My acne. Otherwise known as The Plague.

Monday = me going to the dermatologist. As much as I have fought going over the past few years, I finally caved about two weeks ago, and waved my white flag of defeat. The acne, unfortunately, has once again won a battle in my life, though I and my drug store friends gave it our best shot. It's been a long time coming, I'm not sure what took me so long. I guess I just hate admitting defeat in any aspect of my life, including my skin problems. So instead of doing the logical thing and going to see a doctor to get back on track, I decided to waste hundreds of dollars on products that don't work in the hopes that something would come through for me. Yeah, that worked out real well.

There are a few factors that determined my decision to re-seek help from the dermatologist, mainly:

1. I'm tired of throwing my money away on products that don't work. If I'm going to throw my money away, it better be on products that actually do something.
2. Let's face it, acne is embarassing. Especially at 26 years old.
2. My job hunt could use all the help it can get. Looking like a broken-out 17-year-old probably isn't going to help me seal the deal on a new position.

So, after a little online research, I opted to go back to the doctor I originally started seeing back in 1998 for my acne woes. I called up the office to make an appointment. Turns out my last appointment was in 2003. At least I still count as a current patient. He was just a young doctor starting out back in the late nineties; since then, he has blossomed into a full-blown practice, with a nurse practitioner and everything. He even has hardwood floors in his office. Business must be going well.

After waiting the standard 15 minutes past my appointment time, I finally go into an examination room where my blood pressure is taken and a quick run through of my medical history is given. The nurse is very friendly (odd amongst nurses I've found) and asks me how long I've had acne, which is difficult to say.

My first experience with blackheads occurred around 6 years old; I remember my mother buying me a special face wash that only I got to use (not my brothers), and it came with a special sponge. I remember my mother looking at the little clogged pores on my nose and making comments about how unusual it was and how they wouldn't go away. Even back then I remember feeling really self conscious about the way my skin looked. If my mom was making a big deal about it, then it must be bad.

By third grade I was an avid user of Stridex pads before bed at night. My mom purchased my first prescription acne medicine at age 11, and by age 13 I'd had my first dermatologist appointment. Let's just say high school was a nightmare. My first appointment with this particular dermatologist was in 1998. I've been seeing this doctor for so long, my original documents from back then had to be scanned in to their current system. So, I am no stranger to acne and the problems it can cause in one's life (aka low self-esteem and poor perception of self).

My acne did clear up for awhile at age 17, when I started taking birth control pills. My mother always told me that it would clear up once I got into my twenties, and I held onto this hope like a cat about to fall out of a tree.

Enter 2011 - I am now 26, and sitting in the dermatologist's office. She runs through the prescriptions I have taken during the course of my time with the dermatologist: Differin, Retin A, Tetracycline. Ah yes, my old friends.

The even better news is that now that I'm 26, insurance companies assume I am either too old to struggle with acne, or that I'm just using retinol products to prevent aging. At 26? Aging products? Are you kidding me? So basically they don't provide as much coverage for these products now as they would've at 16. Just my luck. So my doctor prescribed me an antibiotic and a topical gel that should be low-cost to use for about 6 weeks to see if things clear up. I am remaining cautiously optimistic that this regimin will work, and hoping that I will eventually get back to the point where I won't have to see a dermatologist anymore.

Of course it's entirely possible that my acne could be (and likely be) caused by much deeper rooted, hormonally driven issues that may require me to see a endocrinologist. But that's a different post for a different day. I shall keep everyone updated as to my progress!

Night Owl for life. Or at least until I get a new job/have kids.

I'm a bonafide night owl. It's an addiction. I love staying up late for absolutely no reason. I'm just sitting here, typing this blog, thinking about how I have to be at church at 10:00 in the morning. And it's now 1:00 AM. I know I will be tired tomorrow. I know I will sleep in later than I want to. Yet that's not enough to make me actually go upstairs and go to bed. It's a cycle that I can't seem to break. Probably because to I don't want to break it. Not bad enough, anyway.

What's really funny, is that I only really like staying up late when I am in the comfort of my own home. Or occasionally at the residence of close friends or family. When I'm out though, I hit a certain breaking point, usually between midnight and 1:00 am, where all I can think about is how tired I am and I want to go home. And then the second I walk through my door, it's like I'm wide awake and want to stay up! I don't get it.

This behavior frustrates Sam, who is pretty much the opposite of me. He typically does not like to stay up late, particularly when we are doing nothing at home. He is the quintessential early bird; he loves nothing more than to start his day early so he can get things done, and then come home and be in bed around 10:00, at the latest. However, when we're out somewhere, all he wants to do is stay out late, even if what we're doing is incredibly boring.

This has caused a few quarrels between us. Nothing serious, but he thinks I'm a party-pooper (I do tend to rain on his parade on occasion) and complains when I won't go to bed when he does. It's not that I don't like to go to bed early - if I'm tired, I certainly will - it's that I'm usually not tired until late, and I hate tossing and turning in bed when I can't sleep. So I stay up instead. And type blogs. And surf facebook. And read news. And watch TV. And job search. And occasionally do something productive, like write Thank You notes. Which, by the way, I finally finished for our couple's shower in March.

*Yawns*

Well, I'm getting tired now, so I think I'll go to bed! Goodnight, all!

I'm ill. No really, I'm sick!

So I've been sick for the past week with some unknown illness that I can't seem to shake. It started off with extreme exhaustion and a sore throat on Monday, and has since then progressed to excessive sleepiness/overall weakness, to a brief and (pump fake) recovery on Wednesday and Thursday, to a congested head cold/possible upper respiratory infection through the weekend. I woke up from a nap this afternoon and my ears were throbbing they hurt so bad! I'm hoping this is the last final punch before this cold finally leaves me alone.

I've been doping up on 1,000 mg vitamin C pills and Walgreens Severe Cold Medicine to try and fight through this on my own. I really don't believe in going to the doctor unless it's absolutely necessary, in order to prevent my body from becoming resistant to antibiotics. I believe that trying to fight through certain illnesses can help your body grow stronger. Of course, I'm no doctor so I have no proof of this, but I'd like to believe it's true. We live in an over-medicated society, so I try to use medicine only when necessary.

I'm hoping I feel better tomorrow so I can start working out again!