STYLETHREAD -- LET'S TALK SHOP!

Hey! I went on Accutane when i was in high school (about 4 or 5 years ago), I had pretty bad acne on my face... Like you, I tried so many things - proactive, antibiotics, prescription creams etc - and none of them worked. SO I went on accutane as a last resort and in the end I think it was definitely worth it.
Side effects for me were EXTREME dryness, dry skin all over, cracked lips, dry eyes, dry nose, and general dehydration. No matter how much water i drank or moisturizer i used my skin would be so dry it peeled (ick)!
Other not so fun stuff were the blood tests you need done every month to check on your liver. Also, you have to avoid sun and alcohol COMPLETELY, which can be frustrating!
I remember having to be very patient for results, i think it took 3 months before I noticed any positive results, and then I still had to take it for 2 more months after that so that my skin didnt break out again.
I didnt experience any depression side effects but I know a few of my friends and bf were on it and all experienced side effects differently, so its different for everyone i guess!
Anyways, in the end, my skin was clear and has been pretty manageable since then....
HTH! if you have any other questions, ask away!

Hi, I have suffered with acne since I was nine years old.  I had it all over my chest, right up to my collar bone, all over my back, and all over my t-zone on my face as a pre-teen and teen.  After several years of antibiotics (why do they treat acne with antiobiotics, it is so irresponsible???) and topical creams, my doctor agreed to put my on Accutaine at 17 years old.  Being on Accutane requires monthly liver enzyme checks and other blood tests, all of which you are required to pass before getting another prescription...  I cleared completely up within a couple months, but suffered the typical effects such as waxy looking skin and extreme dryness with peeling.  I was on Accutain I want to say for six months, but this is over ten years ago, so I am not certain.  Anyway, I maintained my acne-free skin by using a 10% benzoil peroxide (BP) wash and 10% BP cream, twice a day, everyday without fail.  I was very good about never missing a washing (although I only washed and treated my back and chest once a day). 

By time I was about 20 years old, the acne slowly started coming back on my jawline and the edges of my face (typical adult acne) and also on my back.  It did not re-appear on my chest (thank God as that was the most embarressing aspect for me), and it was not too bad on my back.  But the acne I was getting was deeper and painful.  I continued my BP regimine despite the fact that as the years passed, the acne on my face continued to worsen. 

By time I was 26.5 I decided to seek out a doctor who would put me on a second course of Accutaine.  After all the years of other treatments, I knew Accutaine was the only thing that would work for me, so I doctor-shopped (only took two tries) to find a doctor willing to cooperate.  I was put on a five month course of Accutane.  This time around I had a packet of information I had to read and sign, and agree to the same monthly tests before getting new scripts.  My skin was more horrid this time around then the first time, maybe it's because of my older age and the skin not being so young and fresh, I dunno.  I was using Cetaphil and an extremely gentle lotion on my face (can't remember the name right now), but it wasn't helping with the dryness.  One day in the shower as I was applying the Cetaphil, my face actually began to burn, so I rinsed it off and out of desperation I used Purity from Philosophy and my face felt great (I was using Philosophy products before beginning my second Accutane round because at that point the BP products were useless and I wanted to treat my skin better after so many years of wrecking it with harsh products, so that's why I had the products on hand).  Anyway, my point is that I began using Purity and Hope in  a Jar lotion while on the Accutane and it cured the "Accutane Face," which everyone has while on Accutane (waxy, red skin that is really dry, flakey and just plain raw).  My doctor actually told me at my next appt that she was shocked at how great my skin was doing on Accutane and I told her what I was using and she said to keep using it, so I highly reccommend those products ONLY while on Accutane.

If you do decide to go on Accutane, make sure you stick with it, at first you molt, which means that you break out even worse than before before you start to see results.  And like I said before, it can be straight-up hellish on your skin, so you would be really wise to use the Philosophy products I suggested during the course of your treatment only.  After your treatment another great reccommendation I have is to go to acne.org and use their regimine.  It is basically a mild soap, 2.5% BP cream, and mild lotion.  They reccommend several store brands or you can try the stuff they sell.  I buy my BP gel from the site because it is cheaper (even including S&H) than buying from a store and I much prefer the consistency of the gel to a cream or lotion; it absorbs really nicely.  I don't like their face wash, I think it stinks.  I use Purpose bar soap and Neutrogena lotion now. 

I've probably rambled more than necessary, but if you have any other questions or concerns, please feel free to ask away.


Oh, re: the depression, I don't believe it is a valid side effect.  A senator's son committed suicide while on it and since that happened he wanted to blame the drug (much easier than blaming the person who did it).  But the experts who counter the argument say that teens in general have a higher suicide rate and teens who have extreme enough acne to be on Accutane are far more likely to be even more depressed than your average pool of teens without severe acne (I was super depressed about my acne and it really affected my life).  Furthermore, there is no scientific evidence to support that Accutane causes depression.  This was all fueled over the Senator's son and media hype, and the lawsuits that ensued. 

those that use acne.org BP- does it make your face really red?  I don't know if my skin doesn't like BP or if its normal, but if i dot any on my face, only the area where the BP touches turns bright red.  I put a couple of dots on the other day and some got rubbed by accident, so i had bright red streaks across my face like a tiger.  and when i used it all over my face- HELL.  i looked sunburned.

lynnie wrote:

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those that use acne.org BP- does it make your face really red?  I don't know if my skin doesn't like BP or if its normal, but if i dot any on my face, only the area where the BP touches turns bright red.  I put a couple of dots on the other day and some got rubbed by accident, so i had bright red streaks across my face like a tiger.  and when i used it all over my face- HELL.  i looked sunburned.

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It could be the BP or it could be something else in that particular brand you are using that is causing the reaction.  Have you tried another 2.5% BP with different inactive ingredients to see if you still get that reaction (like Proactiv) ?  I'm sure it isn't unheard of to have a sensativity since it is a medicine.  I'm sorry it's not working for you, have you tried 2% salysic acid instead?  It's not as good, but it's what I used on my back since I don't want to bleach my clothes and it is more effective than nothing. 

I went on accutane when I was 22. My skin and lips were extremely dry. I have ecezema and it made it horrible. I also had a bit if depression, I kept an eye on it and told my roomate about it to watch me. I was going through a difficult break up so wasnt really sure whether it was the accutane or not. One side effect that I had that I did not see mentioned here was joint pain. I was really achy the whole time It was on it.
My skin actually was really clear while I was on it and for about 6 mos after. It has progressevly gone back to where I started. I am not willing to go for a second round. I used to think it was totally worth it, but now I am not so sure. I do want to say that is what I have decided for me and would totally not try to apply that to someone else's situation. I would never tell someone who wanted a 2nd (or 1st) round of accutane to either do or not do it. Some of the reasons I would not do it again are that they are now finding or preliminarily finding some correlations that are scarey. I do not know how accurate they are but they definitely made me worry a bit. I would say to really do some research in that area. Good luck.

Collegegirl - have you tried Sprionolactone?  Might be one more option before you resort to Accutane - it's an Androgen inhibitor, so it's for hormone-induced acne.  It can be used with BC pills if you're on those, too.  There are actually a couple BC pills that already have this in them and therefore claim acne-ridding benefits, but for alot of people that's just not enough of it to do anything.  Anyway, may be something to ask your derm about .....

-- Edited by Elle at 12:09, 2007-05-14

One of my good friends took Accutane (for a 2nd time) in her mid-20s. I can't speak to the side effects, as I didn't take it, but she had serious problems with her sight while she was on it. She ended up having to get off of it to avoid doing irreversible damage to her eyes. I don't know if that's a listed side effect or if it was just her, but it's just an fyi. I have another girlfriend who has taken it and aside from the dry skin (and the other skin issues already described), she didn't have any issues and her skin looks great now.

Deuce wrote:

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I went on accutane when I was 22. My skin and lips were extremely dry. I have ecezema and it made it horrible. I also had a bit if depression, I kept an eye on it and told my roomate about it to watch me. I was going through a difficult break up so wasnt really sure whether it was the accutane or not. One side effect that I had that I did not see mentioned here was joint pain. I was really achy the whole time It was on it.
My skin actually was really clear while I was on it and for about 6 mos after. It has progressevly gone back to where I started. I am not willing to go for a second round. I used to think it was totally worth it, but now I am not so sure. I do want to say that is what I have decided for me and would totally not try to apply that to someone else's situation. I would never tell someone who wanted a 2nd (or 1st) round of accutane to either do or not do it. Some of the reasons I would not do it again are that they are now finding or preliminarily finding some correlations that are scarey. I do not know how accurate they are but they definitely made me worry a bit. I would say to really do some research in that area. Good luck.

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Crap, it's funny the things your mind wants you to forget. I too had awful joint pain while on Accutane. And I just wanted to put in that I would not recommend taking it unless your acne is very serious. I really can't say if I would or would not take it again if my skin got worse.

And lynnie, I have not had the same problems with the BP irritating my skin. I probably wouldn't use it if I were you. . .