I have been taking Minocycline for a couple of years. It does really work for the first year and a half, after that your body becomes immune to it and it no longer works!! The trouble is, you will end up developing cystic acne, that's whats happened to me.
As for the side affects, the dizziness has been dreadful as well as the aching muscles.
Good luck!

I've tried just about everything else bescides Accutane. Minocycline was the next step up from Tetracycline, so I decided to try it first.

Two days into the program and I was pretty bad dizzy, so I called my dermatologist and they told me to stop. Two days and a half later and something in my brain is whack, becase I am still dizzy, especially when I lay down or just stand up.

this sh*t doesnt work for the first month then it starts to get better

I'm on Day 3 of Minocycline, I don't know what to expect yet - but having read your comments, I'm fairly cautiously optimistic. I'll say I have no new blemishes for the past 3 days (maybe a coincidence - we'll see). I'm also using a topical solution (NeoStrata 2%), which I started the same day I started the Minocycline.

I was about to spend the $650CAD/session to do Blu Light w/ Levulan and I opted for this instead. After having acne for 15 years, I'm fed up and I'll try just about anything. I was on Accutane for 7 months back in 1997; my skin was somewhat cleared for a couple years, but the last 5 years have been pretty bad (cysts - although sporadically).

So...we'll see - I'll let you know how it goes!

P.S. To the guy who started this website - you're a hero. Seriously. It's so helpful to hear people's experiences and we don't have to suffer alone anymore! :-)

I have had acne on my face for about 7 years (I'm 18) and it spread to my chest, back, and upper arms about 5 years ago. And they weren't just red bumps, either; they were big purple welts, especially on my shoulders. Finally I got sick of fighting with it and Clinamyacin lotion and Differin gel were not doing enough. I've been on oral minocycline for a week now, and I haven't gotten a SINGLE new zit. AT ALL. This is something new for me. Already my face looks so much clearer, and the spots on my back are noticeably fading. I sometimes feel nauseous first thing in the morning, and it seems like I am always thirsty now, but that is it for side effects. I am soooo pleased with this medication, and I hope it works out for you!

Started this medication about 8 months ago, and stopped about 2 months ago.
Completely worthless, I want to kill myslef wen i think about all the time i wasted on this terrible medication. didnt do a single thing, seriously im not just sayin this. Go die mincyline

Follow up to my posting below... I almost went to the emergency room today, turns out the hives weren't so harmless after all (big scare actually)! Hives & large painful welts began to break out all over my body, hands began to swell, itch & turn red & I felt like I've been stung by a 100 bee's. My body felt like it had a deep sunburn, then, when my lips began to swell & my lower back muscles started to cramp up, (it actually started to affect my breathing) now thing were getting serious. I called my Dr. told him I was heading to the ER, he said first try taking benadryl (for the antihistamines I guess) , if I didn't see results right awy, then go to the ER, if not hives could turn to angioedema (closing of the airway) and develop Anaphylaxis shock. NOT COOL! Lucky for me the benadryl started to work, symtoms have started to subside. But it was a scary 3-4 hours! Safe to say I WILL NOT be taking minocycline again. I hope this doesn't happen to you.

Started taking Minocycline (100mg) 3-4 weeks ago & it worked amazing, couldn't believe it! Noticed a big change in only 3 days, my face is now cleared up almost 100%. Hasn't been this good in over 10-15 years. However, yesterday started to break out in what I guess to be "hives" (arms, back, legs). Got a little freaked out (because I've never had hives before) thought I had food posioning or something. Everything was back to normal when the hives went away... until they came back even "stronger" today, (now in addition to hives, I have small welts on arms as well). I did a quick search online for Minocycline & side effects, only to find this site & others who had a similar reaction. Guess I'll stop taking Mino for now & call my Dr. in the morning. I'm guessing the hives are harmless, more of a short-term neusence. But my face never looked better.

I am been taking Minocycline for almost 2 months. It has worked wonders on my skin! I did have slight dizziness in the beginning, more so if I bent over and got up quickly. I am also taking Yasmin (birth control) to help clear up my moderate/severe acne. Together, these have made my skin so clear! I still have some scarring, but I have so much more confidence in my skin. love it!

I am 27 yrs old now. I have had acne since I was 16. I never went to the derm just thought I'd grow out of it eventually. At age 25 I started using GNC weight gainers and creatine while I was working out and lemme tell you, my acne went straight from mild to severe. So I promised never to use these chemically based substances to build a better body. So i started using murad and proactive but it do me any good as the problem was inside me and not outside. Finally had to go see the derm. He put me on prednisone(cortisone) for 2 weeks and minocycline 100mg twice a day alond with some benzol peroxide cleansing pads.
Intially my skin got really bad... but after about 10-12 days i began to see results... 2 months on minocycline and i was completly clear. I used proactive lighting lotion on my left over hyper pigments and people started complimenting me how great my skin was....ahhh it felt so good. I was clear for about 4-5 months and then acne happend again. This time I was 26 and I had acne, bacne and chestne. So I was put on minocycline again for 3 months, only this this it helped my face but I develpoed dark spots on my back and face. So i took 1000mg vitamin C and it helped clear my face but not my back.
Then eventually I felt like my body was getting immune to minocycline.
I was so ashamed to go to work and me also being an actor/model had to stay away from the business that I can't tell you the mental trauma I've gone through.
I lost my job and couldnt book anything cuz of my acne. Mostly I was ashamed and embarrassed to appear in public.
Short on money and emotionally sunk, I go to another derm who told me about an acne study and a study medicine for acne. So as desperate I was, I took the chance. The study medicine I took was incyclinide and was on it for 3 months.
It it didnt help me to much. Besides going insane and taking off all mirrors except my bathroom mirrors down, I have no cure. I cant go on accutane cuz its too expensive and I think I'm depressed already and I dont wanna kill myself.
Today i went to the derm and he gave me doxycycline...lets see.
I felt I need to tell you guys all this...knowlege is power but we are all helpless when it comes to acne.
God bless you all and hope this acne dies....DIe acne die !