clen ([info]clen3k) wrote in [info]bepimpled,
2008-04-24 11:11:00
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Wounds and healing

This is a new one even for me after 13 years of acne.

I've popped zits too early and that has resulted in the liquid, semi-transparent puss and the zit reappearing soon enough.

However, now I'm on accutane, I got a large painful zit on my cheek.

I popped it.

The liquid puss says too early.

Um. And I woke up to it still extremely painful and red. I washed my face with a gentle wash, but still what happened was:

A chunk of my skin came off. Right now I have a red, about an inch in diameter (yes, it's huge!) piece of skin missing in the middle of my cheek. It's a red open wound that is constantly oozing puss down my cheek.

:/

I need to be at work and look presentable tomorrow morning. So I really need it to heal at least enough to put some coverup on it.

Right now, it's looked the same for five hours. Red, gigantic, extremely painful, puss-oozing, no new skin forming.

Help? Any at home suggestions? I wouldn't want to go outside with this on my face.

ETA: Should I keep patting off the puss/blood mixture, or leave it to form a yellow crust on the wound?

Just any suggestions would be so welcome.

ETA 2: Wow. Everyone's been so helpful. Thank you! :) I'm dropping by a chemist's tomorrow after work and getting myself some vitamin E capsules. They should have oil in them, right? And seem to be a good thing to have at hand.

I'm thinking of sleeping with a band-aid on to prevent from scratching against the pillows and blankets. And probably I'll wear a band-aid to work as well instead of trying to cover it up with make-up.

While at home, I'll let it breathe. :)

Here's to hoping.

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  • 22 comments

[info]quietasariot

April 24 2008, 08:24:46 UTC 4 years ago

OH GOD the chunk of skin imagery *shudder*.

Maybe liquid bandage? Eek. I never had that happen when I was on accutane.

[info]clen3k

April 24 2008, 08:37:33 UTC 4 years ago

Yeah, really not nice. :(

Colour me ignorant, but what is a liquid bandage?

[info]quietasariot

April 24 2008, 08:39:22 UTC 4 years ago

I'm not sure what it's made of or how to describe it... i've never actually used it, but my husband does, heh.

http://www.jnj.com/innovations/new_features/BANDAID_Brand_Liquid_Bandage.htm

[info]adorable1

April 24 2008, 11:10:37 UTC 4 years ago

Don't touch it! just let it crust over. I had a similar experience while on accutane, but I'd recommend placing a small band aid over the area if you're concerned about going out. There's really not much you do, but I hope you heal up soon.

[info]clen3k

April 24 2008, 12:10:46 UTC 4 years ago

Meep. Can I bathe/shower? Is water on the face okay?

And now for the big stuff. How long did it take to heal for you, and did it scar? *bites lip*

[info]adorable1

April 24 2008, 23:07:45 UTC 4 years ago

Bathing is okay, but until it heals be very gentle while washing your face and avoid putting products like soap and moisturizer on it. I noticed while I was on accutane, my blemishes healed considerably faster. But, the big ones would take a fews days to a week. There was a month where I just didn't want to leave the house :/

I do have scarring, but the regular chemical peels I have been receiving from my dermotologist have greatly dimished the purple spots. I still have small indentations which look like large pores, but it's not really noticeable.

[info]adorable1

April 24 2008, 23:12:55 UTC 4 years ago

Oh! and I've seen other people have recommend Vitamin E. I started applying the oil to my face at night and taking capules and it really helped my skin. I'm sure the capsules are readily available at the chemist/drug store/hypermart, just crack one open and apply it to the dry spots on your face. It'll feel really sticky and will take a while to absorb, so do it a while before you go to sleep.

[info]clen3k

April 25 2008, 12:59:46 UTC 4 years ago

Sorry to bother you again. When I went to the chemists there were both capsules and bottled vitamin E oil. I took the capsules caz I figured I can break them right now to get the oil, but start taking them internally as well. They contain 10mg of Vitamin E per 1 500 mg oil capsule. So how many a day should I take? The box says the recommended daily dose for an adult is 1 capsule. But should I take more? Acne skin and accutane and all that...

[info]selects

April 24 2008, 11:32:23 UTC 4 years ago

oh no!! im sorry to hear that, god i have no idea. all i can offer is i know youre not meant to squeeze at all on accutane D:
good luck son

[info]pink_bullets

April 24 2008, 14:39:08 UTC 4 years ago

I would not touch it. Maybe put some neosporin on it since it's an open wound? something to help it heal. Your skin is so dry at this point that it's going to take forever to heal and if I were you I'd definitely do something to help the healing process.

[info]crash634

April 25 2008, 18:34:32 UTC 4 years ago

I second this.
I actually recently had a very small version of what the OP had and I put Neosporin on it before I went to bed (and no other product) and when I woke up it looks 80% better.

[info]turtleinthecity

April 24 2008, 14:50:59 UTC 4 years ago

I'm an expert on this stuff unfortunately.

The healthiest way is the Neosporin and bandaid suggested by others on this post. This will make it heal with minimal scarring. However, using band-aid keeps the wound from forming a crust. This is actually healthy and promotes faster healing but keeps it from allowing you to cover it with coverup or concealer. And since you're on accutane it won't heal as quickly as it might normally.

The secret is a little white stick called a Styptic Pen. It is used by men after shaving when they have nicked there face. You dab the stick under running water and apply to the nick. The white compound in the stick causes blood to clot. It also causes puss from an open acne wound to clot. I've used it myself. Then once the puss has clotted you can let it dry and apply concealer.

[info]clen3k

April 24 2008, 17:17:33 UTC 4 years ago

I wouldn't even know what to start looking for. :( I live in Northern Europe.

Right now I'm going with an antiseptic (the same kind I used to clean my piercings) and a band-aid.

You said scarring. How bad can I expect? So far I've escaped cystic acne with minimal scarring and I'm pretty terrified right now. How long can I expect the healing process to take?

[info]turtleinthecity

April 24 2008, 19:10:54 UTC 4 years ago

It probably won't scar. Just be careful popping pimples on accutane because your skin doesn't heal as quickly so there's a larger chance you will scar. Since your skin was so sensitive it rubbed off, it's obviously really dry from Accutane.

[info]zellandyne

April 24 2008, 18:15:16 UTC 4 years ago

There are a bunch of things you can do to prevent scarring. One is applying vitamin e oil to the wound as it's healing. Another is, if you can get some, applying some hydroquinone (2-4%). In the US I know you can get that without a prescription a 2% in some skin creams. Not sure about Europe.

The vitamin E you can apply now, while it's healing. The hydroquinone wait on until the skin has grown back completely. It fades the discoloration - doesn't actually prevent or get rid of scars, but makes them much less noticeable.

Using neosporin and a bandaid is one good option. Another I've heard, but never tried, is applying honey to the wound. Here's a link about that: http://www.worldwidewounds.com/2001/november/Molan/honey-as-topical-agent.html

If I think of anything else, I'll let you know. I'm actually researching treatments for wounds and bruises right now for an article I'm writing, so I may stumble across something useful.

[info]clen3k

April 24 2008, 18:56:50 UTC 4 years ago

How bad an idea would it be to get my daily moisturizer (vitamin E containing) on it?

[info]devilc

April 24 2008, 18:58:55 UTC 4 years ago

Your daily moisturizer probably doesn't contain enough vitamin E to really help here. :/



[info]zellandyne

April 25 2008, 01:26:05 UTC 4 years ago

Right. And it probably does contain other things that you don't want in a wound. Moisturizer is designed to be used on the surface of your skin, not to deal with open wounds.

I like the suggestions people have made to buy vitamin e capsules. You can break those open and apply the oil directly to your skin. You can also swallow them, and they help with skin repair that way as well. It's just a slower build up, but probably a good idea.

I definitely approve the idea of the bandaid at night. I know for me, when wounds are healing, they get itchy and I end up scratching at them during my sleep.

[info]listenrealhard

April 24 2008, 19:28:29 UTC 4 years ago

If it's gotten to the point where it's more of a wound, I usually put some Hydrogen Peroxide on it to fight the infection, and some Neosporin. Hydrogen Peroxide, I've found, helps dry up pimples anyway so that's a good bet no matter what. However, because Neosporin tends to be greasy, I wouldn't put that on it unless there is no pimple-infection left in it, if that makes any sense...

[info]listenrealhard

April 24 2008, 19:30:44 UTC 4 years ago

Oh, and I disagree with the bandaid suggestion on top of the Neosporin. Bandaids prevent more dirt and bad stuff from getting in, but they make wounds actually heal slower because they keep them wet and they don't get air. Since it's on your face, it's not like you're gonna be rubbing dirt on it, so as long as you don't touch your face, I say no bandaid will be quicker.

[info]coastercarnage

April 25 2008, 21:27:24 UTC 4 years ago

2 months ago I had the same thing. One day I was washing my face and the layer of skin on the pimple rubbed off and it shot white shit and puss on the mirror and didn't stop pussing for like two days.
Turns out it was a cystic and it got really infected. I put neosporin and a band aid for a week and it eventually healed but I was still left with a bad scar where the skin came off.
I figured out that the main reason i scarred so bad was the exfoliating face wash I was using at the time so I'd recommend a moisturizing face wash and after washing put neosporin and use a small band aid. keep with the vitamin e that's a good idea.
BTW I have had serious combination skin resulting in horrible cystic acne for the past 10 years and the only thing that has helped has been cold cream. I highly recommend it for dry skin with excess production of oil

[info]coastercarnage

April 25 2008, 21:29:43 UTC 4 years ago

ps band aids look better than crusty red craters
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