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My doctor is prescribing me 10mg accutane every other day for 2 months to taper me off..
I just finished my low dose accutane (20mg) after 6 months.
With relatively good results. (no more big cysts, but still the occasional pimple)
Is it okay to be on accutane for a total of 8 months?
Thanks for all the great information. I'm going to get accutane in two weeks, after the one-month waiting period is over. I'm going to ask for the full aggressive dosage, but hoard the meds and dole them out slowly to myself. That way, I'll avoid the annoying monthly blood work and keep going on the low dose for as long as it takes to reach a good cumulative dose.
Any suggestions on how to store the accutane so that it stays good over a long period of time?
Everyone's body is different, I guess, and you just have to find what works for you. I'm on 80mg/day and weigh 61kg, so my dose is really high and after 3 months I have no positive results and only a few negative side effects. It seems like my body could physically handle an even higher dose, but the fact that some people respond to just a couple of mgs makes me really worry about how high mine is. There's definitely a delicate balance between how much you need to treat the acne and how much your body can process without bad side effects.
Good luck for anyone on low doses, I hope you see results and I sure wish I did!
Hi all,
I wanted to document my progress, but didn't feel the urge to commit to a log. I'm three weeks into my first month of low dose Accutane. I was prescribed 40mg a day for the first month, and my understanding is that the next month the dosage will be increased to 60/day, where it will stay until four months are completed.
Dosage: I took the 40 mg/day for 3 or 4 days, until I started to feel the dry lips coming on. Then I backed it off to one pill every other day, and I've been holding steady at that dosage. For the first two weeks I was an absolute oil slick, just about the worst it's ever been. But the many dark spots began to fade within the first week, and the existing pimples shrank quickly. Old lesions that I knew still had junk in the pores came to small whiteheads that were amazingly easy to pop after two days, instead of becoming massive and swollen with no head.
Side effects: Dry lips and eyes the first week, which I was happy to have since I knew that meant it was working. Terribly oily skin the next two weeks, which I suffered through knowing that those days were numbered. Now, dry skin all over the body, like the kind you would have in the middle of winter, except that today was 95 degrees. And my right hip is slightly painful, but I've been exercising, so I can't say for sure it's all because of the Accutane.
My skin? Freaking awesome. Still some oil, but only around the nose and mouth. Cheeks and forehead need slight moisturizing. The ten or so hyperpigmented spots are either faded completely away or to a point where I don't care who looks at me. Those spots would ordinarily take at least 6 months to fade. Two Weeks??? I love the 'tane. Seriously mild initial breakout at around the 2 week mark. Only one cyst, right in my hairline. Tiny tiny others that came and went within two days max. My biggest problem area on my jaw line is still being stubborn. I have five bumps that I can see have junk inside, but they won't come to a head, and they are resistant to being extracted. They are hunkering down for the seige. I sometimes think about taking the regular dosage to force those suckers out, but I know that they'll come out eventually, and the risk of side effects is not worth it.
Future plans? Dunno for sure. I'll continue taking the low dose until I reach a good cumulative dose, but I'm considering taking only 10 mg/day because the dry lips and skin are bothersome, and I'm concerned about the joint pain. But at that rate, I'll be taking Accutane for two years. Pregnancy is not an issue for me, but I would prefer to get this treatment over with. I may take a break at six months and evaluate.
Thanks for reading this long post. I wanted to share this success story, especially with all the scary ones out there.
Hi all,
I wanted to document my progress, but didn't feel the urge to commit to a log. I'm three weeks into my first month of low dose Accutane. I was prescribed 40mg a day for the first month, and my understanding is that the next month the dosage will be increased to 60/day, where it will stay until four months are completed.
How are things working out, SueinLA? I'm thinking about starting on low dose tane.
Hi,
I just finished 6 months of low dose accutane (10mg first month, 20 mg afterwards).
I must say it has worked at least 90% well.
The problem is, shortly after stopping it, my acne returned. Well, at least it is not cystic as before, but it is still annoying considering I am used to the joys of being acne-free 
My doctor insisted on my body taking at least 1-2 months break from accutane, so I am currently on Oral Doxycyclin 100mg twice a day, and also some topical antibiotics..
Has anyone experienced what I went through? Pls advice!!
Hey everybody,
I'm three months into my low dose course now. To recap, I was prescribed 40 mg/day for the first month, then 60 mg/day for the next two months. I brought home all the Claravis that was prescribed, but I had only taken one 40 mg pill every other day. Even at that dose, I had crazy dry lips, and my hips and wrists would ache. I also had a flare up of some benign growth in my eye, which is a small bump fed by blood vessels. Very NOT pretty. I just finished all the 40 mg pills almost two weeks ago, and started taking the 20 mg pills daily. Then I decided to keep up with the every other day pattern, so now I'm at 10 mg/day. The aching has gone down, the dry lips aren't as bad. I think I'll just keep on going with this until I hit the one year mark at least. My goal is to finish off all the pills I've been given to reach that effective cumulative dose, but I've read that a lot of people achieve remission without having taken the cumulative dose.
I have no more oily skin. My scalp is amazing. I seriously can go 3 days without shampooing my hair. The grease streaks that used to coat the inside of my glasses from my eyelashes, no more. Fat cysts on my chin that would take months to die? Gone. The only thing I would like to see are the deeply embedded clogs come out. They are stubborn bastards. Even with the fasting bloodwork and pregnancy tests, pain in the ass iPledge, aches and dryness and weird eye thing, this is totally worth it.
As the guy who started this thread pointed out, the only potential downside to low dose accutane is the risk of getting pregnant while you're on it. And since you're on it for such a long time, the chance of getting pregnant increases. So be careful, people!
I am on 20mg for 1 week per month.. over a period of 6 months.. which means to say, i am not taking roaccutane everyday.. i am not sure y my derm instructed me with such a dosage pattern.. quite worried now as i've finished 1 week of roaccutane and its getting worse instead of better..
I am on 20mg for 1 week per month.. over a period of 6 months.. which means to say, i am not taking roaccutane everyday.. i am not sure y my derm instructed me with such a dosage pattern.. quite worried now as i've finished 1 week of roaccutane and its getting worse instead of better..
Up to the first 8 weeks of isotretinoin can be worse. But, it's always better than before starting after 8 weeks. If it isn't better then your dosage is too low. So, you'll know more after 8 weeks.
Hi All,
This has been a really useful board for me.
Have had 1 round of accutane already , only 4 months worth and it didnt work.My new dermo is putting me on a long term low dose at 20mg per day for a year to reach my cumulitve dose(excuse the spelling)
He says for my age, im 30, and being a female, this works best.Apparantly in Australia they are doing this alot now for Female, adult acne patients.
As long as i have my full dose, which is around 120mg per kg body weight i should kick this acne for good.First time round i only reached half my dose.My last dermo was very cautious.This one seems to really know what he is talking about.
Im hoping as it will be a lower dose, less side effects, which he has assured me on.
With this i am wondering do you still get the initial break out or not? Just wondering as last time it was horrid?
Start in January, the earliest i could see my NHS dermo.
Look forward to any replies x 
With this i am wondering do you still get the initial break out or not? Just wondering as last time it was horrid?
Start in January, the earliest i could see my NHS dermo.
Look forward to any replies x
Yes, you will most likely get the inital breakout. Generally, the only people that don't get any inital breakout are the people that get acne but with dry skin already. The accutane still benefits them because accutane is like taking: oral antibiotics, retin-a, topical antibiotics all in one.
Like topical and oral antiobiotics because the accutane shrinks the oil glands to where the P.acnes bacteria count drops since their necessary nutrient being sebum is cut.
Like topical retin-a since accutane speeds up the skin cell turnover rate the same way.
Plus in addition to all those three effects it shrinks the oil glands as well. So, accutane is like four things in one.
Before starting accutane treatment. Think of your oil glands as a fully wet sponge. The accutane shrinks your oil glands. So, in order for the sponge to get smaller it must let out a surge of oil at first. So, after 2-8 weeks (depends on the person) the sponge is small. After 8 weeks you will be the most dry you will get at that dose.
Thank u Daniel J,
I thought that would be the case but hopefully not as bad.
My skin seems fairly dry at present.I have weird acne at the moment.The kind that sits under the skin so in some lights it looks clear other lights, ie the sun, looks terrible.I must admit the first round of accutane has turned it from fairly moderate to mildish.Get the odd cyst, always on my cheeks.Come to think of it always on my left side.My right side is fairly clear with the odd pimple.
Fingers crossed this second, long term , low dose will clear it for good.
Thanks for your advice, really looking forward to a peachy face like i had 5 months ago.admittedly only for 6 weeks but felt great at the time.
Thanks again x
With this i am wondering do you still get the initial break out or not? Just wondering as last time it was horrid?
Start in January, the earliest i could see my NHS dermo.
Look forward to any replies x
Yes, you will most likely get the inital breakout. Generally, the only people that don't get any inital breakout are the people that get acne but with dry skin already. The accutane still benefits them because accutane is like taking: oral antibiotics, retin-a, topical antibiotics all in one.
Like topical and oral antiobiotics because the accutane shrinks the oil glands to where the P.acnes bacteria count drops since their necessary nutrient being sebum is cut.
Like topical retin-a since accutane speeds up the skin cell turnover rate the same way.
Please in addition to all those three effects it shrinks the oil glands as well. So, accutane is like four things in one.
Before starting accutane treatment. Think of your oil glands as a fully wet sponge. The accutane shrinks your oil glands. So, in order for the sponge to get smaller it must let out a surge of oil at first. So, after 2-8 weeks (depends on the person) the sponge is small. After 8 weeks you will be the most dry you will get at that dose.
I've been reading this discussion topic and I would like to add my 2 cents about my experiences on low dose accutane. Let me start off by saying that I have suffered from acne for 24 years (damn that's a long time). I am a female in my late 30's and I have been on prescription acne medication for 19 of those years. Nothing has worked for me until I started accutane. My acne has always consisted of whiteheads, blackheads, and huge painful cysts (about 2 per year). I had discussed accutane with my derm years ago but I wasn't too thrilled about the iPledge thing, especially since OC's make me crazy. Let's just say that I love the internet.
I started taking 10 mg of accutane once daily 2 months ago. I had the initial breakout, it wasn't horrible but I felt like a monster. The oil slick lasted two weeks and required the use of 5-6 Clean and Clear blotting sheets per 8 hour work day to at least appear presentable. For the first month after the IB I got some tiny whiteheads that would heal in 2 days if I squeezed the hell out of them. I have never seen so much pus come out of a pimple, especially such a tiny pimple. Gross, I know, yet fascinating. The 2nd month, no pimples at all. I do still have about a million blackheads which are reappearing after using an extractor so I am about to up my dose to 20 mg.
As far as side effects I have had hardly any. I do have dry skin and my eczema has flared up but I would rather have eczema than acne. My hair and lips are a little dry but not chapped. That's about it. If I didn't have such a blackhead problem I would stay at 10 mg, which I was planning to take for one year. My acne was classified as moderate and 10 mg has worked wonders. It is a miracle drug.
For those of you with mild to moderate acne 10 mg is the way to go. The side effects are minimal, or at least tolerable, and it works. Good luck to all of you! I feel your pain. I wish I had tried accutane 20 years ago, but back then the dosages were insanely high.
As far as side effects I have had hardly any. I do have dry skin and my eczema has flared up but I would rather have eczema than acne. My hair and lips are a little dry but not chapped. That's about it. If I didn't have such a blackhead problem I would stay at 10 mg, which I was planning to take for one year. My acne was classified as moderate and 10 mg has worked wonders. It is a miracle drug.
I buy the large Curel Frangance-free lotion at Walmart for like $9. I make sure to shave with my Nerelco beofre my shower. Since, the best time they say to lock in moisture with a lotion is right after the shower. I only put lotion on the spots of my face that get dry not all over my face.
I put Curel Fragrance-free right after the shower all over my arms and legs. Plus, any place that gets dry like underneath my eyes, and the bridge and tip of my nose. Also, I even put lotion on my ears since they get dry too.
My right hand never gets a rash as long as when I wash my hands I pay attention to not get soap and water on the back of my hands. The times I do wash the back of my hands I put the Curel Fragrance free. If I don't put the Curel then the back of my right hand will get a rash!
yes @ the question above, people tell me what difference did you all feel in your healing while on accutane i am very confused about the healing part, once i had been prescribed 10 mg/day while on regular chemical peels which were scheduled at 16 days apart, where on here i have seen loads of posts complaining about the delayed healing, what difference are you noticing? please comment!
I take 10mg once a week and that's all I need to keep my skin clear. I've always had acne and still get in in my 30th year. I have virtually no side effects and I don't care if I have to keep taking this until I hit menopause. 10mg, once a week prob. won't do any permanent damage.
Hi,
I just finished 6 months of low dose accutane (10mg first month, 20 mg afterwards).
I must say it has worked at least 90% well.
The problem is, shortly after stopping it, my acne returned. Well, at least it is not cystic as before, but it is still annoying considering I am used to the joys of being acne-free
My doctor insisted on my body taking at least 1-2 months break from accutane, so I am currently on Oral Doxycyclin 100mg twice a day, and also some topical antibiotics..
Has anyone experienced what I went through? Pls advice!!
You should try 10mg twice a week. It will keep your skin clear forever.
Well the research above certainly makes me feel better, although I still am not too sure if my derms recommendation of 30mg/day is high enough for me (68kg), and she said that she would not increase my dose to 40mg, because the side effects could get worse (all i have right now is dry lips). So would a low dose of 30mg for 6months still get rid of the acne and make sure that it does not comeback 9(r give a decent chance of it not coming back)?
Well the research above certainly makes me feel better, although I still am not too sure if my derms recommendation of 30mg/day is high enough for me (68kg), and she said that she would not increase my dose to 40mg, because the side effects could get worse (all i have right now is dry lips). So would a low dose of 30mg for 6months still get rid of the acne and make sure that it does not comeback 9(r give a decent chance of it not coming back)?
You need to somehow get 8,160 mg TOTAL of accutane in your body to have the best chance of kicking your acne into remission.
So your low dose of 30 mg for 6 months would bring you to 5,400 mg total. Therefore it would be of little or no benefit to you.
Well the research above certainly makes me feel better, although I still am not too sure if my derms recommendation of 30mg/day is high enough for me (68kg), and she said that she would not increase my dose to 40mg, because the side effects could get worse (all i have right now is dry lips). So would a low dose of 30mg for 6months still get rid of the acne and make sure that it does not comeback 9(r give a decent chance of it not coming back)?You need to somehow get 8,160 mg TOTAL of accutane in your body to have the best chance of kicking your acne into remission.
So your low dose of 30 mg for 6 months would bring you to 5,400 mg total. Therefore it would be of little or no benefit to you.
I had tried accutane before but the side effects really bothers me. Nose bleed, chap lips, dry skin and etc.
However, my acne return after I stop having accutane.
I stopped using accutane and turned to other methods of curing acne and I think I found my answer in treating acne naturally. I cured myself of severe acne and right now I feel healthier than ever.
I blog about natural treatments and if you are interested, you can find out more over at my blog.
Cheers,
Joseph
I have 24 of the 40mg pills.
I have done 2 "regular" 40-60-80mg courses of Accutane (though stopped the second one early 7 months ago due to mental side effects).
My acne is back and I'm scared to go back to the mental side effects of high doses of accutane. Any help? Thanks!
