Known for her ability to offer highly personal treatments with genuine care for the wellbeing of her patients, Tabby has been able to bring her past experiences from her own skin journey to help her patients.
My skin background
I have struggled with my skin for as long as I can remember. As soon as I entered my teenage years, I started to develop acne and had extremely oily skin. It was impossible to cover up for school, and because of this, it completely knocked my confidence.
After battling for years, I was put onto Accutane (also called Roaccutane, or Isotretinoin) at the age of 17. Accutane is a prescriptive-only drug that works to shrink the oil glands and reduce sebum production. However, it doesn’t come without risks. Accutane is usually the last line in defence against fighting acne thanks to its long list of side effects from extremely dry skin, eyes, nose, and lips right through to muscle and joint pain, and organ damage. It’s a closely monitored drug that isn’t for everyone – you’re required to have blood tests each month to check your liver function, and your mental health is also closely monitored as Accutane has been linked to changes in mental health.
Accutane helped to clear my acne for a couple of years, but it soon came back with a vengeance when I entered my 20’s. I was devastated – it destroyed my confidence all over again. I felt like I was trying everything for my skin such as antibiotics, and topical treatments from my GP. Not to mention all those products online that ‘promise’ to clear your skin in so many days. But nothing helped – if anything, the products made my skin worse!