61 replies to this topic

[Avenger]

I finally got Roaccutane!

Some background information & how I obtained Roaccutane through the NHS (I'll try and keep it short!)...

Had mild - moderate acne for about 8 years. I'm 18.

Initially used the acne.org regimen which in truth completely cleared me up until I began experimenting with other topical treatments which failed.

When I first went to see my GP I wasn't completely clued up on Roaccutane, but I thought I would ask for it anyway. She would not refer me full stop and sent me away with Lymecycline and to come back in a month for another prescription. I wasn't really bothered since I didn't fully understand Roaccutane.

During that month I continued to research Roaccutane and came to the conclusion that it was something I wanted. I wasn't comfortable with treating my acne with antibiotics and I wanted something that would offer better and permanent results.

One month went by, and I phoned the surgery to book another appointment, but I requested to see a different GP. This doctor was much more sympathetic and after a short conversation agreed that Roaccutane would be a better road to go down, but having only been on one antibiotic he said it was protocol that I try at least two. He put me on Erythromycin and told me this is what they normally give patients before Roaccutane. I was told to return in one month and if I still wanted a referral then he would write one.

I returned one month later and he wrote me a referral. To speed the process up I took my blood tests at the surgery one week after being referred and received a confirmation of my appointment letter the day after. I was able to see a dermatologist within one month of being referred.

I had my appointment today and walked away with two months worth of Roaccutane, starting at 30mg/day (I take two 20mg one day then take one 20mg the next day and alternate like this).

My current skincare routine (see picture)

Morning

Wash with 'Nivea For Men Sensitive Face Wash'
Moisturise with 'Nivea For Men Sensitive Moisturiser'

Evening

Wash with 'Nivea For Men Sensitive Face Wash'
I use Retin-A 0.01% gel on Monday, Wednesday and Friday in the evening, however this may change to twice a week depending on irritation.
Moisturise with 'Nivea For Men Sensitive Moisturiser'

I like to use products that are specifically targeted for men, and I really like the Nivea For Men range. Products covered in flowers don't really appeal to me...

Day 1

I took one 20mg tablet with breakfast and one 20mg tablet with dinner. That's about it for now. Nothing more to report. I still look like a pizza face. I'm still continuing to take Erythromycin.

Here are some pictures I took today (day 1)...

Edited by Avenger, 04 May 2012 - 06:09 AM.

[NeedAMiracle!]

I just got done with week three of mine, and I know it's a tough journey to go through. But have patience, and I wish you the best of luck!

[Avenger]

I just got done with week three of mine, and I know it's a tough journey to go through. But have patience, and I wish you the best of luck!

Good luck!! I'm almost done with month 2. I'm on 40 mg daily and I hope to be moving up to 60 or 80 on the 12th of may. It's a tough medication and this board really helps with support. Let me know if you have any questions or need help with anything. What do you plan on using for your lips?

Thanks both of you, and I also wish you best of luck with your courses!

For my lips I plan to use either Blistex or Aquaphor, I'm going in to town today to buy some What do you use on your lips?

Edit: Brought some Blistex. My lips aren't dry yet but they will be soon, so I will save it for then. It smells quite strongly medicated, which I like.

Edited by Avenger, 02 May 2012 - 03:29 AM.

[Jack242]

Hey, good to hear you've started now and when you expected to. Its kind of funny getting all the pills at the one time since the boxes for roaccutane are huge! Was carrying 2 large plastic bags worth of the stuff home.

I stopped using retin-A years ago since it made my skin break out. Erythromycin also made everything worse (the only anti-biotic which did that for me mind you). You're right about not really wanting to use much anti-biotics. Years worth of them I feel have screwed my gut up and I need to take pro-biotics else I'll get stomach pains.

Best of luck with your course! Its been going well for me.

[Avenger]

Hey, good to hear you've started now and when you expected to. Its kind of funny getting all the pills at the one time since the boxes for roaccutane are huge! Was carrying 2 large plastic bags worth of the stuff home.

I stopped using retin-A years ago since it made my skin break out. Erythromycin also made everything worse (the only anti-biotic which did that for me mind you). You're right about not really wanting to use much anti-biotics. Years worth of them I feel have screwed my gut up and I need to take pro-biotics else I'll get stomach pains.

Best of luck with your course! Its been going well for me.

Thanks, and yeah I wasn't expecting them to be so big.I walked back from the hospital (it's only about 10 minutes away) with the biggest grin on my face, carrying two large bags full of Roaccutane.

I had to go back today to pick up the rest of my pills so I now have a two months supply.

Glad to hear it's all going well for you mate!

Anyway, as far as day two goes, not much change. I feel more thirsty than usual, but that may just be coincidence. I'm only taking one 20mg pill today and I'll have that with dinner.

On the days I take two is it best to space them out or take them together? Yesterday I took one in the morning with breakfast and the other one in the evening with dinner.

[Jack242]

Hey, good to hear you've started now and when you expected to. Its kind of funny getting all the pills at the one time since the boxes for roaccutane are huge! Was carrying 2 large plastic bags worth of the stuff home.

I stopped using retin-A years ago since it made my skin break out. Erythromycin also made everything worse (the only anti-biotic which did that for me mind you). You're right about not really wanting to use much anti-biotics. Years worth of them I feel have screwed my gut up and I need to take pro-biotics else I'll get stomach pains.

Best of luck with your course! Its been going well for me.

Thanks, and yeah I wasn't expecting them to be so big.I walked back from the hospital (it's only about 10 minutes away) with the biggest grin on my face, carrying two large bags full of Roaccutane.

I had to go back today to pick up the rest of my pills so I now have a two months supply.

Glad to hear it's all going well for you mate!

Anyway, as far as day two goes, not much change. I feel more thirsty than usual, but that may just be coincidence. I'm only taking one 20mg pill today and I'll have that with dinner.

On the days I take two is it best to space them out or take them together? Yesterday I took one in the morning with breakfast and the other one in the evening with dinner.

Apparently it doesn't really matter. I'm on 50mg a day and it says on my pills once a day so I take them all at once. Its just means I have less remembering to do.

[Avenger]

Day 3

Completed the end of day 3 - not much of an accomplishment yet, but still early days. In terms of side effects, I am beginning to feel my lips becoming dry so I am applying Blistex as a precaution. My skin feels a bit tighter and I'm starting to lose the oily appearance, but only very slightly. No other side effects apart from that.

I changed my skin care routine as I wasn't satisfied with the Nivea For Men range and so I went back to using what I know works well on my skin which is 'Simples' range (See pics). I use their Moisturising Face Wash and Hydrating Light Moisturiser and love them both. The cleanser foams well and the moisturiser is light and soaks in well. I also brought a wash cloth today which will help in removing flaky skin. I'm also looking in to buying Aveeno's Therapeutic Shave Gel

My skin feels a lot smoother and my whiteheads have gone.

Pics from day 3.



(Excuse the camouflage, I'm an air cadet).

Edited by Avenger, 03 May 2012 - 03:42 PM.

[Zraden]

I like to use products that are specifically targeted for men, and I really like the Nivea For Men range. Products covered in flowers don't really appeal to me...

Most of that stuff is a gimmick. Its mostly the same ingredients with the exception of fragrance.
My girlfriend gets pretty bad eczema from time to time and she has about 1000 different moisturisers
for me to use. I find that some of them she has, actually works better then stuff marketed towards men
and don't stink like flowers.

For my lips I plan to use either Blistex or Aquaphor, I'm going in to town today to buy some What do you use on your lips?

Edit: Brought some Blistex. My lips aren't dry yet but they will be soon, so I will save it for then. It smells quite strongly medicated, which I like.

Blistex is awful. I find while on Accutane, it lasts about 2 mins before it dries up and you need to reapply.
The flavoured chap and lip balms are even worse cause you want to lick them after, thus drying your lips up even more. My 2 recommendations are Aveda lip saver. Its a moisturiser, sealer and sunblock all in one. Also a big recommendation goes to Aquaphor, especially at bed time. Pile that stuff on your lips before bed and you wont regret it in the morning.

[Avenger]

Apparently it doesn't really matter. I'm on 50mg a day and it says on my pills once a day so I take them all at once. Its just means I have less remembering to do.

Cheers, I think I'm going to take them both at once rather than spacing them out.

I like to use products that are specifically targeted for men, and I really like the Nivea For Men range. Products covered in flowers don't really appeal to me...

Most of that stuff is a gimmick. Its mostly the same ingredients with the exception of fragrance.
My girlfriend gets pretty bad eczema from time to time and she has about 1000 different moisturisers
for me to use. I find that some of them she has, actually works better then stuff marketed towards men
and don't stink like flowers.

For my lips I plan to use either Blistex or Aquaphor, I'm going in to town today to buy some What do you use on your lips?

Edit: Brought some Blistex. My lips aren't dry yet but they will be soon, so I will save it for then. It smells quite strongly medicated, which I like.

Blistex is awful. I find while on Accutane, it lasts about 2 mins before it dries up and you need to reapply.
The flavoured chap and lip balms are even worse cause you want to lick them after, thus drying your lips up even more. My 2 recommendations are Aveda lip saver. Its a moisturiser, sealer and sunblock all in one. Also a big recommendation goes to Aquaphor, especially at bed time. Pile that stuff on your lips before bed and you wont regret it in the morning.

Thanks for the advice, I'll have a look in to Aquaphor

[Avenger]

DAY 4

Not a lot of changes from day 3. In terms of side effects, I'm extremely tired, having just done a 6 hour shift. Lips aren't dry yet. I've noticed that before starting Roaccutane my skin would get oily 20-30 minutes after showering, however it's taking much longer to get the oily appearance, which is a good thing.

I haven't had any new spots apart from one or two whiteheads in the usual places (chin and cheek).

I'm completely exhausted and I'm off to bed.

I'll give an update tomorrow

[Avenger]

DAY 5

My skin is beginning to feel a lot smoother, especially on my forehead. Lips are starting to dry out, and the skin around my mouth feels like a desert.

Had a few whiteheads crop up around my jaw line, and one large pimple appear on my temple.

I'm seriously tired though. I bent down this morning to pick something up and my back really hurt. As expected though.

Does anyone else feel tired/loss of energy whilst on (Ro)accutane?

[Zraden]

I noticed it for the first week or two.. but after that I was good

[Faerie87]

Have you tried vaseline for your lips?

[allrighty]

Hang in there....
Nivea is crap, didnt work for me either
How often do u shave? Does it make a mess of ur acne when u do shave? I have been using a bear trimmer for the last 6 months, I am noticing less acne and less ingrown hairs, you dont get a smooth shave, but it gets close enough tot he skin without making a bigger mess of your face.

Good luck!

[Avenger]

I noticed it for the first week or two.. but after that I was good

Ah that's alright then. Hopefully it'll blow over soon. I've only just woken up and I'm tired already.

Have you tried vaseline for your lips?

Nope, but I have a tub of it lying around somewhere. I'm using Blistex at the moment, I'll see how that goes. My lips aren't terribly dry yet.

Hang in there....
Nivea is crap, didnt work for me either
How often do u shave? Does it make a mess of ur acne when u do shave? I have been using a bear trimmer for the last 6 months, I am noticing less acne and less ingrown hairs, you dont get a smooth shave, but it gets close enough tot he skin without making a bigger mess of your face.

Good luck!

Yep. Nivea didn't really cut it for me. The cleanser was almost impossible to foam and always felt like it left a sticky residue on my face after washing. The moisturiser was quite thick - thicker than any other moisturiser I've used. It was difficult to spread it around. The only thing I liked was the shave gel. It foamed up really nicely and gave a comfortable shave.

I've ordered the Simple For Men range - I'll give that a go.

I used to be clean shaven everyday. Depending on what products I used I never really had an issue. I now shave twice a week, Tuesday and Thursday and sometimes at the weekend depending what I'm doing.

Edited by Avenger, 06 May 2012 - 04:19 AM.

[Avenger]

DAY 6 ON ROACCUTANE

Tiredness, tiredness, tiredness! Lower back sometimes hurts whenever I'm in an awkward squatting position for a prolonged period of time. Apart from that, it's going quite well!

My forehead is continuing to get smoother. Before it would have a rough texture, with lots of clogged pores, but it's beginning to feel and look quite nice. My nose is also incredibly smooth. The general overall feel of my face is much smoother and it looks much smoother too. The texture feels great. Had a couple of pimples, mainly whiteheads, form around my chin and jawline area.


Here's some pics. (Just out the shower, shaved and moisturised).

Edited by Avenger, 06 May 2012 - 01:49 PM.

[Faerie87]

Avenger:
Nope, but I have a tub of it lying around somewhere. I'm using Blistex at the moment, I'll see how that goes. My lips aren't terribly dry yet.

Yeh just thought I would mention it cos I generally use vaseline anyway, its much better than any lip balm in my opinion!

[Avenger]

Avenger:
Nope, but I have a tub of it lying around somewhere. I'm using Blistex at the moment, I'll see how that goes. My lips aren't terribly dry yet.

Yeh just thought I would mention it cos I generally use vaseline anyway, its much better than any lip balm in my opinion!

I've heard some good reviews about vaseline compared to other products on the market, and it's cheaper. I'll have a look in to it, cheers

I'm having a problem with dandruff at the moment, I'm using Head & Shoulders 2 in 1 shampoo and conditioner, but it's not really helping.

[lukuz]

Hey man, good luck with it. Day 120 here - the initial breakout sucks! I didn't wash when I was on it, until day 100 where I started using some Cetaphil - buy some Cetaphil - it's specifically made for 'dermatologist' patients - aka. Accutane users.Don't exfoliate and make sure that your moisturizer is oil free! And also - chapstick - use it. Use a lot of it.