my accutane story

[betty]

I, along with everyone else, am one who has literally tried everything under the sun to get rid of my acne. I am 18 years old, and have had acne for about 4 years. I mainly struggled with the little bumps under the skin, that were most noticeable in photos which was just terrific for my senior year..prom pictures, graduation pictures. YUCK! nightmare...Anyways, I finally got on Accutane after switching my dermatologists...I almost finished with 3 of my 5 months, and I honestly couldn't be happier. At first, it really was horrible. My skin was so dry, my lips were disgusting and my face..well it wasn't getting better, only worse. Up until a couple of weeks ago I didn't see a difference...but now, I have nothing...No pimples, no blemishes, no little bumps. My face is completely clear no matter how stressed out I am, no matter what I do...I haven't broken out. It's amazing. I strongly suggest those of you that are looking for something that works...ask your derm about Accutane. And if you do get on it...Buy the big tube of Aquaphor for your lips. It will save your life!...Let me know if you have any more questions or if I can help you with anything. Best of luck to all.

[JESSE]

I ALSO AM AT THE END OF MY 3RD MONTH AND SEEING VERY GOOD RESULTS. ACCUTANE STARTED OUT ROUGH BUT IS NOW LOOKING LIKE MY SKIN WILL CLEAR UP AND LOOK LIKE IT DID YEARS AGO. IF YOU HAVE SCARES, I DO RECOMMEND THE LASER TREATMENTS THAT ARE OUT THERE TO REMOVE REDNESS AND SCARES. I JUST HAD SCARING AROUND MY MOUTH AND CHIN AND IT ONLY COST ABOUT 60 BUCKS A SESSION(4-5 SESSIONS)yOU DO HAVE TO WAIT A COUPLE OF MONTHS AFTER THE ACCUTANE TO GET THE TREATMENTS.

[John]

no matter how much you sugar caot it, it ain't sweet to suffer long term side effects...the scariest thing is sometimes side effect appears out of sudden after your treatment ends..beware...the side effects affects your joints,central nervous system, and much more. Unlike other drugs, side effects are often multiple!!! dont listen to your stupid derm! all they care is the skin and they dont know how much this can damage you...you should know drugs always affect the whole body!!! not just the skin!!! I know you wold not listen but you will know when you start to have side effects...

[John]

no matter how much you sugar caot it, it ain't sweet to suffer long term side effects...the scariest thing is sometimes side effect appears out of sudden after your treatment ends..beware...the side effects affects your joints,central nervous system, and much more. Unlike other drugs, side effects are often multiple!!! dont listen to your stupid derm! all they care is the skin and they dont know how much this can damage you...you should know drugs always affect the whole body!!! not just the skin!!!

[John]

why do people delete my post?

[skater777]

heyy ya'll okay so i was just wodering how long it took before things got better.. liek im only in my firt week BUT im super freakign because it seems liek NOTHING is gonan help i mean im all red and blotchy and breaking out.. is the first one or two weeks rough for every one?? when should soemone start seeign results..! positive results! ahh i feel like all this fabulous stuff has donw is make everythign rederr!!! ekk hellp!!

[steve]

skater777
yes it does get much worse. most people start seeing approvements about 2-3 months into it. i have the same problem now. i have cuts that are not healing and red spots all over my face from picked acne etc. things will seem to get worse then a bit better for around the 2-3 months. so you just have to wait it out. i know it really sucks but everybody is going threw the same thing. befor you know it your skin will look a million times better and it will be worth the wait!

[katherine]

I'm about to start taking those pills, but I'm really afraid, what do you think, it worth ?

[Jay]

It does get worse before better. JUST STICK WITH IT!!. If you are just now starting you are lucky because winter is coming, you can hibernate if things get real bad!lol. I did my 6 months through the summer, and it FN sucked! It took about 5 months for my skin to clear up completely and I am now about a month off of it and my skin feels great! Hope this helps, take care.

[Sara]

i just start taking accutane. today is my second pill. iam freaking out.. should i? please let me know your comments. any thing..pleeeeease. i am 25,and had my first baby about 9 month ago..pleaseeeeeeee
my email [e-mail]

[Heather]

dont freak out..i think it is the only option if you have severe acne..so its better u treat it now rather than later it will reduce the number of scars =) for me accutane was a miracle drug but was very harsh! i took it about 10 years ago when i was around 14 and it cleared my face perfectly until i was about 20, then it started coming back..i didnt want to go on accutane again because of the side effects (extremely dry skin and i also suffered from severe depression but that is rare i think) so i tried photodynamic therapy and it worked quite well but at a cost of about 5000 which wasnt covered, that lasted about a year or so and i was managing ok but then i had a baby (too)..11 months ago and ever since ive stopped nursing my face is breaking out even more!! like crazy and nothing is helping, i tried chemical peels this time around and this new home laser machine called Tanda and they both didnt work and were quite expensive. i cant take it anymore!!! so im going to my derm mid november to get accutane...I cant wait! the side effects can be quite serious but as long as you get montly blood tests to check your cholesterol and liver and dont get PREGNANT you should be ok..i guess it all depends on how bad u want clear skin and if your willing to risk and put up with the unpleasant side effects. sorry about this long story...lol,,has anyone ever taken 2 cycles of accutane and does it work just as well the 2nd time?QUOTE]

[AbouttoBegin]

I am 18 years old, and I am about to start using accutane as of tomorrow. So the reason I am posting is cause I have a question. My question is: If I am on accutane is it ok for me to have sex, whether my girlfriend is or isn't on birth control? I ask this because my doctor was saying something about birth defects if a child was conceived, which trust me isn't the plan. I also would like to know if accutane is considreed an antibiotic and if so does it eleminate the effects that birth control has on a girl, meaning will she possibly become pregnant if she is taking birth control and I am taking accutane and we decide to have sex?

anybody that has answers to these questions it would be greatly appreciated thank you

[Kay]

Accutane is not an antibiotic and even if it was it wouldnt effect her birth control. Birth control pills only become less effective if the girl takes antibiotics along with them. Im not sure if accutane can be spread to the baby if the guys is using it but better safe than sorry u should just use a condom.

[Katie]

I'm on my second week of accutane.
I can't tell much yet, but it seems to be clearing up. My face is already really dry and peely and my lips are pretty chapped.
No bad side effects yet except for dryness.

[confidential]

John wrote:

why do people delete my post?

Probably because you are making extremly biased, uneducated remarks about a product while simultaneously demeaning the credibility of the degree and education level of highly trained dermatologists everywhere... seems like a good reason to me...

[TigerLily]

Greetings yall!

I've read about all the details of accutane...at 15 I had really severe acne...I'm now 21 and my acne is now moderate. I have breakouts every time a blemish or pimple has come and gone, and I also have those terrible terrible scars they leave behind. A few years ago my dermataologist recommended accutane, of course I was too afraid to take it then, and I'm thinking anyone would be, with the severe side effects-- all in all the drug seems to have helped you all and I was wondering if you all think it's a good idea I consider it? I tried everything...and you all know what thats like...I'm even back on Proactive which has dried the hell out of my skin...I'm not sure what to do next. Any advice on this product?

[TigerLily]

P.S... I purchased a while ago this book called ACNE FREE IN 3 DAYS....it's a homeopathic remedy to acne..proven to "cure" acne for good....has anyone tried it? And has anyone's hair fallen out? Or eyebrows?...Just wondering, because the book's author claimed his entire eyebrow fell off at graduation...and I wouldn't want that to happen to me!(Keep in mind..I do know hair loss is a factor...I've done my research ;)....but has anything this drastic happened to anyone?

Sincerely yours,
TigerLily

[Dan]

TO my previous comment:I retract that last statement regarding hair loss, there is some cases of moderate to severe hair loss.

[James]

I have been on accutane for about 3 months and my face is pretty clear except for the occasional pimples here and there. I do have scarring and redness on the side of my face. Does anyone by the time im done on the medicine will the redness and scarring go away or reduce?

[TigerLily]

Hey yall,

Quick question regarding side effects...has any of you experienced the rare side effects of accutane? This is probably the big reason I'm afraid to take it, like so many others I just would like to know how many of you have encountered these effects?

P.S. Does accutane help with the redness and scarring?

Truly Yours,
TigerLily