Within a few months of turning 18, our patient developed “full-blown acne” for the first time in her life which also resulted in painful boil cysts on her face as well as her body.
Now 23, she says that the skin condition “shattered” her confidence and she was forced to hide behind heavy makeup to avoid unpleasant comments and stares.
WHY I CAME TO HEALTH & AESTHETICS?
Before being prescribed Roaccutane by her local GP, the patient had tried everything to help clear up her skin – from over-the-counter products to spending hours on sunbeds – in the hope that it would dry out her spots. She explained:
“It had a huge impact on my mental health and shattered my self-confidence. I used to hide behind heavy makeup, and I’d drink a lot when out with friends so that I didn’t feel as self-conscious about my skin.”
And if she wasn’t already self-conscious of her skin, she says strangers would often comment on her complexion and recommend ways she could treat her acne. She continued:
“I used to get a lot of comments from children who would ask what had happened to my face.
“Adults would be a little more kind but would still often make suggestions of treatments before we’d even have mentioned my acne – making me even more self-conscious, knowing that they’d noticed it.
“People always thought that they knew the answer and would tell me to cut out sugar when I was already eating a very healthy diet which just hurt more. I felt particularly upset about it when I went travelling in Sri Lanka with friends. I don’t think they had ever seen acne so would ask ‘What is wrong with your face? What’s that on your face?’
“And, while it wasn’t said with bad intentions, it only made me more aware of it.”
THE WRONG TREATMENT
Despite overhauling her diet and trying over-the-counter products, she wasn’t seeing any difference in her skin – so she turned to her GP who referred her to a dermatologist. At first, she was prescribed an antibiotic called Lymecycline Tetralysal – but when that didn’t combat the boils, she was put on a course of Roaccutane.
Although it is considered very effective, the controversial drug’s side effects can include anxiety, significant changes in mood, difficulty moving arms, skin rashes, headaches and more. Although the NHS website states that these affect less than one in every 1000 patients unfortunately, our patient suffered “awful” side effects from the medication, including frequent nose bleeds and depression.
But when she reported back to her dermatologist, she was told to either deal with the side effects or accept the acne. She said: “I started to see results pretty quickly and after nine months the boil cysts had completely diminished.
“But I suffered nose bleeds most days at work, as well as extreme depression.”
THE RIGHT RESULTS
Unsure whether she should continue with the treatment, the patient and her mum researched a skin range called ZO Skin Health, and was prescribed the products by Dr Rekha Tailor.
She started using the ZO products in March and had six-weeks of peeling and redness but has since had completely clear skin.
Dr Tailor says her products work to exfoliate layers of dead skin on the face to diminish brown spots and make skin texture smoother.
“When prescribed effectively and within a system, these products can have a life-changing impact,” she said. “It’s important to remember that they are not mix and match products and shouldn’t be simply added to an existing skincare regimen.”
Our patient believes that her acne was possibly triggered by stress, especially as no one else in her family has any similar problems so it’s unlikely to be a genetic issue.
She said: “I’m not sure why I got severe acne. It was maybe the stress of moving to a different country, the stress of living in a different country when my family were still in Dubai or even things like moving to a rented house with a terrible landlord and learning to drive.
“I think I had a lot of stressful things happening in one go. No one else in my family has ever suffered from acne.
“I can’t describe how it’s made me so happy and have so much more confidence.
She said that it’s taken a while to break the habit of wearing lots of makeup each day, and wearing scarves and sunglasses to cover up the breakouts.
But she says that she’s now in a much better place and can wear no makeup and still feel fine.
