Hey Everyone-

I have really mild yet persistant acne...I mean like only a few zits at a time...

I've tried...the topicals and now I'm on accutante (40mg 1st month, 60 2nd month)

Anyways, I'm half way through my second month and I'm not seeing any results...how long does this take?...does it take longer with patients with mild acne?...also i heard that patients with mild acne are more inclined to need a second treatment...is this true?...anybody have any info on this?

also, is there anyway to some color while on accutane?...im usually a very tan person but i havent seen the sun in like 2 months and my spots are showing much more now than before.

I dunno, just thought since i read this board so much maybe i should contribute my own experience...

thanks everyone

Yes people have used accutane for extremely mild acne.

Basically, if you do not respond to topical treatments, or oral antibiotics, some derms will prescribe accutane.


Accutane will help permanently reduce your oil production which helps mild acne as well as cystic acne.

Whether or not the side effects are worth it depends on the person.


Seems like the 2nd month when i was on accutane cleared up the mild facial acne.

Good luck with your treatment!

-Eric

i have VERY mild acne... when i told my friends i was going on accutane they laughed at me and told me i have perfect skin.. however, i'm just a very good makeup artist... it's not perfect... but it's on and off...
i went on accutane (i'm at the end of my second week) because i've tried every over-the-counter, two courses of differin three years apart, benzaclin, benzamycin, cleocin-t lotion, minocyclin, doryx, retin-a, plexion, and a whole slew of stuff my derm makes on his own... most of these didn't work at all... and my benzaclin/plexion regimen worked for two years almost perfectly, and then stopped working... my skin was pretty much resistant to all topical/antibiotic medication...
furthermore... my skin was beginning to scar
and the part that alarmed my dermatologist and told me that he though it were imperative to go on accutane was that my breakouts were beginning to be incredibly painful...
my acne was taking a huge emotional toll on me... and i was crying every night when i took my makeup off, to the point where i didn't want my boyfriend to see me without makeup... to me, any side effect of accutane is worth it... even if people are completely confused as to why i'm on it lol

That almost completely describes my situation... my acne is mild-moderate, but it comes and gos, and some breakouts are worse than others. For the few months before I started Roaccutane, my skin was fairly clear (maybe 99%), so when I said I was going on 'tane, everyone just kinda went, "Why? You don't have any acne!"... but like you, I've just become really good at covering it up over the years. Plus, people tend not to see me so much when my skin is bad, since I hardly go out if I can help it!

I'm now on Day 43, and my skin has been doing really well since I started... the only problem I'm having is with the skin peeling and dryness... I'm well impressed though at not having to wash my hair every single day now though, or using blotting papers on my face every half hour to get rid of the oiliness!

wow same exact situation for me too!!!! lol but yea seriously i either have hid my acne with make up, not gone out, or covered it with clothing for my chest and back (haven't wore a bathing suit publicly for 4 years now) but this is also the end of my second week! and things are looking pretty good so far. i was also 99% clear before i went on accutane, but i know, and my derm knows how my acne is, so it was just time.

good luck to u guys! we should all keep talkin though since we are all in a pretty similar situation.

just curious.......what dose r u guys on??

WOW! I'm so glad I'm not the only one on this board that has REALLY mild acne that is on Accutane. I got some discouraging comments on this board because I'm on Accutane and I have REALLY mild acne. My skin was 99% clear before I went on Accutane too. But I get these breakouts that cause scarring easily. I also have an oil issue (I get claustrophobic sometimes). My social life is pretty bad.....so my derm just gave me Accutane. Good Luck on your treatment as I just started a few days ago.

And to everyone.....good luck with your treament too. And also.....I'm on 40mg a day!

GreyMoon95: I'm in the same exact situation as you are. I tried most of the prescription topicals you metioned and all the OTC products. I have small breakouts sometimes but they leave red marks. My friends and some people on this board really discouraged me because I have clear skin. But I also have red marks and it's really sickening to see myself breakout and leaves a red mark.

hahahah i've awoken a whole sea of almost-clear accutane users... it's funny, kinda lol...maybe we'll all end up being make-up artists...
i'm on 20 mg this month... i think i'm going up at the end of the month...
don't let people discourage you... even though my acne isn't SO bad right now... i almost failed my senior year of high school because of so many absences... some of which were due to putting my makeup on in the morning and not being able to cover it well enough and crying and just getting so frustrated and upset that i couldn't go to school...
anyone who is willing to go through a whole course of accutane is well-aware of the side effects.. and in my opinion, anyone who is willing to go through all this bullshit is worthy of taking accutane... if you're that upset about it...
this is the most recent pic i could find that is close enough to see my skin... so you can all see how WONDERFUL my skin LOOKS lol... so maybe you won't feel bad about being on it
<3 jenn

Hey hey gorgeous!

Yup, you're looking good.

anything is possible, it could take forever for you to clear up
and yes acne can come back.....it can't be said enough...you have to understand that there are only treatments until your body grows out of acne....becuase lets face it....if there was a cure pharmaceutical companys wouldn't make as much money as they do, so instead, you get medications upon medications...we are a nation based on medications and i'm just waiting to have some luaghs when a accutane tv-ad comes out...but stick with the accutane, it is the best treatment for cyst acne and acne that doesn't respond to other medications

what???? why them my stupid dermatologist said that I my acne is too mild for accutane ...... but they're not as mild as the author here said!!!! UGH I hate her.......

anyone knows what can I tell her to convince her?

like that I;ve been using a lot of BP (and I have) and that it dries my skin...and that it's been like that for a months (or 2 by the time I can get to her) ... and that Accutane only dries you up horribly for 6- months and then it's just normal???

will that work?

EDIT: I just made an appointment on Jan 25....
what if my skin will be clear by then? Will she believe me that stopping BP causes huge breakouts?

oh I want Accutane so bad........

hahah thanks spotguru....

xXillusion... i dunno what your acne is like or anything, but i went to a derm about 5 years ago and wanted to go on accutane so badly and he said it was way too mild (and in retrospect, at the time, it was), and i was so upset because i wanted what i thought was a quick fix... but let me tell you... accutane isn't... but i totally empathize with your wanting to be on it so badly...

if you're only using BP and haven't been on ANY topical meds at ALL, your derm is not going to jump to accutane if you only have mild acne... they're gonna put you on tons of different shit... and it might work honestly- be optimistic... i used to get so angry when they wouldn't prescribe accutane for me and they kept giving me different antibiotics and topicals... but honestly KEEP AN OPEN MIND... if you need accutane, your dermatologist will let you know... plus- topicals don't come with half the side effects that accutane does... so if you can get clear skin from a cream, by all means... do it
<3 jenn

I have mild acne also and just started accutane. My derm was like wow your acne is very stubborn it comes and goes and accutane is made for a person like you I was so happy when she told me this. I'm on 60 mg I wanted to go on 40, but I havent broked out since the only side effect I experienced so far was itching!!!!! The picture of me below is from the summer when my face was clear!! I dont have bad acne but I seriously cry over a little pimple.

yea thats exactly how i was greymoon......i actually did stop goin to school though, i am still being homeschooled, but yea u explained my situation with the makeup and everything so perfectly!

but yea it took my derm 2 years of almost everything before he put me on accutane, and the reason he did finally was because it is soooo persistant. and he just said flat out i think its time we try accutane. and im so glad we did! i mean the side aren't gonna be fun, but its gonna be so worth it!

good luck with ur derm!!! and greymoon is right, be optimistic!

GreyMoon95, well, I went to her 3 times and she kept giving me Retin-A, starting frim the mild one and ending with Retin-A Micro, which completely ruines my skin. She told me to use it for 3 momths and if no improvements, then come back...
well of course I didn't come back...I was so angry! Even my mom said that she regrets that she me go to a dermatologist....

So now I have the next appointment and if she's gonna give me some crap, I'm just going to get up and leave. Yeah that rude..

sheesh... that sucks... my advice is once you go to a dermatologist... don't stop going... do as i say, not as i do, because i flopped around with different derms a lot, because they weren't giving me the results i wanted... now i've been going to the same dermatologist for almost 3 years, and he's monitored me and watched me try a whole buncha shit, so when he decided i was ready to go ahead and try accutane, i trusted him...
now, with all that said... if you REALLLLLLLLLY want to go on accutane and you REALLLLLLLY don't wanna try other crap, i would just be honest with her about how upset you are... anyone who is on this message board is obviously upset about it-- but if she doesn't think you're ready for it, don't push it... try whatever she gives you, and schedule another apointment WHILE you're there, for, say, a month from that time... give it a month to see how the new prescription work (it'll beat the hell out of retin-a and BP) and if you're still not happy, then you won't have to wait so long for an appointment... then you can say with a WHOLE lot of confidence that what she's giving you isn't working, and that you want to go on accutane...
and hey, if it clears up... cancel your appointment and smile

the key point is to find a derm that respects your wishes. Before I met my derm I was soo nervous that he wouldn't give me Accutane because I'm pretty much clear with occasional breakouts. But I told my derm that I have tried most of the OTC products and prescription topicals from my doctor. I also told him that my social life has been pretty much ruined by acne. So he said I had 34 choices......other topicals, antibiotics, or Accutane. Of course....Accutane. He never said OH your acne is too mild for Accutane. He said....well if Accutane is really what you want then I will prescribe it to you. So just be honest and hope for a respectful and understanding derm. If you find a derm that just doesn't care.....just leave!

Hey everyone...

good thread we have goin here...

lots of people cant seem to convince their derm to go with accutane...

my main argument was the fact that stupid topicals were starting to dominate my life...not to mention the physical effects to my skin...i mean seriously, my day revolved arounded topicals and cleaning...if i didnt get time to do it in the morning it would affect my day more so than the acne itself...and likewise with the evenings.

I guess i just like to know that something is being done to control my acne...thats why the accutane is sooooo good right now...i can actually focus on the things i want to and not have to worry about sticking to those damn topicals.

and furthermore i think you can get any derm to perscribe it to you...remember you are paying them...do your research on the drug...show them that you know all about it and make a sale...show them why you think you should be on it...and if they say no...take you business elsewhere.

hey thanks for your replies ||||||, NoLimiT, and GreyMoon95.

I agree about using tipicals all the time. I don't want to do it for the rest of my life or for more than a year. Plus, it takes too much time and is ruinig your clothes, keeps you from hugging your baby sister because you're afraid that BP will get on her face, or on her hands, which will end up in her mouth, and do god knows what...
Then, torturing your skin for 6 months and then leave it alone is much better than torturing it all your life...


Does this sound convincing?
All those things are true...that's exactly how I feel...oh and add low self esteem

ps. why is there no "crying smilie" on this forum? -)))


ps.#2...how much does accutane cost anyway? I heard it doesn't get covered by insurance...

yeah... this definitely turned into a pretty awesome thread... lot of good points being made...
i never really thought consciously about the whole topicals-running-my-life concept until just now, but i am totally on board with everyone about that... during the appointment when my derm prescribed accutane, he said "ok, so no more topicals... no more creams, no more antibiotics... throw it allllll away" and i smiled like REAL big... but it was all kinda in the back of my head... thanks for bringing that to my attention...

ok... i don't have insurance, so i can't say if accutane is covered by it, by i believe in most cases it is-- depends on your insurance i would imagine...
i'll be getting insurance in a month or two, but because i didn't have it when my derm prescribed... he told me to sit down with a phonebook and call a whole bunch of pharmacies... the chains like CVS, duane reade (don't know where you are and if you have em, but you know to what i'm referring), and smaller ones... call them up, ask if they carry accutane, then ask if they'll give prices over the phone, because some pharmacies have a policy against it... and just write down all the prices because they VARY hugely, i'm not even kidding... par example: i called rite-aid and they didn't carry accutane, i called a small pharmacy, they wouldn't give prices over the phone, and then i called two small pharmacies across the street from my house and one was charging $499 for a month's supply of 20mg... and the one down the block from it was charging $179 for the same... it's the difference between generic and brand accutane... there's no difference UNLESS your derm prescribes it that you have to be on brand accutane, which is a possibility, but not very common... anyone else feel free to field this question as well though because it REALLY varies... and maybe you all can answer the insurance portion better than i
<3 jenn