Sunday, June 30, 2013

Accutane Day 2

Sunday is normally brunch day, but for me its have a whole wheat toast with two over easy eggs. Even though I love cooking, I cannot make over easy or sunny side eggs. I always seem to scramble the eggs or overcook the yolk. So my sister was nice enough to make me eggs for breakfast. 



I got super uber hungry from taking my Sunday nap, so I got a Subway sandwich. The tricky thing about Subway sandwiches is that calories can quickly build up if you are not careful with what you put in. I mean very very!


I use to love love love Italian Herbs & Cheese, but trying to be healthier I have trained my tastebuds to loveeee whole wheat. Sounds weird, but it's much better to choose honey oat or wheat. And definitely no cheese. Dairy actually contains a lot of hormones that do not work well with the hormones in our body, which can cause hormonal acne. Plus it inhibits fat loss! And then comes the fun part where I add all the veggies and no calories! I put spinach (much healthier than lettuce), tomatoes, cucumbers, and lots and lots of green peppers. Then I put just a little bit of sweet onion for that flavor. And wahhlaa! Only 370 calories for a 6inch sandwich!!!












So far, I have gotten three small pimples around my chin. They are painful as usual, but nothing out of the ordinary. I do not have any inflammation or swelling. Everything seems to be okay, although I am craving for some Chipotle! That is one of my weaknesses!





My sister had left for her cruise with her husband later in the afternoon. I am babysitting my sister's dog for a week and I know its going to be fun because July 4th is coming up. Even though I did not make plans yet I am excited to just take him out and enjoy the sun. Sunday is rest day, but still got to have a workout. I was going to do some Blogilates and when I pulled out my yoga mat, my dog decided that It was a much better place to take a nap on. So while I was going my leg raises I was touching and poking him. Then when I switch sides, my face would be all up in his fur. What a workout!


After my workout I got really hungry but I did not want to cancel my entire workout by indulging in breads, sandwiches, and etc. So I got some baby carrots. Ten baby carrots are only 36 calories total! Great to get my beta carotene in!


When dinner came around I wasn't that hungry, so my mom warmed up the soup she made early. This is chicken feet with wintermelon. The link for the recipe is here: http://www.thechinesesouplady.com/chicken-feet-and-wintermelon-soup/  And wintermelon is actually great for "cooling down" the body and heat from hot summer days plus chicken feet is an excellent source of collagen. 



My mom has become the expert in fruit cutting because growing up, me and my brother would not eat fruits unless they are ready to eat. So she would cut up watermelons, mangos, even grapes. And watermelon is sooo soo soo sooo good during the summer! 



Have you ever gotten so bored of drinking boring tasteless water? Lemons add an extra kick to water that just freshens and add flavor to water. Plus you get that extra Vitamin C boost!


Sunday is defintiely a great day to relax, but it is also the day to prepare for Mondays. So far, everything seems to be normal. My acne has not worsen nor has it gotten better. I feel like I have been so focus on my acne getting worst, I might be having stress acne, thinking about all the bad side effects and "accutane acne." Oh the horror of waiting for something to happen! Well on to another Monday I guess :(


Sincerely,
Sweet&Bubblicious

Saturday, June 29, 2013

Accutane Day 1

Most of the time, I take my breaktfast on the go because i either have a class to go to or errands to run. A good breakfast sets you up for a good day! So i decided to have a piece of whole wheat bread with a banana. I prefer the riper, less brown ones. I think brown bananas are so mushy and blahh. 


I did not take a front face picture, but I promised a picture everyday. You can see that my chin is relatively red. It was patchy and very uncomfortable, but for days where I am just running errands and have no where to be, I try not to wear makeup and let my skin breathe. 


For a quick bite, I grabbed a salmon onigiri or rice ball from my trip to Mitsuwa during the week. Rice balls are so so so good plus I love how easy I can put them in my bag and eat it in class or on the train. Perfect for being on the go!

I finally got home and found wontons in my fridge! Yummy! It looks like there is a lot here, but it was not all for me, just too lazy to grab another plate :X And that brown spot in the corner is satay sauce, which adds more flavor and a kick to wontons.

I promised to be a good girl and eat very healthy, so I am having rice (of course!) and broccoli with chicken. By the way, it is the best chicken ever, but I did not make this nor do I know what goes it in. My boyfriend's mother would cook a whole chicken and shred it into smaller pieces. Unlike broiled chicken, it is soft and silky! I hope to find out what the recipe is so I can learn to make it myself!

Because I had a BBQ last weekend, I have been breaking out and feeling a little dull. So my boyfriend's mother also made this "soup" of chinese herbal medicines that is suppose to clear acne and relieve the "heatness" in my body. It is "cooling" and good for you, but the smell is very strong. It is sweet with flavors of date and dried longan, but doesn't not have any of that in there. Sorry I do not know what is in there or I will definitely share the recipe.

Day is almost over and I just have to get one shot in where I am wearing makeup. I was going to meet some friends and hang out for the night since it was Saturday. Sorry the picture is not very clear. I promise better pictures tomorrow!


My friends ditched me by the end of the night, so my family decided to grab dessert instead. This was from a small dessert place that just opened in Chinatown. I was super excited for them to open a dessert place because I would always have to drive to Brooklyn to get some yummy sweets. Can you guess which one is mine? I got mango tofu, which I thought was going to be not very sweet and a much healthier choice. The top left corner is black sticky rice with coconut milk, which was not very good. The best was the two right ones, which are mango pomelo. It has mango, sago, and grapefruit. It is very creamy and delicious! 



I know it is too early to tell how Accutane is working on my body, but I have high hopes that Accutane will be the cure I have been looking for. I have given up foods that I use to love love love and it is very hard to avoid all the delicious mouthwatering convenient foods out there. But I believe that after six months, if I was good and ate healthier, my acne will be more manageable. 


Best Wishes,
Sweet&Bubblicious

Friday, June 28, 2013

Day before Accutane


After five years of acne, its time to say enough is enough! I will be starting Accutane tomorrow and I am somewhat scared but excited to finally say no more acne. I am scared because of the horrifying stories and side effects. When you google Accutane stories, you hear about people going on fifth and sixth trials and still no luck with acne. For the first three months, your acne actually gets worst even though it is really a sign of getting better. Evidently, you will get scars from "accutane acne" as some people referred it. Side effects are not limited to dry lips, peeling skin, birth defects, dry nose, and depression. 

So, I want to track the progress of my acne while on Accutane to record any change. As you can see in the flash and no flash picture, my chin is where most of my acne is right now. My forehead and cheeks has a few scars. The large pore on my nose is still there. 






This picture is hard to tell but it is actually acne and acne stars between my breasts. There are several "blood clot" like marks, which I have asked my dermatologist about. She informed me that I do not need to drain out the blood. I use to have more pus filled acne, but not it has calmed down to acne scars and marks. 


This is the one month box, with three small packs. It is the generic brand called Claravis as provided by my insurance. Once daily pill along with my birth control, which is required by law for women to take along with Accutane. Accutane will cause birth defects and in the eyes of the law, if you have your period, you can get pregnant, sexually active or not. My dermatologist also informed me to incorporate more veggies into my diet. I will return for a monthly blood test and assessment of how Accutane is working. 



To be honest, I am very very scared because I do not know how I will react to Accutane. I do not want to break out even more than right now. I do not want scars from breaking out while on Accutane. I hope that it is not as bad as people say. Wish my luck and follow me on this journey!


Best Wishes,
Sweet&Bubblicious


Wednesday, June 26, 2013

My Acne Story

It has been so long since the last time I remember when I did not have a pimple on my face. I remember that my first pimple was a GIGANTIC yellow pimple on my nose back in high school. I had plans that day to go blowing with my friends, but I did not want to get laughed out so I pretended to be sick. I held a handheld mirror close to my face and was gently squeezing the pimple. With no force at all, the pimple exploded! And now I still have the large pore after six years :( Whenever I go tan, that is the part that remains red.






This picture was taken in 2008, five years ago. I had a few scars, the most obvious one is the scar on my nose. I did not know how to put on makeup at that time, but it did not bother me as much back then because it was high school! Everyone has one or two scars!












My worst breakouts happened when I started college. That was also when I started wearing makeup and you can tell, I was not very good at it. It was cakey and shiny. Pimples would appear. I was just uncomfortable. But it was still under control. I probably broke out one or two pimples around my period. I did not think too much into it.







In February 2013, my acne have worsen. I could not wash my face or touch it let alone put on makeup and go to class. It was sensitive to anything I put on my face. I believe that my attempt to try to control the acne with benzoyl peroxide and salicylic acid cause the sensitivity to my face.










For several months, I have tried different medications and face products. However, medications did nothing to control the hormonal acne. I have gone on birth control, but I still break out on my chin and even more on my cheeks, noses, between my eyebrows, and between my breast. I tried to go back to the basic products I used back in high school to cleanse my face. Then, I tried I went facials to extract the pimples and use peels to lighten the scars. Facials definitely controlled my hormonal acne temporarily, but do not prevent new ones to appear. I bought different acne systems and continuously gotten facials.

In my next chapter, I will go on Accutane, a six month program that is supposedly "the cure for acne." Is this too good to be true or just the miracle I am looking for? I will be posting pictures of my acne progress and the foods that I eat everyday as a reference for those who may want to start Accutane as well. Hope people will find this helpful!