Hey Fred, Im going thru the same issues w/ the hair. Im going into week 7 and for the past 3-4 weeks, Ive been noticing more and more that my hair comes out easily. I just got a cut this weekend. Its a little shorter than I normally get it, but I looks thin and patchy in some spots. Im becoming concerned. Im going to start looking into some leave-in conditioner. Ive read in your posts that this may help w/ the brittleness that seems to cause the hair come out. I hope so anyway. Keep me posted on how your getting along w/ the hair

Hey Fred, Im going thru the same issues w/ the hair. Im going into week 7 and for the past 3-4 weeks, Ive been noticing more and more that my hair comes out easily. I just got a cut this weekend. Its a little shorter than I normally get it, but I looks thin and patchy in some spots. Im becoming concerned. Im going to start looking into some leave-in conditioner. Ive read in your posts that this may help w/ the brittleness that seems to cause the hair come out. I hope so anyway. Keep me posted on how your getting along w/ the hair

Hey goodz:

Unfortunately, dryness of hair plays little or no role in hair loss. The only way dry hair could result in hair loss is if it was contributing to the breaking of hair. This only happens for people with long hair, and their hair is not falling out from the root, it is just breaking and thus becoming very short.

Let's hope that if we have hair thinning at all, then it is minor. My doctor said that a lot of people experience hair thinning but never notice it because it does not make a huge splash. He said that usually only the person with the hair loss notices it, and not anyone else.

Week 5/20 in the books.

Dosage: 60mg/day

Side effects: dryness everywhere, dry eyes, slight hair thinning, dry lips

So the big news of the day is that I've moved hair thinning from a possible side effect to a legitimate side effect. I'm feeling pretty emotional about this one. I would say I'm waking up with 20 hairs on my pillow every morning, and I can brush out another 20 before I get into the shower. That's still within the normal 50-100 hair strand loss/day, but I myself have never noticed it. Maybe its because I've never looked, but something else has confirmed my suspicions. I have thick hair and always rock a buzz cut. I can look in the mirror and notice little "wisps" of hair sticking up on my head. I feel like those are the ones that fall out.

Drug induced hair loss is supposedly temporary, but one can never rule out the possibility of it being prolonged or permanent like the folks in the main accutane posts area. I would never want to trade my hair for acne.

If it stays under control, and I don't start balding then I can handle it because i have thick hair and chances are it will return to normalcy. My doctor claims that its usually such a minimal loss, that nobody can notice.

Back when I was thinking about taking this drug, I remember reading some posts about people who didn't lose their hair completely but it just thinned a moderate amount. I hope I fit into that category.

If anyone is reading this that has taken accutane or knows of someone on there that had that happen I would appreciate it if you could leave some words of motivation.

The thought of having to deal with this for another 3 months really sucks.

"Doesn't everybody deserve to have a good life..."

Until next time,

Fred

Week 6/20

60mg/day

Same side effects as week 5.

I had a nice couple days out to my buddy's lake house this past weekend. It took my mind off things which was great,

I currently have no cysts, and I got 4 small pimples over the weekend that have dried up completely.

Stay happy,

Fred

Hey Fred, thanx for dropping by my log. Seems things are still going ok for you. How's the hair thing? Glad you enjoyed yourself away for a while. I find myself being so apprehensive about going places/doing things when Im broke out bad, but I always end up being happy I did them.

Hey Fred, thanx for dropping by my log. Seems things are still going ok for you. How's the hair thing? Glad you enjoyed yourself away for a while. I find myself being so apprehensive about going places/doing things when Im broke out bad, but I always end up being happy I did them.

Goodz...I'm glad we started around the same time so we can lend each other a hand (especially with this hair thing). You are right about doing things...I always think twice about doing them, but in the end I'm glad I bagged up. I don't hesitate because of the way my face looks especially because only my real close friends were out there (they could care less how I look), but rather the pain of having to worry about taking my pills with food, not boozing, moisturizing, putting on sunscreen, etc.

The hair thing currently sucks. Its almost as though I'm losing hair, but not enough for anyone to notice or make a splash. Also, I don't know if I'm just being paranoid or what, but I feel like my body hair is starting to come off. I'm just trying to not think about it, and be gentle with my hair. I hope I don't start shedding like a dog. I feel like accutane is a game of russian roulette. You never know what's going to happen.

Hoping for the best for everyone on accutane,

Fred

Also, just as a little side note that I thought was interesting.

I recently went Five guys with my brother, and saw a classmate of mine who I haven't seen in a long time (we were never friends, but we were acquaintances and he also had bad acne from what I remember). We got talking, and he asked me to stop by a party he was having. I've started being completely upfront with people and say "I can't drink because of a medication I'm on for my acne"...I used to beat around the bush and say I wasn't feeling well but I just don't give a shit anymore.

Anyways, he asked me if I was on accutane, and I said yes. He goes:

"Aww man, that stuff is worth it. I took it last summer."

I asked him what he thought about the side effects, and he basically looked at me like I was a huge pussy while saying "My lips got dry-that's it".

Just further anecdotal evidence that more people than you think have taken this stuff and been ok.

Good story. Im the same way. I used to be all shy about it; now Im like fuck it. I havent run into anyone that has taken it, but its cool that you got people around you that have. They know whats up then

Week 7/20

60mg/day

Dryness all over, some hair loss, chapped lips, FLUSHING A LOT EASIER, irritated face.

My forehead broke out pretty bad this week. My cheeks and chin remain clear.

Can't wait to be done with this stuff.

Cheers,

Fred

Just a quick update. My forehead is clearing up nicely, and the rest of my face is currently clear.

I've begun to apply 100% pure emu oil on my face at night in place of the cetaphil ultra hydrating lotion. Supposedly, this is a great moisturizer, and also an excellent anti-inflammatory. If this is true, then it will help heal my red marks from my IB, and also keep my face nice and moisturized. Here's the catch: nobody knows if emu oil clogs pores or not. Furthermore, it can exacerbate the "tane burn" that I'm currently experiencing. Therefore, I'll be keeping a close eye on those things.

I've also begun to apply Eucerin redness relief daily perfecting skin lotion in place of cetaphil daily moisturizer when I get up in the morning. This stuff sounds excellent. It moisturizes, soothes irritation with licorice root, subtly masks redness because of its greenish tint, and contains SPF 15.

My hair...well, its been bugging me lately. I don't know if I'm paranoid or not. My hair still does not appear to be thinner, but I'm scraping up 10-15 hairs a day. My arm and leg hair is definitely coming off easier, but I noticed that I was becoming more hairy before accutane. They say that a hairy person loses a lot more hair than they think. So as of right now, I'm trying to keep my mind off it.

Sorry if I'm being too graphic. On to the less serious stuff.

I'm going back to college 3 weeks from this friday. It's weird. I feel like my summer was good, but didn't live up to its expectations. This is probably because everyone needs to work over the summer for $$ so they can't hang out as much.

I'm going to try to make this next 3 weeks very good ones.

There is light at the end of the tunnel,

Fred

Hi Fred, thanx for popping by my log. Glad to read you're doing well. My days are up and down. Im not as hidious as I was in the beginning few weeks so for that I am grateful. Still not clear and still breaking out, but the intensity seems to be lessening. Still the same situation on the hair topic. Still losing more hairs than I ever noticed before but on the whole, its not noticeable. Im currently using a conditioner (Ive never used 1 before) for the last 2 weeks or so, but I havent noticed any difference. My hair was very fine to begin with. Im noticing it becoming any finer, but I do notice more hair in my hands after shampooing and more hairs on my desk at work. I imagine its only going to get worse as I increase my dose.

Anyway, thanx again for checking in. Hope all continues going well for you. Keep me posted.

Thanks for posting in my log Fred.Hopefully things will keep getting better for the both of us.

Hope this hair thing works its self out.I've been shaving my head for years so no prob there but i itch lick crazy it drives me nuts sometimes

Week 8/20

60mg/day

Dry skin, irritated face, flush easier, hair loss, dry hair, dry eyes

So I've reached the 2 month mark. I currently have a small cyst on my right cheek, a pimple healing on my forehead, and a cyst near my eye socket. That's it, and they're healing fast. Other than the hair loss, accutane has been a breeze. I have to go about a week without pills again because my dermatologist is booked up.

Stay happy,

Fred

So I haven't taken a pill in a week because my derm is usually too booked up to get an appointment exactly 31 days from your last one.

Most of my side effects are gone or completely diminished. Pretty cool.

Appointment tomorrow. On to month 3.....

Don't worry it stays in your system for quite a long time! I've stopped a couple of days during my treatment too and then just continued as normal!

Where ya been Fred? Hope all is going ok w/ your course

Hey all,

It's been a while since I've updated this log.

I've been so busy with school, and I found that spending too much time on this site played games with my mind in terms of thinking I had every single side effect.

I'm 2 weeks into month 4. I have been clear for 3 weeks, and the side effects are the same as they've always been. 2.5 months to go....

I usually go a week without pills between each month and in that time all the side effects go away. It's nice knowing that so far, none of these are permanent.

I hope I find everyone feeling well, and urge you to continue to look on the bright side of things, and to also enjoy the little things.

Of course, I hope everyone stays happy, because I am.

-Fred

PS...goodz...thanks for checking in man. How's everything going with you??

Hey good luck on your regimen. I would like to hear more on the mechanisms in which it operates. I feel i can relate to a lot of what ur saying i was about right where u were when i was 19 background in biology and all hope to hear more. Best regards.

One week away from being done with month 5 out of 6.

My face looks excellent, and I feel excellent. I haven't has a single cyst for just under 2 months. I do get a couple regular pimples here and there, but who doesn't? The overall redness of my face has calmed down a lot and the redmarks from previous acne are still present but I can tell they're starting to fade.

The journey has been bittersweet to be honest. I went through an entire semester of college without drinking alcohol...for me personally, it hurt socially. It's not that I wasn't accepted by others but it was more of me not going places because I didn't like being surrounded by drunk people while I was still sober. The first couple months were also tough because my face was so red, and irritated.

Now, my self confidence has sky rocketed, and it can only go up from here.

I haven't had many side effects besides dry skin, lips and eyes. A little back pain but nothing I can't handle.

Happy Thanksgiving y'all,

Fred

P.S. Stay happy. You have incredible value.

Best log so far imo even though you slacked a bit Lmao jking ! Im visiting my doctor on tuesday and hopefully he prescribes me it. Im exchanging Christmas presents for this BS! So it better work.. haha

Hey everybody...what's going on? I hope I find y'all feeling fine on this evening.

I'm officially done with accutane. I reached a cumulative dosage of 147 mg/kg after 6 months of not hell, but a large inconvenience.

The last month was awful because of the cold weather here in upstate NY. I got nosebleeds every night along with dry mouth because of not being able to breath well through my nose while sleeping. I don't recommend to anyone that he/she take accutane in a cold climate winter. I also got a bunch of unsightly red patches of dry skin on my neck and hands.

It's safe to say that for me, the first and last month of treatment were the worst.

I'm sorry that I wasn't able to keep this updated as much as I should have, but it was so hard with classes and everything.

So acne is virtually non-existent. I still get one or two tiny little pimples that are only visible in the mirror, but i can't complain. My face still has a lot of hyperpigmentation and a few scars from old acne. My face is far from perfect, but I don't care! I have NO acne! Don't be greedy now...

I've been off the medication for about a week. All my side effects have lessened a great amount. I bet they'll be gone in another week.

My doctor wants to see me in 3 weeks to start me on a topical retinoid. He said that he's seen a ~75% success rate with people my age if they use a topical retinoid after their course. What qualifies as success?? Staying clear for GOOD. I hope I'm not in that 25% who require another course or oral antibiotics. I could be though because my mom had acne until she was 30. That brings me to my next bit of scientific theory. Yes, what good is a Fred Q post without some scientific reasoning?

Overall, my doctor said that he has seen about 2/3 of his patients stay clear with use of a topical retinoid. The other 1/3 almost always go back on accutane for a 2nd course whether it be right away or after another failed course of oral antibiotics. He said that as one gets older (18+) then the success rate increases because these individuals are nearing the age in which they "grow out" of their acne. A common misconception is that accutane changes someone's body permanently and that's why he never gets acne again. That's not true at all. It basically buys you more time of being clear so you can be one step closer to that "time" when you "grow out" of your acne. So, by the time acctuane's effects, indirect or direct, wear off then you won't get acne because you will have grown out of it already.

Hopefully, I'll be successful, but I can't worry about it now.

I'll update this every chance I get regarding side effects and just how I'm doing. I also want to write a little bit more about my experience that can hopefully help people on the fence about taking accutane.

Until then, I'm just going to enjoy my clear skin.

Stay happy my friends,

Fred

One month post:

Some oil has returned, no severe acne, a few really small spots that go away quickly

No blackheads.

Side effects are mostly gone: lips chap a little bit easier.

Some oil has returned but nothing major.

I started using a topical retinoid called Atralin gel last night and will continue to apply every other night for a week or two and then use it every night.

My face was a little red this morning presumably due to the Atralin.

Still clear.

Until next time,

Fred

hey! awesome to know that you're clear and still are! it's really uplifting to see logs and stories of success and I think that's what mostly keeps me going..

Keep us posted of the continued good results =)

2 months post: still clear of any inflammatory acne or bad non-inflammatory acne.

Some blackheads on my nose have come back, but not nearly as many before the course.

My oil production increased after the course, but recently it has stayed steady at about 50-60% of what it was before accutane.

All side effects are gone- however, my face still looks mildy reddish and sunburned but this has DRAMATICALLY decreased from 1 month to 2 months. At this rate, it should be gone soon.

I stopped using atrilin because my face was just too sensitive. I've stayed clear despite not using anything but cetaphil gentle cleanser once a day!

Success. I consider accutane to be one of the best decisions I've ever made. Acne has never completely destroyed my self-esteem, but my confidence level has skyrocketed, and I feel weird saying this, but girls have started to take notice- yes.

Stay happy,

Fred