I started to develop severe acne toward the end of high school but it truly flaired up into cystic acne the first semester of my 1st year of college. I was 18 years old, living in the dorms with beautiful girls and started to become consumed by my worsening acne that was completed centered around my chin area. I was a fun loving, easy going guy that became consumed with my skin problem and it began to affect my social life to the point that I knew I needed serious help. I tried over-the-counter remedies but they either excacerbated my condition or did not help me. I was placed on Doxcycline (something like that) but it did nothing to improve my cysts and the pain caused by them.

During my 1st semester I began lurking these forums, that was fall 2005, and by January 2006 I started a course on Isotrentinen (spl?)...Accutane, the generic version. I started at 1 40mg pill a day for the first 2 months and for months 3-6 I was at 2 40mg pills a day. It was a rough ride for the entire 6 month course. My acne flaired up to a severity that I had not previously experienced or anticipated, even though my dermatologist informed me that this might happed.

Within a couple weeks of beginning the course my cysts began to almost swell or harden and come to the surface. I experienced worsening acne over the first 4 months of the treatment along with dry lips and dry skin. I was diligent in mosterizing my skin and my lips. I consumed LARGE quantities of water to help combat this.

By the end of the 4th month I noticed that I wasn't really forming any new cysts and that my current cysts were either fading away or remaining steadfast. I ended my treatment in June of 2006 with no current cysts or pimples although I still had significant redness and the beginning of scarring. I remember being horrified when my derm told me that I was probably going to have some scarring. At 19 it was traumatic and I remember leaving the office in tears. I continued to be consumed by the redness and the more visible scars throughout the summer and into the beginning of my sophmore year of college.

But with time, I healed physically, emotionally and mentally. My scars, though visible became less apparent once the redness disapaited and I found myself thinking less and less about it everyday. I finished up my sophmore year happy and excited that I endured the 6 months of accutane and was relieved that I had not any lasting damage from the wicked drug.

Flashforward to today, over a year since a graduated college and over 4 years since I completed Accutane I am completely happy about my experience. I rarely think of my skin or my once dreaded acne. My scars are somewhat visible but I never think about them. Even in close conversations with co-workers/friends/boss/etc I never and am worried or think about them. I occasionally develop a pimple every now and then, but nothing that 2-3 days doesn't heal up. I also started using an antibiotic soap (Basis - All Clear) that I swear by and wish I would have started using when I developed acne.

I no longer have acne and thankfully did not have to repeat a course of Accuntane. I point toward Accutane and time for healing my skin and giving me my life back.

For all those out there considering Accutane:

First, consult your parents/gaurdians/dermatologist about whether it is an appropriate step for you.

Second, inform yourself about the complications/results/etc that may come with it and those that may not be transiet/temporary. Speak to the appropriate resources about these side effects.

Third, have realistic expectations. Not everyone responds the same to every drug. What works for some may not work for you. Explore other less severe routes prior to Accutane.

Feel free to contact me with any questions or more information.

awesome awesome, thankyou i can now go to bed with a clear mind! i just took my first accutane tablet after uming and ahhing about it for three months... i am also on a 16 week treatment. i agree that maybe its better not to overly scrutinise this process with a log (i had considered but when it came time to start i felt strange about it..) i did record a short before video, and i guess i'll film an after so i can share at least something. i know watching peoples videos really helped me come to the decision to try it, despite all the reservations and fear mongering about accutane.

if it kills me then i went out fighting haha

anyway just wanted to say love your attitude and i feel then same about most of what you said.

especially the part where you mentioned back to the future.

lol

peace x

General reminder: Please do not post until AFTER you have finished your course.

I had severe, just really severe acne about a year ago.. So i went on accutane, on a dosage of 80 mg each day, during a period of 5 months... after that my acne was gone, just no single spot for about 6 months, and during the last 6 months i have the occasional spot, although i really must state that accutane saved my life. My scarring has remained minimal and i'm sure it would have been far worse if i wouldnt have used accutane.

Besides that, i didn't have any side effect except for dry lips, but my blood values stayed exactly the same before and during my accutane period. My derm was absolutely extremely surprised about that because i was on such a high dosage, but evidently my body really needed the accutane. I praise accutane and would absolutely recommend it in severe cases (in which scarring could occur)!

Well I never thought I would be here. In short my accutane experience was a total SUCCESS!

I took Roaccutane (Roche brand) as i'm from England I can still get the Roche one over here. I went to a private dermatologist as the NHS didn't seem to think I had a bad case.

Before accutane I had tried several antibiotics, Dan's regimen, BHA's, AHA's, retin-a. I was 21, had acne for 5 years and basically had enough of it so I tried accutane.

Some of the other treatments worked for a while but the acne would always come back bad.

Once I started accutane and came of all the antibiotics I was taking my acne flared up pretty bad after a month. I also developed impetigo in the first few weeks of taking accutane. Something to do with my skin being thinner so the bacteria can get in the skin.

When the impetigo was treated I could resume my treatment. At this point I was extremely cautious of continuing with the accutane. I also had to take prednisone (oral steroid) throughout my treatment as my acne flared up badly while on accutane.

I continued with it, after about 4 months I would say the initial breakout subsided and I started to clear. Only STARTED! I thought I would have been clear by this point.

Truthfully I did not clear completely until I stopped taking the accutane.

My doses were:

Month 1: 40mg

Month 2: 60mg

Month 3: 60mg

Month 4: 60mg

Month 5 + 2 months: 60mg

So I took the accutane for a total of 5 and a half months. I weighed about 60kg. So that gave me a total cumulative dosage of 150mg/kg. Which my dermatologist said was what was recommended.

I have been off accutane since about 28th May 2010. I have had a few spots here and there but they are really small.

Overall: Accutane helped my acne greatly I no longer have the painful acne I had while on the treatment and before. Most of my red marks and scars seem to have faded a lot since stopping treatment.

Side-effects: I had very dry skin, dry lips, dry penis and dry eyes. I felt a little more achy than usual and I would say I felt quite low throughout taking the treatment. I would say this was probably due to my acne not improving for a while.

So if you are thinking of going on accutane I would say you need to first ask if your acne affects you badly? Also can you put up with the side effects and potentially worse acne for 5 or so months? If the answer is yes to any of these then it is probably worth it.

Note: accutane for me worked extremely slowly but worked in the end. So its important to stick with it for months.

Not everyone will have an experience like me some people will start to clear after a few months, others like myself will take what seems forever.

Now I only use retin-a on alternating nights and Paula's Choice 2% BHA. This seems to keep me clear.

Accutane will take away most of your acne but you may still get a few small spots so maintenance treatment with a topical retinoid is still necessary.

Will my acne come back? I hope not. If it comes back I don't think I will sue accutane as there will probably be better ways to treat it. If it comes back as bad as before I may consider accutane.

Good luck and I hope this has helped you with your decision. Any questions PM me as I rarely check these boards now. I will definitely reply if you PM.

The disappointing thing is I don't have any pics as I felt so low at the time I never thought it would work. I just wish I had some for proof.

I've been done with accutane for about 2 months now, and my skin has completely stopped breaking out. I completed 5 months at 40mg a day.

Side effects: Dry lips, joint pain, a little hair thinning, and it's worth mentioning I felt a little depressed for about 2 months near the end, though I don't think this was caused by the drug, but rather by other factors in my life. It's also worth mentioning I feel much better now 2 months removed from the drug, and similarly all the other side effects have pretty much gone away now.

My skin has 100% stopped breaking out. All the old active spots have healed, and most of the red marks have faded away. Maybe 3 more months and it'll look like I never had acne minus a few little white marks here and there on my back.

Definitely worth it, though the process did kind of suck. About 3 months in I hyperextended my knee, and the pain was brutal and forced me to stop taking the accutane for about a month. I finished without anymore problems , but for a while there it was really hard to move around. From a short sighted perspective this has been one of the best decisions I've ever made.

I would recommend accutane, it was a very difficult process to go through emotionally, but God got me through it! and i no longer worry as much about how I look. I know the suffering people go through that have to deal with acne and its something alot of people dont understand. But there is hope!

I pray that anyone who take it will have a good experience and get through it and remain strong! Good luck!

I have been Accutane free for almost 2 years now and my skin still looks great. Sure I get the occasional small pimple around my time of the month but it goes away within days. Accutane is definately a tough process but well worth the outcome in the end.

I have just finished my first 4 months accutane cycle, I am 17 years old now and it has changed my life. Before accuatane I tried everything including BP, but nothing worked so I was put on accutane. The first 4-5 weeks were really tough, my skin was so dry that I felt embaressed to go to school, my lips looked like I had been through the desert with nothing to drink. 4 months later my skins is still dry, but nowhere near as bad as when I started and at the time of writing (24 hours after last pill) I do not have even one pimple on my face! Yes, my skin is still slightly red in some areas, and yes I have some scars but other than that, my face is clear!!! My back on the other hand side, is much better, but still has scars and pimples, but I'm hoping this will fade with time (no new pimples for now anyway).

Accutane has changed my life

I am a 20 year old male, 6'5" tall, about 200 lbs. I have had bad nodular acne for the past few years and it was depressing and took a toll on my social life. I started accutane June 1, 2010 at 40mg a day then after a month moved to 80mg a day and it has worked wonders. The first couple weeks however were horrible, I broke out worse than ever and I freaked out and didnt even want to leave my house. With that said, I pulled through and it is now beginning my 4th month and my face is completely smooth with just a few scars left. I got a virus which affected my liver counts so the dr. took me off for a week but blood tests siad everything was back to normal so I got back on it. The only side effects Ive had have been pretty bad dry lips and some dry skin which lotion takes care of. Accutane has saved my life...I have suffered from no depression resulting from the accutane and girls actually find me attractive again...this stuff is literally amazing...at least for me...downside is you cant drink while on it and im kind of worried about long term effects.

I do not have a postive story yet. Currently I am going to my derm on december 23rd and if he feels like I need accutane then I want to do it. If I do it I will post and hopefully I will become just another sucess story. I trully believe this is a wonder pill, yes its slow but what wound or illness goes away over night? None all healing takes time.

ok well i have had spots since i was about 14. i tried everything! i must of spent hundreds of pounds on every over the counter thing you can get to laser treatments to all the pills and potions i could get from the doctor.

some things worked sure. i had a few years spot free but they always came back.

luckily i never had bad acne but i had stubborn spots all the time.

it used to be my forehead and then they moved to my chin and above my mouth and older i got the more self concious i would be.

i was happy wen something from the doctor or from the counter worked but then after 6 months to a year they would slowly come back.

i then moved to New Zealand and after few months again the spots came back and it gets you down. u feel awful and that everyone is staring and as i was in a new country and new job i felt really out of place.

so after a few months of feeling crap about myself ( a ex bf who i was dating at the time didnt help with his useful comments on what i should do to clear my skin up hence he is a ex now) i saw my flatmate who skin was getting so clear and she told me she was on roaccutane. i always been put off this drug mainly by family saying my skin wasnt that bad for such drastic measures but seeing how good my flatmates skin was and speaking to a few other friends who had been on it, not that you could tell as their skin was so perfect i decided to give it a go.

it was expensive as i dont get health benefits over here and in UK it would of been free but it was worth every dollar!!

i was on it for 4 months and just finished the course now and my skin is clear!! its amazing.

i dont need to cake myself in make-up now and i cant wait for the summer and not have to worry about covering my spots up all the time.

im heaps more confident, i can stay at my mates and bf's house with out being worried that i scare them in the morning.

sure the side effects look scary on paper but they are rare. i got dry skin, dry lips and a dry scalp. all things that are very easy to treat. use a good moisturiser and jojoba oil on your skin, use a good lip balm i love lucas paw paw and use a anti dandruff shampoo to help ur scalp. easy!

dont expect results straight away.

i saw nothing for 3 months but u just need to carry on and in 3rd month my skin cleared up. i may still get the odd one but thats fine!

my advice is sure try other things but dont waste years like i did looking for a magic cure when there is one right infront of you! if you get offered roaccutane, take it as it will change your life!!

YOU GOT TO BELIEVE

Hi everybody ! So first my name is David I'm 20 years old right now and I live in Canada. I'm french so please be cool about my english smile.gif

I've been fighting against acne for about 8 years. I took Accutane 3 times and I'm here to tell you that even how bad your acne is or how down you are, you can go through and get out of this and I know how bad you can feel ! So here is my acne story:

I first took Accutane when I was 13 years old. I had really really bad back acne. I had on chest and face too but my back was really really bad and painful. I took accutane for 5 months and it calms down my acne. I still had acne but it was not so bad and I didn't really care at that time.

Second time on Accutane: 17 years old. Now it's more about my face and I feel really bad about it. Again, I took accutane for 5 months and it worked good. I really thought I was done with acne after that... I had some pimples but not SO bad. I could live with it...

1 year and 6 months later... Acne comes back again on my face... I took Accutane for a third times. This was too much for my body I think... My skin had a really bad reaction... My face turned REALLY BAD. I never had so bad acne on my face and feel so down... I was totally down and all my life was shit... You can see one thread I post in there in 2009 about how bad I was feeling : http://www.acne.org/messageboard/negative-...74#entry2581174

Here are some pictures I took at that time (Sorry about quality these have been taken from an iPhone):

Every time I washed my face, it was bleeding and all my face was really hurting... I was not able to see my dermatologist because she was really busy... When I finally saw her she told me to immediately stop Accutane and I started Cortisone. This really helped and this is how I looked 1 month later:

Quality sucks but my face was really red and I still had some pimples...

1 year later... I'm here right now and my face is really good ! I still have some redness sometimes and little pimples but nothing really bad. You can see :

I'm really happy to have been through all that shit and I hope for all of you that you'll get clear soon. Everyone can go through and don't despair !

YOU GOT TO BELIEVE

I hope my story has been helpful for you or at least gave you a little bit of motivation.

Hey everyone!

I promised myself that if I had a positive experience with Accutane, I would share my story with you all. So here it goes:

For most of my life after puberty, my acne has been mild or moderate. I used proactive when I first got acne at the age of 13. When I got to high school, I eventually used different combinations of topical medications prescribed from my dermatologist such as retin-A micro, benzacline and other benzol peroxide medications, and evoclear. My acne was controlled for the most part with these treatments, but eventually they would wear off and I would need something different or stronger.

During the fall of 2008 of my freshman year in college, my dermatologist prescibed me benzacline to take at night and a doxycycline antibiotic that I took once a day. My acne was not very bad, but my previous treatment was wearing off and I needed something different. Eventually, I stopped taking the antibiotic in early January of 2009 due to a lowered white blood cell count (my cell count went back to normal when I stopped the antibiotic). During that month, I also stopped putting on benzacline at night because my acne was virutally non-existent. I basically had little to no acne from January until late Septemeber of 2009. All I used was Aveeno Active Naturals foam wash in the shower and Aveeno Active Naturals Moisturizer (really good products if anyone wants to use them).

When my acne came back in Sept. 2009, it came back slowly but suredly. It got progressively worse in October and November, but I did not see a dermatologist until December. The derm I went to recommended accutane as the best chance to get rid of it, but like most people I was very scared about accutane. So, I just got a prescription for a topical treatment called Aczone. I honestly just didn't use it very much because it dried my skin too much when I first used it.

In January of 2010, my acne got really bad....I mean really, really, really bad. It was far worse than it had ever, ever been before in my life. Pimples basically covered my entire forehead and temple areas on the sides of my face, and eventually spread to my cheeks and chin as well. Every day was an absolute nightmare to wake up, especially since I would look at my pillow case and it would be covered with spots of blood and pus from the acne on my face. I would go look in the mirror in the morning and virtually see new pimples every day with the ones already on my face bigger than the day before. I basically never wanted to go out, and virtually never did except to attend my classes. By the third week of January I started taking a relatively new drug called Solydyn, which is a form of minocycline. This drug took over a month and a half to start producing any positive effects. It decreased my acne just a little bit, but not by much.

Since this drug was basically doing very little for me, I started to research accutane. I read a lot of posts, including on this site, about people's experience with accutane. I also researched and learned the common and possible side effects as well as how the drug worked to rid the body of acne. I was a little scared about taking it still, but I was ready to give it a try.

During my spring break in mid march of 2010, I finally went to another dermatologist and was prescribed accutane. I stopped taking Solydyn and started taking accutane on March 18, 2010. I used the generic brand Clavaris during my entire treatment. The following list is my dosage for the 6 months I was on the drug:

Month #1: Clavaris 80mg

Month #2: Clavaris 80mg

Month #3: Clavaris 80mg

Month #4: Clavaris 80mg

MOnth #5: Clavaris 80mg

Month #6: Clavaris 40mg

I also would like to note that I applied aczone at night during the last three months of my accutane course to help reduce the redness and scarring from my acne. Aczone and accutane combined helped, in my opinion, to reduce the scarring and redness on my face.

Side effects:

I luckily did not have too many side effects while on accutane. I did not get the initial breakout while taking the drug. After about a week on the drug, I started to get dry lips...the lips became very dry and I used a chapstick a lot to combat some of the dryness...Dr. Dan's chapstick is a good one made for accutane (but only use it a couple times of day because it can thin the skin on the lips due to the cortisone in it). I would also occasionally get dry skin on the tops of my shoulders, my forearms, and above my eyes under my eyebrows. I also sometimes got a small to medium size rash on the back of my upper arms. These were the only real side effects I had, and they all went away about a week after I finished my course of treatment on accutane.

My experience while on accutane:

It took just one month on accutane for my skin to basically clear up entirely. It was amazing to see how fast the drug worked for me because I was expecting it to take a few months like it does for most people to see the benefits. After that first month, I basically had one or two small pimples every couple months during treatment. It literally was a miracle drug for me.

Post accutane experience:

I took my last pill in my 6 month course of accutane on September 14, 2010. I am proud to tell you all that it has been almost three weeks off of the drug, and my skin is looking great! My face is 100% clear. Accutane literally turned my life around for the better. My self esteem has greatly improved now that I can go out into the world without worrying about acne. I am very thankful for accutane, and for taking it. I only wish I had taken photos of my acne and the improvements I had with the use of accutane. However, I was just too embarrassed to keep any photos of myself with the acne.

How this story can relate to you:

My hope is that this story touches people out there suffering from the dreadful effects of acne. If you are someone contemplating whether to take accutane, I hope you can find comfort in this story and all the other posts here. Accutane is not for everyone, but don't negative images of accutane influence you to go months or years trying other treatments that either don't work or don't last just to avoid taking accutane. In the end, you have an important decision to make about how to treat your acne. Don't let fear control the decisions you make. Taking accutane was a risk I took, and it ended up changing my life for the better. Whatever choice you make with regards to treating your acne, I wish you the best of luck.

I'd really like to do a pro and con list for my time on roaccutane... been on it four month, got another 2 left. 60mg (3 pills a day) persistant acne, i must admit it wasnt anything shocking but i had to cover up, i was getting upset as the marks left after a spot were purple. The marks never got any better because spots would just re-appear over the purple marks. Anyways my list

Pro's : After a short while spots were drying up and going. Blackheads and oily nose have now almost gone. Marks where the spots were are now completely faded or slightly red. I can now go out without having to cover up spots with concealer and tons of foundation which just clogs the pores anyway! Feel soooo much happier now i have almost perfect skin, no more waking up with greasy nose and being embarrased yaaay

Cons : Dry lips (helped a LOT by Carmex), skin peeling pretty much every day (i personally use a dermalogica scrub and plenty of moisturiser) sometimes dry eyes (helped by lubricating eyedrops) sore joints... havnt found anything that helps this yet, just hoping it wont last after the last pill has been taken. Periods - this is kind of a pro and a con, i didnt have a period for the first 2 months which i guess is a con and the last one i had was pretty great hardly any bleeding so thats the pro lastly is sweating :S only on my hands and feet and thats definatly the sign of roaccutane.

So all in all im soo so happy im on the pills. Yes its not easy but its definatly not the most awful thing ive been on... so good luck

Well the way i see it girls that have taken accutane are basically ruined for life

hollowed-out shells with only a small semblance of still being human walking around blindly

with their clear skin but soulless faces. zombies.

Accutane basically destroys the DNA, the woman's eggs are forever spoiled and the womb becomes

nothing more than a vessel for deformed stillborn babies.

I would never put my seed into these ruined vessels, i would rather fuk an alien. Not that they even

have any lubrication left on their vaginas to even facilitate such an act.

yours truly

- bio_nerd

Hey all,

Can't sleep due to homework...thought I would jump back on the board and throw in my opinion of Accutane.

I am under a month left in a 6 month course, and have had nothing but excellent things to say about the course. I have only had minor dry lips, which has been a non-issue with the use of Aquaphor a few times a day. Before the course, my face was very inflammatory, red, and just plain awful. I had previously had acne from 14/15-22. I never really had the dreaded initial breakout, at least from what I could see.

I am a 22 year old guy...don't laugh, but one of the best things I could have ever done was get matched up for a light powdered foundation to help with the process, cut down on the redness, and dramatically increase my confidence early on in the course. As the course has gone on, the acne has virtually been eliminated, and the foundation has also been greatly reduced. So guys...do not ever be afraid to go the route of foundation-type products...it saved me for a few months BIG time. Plus, it gives you an almost flawless complexion once the acne takes a hike, can't complain there...

I have cleansed with Cetaphil, moisturized with Neutrogena SPF 15 facial lotion twice a day, and been very diligent in getting adequate amounts of water (3ish litres a day), fruits, veggies, and of course...Aquaphor. Try to stay positive, especially if you are early on in the course, do the most you can to make life as easy as possible, and just stick with the drug. I have never been the one to take prescription drugs, but sometimes you just have to do what you have to do to get your life on track.

I'm not sure what else to say at the moment, but feel free to throw me a private message if you have any further questions or whatever, I would be happy to weigh in! Cheers for now!

Another friendly reminder to read the original post. The posts that are visible are from members that have finished a course(s) of Accutane.

I began to get spots when I was around 14. At first, I was pretty much the same as every other boy in my year at school. I had a few around my nose and that was about it. Things gradually became worse, so I bought some face wash products. I used these, in combination with drinking lots of water, and improving my already healthy diet. I saw some improvement. After a few weeks, things went back to before, and my acne became more and more severe.

I began to become rather self-conscious. I had always been popular with my peers, extremely active (I play a lot of rugby), had a good diet, drank plenty of water, and had no other health problems. Other than my face, I was perfectly happy. I went to the doctor and was prescribed some retinoids. These worked at first, and I was looking forward to having clearer skin.

After a few months, these failed to work effectively and I became a bit desperate. My acne had become really bad, I hadn't had a girlfriend for ages, and I became obsessed with washing my face, hoping that would work. I even took creams to parties! Things were not going well.

I was finally prescribed Roaccutane by a dermatologist. He said that I should have been given them far earlier, as my acne was so severe I would probably develop scarring. This news did not go down well as you can imagine, but I stuck to the course. I was given 30mg per day for 6 months. It took around 5 months to notice a difference if I'm truly honest. My skin dried out in this time, and I began using moisturiser. I realised that acne is not due to hygeine or diet. It is down to inheritance unfortunately! Water, exercise and diet obviously help too. Boys are more susceptible to acne too.

I finished the 6 months, and was given another course, this time at 35mg. You may hear of people taking ridiculously high doses (e.g. 60mg+) for short periods of time. This is nonsensical, as it takes a long time to affect your subaceous glands. Also, high doses will increase the side-effects exponentially. The dose is calculated according to your weight. I weighed around 70kg, and was 5ft 11'.

After 12 months, I had noticed a substantial difference. My skin was clearer but quite dry. I did sometimes notice creaky joints, which is a side-effect. I had a further 3 months course and I'm clear! My skin is smooth and my self esteem is sky high. I am now 18 years old, have had a beautiful girlfriend for 15 months, and am in first year at medical school.

Taking Roaccutane at a fair dose over a long time has had a dramatic, and positive affect upon my skin. I still drink a lot of water, wash my face twice a day (exfoliate at night), use toner, and then moisturise. I can shave without bleeding acne. I can talk to people without feeling self-conscious about the condition of my skin, and I generally feel good.

I hope that by sharing my experience, I can help any of you.

P.S. I apologise to any Americans for my spelling. I am from the United Kingdom, so use British English!

when i first started taking accutane and signed up at these boards, i promised myself i would post on this topic once my course finished!i did a 4 month cycle at 80mg 3 times a week and 40 mg 4 times a week. the drug has worked wonders!!!! im now almost two months post tane, the flushing and redness have reduced, and my skin is looking amazing! its glowing i couldnt be any happier so far, and i know it will only get better too!

one thing i will add is that about two months in i started noticing hair shedding. hair loss was my number 1 fear before starting accutane too. i was mortified and faced with a difficult decision. continue with my course and risk continued hair shedding, or quit and hope it will go away.

despite the advice on the board, i had hope and continued with my course. and im glad i did!!!! the shedding continued up until almost the end of the cycle, but i stuck with it. i took a bunch of supplements to hopefully counteract the hair loss, and who knows if they did, but the hair loss has completely subsided! i feel blessed!!! my supplements included silica, biotin, zinc, and vitamin e. i also used baby shampoo.

i love accutane, its given me confidence back. if youre on accutane and experiencing hair loss, dont be afraid to take a risk and continue, it could be the best decision you ever make.

i hope that i dont have to return to these boards one day, but best of luck to everyone here!

ps. post tane i have been using this cream called cicalfate by avene, it has made my healing time decrease as well as easing redness and scarring, overall making my skin look very healthy and glowing! i highly reccommend it

god bless you all

The truth about isotretinoin is that it may cause early aging and premature death, many years later after usage of the drug was discontinued.

Undisputed Known Facts:

-Isotretinoin (13-cis retinoic acid) was originally developed as a chemotherapeutic drug in the 1970s to treat lymphoma.

-Its side effects were completely rational considering it was used to treat cancer.

-13-cis retinoic acid is naturally metabolized to ATRA (all-trans retinoic acid) in the body.

-All-trans retinoic acid is a confirmed telomerase inhibitor (via hTERT substrate inhibition).

-Telomerase is the enzyme that allows our cells to keep dividing without gradually destroying our DNA in the process. Without its function, people age and die, starting with the cells that most crucially depend on it (rapidly dividing cells, such as epithelial cells and cells lining the gut, and sebacious glands in teenagers).

-ATRA has also been shown to downregulate telomerase, but direct administration of ATRA is more toxic.

-Permanent side effects have been reported, many (of which have been acknowledged legally by the original drug manufacturers) have presented only years after the treatment was stopped, when there were no such side effects while on the treatment.

-There are no other known modes of action by which retinoids (or more spectifically isotretinoin) has been shown to be a chemotherapuetic against cancer besides the pathway it uses to downregulate telomerase.

-No alteration was made to the isotretinoin compound when it was marketed as an acne drug.

-Minimal information is given about the mechanism of action of isotretinoin. A few sentences make the claim that it reduces the proliferation of sebacious glands, but no pathway-specific information is published.

-No studies have been conducted about isotretinoin's effect on life span.

-The FDA does not require testing of drugs' effects on life span.

-Drug companies make millions off of this drug, and they do what they are required by listing the known side effects.

-Others have made and support this discovery that isotretinoin could downregulate telomerase, and it is presently (as of right now) listed on the isotretinoin wikipedia page.

Facts you will likely agree with:

-The effects of telomerase downregulation may take years to surface, as the natural aging process typically abated by the presence of telomerase to regenerate stem cells is decreased.

-Most people who didn't have major side effects with isotretinoin (or even those who did) after stopping the medicine will not associate non-skin related problems a few years later to their use of their anti-acne pills. And even if they do and they seek medical help, it will still likely not be reported to the FDA, since they cannot be certain and since they wouldn't bother reporting it. There is no way a doctor could know for sure that something is due to isotretinoin use, especially since most docotors are ignorant as to the full extent of the drug and don't know too much about telomerase, as it pertains to a recent field of study.

-99.999% of medical professionals will have not made this simple connection between 13-cis-retinoic acid and telomerase, because they haven't done the research, trust what drug companies tell them, and don't think they could unearth any scarier information on the drug.

Logical conclusions from the undisputed known facts:

-It is likely that isotretinoin will downregulate your telomerase enzyme, causing more of your cells to stop proliferating and die at a younger age, causing pre-mature aging. If the effects of the drug on telomerease are permanent, the premature aging can be permanent, and premature death might occur (from the cells of your vital organs dying too young, or from a plethora of other problems arising from cell death).

**Disclaimer: While I believe everything I have written above is true, I am not a medical expert. It is possible that everything I have written is wrong and that even my "undisputed known facts" and "logical conclusions form the undisputed known facts" are incorrect. In particular, the first statement of this post could be entirely wrong. You should consult your doctor about any medical concerns.

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I am 34 and went on a 6 moth dose of claravis 80mg a day... i had moderate to severe body acne. my face was always pretty clear. I suffered for 15 years and wish I knew about accutane years ago.

the only draw back was the cost, I didn't have insurance so it wound up costing me about $4000.

It was worth every penny though, I was just fed up with having acne and feeling like a freak.

I couldn't take it anymore, i never felt comfortable wearing a bathing suit or getting intimate with a girl. It really took a toll on my self confidence.

It's been 2 months since I finished my treatment and my body is perfectly clear. My skin is silky smooth and soft, not a blemish. It's amazing!!!

The last 4 months of treatment were a bit rough, my skin was incredibly dry, but it was a small price to pay. I did have joint pain too, I had to stop lifting weights and going to the gym as a result.

This is only temporary though, joint pain is totally gone now and I am back at the gym.

This drug IS the cure for acne, i don't care what anyone says!!

I'm 19 years old, and after having extremely persistent moderate acne for 7 or 8 years, i went on accutane. I tried prescription topical treatments but I have very sensitive skin that dries out easily and is prone to eczema, so I had to stop these. I went on birth control pills in hopes to get rid of the acne but that did not help much, maybe a little at first but it went back how it was. Finally my doctor put me on accutane.

I started at 40mg/day for the first month, then 60mg/day for two months. At my final checkup my doctor gave me another 80mg/day for 3 weeks. I've now been off accutane almost 2 weeks.

From the beginning there was an improvement, although I did have many side effects. First of all, my lips got so dry they would crack and bleed. Every time I tried a new lip balm it would work for a few days then stop working, so I started cycling through them all. I used Carmex to deal with the bleeding/cracking though, the most effective, but smells and tastes terrible. My skin became so dried out that I used a moisturizer for dry skin all throughout the day. My eczema went out of control, in small patches all over my body. I had joint pain, severe at times in my wrist, more frequent migranes, and general fatigue. Also, my nose was so dry inside that i would blow my nose and 90% of the time it would be full of blood. Gross.

Positively, accutane has almost entirely cleared up my skin. I work in a retail store, and have to deal with customers all day, so it's nice to be more confident. People I work with have even been complimenting my skin and how clear it is. I'm almost 2 weeks post accutane now. At the end of my treatment I had one small pimple on my forehead, which has vanished. I have had two small pimples on my cheek since i stopped the accutane, one at a time. I currently have one now. My skin is so sensitive that I cannot use hardly anything on it. I use "The Soap Works" creamy clay soap morning and night, and oatmeal complexion soap when my skin is too dry. I use a rich moisturizer 2x daily as well. Occasionally I do an oatmeal and honey mask for dry skin which helps too. I did notice an increase in acne scarring while on accutane, but that is fading quickly since my treatment ended. Also I reccomend chamomile tea soaks for this, as well as spot treatment of pimples since it is a gentle anti inflammatory, and it has improved my general skin tone/texture. I have noticed the dry skin going away a bit, the dry lips are no longer cracking, but they are still peeling, and my eczema is going away.

All in all, accutane has helped me almost entirely clear up my acne. I am a little disappointed it's not entirely gone, but what it is now is so much better than before. My skin would never be 95% clear if it wasn't for accutane. I do reccomend this drug to anyone whose willing to deal with the side effects.

EDITED,

my skin's gone back to almost as bad as it was before the accutane, not even clear for a year. oh well.

I just finished my course of Accutane, and this drug has given me a freedom I've never felt before. I had very persistent moderate acne, complete with cysts every now and again, for ten years. I broke out every single day - big, tender, sore spots that were impossible to hide.

After some time in college, I couldn't live with it anymore. Everyone else was clearing up, and I was getting worse. I tried changing my diet, multiple times. (I eat extremely well anyway.) I tried everything OTC and everything my derm would give me. It took TWO YEARS of trying all the derm's other pills and creams and garbage before he agreed to give me Accutane.

I didn't clear up quickly. I had a bad initial breakout in my second and third months of treatment. My side effects were annoying, but tolerable: sandpapery lips, blood when I blew my nose, dry eyes, flaky skin and occasional rashes on my hands.

So I carried tissues. I moisturized and used eye drops and dragged lip balm everywhere and stayed out of the sun because my skin was sensitive. And you know what? I'd do it again in a heartbeat. I'm CLEAR! I haven't had a big spot in awhile - I just get rare, "normal-person" zits, not big painful swollen lumps. My skin doesn't hurt anymore. I feel clean!

The best part? When I'm out with people now, I'm not constantly excusing myself so I can check my makeup. In conversations now, I don't angle my face to hide my "bad side." I'm just LIVING, being myself, and even though I have to work on my self-image after having it warped badly for years from this awful condition, I feel like when I look in the mirror now, I actually see ME - my features, not just my skin.

It still surprises me when I catch my own reflection now, and I don't know how long that will last. My skin hasn't looked or felt anywhere close to this good since grade school. I thank God for this drug and that I was able to take it. Nothing else I've used has been comparable, and I would urge anyone suffering as I did to at least consider trying it.