Day 56 (8 weeks down!):

Alright so time for that 2 month update! Am I allowed to call 8 weeks two months? In reality it isn't, since I technically won't be at the two month mark until a week from now. But seeing as most people do a 20 week course, 8 weeks seems like an appropriate 2-month mark.

Briefly, here is an overview of my time on Accutane.

Week 1-2: Broke out, but basically felt like a continuation of my regular breakouts. I learned not to mess with clogged pores. I learned that scarring happens easier on Accutane. I thought I learned what dry skin and lips were (spoiler alert: I didn't)

Week 3-4: Skin starts looking better. Pores are smaller, face is smoother. Overall, liking my results. I learned that joint pains are real. I thought I REALLY learned what dry lips and skin were (nope, still hadn't learned that yet). I had my first derm appointment and learned I have really low cholesterol (yippee!). I learned that iPledge sucks and is a huge pain.

Week 5-6: I love my skin! It's so smooth, I have one spot I concealed a little and that was it! Had a blast on the weekend. Tried drinking on accutane for the first time and didn't die (but my liver may have. I'll let you know next week). I learned what dry lips and skin were (I really did. This is when this side effect was at its worst). I learned what life after acne may be like and I LOVED it.

Week 7-8: I hate my skin! Popped up with too many spots for my liking, including what I think was a cyst and a different spot that wasn't a cyst but that I picked to death. I learned that picking is bad but I'll probably always do that. I learned not to get too comfortable on Accutane, at least not in your first two months. I learned that dehydration sets in quickly on this drug. I learned that photo sensitivity is real and even though I have not been sunburnt (never have in my life. Thank you dark Russian complexion!), I tan very easily. I learned that PM moisturizer is your friend.

So, now, my skin is in an interesting state. There are really only two marks that I'm self conscious about, but they are very significant marks. One is the red mark from my cyst on my chin. Skin layers keep peeling off and revealing what seems like brighter redder skin and it's super annoying. It wasn't like this even a week ago and so now it's frustrating. The cyst itself seems to be gone, but this red mark is the size of a penny probably (maybe a little smaller). That doesn't sound awful, but go hold a penny up to your chin real quick and tell me it doesn't suck. So that's not fun. The other mark is what remains of that disaster on my right cheek bone. It is healing SO NICELY on aquaphor, but still very present. I don't mind it too much because it is off to the side and truly I'm much more self conscious about the chin now, but oh well. I'm hopeful that since these aren't actives they will be much better in a few days. I'm noticing two small hard bumps on my forehead. I don't think they are small cysts really (I don't want to be the Boy Who Cried Cyst) but they aren't pleasant. Certainly not very noticeable and easy to cover up, but I hate that things keep popping up. My forehead has been relatively unscathed by Accutane so it's probably time for that to flare up. Joy.

If this red mark on my chin would heal, I would be really happy and probably tell you my skin is looking great. Question for everyone: I put Differin on the chin red mark because it isn't an open wound. It is sort of like the top layer of skin broke around it and underneath is a very red layer. I know you shouldn't use topical but I do usually feel like Differin helps with healing these kinds of marks. Is it just irritating it? Should I put aquaphor on it? It's not like my other mark that is actually healing over. This is basically just skin peeled away revealing an uneven skin tone. When I apply Differin, it looks good in the morning when there is a dry film/residue but when I wash it off it's just sort of back to blotchy mess. Suggestions please!

Hoping the breakouts stop in month 3, but if my breakouts are stress related (I'm not sure they are. I've had clearness during exams and major breakouts during vacation), they won't be ending soon. Adding to the fun of bad skin this week, my car broke, my laptop broke, and I'm in frantic job-search mode (with an interview for a position in DC next week). Gahhhhh!!!!

Lifeinfaith: I used straight Vaseline when I had moles biopsied last year and it didn't do anything to stop scarring. Still have three noticeable (not awful) scars on my back from those, but I wonder if aquaphor would have done better? Regardless, if you ever find yourself with one of these monsters on your face (and I certainly pray you don't), use Aquaphor. Seriously it's like this stuff was made for Accutane.

As for plugs falling out, I think these may have been what I interpreted as "clogged pores" and I picked to make sure everything would come out. That's what led to marks on my cheek and stuff. I don't recall my skin getting bumpier or uneven in tone, but it could just be a reaction to the dryness. Actually, I remember getting a dry patch of skin between my eyes and when a piece of it fell off, it left a very different skin tone and that was frustrating. Maybe this is happening on your cheeks? You should be nearing your one-month check in with the derm so you should ask them.

Day 58:

Ugh so I was going to tell everyone that week 9 was off to a good start, but it's not. The mark on my chin is fading nicely I guess and the mark by my eye that was such a disaster is going away. But all of a sudden my forehead is a mess! Idk what happened! I rarely break out on my forehead and it was looking fine the past few weeks with absolutely nothing for probably a month. Then boom! It started with a small thing that left a pretty big mark on Saturday. There was another thing that wasn't fun to deal with but it went down relatively quickly. But last night/this morning, I found two more things! One close to the hairline and another in the middle/right of my forehead. This was actually a pretty significant breakout for what I'm used to (4 spots in one area). I was really frustrated about it earlier today. I'm hoping my forehead heals faster than other areas. I've "popped" all of them so they should be on their way down. They aren't big cystic zits by any stretch of the imagination, but they are right in the middle of my face and super frustrating. I know accutane is working, but these daily breakouts are really taking their toll. I'm two months in, I've seen what this drug can do. I really really want these breakouts to stop!!!!

This leads me to another point that I've noticed my breakouts are more clustered on accutane than they were before. Before the tane, I would just get zits randomly. Now, it seems like things follow a pattern. First it was my left cheek. Then my right cheek, then my far right cheek and chin, now the forehead.

Other than that, sides are fine. Had blood drawn today for my check up on Friday. Probably going to up my dose to 80 mg so I can expect another flare up. Yay.

UPDATE:

In an effort to look at the positive (and jinx any progress I've made) I have had nothing on my left cheek in about two weeks, nothing on my chin or right cheek for about a week. Marks on my far right cheek (I consider this different from "right cheek" since it is almost to the jawline) from breakouts last week are fading nicely. I guess I should be happy because anymore it's looking more like I get "the odd zit" than anything. Unfortunately that "odd zit" is in the middle of my forehead, but I can cover it with one of my hats. All in all, I have a lot to be optimistic about on this medicine, but it is really frustrating when you feel like you almost have your life back, then it goes away again. I've also had a lot of things go wrong lately so I think it is skewing my outlook on my skin. It's hard to see the bright side when your car, computer, and career are broken. But I'm going to try!

Day 59:

Had a bit of a meltdown this morning. I really hate looking at my face at the moment. I'll feel a lot better once this stuff on my forehead heals, but between the mess up there and the red marks on my right cheek, I'm feeling pretty ugly these days. I really thought I would be further along by now but I guess not. I think I can say this was the IB, as I think, without exaggeration, this was either the worst or the closest to worst my skin has looked. Certainly the worst it has looked on Accutane and I would say one of the worst breakouts I've experienced in awhile. It's not face-consuming cystic awfulness. But your run of the mill pimples that aren't going anywhere and when I pop them, they leave marks that take forever to heal. The optimist in me wants to say, "The marks on your forehead will heal and this will get better" but everything seems to be taking forever. I felt like Sunday afternoon there was a three hour span where I thought my skin looked alright. I guess I have to be optimistic that it can get to that point again just as quickly as it deteriorated.

I wanted to flee home for the week (I have a flexible job and could work remotely) but my car is broken and I'm not paying for a flight. Additionally, I have my derm check in on Friday and don't want to miss that. The only thing worse than Accutane is not being on Accutane¦.

Words of encouragement would be appreciated. Like I said, it's been a rough day. And it's only 9 a.m.

Aww don't get discouraged it will get better! Small pimples shouldn't have much life in them, so try not to pop them (I know how hard that is). Accutane is a crazy ride you can have some crazy symptoms and want to give up then all of a sudden their gone. Don't let it get you too down. Soon it will be smooth sailing my friend

Thanks Mandy. I need to be optimistic. But the mirror in my room this morning is right where the sunlight hits it at the right angle and everything was scabbed over and I just saw it and wanted to crawl back into bed. After washing my face and cleaning up a little, it wasn't so horrendous. But the state of my skin is pretty bad considering what it usually is. Once the forehead heals, I'm alright with some of the cheek marks. They truly aren't awful. But the combination right not just makes it look pretty bad. Plus, I'm probably upping my dose at the end of this week so that will be fun (not).

I know you are right about the popping. I think things would look so much better if I could just leave everything alone. I'm going to make a better effort to do that now. I sort of gave up resisting the urge to pop and, well, now I'm paying the price.

I hope you are right about smooth sailing. I still don't regret my decision to go on Accutane, but I would be lying if I said so far July hasn't been one of my worst on record (from a skin perspective and for a variety of other reasons as well). Just a low point for me the past two weeks or so. But I certainly appreciate the support I get on here!

Day 61:

So I officially went two full days without anything popping up! That doesn't sound impressive but believe me, it was wonderful! Things are healing but this morning I woke up with a zit forming on my left cheek (which has been completely 100 percent clear for nearly three weeks). It isn't huge, but it's there. I started picking and pushing and then caught myself and said "STOP IT!" I literally had to keep telling myself out loud to leave it alone. I caused a little bit of broken skin and some redness but certainly stopped before it got too bad. I put some simple salicylic acid spot treatment on it and hope it will go down soon (or come to a head and I can make that sucker go away!). It's a little discouraging, but I'm trying to look at the positives here.

Forehead is slowly but surely looking better. Aquaphor really helped on one of the spots that had broken open and was oozing and bloody. I should clarify that I don't seem to get big cystic nasty things. I know deep down that there are a lot of people on these logs who would kill for my skin. But the forehead is pretty much down to red marks now, and I hope by the end of this weekend it will be looking clear. I have a spot on my right cheek that doesn't look great, but with some concealer it just looks like a dot. The scar from my horrible zit battle last week is pretty indented but the color is fading and it's starting to smooth out. I don't mind a deep scar or two, at least not off to the side. I actually think in the long run it may make my face more interesting haha (bear with me here, I'm trying to see positives).

I have a comedone on the right side of my nose that suddenly looks a little more prominent. I'm not really sure how to go about getting rid of it. At least, I think it is a comedone and not a blackhead. I was going to start squeezing but it seemed to make it redder so I stopped. It's not a giant zit or anything so I am kind of alright with it. But I wonder what is going to happen to it? The red mark on my chin doesn't seem to want to completely go away. The edges of it have cracked a little too so even when the color fades it sort of continues to show up as a geometric shape on my chin.

All in all, skin condition isn't where I want it to be. But it isn't AWFUL. I'm trying not to let this new thing on my cheek get me down. It is relatively small and if I can leave it alone for a day or two, it will either go down on its own or come to a pop-able head. Time to test my will power!

Side effects: Peeling lips! I know what they mean by this now! Two nights ago I was getting ready for bed and noticed a little flap of skin dangling from my lips. I thought I would try to tear it off, then add Aquaphor. Wound up pulling off the top layer of the left half of my top lip. It was super weird. Didn't really hurt, just a bunch of skin came off. It was kind of bizarre looking too because that chunk was redder and more moist than the rest of my lips. Other than that, dry skin is annoying (and making my face so itchy!), I notice I get headaches and general nausea sometimes on days when I take two doses. Joint pains have settled down but I still sometimes feel like a 90 year old man. And I am noticing SOME stomach issues (I'll spare you all details). I'm not super worried about them though. It hasn't been a huge problem for me, but just present I guess. I was also telling someone that I don't think Accutane is causing depression, but when I go through a breakout like this past one I get pretty down. It sort of feels like Accutane enhances those feelings of hopelessness and frustration. But again, I think this is just because I want to stop breaking out.

I'm in a better place than I was earlier this week. Two months ago, I would have KILLED to be one of those people entering Month 3! I was so jealous that they were getting to the part where most people start to see big results and I was getting ready to pop my first pill, uncertain of what the future held. Now I'm one of them and hoping for the same big results! The past two days have given me a little hope and I'm not letting this small new thing take it from me that easily! First two months have been a MAJOR roller coaster, and certainly not always easy. But you take things in stride and the days go by. I'm singing a very different tune than I was a few days ago, but it's the truth.

Two month check-in with derm tomorrow. Excited to hear what they have to say and find out if I destroyed my liver! And ready for the Accutane gods to smile on me in Month 3! Please?

my advice is try not to think about it. My days 60-75 were pretty good, than I broke out badly then it went away, then again, etc etc. it's a roller coaster where everyones ride is different. Hopefully no more drops for you

Tyrionlannister: thanks for the encouragement. I actually may just get off the logs for awhile. I find that they cause me to critique every element of my skin so much, it just isn't worth it. That said, I'm going to post again.

Two month check in today. My derm said my blood tests are fine and actually I could skip next month's tests if I wanted to because they are so good. So that's a plus. She asked to see my back and chest and those are completely clear. For face, I think it's in awful condition. She says the skin itself is looking much better but that I need to get the picking under control. There are no actives on my face; everything is healing. She said I just need to let the small things pop up and go on their own, but that I should start seeing fewer and fewer small things, so that's good. I asked her if month 3 is usually a turn around. She said it varies for everyone but that it can be a big turnaround for people and it's usually when positive effects start setting in. Idk, she was very encouraging, but it's hard to feel good about my progress when I have so many marks and cuts. She did say there was a study that showed zits that were picked tend to stick around 2-3 times as long as those that weren't, and on accutane that is probably 4-5 times as long. I'm not sure if that is true or not, but it will get me to think twice about picking next time. I'm really hoping I can get it under control.

As for dosage, I'm sticking to 40/80 alternating for now. I'm noticing side effects and I told me derm that any kind of flare up would be pretty devastating for me right now. She seemed fine to keep me at 60 mg. When I was walking with the nurse she said "You're almost done!" And I was like "no I'm not...?" She had misread the chart and thought it said I had been on accutane for 5 months, when in reality it says I should be on it for 5 months. The positive is that the derm seems to only want to keep me on it for 5 months! Maybe I'm not looking at a 7 month course after all! In that case, done with week 9 after tomorrow, so almost halfway there!

You do what you need to do to feel better

Yay to excellent blood work!

I had to have a giggle at your comment about having willpower. I count myself in that boat as well, as I recently did what we should all never do (pick) and so I now have what basically amounts to something that looks like I got socked in the face under my right eye, on top of my cheek.

So, let's all just make a vow to get through what's left of our journey without . . . picking.

Sorry I have been gone all week! I have been so busy and don't have much to report in the face realm. I haven't had any new pimples in about 2 weeks...ever since I got some cysty stuff on the side of my chin around that time of the month, nothing else has happened. There are some pink marks where those pretty much healed and I maybe have like 1 clogged pore on my whole face...it's kind of crazy. My face is so smooth and has no oil...not even at end of day now. The bumpy uneveness went away...I think it was the accutane flaking off some layers. I get slightly flaky near days end but not noticeable. My face hasn't been this clear in years. I really really hope it stays like this. I think I'm going to up to 30mg next week so well see.

On side effects...mostly my lips are affected. They require lots of moisture. My scalp is itchy occasionally and I only have to wash it every other day which is pretty nice. One thing concerning... Over the past week I have noticed my abdomen looking slightly bloated..like I have never seen it before. Ever experienced or heard anything like this?

I'm sorry to hear about your face troubles but it's good to hear you might be rounding a corner with month 3. It seems like if you can just ignore it and not pick and let accutane do it's business you will be golden. Easier said than done right! I think this week will be better for you. There were weeks when I had picked the crap out of my face pre accutane, so bad that I stayed home from work the next day. I was always amazed at how fast the face recovered in a weeks time to be almost good as new.

Hey lifeinfaith and DawgDaze, thanks for the comments. Lifeinfaith: I'm so glad your course is going well! I know it is so scary starting accutane so it's a relief that it is all going smoothly. I'll keep my fingers crossed that you continue to have steady success and clearing. DawgDaze: my willpower lasted until about 2 p.m. on Thursday when I felt the bump come to a head. I popped it, but not without leaving a considerable amount of damage. I can count on this one taking awhile to heal. It's in the same spot I had an awful battle with early in my course and it is just a pretty large blotch. I so wish I wouldn't have picked. It's amazing how fragile skin is on accutane. A small scratch leaves a mark for me. So annoying!

Everything else is going alright. I'm basically just mad at the mark on my left cheek now. I seem to alternate good cheeks and bad cheeks. I'm hoping maybe in two or three days I'll look a little better. The red blotch on my chin was so annoying and the derm said it looks like maybe it was turning into some sort of eczema or something. She gave me a topical and today it looks so much better. I even peeled off a layer of dead skin and it didn't reveal bright red skin! Moving up!

Things have definitely slowed down breakout wise, but I know I can't count on them being permanently done. I need to just suffer through the odd zits I get now and let them come and go, rather than trying to speed up the process by picking. Easier said than done, but this latest cheek disaster may be a friendly reminder to avoid picking. Knowing how long this could take to fade, I'm not going to suffer through it again. I keep reminding myself that that stupid whitehead would be gone by now if I just left it alone. Sigh.

Lab work was all clear. Derm told me it was probably the Spiro causing bloating issues so I'm now off of that.

Moving up to 30mg!!

Breakitoutnow - how is your face doing? Has it finally healed up? What dosage are you on these days?

I just took my first 30mg today so I am really hoping I don't notice any major difference since it is still so slow. I am just trying to cut my time from 9 months to 6. Still no new pimples and face is at perfect dryness level. I haven't noticed any sun sensitivity either.

In other news...I fell on my shoulder in soccer several months ago, before accutane, and I finally went to a doc last week because it's not getting better. They think it might be a rotator cuff tear and sent me for an MRI on Friday, so I should know this week. I know you cannot have surgery on accutane, and not even for like 6 months after I think. So if it is torn I am thinking I am going to have wait like a year to get it repaired. Has anyone ever heard of having surgery sooner then 6 months after accutane?

Hey Lifeinfaith, thanks for checking in! Good luck with the bump in dosage. I feel like I need to change the name of this log, since I'm not on claravis (I'm on amnesteem) and I've been at 60 mg for the past 8 weeks. I'm at the beginning of week 11 and I think I'll stay at 60 for the remainder of the course (may bump up to 80 for the last month). Looking at probably about 6 months total. Today is day 72 I believe.

I've been intentionally not wanting to say anything about my skin for fear that I would jinx it, but my last big, poppable whitehead was the thing I got on my left cheek nearly two weeks ago. Since then, things have been healing and anything I have gotten has dried up very quickly and been so small. Part of me feels like I maybe reached that turning point at the two month mark, but another part of me knows I could break out again. Again, I kind of don't want to say much about it because I know as soon as I tell everyone "I'm clear! It's great!" my face will break out into awfulness again. Either way, just trying to enjoy the clear skin while it is here.

In other news, I'm moving to the east coast in three weeks, so that's exciting. I live in Minneapolis, but just accepted a paid internship in DC, so it's stressful but I'm looking forward to it. I'll need to ask my derm for a referral to a derm out there in order to get my last two check ups in. I'll get my three month check up here in Minnesota in on august 15, but after that I'm leaving, and I will only be halfway through my course. Hoping that doesn't present any issues with iPledge, although I'm sure it will.

As for side effects, lips are hell. I'm applying aquaphor every 10 minutes it seems. I'm also noticing a fair amount f redness. I don't mind it a ton since I'm a darker skin tone and it just looks like I'm constantly vaguely sunburnt, but I imagine if I were pale I would look like a tomato. Dehydration sets in very quickly. Scars definitely look more prominent on my face now but I'm grateful I don't have too many. There are little marks all over my face if one looks very very closely, but the only two sizeable marks are things I have gotten while on accutane. They aren't lying; your skin is very susceptible to scarring on this stuff. My skin is very brittle. I get blisters on my feet when I run. Finally, I've been weirdly emotional lately. I'm usually a bit of a stone cold statue (my friends have endearingly told me I'm heartless) and for whatever reason this impending move is weighing on me heavily. I've been in Minnesota for three years and I didn't think leaving my friends up here would be all that tough, but it's been a bit of an emotional weekend. I think I'm just sad to be leaving the state I've adopted as my "home" but I sometimes wonder if the 'tane isn't having an effect.

I know nothing about surgeries and accutane. It seems odd to me that you would have to wait a whole six months. Is that just because of the healing time? Sorry you are battling an injury, but I hope your course continues to run smoothly! You've been great support for me on here, so I just keep pulling for you to have an easy path to clear skin. Sounds like so far so good?

Congrats on your internship! Sounds exciting, but I can imagine stressful and sad as well.

Congrats as well on being clear for several weeks now. It is a very possible reality and not necessarily a pipe dream that you will be clear from here on out. Or that your breakouts will be minimal and fast-healing if they do come. That three month mark of clearing does seem to be the rule rather than the exception for those in their early 20s.

Fingers crossed, and best of luck with your preparations for moving!

Hello BreakItOutNow,

I came across your log as I was searching for sweaty upper lip and nose side effects! Judging by your blog it definitely it is a side effect. Im on wk 7 and was on 40mg for two wks now on 60mg side effects definitely got worse when bumped up. For me this is the most annoying one as its impossible to cover with make up so doesnt look great at work. Ive been on Accutane twice before in the last 17 years and noticed it previously on the upper lip but was never sure as it was quite mild and never the nose as well!!!!!! Praying it goes afterwards.

Is yours just when you exercise? Mine seems totally sporadic and unrelated to whether Im actually overheating or not, leading me to believe whether it is actually sweat?!? Ill blot it away and Im not joking its back in less than 30 seconds odd!! Like little beads that pop up!!

Sounds like youre doing good all in all tho, but please try not to pick. Im normally super good but on Monday I absentmindedly picked at my lip and pulled a chunk of skin off up to my nose nearly it bled and looks so horrible!! Looks like Ive had an upper lip waxing incident the shame!!!!

Ive been pretty emotional too and have been thinking about this a lot. I dont think Accutane itself causes depression rather its the pressure of having to deal with very visible and sometimes painful side effects along with (for a lot of people) acne continuing well in to the course as well. Everyday for the past 3 weeks there seems to have been something with me and then I get terribly afraid that I'll be stuck with it forever and tie myself in knots!! This seems to make me forget the positive effects of the drug I'm seeing.

My worst side effects have been increased pore size on the nose depressing, as I never had an issue with open pores before. I got loads of blackheads in the first 2.5 wks and as they have gone this is what I have been left with, the sweaty thing and intense dryness around the outside of the lip line, again difficult to manage when I wear make up for work and to go out!!

Let me know about the sweating, lol and good luck with it all. x

Its been about a week since I bumped up to 30mg. No new pimples, but my lips have been a little drier/flakier than before. Something a little strange I have been noticing - there are some raised swollen ish areas on my face, not like pimples, more like just areas of the skin seem a little irritated and slightly edema like. Mostly around my chin and a bit on the side of one of my cheeks. It even feels weird when I touch my skin, like just a little bit distended. I noticed ths to a lesser extent when I first started, but it went away in about a week so maybe this is the same thing. Has anyone ever had this before?

Hope all is smooth sailing with you.

Lifeinfaith: I think I'm noticing something similar. I have one or two areas that I initially thought were clogged pores on my left cheek. I think it might actually be eczema or something though. It seems mildly inflamed and there is just some discoloration under my left eye. I'm really not sure what to make of it. I'm hoping it goes away in a few days. It isn't super noticeable and they really just look like small red marks to anyone (and they would only MAYBE notice them) but I don't want it to turn into anything else. It would be super awesome if the side effects didn't change on me here. With 2.5-3.5 months left on this course, I would really love to not battle facial eczema for the remainder of my treatment...

Thought I would update this as it's now Day 80 on Accutane. So far I have taken a total of 4440 mg of Accutane. I weigh around 71 kilograms (I think. I fluctuate weight so I'm anywhere from 155-160 lbs. 71 kg seems pretty standard). That puts me at 62.5 mg/kg. I think I will shoot for a cumulative dose of 130 mg/kg, which means I have about 80 days left at 60 mg. So I am more or less halfway through my course, which I'm not sure how I feel about. Part of me is grateful for how Accutane has helped with the acne (I'm still getting a small whitehead maybe once a week, but they are manageable and usually disappear in a day or so). Another part of me really wants to be off this stuff.

Ok so skin update: Like I said, things are alright. I've been more or less "clear" for 2-3 weeks now, getting occasional small whiteheads that disappear in a day or two and are very small and shallow (can a zit be shallow? Whatever). I don't really want to say much more because I don't want to jinx anything. I'd love it if the breakouts would stay away though. Please?

My new concern is.facial eczema! That's right folks. It's not awful, but two patches along my jawline seem to want to form. I've been moisturizing like it's my job (seriously, I spend more time at work moisturizing than I do working). I've been applying Protopic--some sample my derm gave me at my last visit for that ugly patch of ugliness on my chin--at night (I can't really apply it during the day because it leaves a clear film and it's super noticeable). It may be keeping it at bay but there is definitely an itch to it and a red bumpiness. I am thankful it's not in the middle of my face but more my neck and jawline, but I really wish it would have just formed on my arms like "normal" users. I've been pretty paranoid about it though. I really would love for this not to turn into something big. It's itchy and the redness is just as bad as acne. I'm optimistic that this can be one of those symptoms that goes away within a week or so, since that seems to happen on this stuff. Still, it's scary and frustrating. I put some Cetaphil Moisturizing Lotion (the one for the body, not the special facial one. It says it's noncomedogenic and fragrance free so I went for it) on the neck and jaw. It's been pretty effective at keeping the bumpiness under control on other areas of my body, so I figured I would give it a try. I also have what I thought was a clogged pore under my left eye on my cheekbone but it is not going anywhere, and if I try picking at it (which I'm not doing too much) it's just a hard mass and it causes a major area of redness that looks like I got punched. The redness goes away within 15 minutes but that teeny tiny bump doesn't. I think it is probably some eczema type thing, but there is only one bump and it doesn't itch so I'm not sure.

Other side effects are: joint pains, occasional headaches, dry nose and eyes are getting bad, have a sexy "lip split" but lips themselves have been alright (medicated blistex, then aquaphor over the top at night does the trick. Can't do it during the day though because it makes me look ridiculous).

So my skin looks SO much better than when I started, but I really don't want to trade acne for eczema. I have my three month check in next Friday and I'm anxious to ask the derm some questions. I want long-term remission, but if I'm going to have to start dealing with eczema on my face, I'm going to need to consider cutting my dosage (back down to 40 mg) or finishing the course earlier. It's not like it's consuming my face either. You wouldn't notice it unless I pointed it out to you and even then you would probably say it doesn't look like anything to be worried about. But I don't want to deal with it and I'd rather get ahead of the issue before it becomes something big. Like I said though. I'm going to cross my fingers and hope that with some diligent moisturizing and nightly Protopic application, this problem goes away. In my research on Accutane-induced eczema yesterday I also ran into the bad accutane experience forums. There are some dark stories on there. I think for my personal sanity I need to stay away from thoseYikes.

Anyone else having a bumpy ride on the Accutrain?

You could try reducing your dose to 40mg and going for longer so that you still get your cummulstive dose with less side effects. That's been the plan for me. If your insurance doesn't allow it you can continue getting your 60-80mg dose and taking it every other day or taking one 40mg pill instead of two - my Derm actually mentioned this.

Something that helps my eczema in the past pre accutabe was cortisone and Aveeno for eczema. Those areas on my face aren't eczema- they aren't red, you can't really see them and they aren't itchy. Most of the ones from last week went away - I think it's fluid changing in my skin - that's the best I can describe it as. Hoping to not get an eczema flare but I know I still have a long way to go!

lifeinfaith: Thanks for the input. I don't think I'm supposed to put hydrocortisone cream on my face but I'll ask the derm (who should be calling me back. I left a voicemail yesterday). In the mean time, Protopic and moisturizer it is! If it just stays as is I'm fine with it (even though it is itchy so that sucks). It isn't super noticeable. But Protopic and moisturizer got rid of the rash everywhere else on me (haven't had anything return on my fingers/hands or anything) so hopefully it does the trick this time. I'll be finished with 13 weeks at my next derm appointment next Friday (Aug. 15). I was reading a bunch of studies today about normal courses and the low-end of normal seems to be 16 weeks. I'm certainly going to be on longer and will make sure I get my cumulative dose up, but it's absolutely crazy to me to think that I'm already at the point where I start thinking about an end date. I feel like I just started. A part of me wants off of this stuff because I'm sick of feeling generally crummy (dry, achey, headaches) but another part of me is absolutely terrified of coming off this stuff. Relapse sounds like pretty much the worst thing ever.

Carlita*gibson: Sorry I completely ignored your post! Facial sweating = totally real. My nose develops beads of sweat pretty much whenever I go outside right now (granted, it has been sticky and hot too). It totally sucks actually. I am actually noticing a fair amount of sweating everywhere. It is usually when I am sitting in the sun or exerting myself in some way (example: I'm in an air conditioned building right now and I'm fine, so that's good I guess), although it did happen to me a little when I was having a conversation in a meeting yesterday (I was a little nervous though). Sunday I got brunch with a friend and we were sitting in the sun. I felt like I was probably super nasty. I may be sentenced to a life in Minnesota since warmer climates and I probably won't get along (so naturally I'm moving to DC in the dog days of summer). But either way, it's August in the Midwest so, sweat happens. Stop by here and let me know how your course goes on. I'm still thinking "Accutane is a Miracle Drug" but it's certainly not without its drawbacks/scary side effects. Hoping I can manage them for another 2-2.5 months and then they disappear (but not the clear skin. That can stay please!)

Sorry about the bumpy ride. But I'm happy to hear that your skin is doing great!

Knock wood, I've had a really good past 10 days, and am a little worried about what is going to happen when (if?) my dermo bumps me from 40mg to 60mg. I wonder if they do that as a matter of course or only if the patient isn't responding on the lower dose? I'll have to ask when I go in on the 25th.

Did you suffer an IB with your dosage bump?

My first course, I was started on 80mg right of the bat, and stayed on it for 5 months. That's a little scary to think about, but back then, docs just blasted everyone with a mega dose and let the chips fall where they may. I tolerated it very well, hardly noticed I was on it except my skin cleared within weeks and stayed that way for 15 years. Maybe my body is just super tolerant?

I have noticed increased sweating, but only at night, never during the day. I'm not sure if this is par for the course for my age, or if it's related to the Accutane, but I've never had night sweats. I have always slept like a log and this is making me nuts!

Hey DawgDaze: I've been moisturizing nonstop and adding this Protopic at night and, knock on wood (seriously if I had a penny for every time I said that) it's keeping the eczema at bay. My neck has been getting really dry as well. It's an area I haven't been good about moisturizing so now that I'm using the Cetaphil more liberally, I'm hopeful that will keep everything under control. I noticed what I thought were some clogged pores last night. I stopped myself before I picked. I can't see them this morning but I'm going to stop looking. With clogged pores, I need to remind myself to let them run their course. They may go away on their own or they may become a small zit, but they can't be as bad as the damage I would cause if I picked at them.

I'm really glad you're having a good course! Maybe since you were on Accutane before your body just "knows the drill" and you're clearing much faster. I don't know if I suffered an IB from my bump up to 60 mg to be honest. I bumped up at the two week mark. I was breaking out a fair amount leading up to the bump on dosage so I didn't really notice anything (it wasn't a horrible breakout, just a few more spots than usual). My skin got much clearer at the 40-45 day mark, but then went through hell again days 45-60. An IB 4-5 weeks after a bump in dosage seems pretty weird, so I probably just had a bad breakout for whatever reason. I've heard it's common to flare a little with a bump in dosage, but I've also heard it doesn't happen to everyone, so have some hope.

My derm wanted me to bump up to 80 mg at the two week mark and when it got to that point I just said "Hell no." I alternate 40-80 mg every day and I'm staying this way I think until I reach my cumulative dose. If you think you are making good progress at 40 mg and don't want to risk the higher dose, just talk to them about it. If they insist on 60 mg and you aren't comfortable with it, they can't force feed you the pills

I actually feel like so much of my Accutane course has been self-guided. I've basically decided my own dose and I'm the one who will basically determine my end date (since I can just stop making dermatologist check-in appointments). I'm starting to really think a lot about when I want to be done with this stuff. I really hate the thought of relapsing, but I ask would love to get off this stuff reasonably soon. Either way, It's crazy to me that I can start thinking about end dates in terms of weeks (even if I won't wrap up for 8-12 weeks). The end of my Accutane course and clear skin is no longer some distant fairytale, it's a not-so-distant reality!