to say about my personal life. I've been holed up in my room hiding from my family and watching Space Cases on YouTube. I'm also doing more doodling, which is nice. It keeps me from going crazy in here.
I "celebrated" the new year last night with my dad, who didn't look up from the TV at all last night. My three siblings had managed to find better things to do and my stepmother had already gone to bed, so I poured myself a glass of some cheap wine and kissed Jon over the phone. Whee, exciting. I guess Jon had it a little better, he was with his dad's family in (West?) Virginia.
I need to stop the drinking, too. I've only have about 4 drinks per week, no more than one per day, but I know I should be subbing the wine and Bailey's for water. I'm not drinking enough water at all. I have maybe two glasses per day, tops. Oh well. Once I get back up to UF I won't have any alcohol available to me anymore. The only drinks I buy up there are soymilk and water anyway, so maybe I'll be forced to drink more H2O.
My skin is peeling a bit, mostly around my chin and nose. That's kinda weird, since my nose was by far the oiliest area on my face before I started taking isotretinoin. The pain around my chest has mostly disappeared, too. I'm not sure if I'm feeling a bit down because the drug is finally making me depressed or because I'm forced to spend time with my family and without my significant other, so I'll have to watch that. I'm betting it's the family and lack of companionship.
Not to much to say about my personal life. I've been holed up in my room hiding from my family and watching Space Cases on YouTube. I'm also doing more doodling, which is nice. It keeps me from going crazy in here.
I "celebrated" the new year last night with my dad, who didn't look up from the TV at all last night. My three siblings had managed to find better things to do and my stepmother had already gone to bed, so I poured myself a glass of some cheap wine and kissed Jon over the phone. Whee, exciting. I guess Jon had it a little better, he was with his dad's family in (West?) Virginia.
Tuesday, December 26, 2006
Happy Boxing Day
Hello again! I've spent almost all day watching Forensic Files on Court TV. This isn't a plug for the show, I swear. I just really like forensics. I could watch CSI for a month straight and not get tired of it. Also, I really enjoy learning how not to murder someone. Not that I think I'll ever need to know that stuff, but it couldn't hurt. Heh.
Aaaaanyway. Yesterday was Christmas, and I think I've picked up a fun new side effect. The muscles around my ribcage are killing me, and my back kinda aches, too. When I lie flat on my back or stomach or stand completely straight, the pain is really nasty. What the hell? I know this is not unusual, but I wasn't expecting such a weird side effect so early on.
You know, I think I forgot to mention earlier what my dosage is. I'm at 40 mg twice daily, or 80 mg per day. From what I've read on other blogs, that seems kind of high. It probably has something to do with the fact that I'm 170 lb and 5'10", though. Maybe my high dosage has something to do with the early aches?
My skin has gotten slightly better, in it's own way. Normally, I have very few minor zits and many huge ones that stick around for a week and go deep beneath the skin. All those deep ones have come to the surface and disappeared, but the small ones are still numerous (about three daily). It's an improvement, I guess. My face is flaky but not very dry, so I think I need to exfoliate. My lips are chapped as hell, but luckily I have my chap stick at the ready.
My hair isn't any drier yet. I'm really worried that my hair and lips will be damaged. I have really lovely hair and soft, near-perfect lips, and I don't want to lose that. I'm not trying to brag about my looks, either, but my best features are my hair, lips, and breasts. The acne returned to my chest, and I don't want the other features in the Trinity of Hotness to be marred.
Yeah, I'm vain. Dinner time!
Aaaaanyway. Yesterday was Christmas, and I think I've picked up a fun new side effect. The muscles around my ribcage are killing me, and my back kinda aches, too. When I lie flat on my back or stomach or stand completely straight, the pain is really nasty. What the hell? I know this is not unusual, but I wasn't expecting such a weird side effect so early on.
You know, I think I forgot to mention earlier what my dosage is. I'm at 40 mg twice daily, or 80 mg per day. From what I've read on other blogs, that seems kind of high. It probably has something to do with the fact that I'm 170 lb and 5'10", though. Maybe my high dosage has something to do with the early aches?
My skin has gotten slightly better, in it's own way. Normally, I have very few minor zits and many huge ones that stick around for a week and go deep beneath the skin. All those deep ones have come to the surface and disappeared, but the small ones are still numerous (about three daily). It's an improvement, I guess. My face is flaky but not very dry, so I think I need to exfoliate. My lips are chapped as hell, but luckily I have my chap stick at the ready.
My hair isn't any drier yet. I'm really worried that my hair and lips will be damaged. I have really lovely hair and soft, near-perfect lips, and I don't want to lose that. I'm not trying to brag about my looks, either, but my best features are my hair, lips, and breasts. The acne returned to my chest, and I don't want the other features in the Trinity of Hotness to be marred.
Yeah, I'm vain. Dinner time!
Friday, December 22, 2006
First Postess With the Mostest
So.
This is my isotretinoin blog. I wanted to name it Accutaneous, but that name was already taken. :/
I started taking Amnesteem on Tuesday morning. Today is barely Friday. I've got my capsules in a...I think a 10-dram container here on my left, and three ounces of Bailey's on my right. Heh.
I don't really know why I stated this blog. I've been thinking of doing a blog for a long time now. I have a LiveJournal that I post on infrequently, but I figured my friends wouldn't want to read about my zits. I actually thought my first blog would be sex-themed, but that never got off the ground because I don't actually have any sex. More on that later.
I suppose I should introduce myself. I'm Kristen. I'm a sophomore at the University of Florida, and I'm studying psychology. I want to be a counseling psychologist specializing in sexual issues. I'm a childfree pro-choice sort-of-cisgender bisexual feminist atheist. I'm also a determinist, and I find that bothers people the most. I love to read, paint, and take photos. I live with my boyfriend of two years and my two cats of five months in a one-bedroom apartment. I'm a Catholic school survivor. For the past several months I've worked in a pharmacy, but it isn't working out. I don't have a car or a license, for that matter. I've got Icewind Dale II running as I type this.
That's me in a nutshell. Stick around and I'll undoubtedly give you more details.
I'm on isotretinoin for the same reasons everyone else is: My skin is shit. It turned to shit when I was in seventh grade, and continued on until I was 16 and went on birth control pills. Before then, I had tried almost everything else available to me, with no change. Lo and behold, my skin cleared up in less than three months on BCP, and stayed clear until I came to UF. From there it went from perfect to about average, which really didn't bother me. I went off hormonal birth control over the summer so I could get a long-desired Paraguard IUD, and BOOM--my skin is now worse than is has ever been. I have my father to thank for these wonderful genes. Four months ago I broke down into tears and made an appointment with the dermatologists at the student healthcare clinic. They gave me Retin-A, which made my skin explode. After two months of that I got fed up. I demanded Accutane. To my shock, my demands met with no resistance. Well, no human resistance. iPledge has been a bitch to deal with, to absolutely nobody's surprise.
So here I am, going into day four. Today my skin was somewhat drier than usual, which is still pretty oily, really. On day two my lips stung a bit. Other than that, I've really had no side-effects yet. YET. I can't wait for the depression. That should be really fun. At least I'll get to see a shrink again, and maybe I can pick up some techniques! Haha, gotta keep it positive.
Alright, back to IWD2. Blogging is not as fun as casting fireball while yelling, "That's right, BITCH!!" at my computer screen.
This is my isotretinoin blog. I wanted to name it Accutaneous, but that name was already taken. :/
I started taking Amnesteem on Tuesday morning. Today is barely Friday. I've got my capsules in a...I think a 10-dram container here on my left, and three ounces of Bailey's on my right. Heh.
I don't really know why I stated this blog. I've been thinking of doing a blog for a long time now. I have a LiveJournal that I post on infrequently, but I figured my friends wouldn't want to read about my zits. I actually thought my first blog would be sex-themed, but that never got off the ground because I don't actually have any sex. More on that later.
I suppose I should introduce myself. I'm Kristen. I'm a sophomore at the University of Florida, and I'm studying psychology. I want to be a counseling psychologist specializing in sexual issues. I'm a childfree pro-choice sort-of-cisgender bisexual feminist atheist. I'm also a determinist, and I find that bothers people the most. I love to read, paint, and take photos. I live with my boyfriend of two years and my two cats of five months in a one-bedroom apartment. I'm a Catholic school survivor. For the past several months I've worked in a pharmacy, but it isn't working out. I don't have a car or a license, for that matter. I've got Icewind Dale II running as I type this.
That's me in a nutshell. Stick around and I'll undoubtedly give you more details.
I'm on isotretinoin for the same reasons everyone else is: My skin is shit. It turned to shit when I was in seventh grade, and continued on until I was 16 and went on birth control pills. Before then, I had tried almost everything else available to me, with no change. Lo and behold, my skin cleared up in less than three months on BCP, and stayed clear until I came to UF. From there it went from perfect to about average, which really didn't bother me. I went off hormonal birth control over the summer so I could get a long-desired Paraguard IUD, and BOOM--my skin is now worse than is has ever been. I have my father to thank for these wonderful genes. Four months ago I broke down into tears and made an appointment with the dermatologists at the student healthcare clinic. They gave me Retin-A, which made my skin explode. After two months of that I got fed up. I demanded Accutane. To my shock, my demands met with no resistance. Well, no human resistance. iPledge has been a bitch to deal with, to absolutely nobody's surprise.
So here I am, going into day four. Today my skin was somewhat drier than usual, which is still pretty oily, really. On day two my lips stung a bit. Other than that, I've really had no side-effects yet. YET. I can't wait for the depression. That should be really fun. At least I'll get to see a shrink again, and maybe I can pick up some techniques! Haha, gotta keep it positive.
Alright, back to IWD2. Blogging is not as fun as casting fireball while yelling, "That's right, BITCH!!" at my computer screen.
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