22 yr old male started Accutane 8/21/08

Alright, I am a 22 year old guy and started Accutane for a third time on August 21, 2008. With that I believe that I am on day 17.

I took accutane at age 17, 19, and now that I am 22 I am hoping that this is the last time that I will have to do this. The first time I took it I had bad acne and it took all 5 months to finally clear. The second time I took it I was a sophomore in college with mild acne that hadn't responded to anti biotics, topicals, and various washes so I tried the Tane again. It surprisingly worked in about 2 months and I was clear for about 2 and half years. This time it has come back again and really fast for some reason too. My derm put me on accutane again hoping that it would knock it out since I am in my twenties and also remembering how fast I cleared last time I took it with minimal side effects.

So I started with 40 mgs a day for two weeks to get reacquainted with my old friend and now I am up to 60 mgs per day.

So this is where I stand:

Day 17

Right side is almost completely clear with the exception of one ingrown hair but that was from shaving
Left side is a much different story, I have 5 BIG pimples on that side and they look awful but I think it might just be from the IB
Forehead, chin and upper lip area are all clear
My chest and back have a few but nothing that ever really bothers me too much


So this is where I stand a little after two weeks. My side effects are chapped lips and tight skin so I moisturize a little but not too much. I can't remember from last time, is this about the right time to be feeling these side effects? Any comments much appreciated, Thanks Everyone!

Accutane's effects

Hey I took a course of tane at 17 and now one at 19 is there anyone out there who did the same and it didn't come back again. maybe the pores will srink up and die this time, haha, i dont know if i want that but who knows if it did the trick why not!! It worked the first time but has come back, has anyone taken accutane and then have clear skin the rest of their life? Just wondering

second course: Hope it stays clear

Hey there, I am a 19 year old sophomore in college and started accutane 3 weeks ago. I took this drug for the forst time when i was 17 when i had mild to moderate acne (really nothing bad at all) and it cleared me up. The side effects were terrible though and my acne actaully got a lot worse for about three months before I saw improvement.

It was crystal clear for about a year, i mean not one zit and i have no scars at all bc it really wasn't bad and had no acne anywhere else on my body. Well then around three months ago I started seeing things come back a little and it made me nervous because all that i had been through to get rid of it. I kept it under control for about two months but then i decided I wanted accutane again. Well no doctor would give it to me bc they said I wasnt even a 1 on a scale of 1 to 5 of how severe acne was. But all acne sufferers know that anything on your face can have a huge impact of your life no matter the severity.

So finally I found a derm. to prescibe it and have been on this for 3 weeks. I had a bad initial breakout and now have probably 5 zits on my face but they all seem to be stubborn and not want to go away. I am on 40 mg a day to start out with and weigh 160 pounds at 6"3 so i am pretty skinny. Hopefully I can up the dosage for the second month.

Here's the rundown
Right side is broken out right now
Left side is clear right now
chin has one
forehead is clear (always clear though)
no bacne
neck has one HUGE zit

Regimen last resort

I have had acne since I was about 16 when I was prescribed minocycline by my regular doctor. I really only had 2 to 3 pimples on my chin line and that was it but my mom though why not try and get rid of it so we did and for a year I was acne free. When I turned 17 and started my senior year of high school everything exploded all over my face and for a few months I had to try all the things like tetracycline, retin A, bp wash, differin and things like that. Well it didnt work so I went on Accutane and by the 4th month I was totally clear and remained clear for a whole year (I mean I really did not have a pimple for a year!) Well in the past three months now that I am 19 the acne has come back. It has been a slow process but it is here to stay and I was once again prescribed doxycycline with duac gel. This cleared me up the first week but since i was only able to apply the duac once a day and very sparingly the acne has come back again. I started the regimen yesterday and this is the way my face looks
-nose, between eyes and forehead all clear( thats normal though)
-right side of face totally clear
-left side I have like 4 little red spots with little whit tips that wont go away
-behind my ear and a little down on my neck has like 3 big red spots too that are tender but not cysts or anything

Day 1
Went out and bought all the products and applied them that night. Felt so extra bumps right before I went to bed!