Hey everyone!

My name is Jacob and I just started my Accutane treatment 4 days ago on July 18th! I'm really excited to be starting this journey, but I have a few concerns with my plan and lifestlye in general. I'll give you all the details, and any advice, concerns, or tips for getting through all this would be much appreciated!

Age: 20

Height: 5'8", 5'9" on a good day

Weight: 155lbs even, (70.3068kgs)

Treatment: 80mgs/day in the form of two 40mg pills (morning and night)

First off, I'm somewhat concerned about my dosage. I read that you are supposed to take anywhere from .5-1mg/kg/day and from what I calculated I'm a little over 1.1kg. IS this a cause for concern to anyone?

Second, I'm currently training for my first triathlon (sprint) and will be working out probably 5-7 days a week. With this, I will be swimming 3-4 days a week (weakest of the three legs, gonna kill me on race day). I'm concerned about the chlorine either drying out my face or having some other adverse affects. Any tips on this would be greatly appreciated! More generally, will Accutane have any negative effects on my workout routine or performance in general?

So far, only 4 days in mind you, I haven't experienced many side effects. I don't know if some of the bigger pimples I'm getting are from my initial breakout, or if they are just normal.. Either way my face doesn't look terribly worse than before (which isn't saying much). I have been trying to drink a ton (figuratively...) of water everyday while at work and during my workouts, so hopefully that will alleviate some of the side effects but I guess I'll just have to wait and see..

Thanks for reading, and looking forward to hearing from some of you!

- Jacob

Hi!

Yes, that dose is a little bit higher than the usual. In most cases, dermatologists seem to prefer starting patients off slowly to mitigate severity of an initial breakout and side-effects, and increase it over time. Being at your dose isn't dangerous per se, but your side effects (mainly lip dryness and flare ups) may be uncomfortable. There is nothing wrong with asking your dermatologist to reduce the dose if that becomes the case, it shouldn't effect the course of your remission too dramatically. Cumulative doses seem to be key in reducing relapse, so reducing your dose could mean you'll need to be on a bit longer. Your derm may prefer to have you on it for a shorter, rather than longer period of time. Either way, you should discuss these concerns with him/her during your monthly check up.

As for your training, take special care of your joints. While the side-effect is rare, isotretinoin has been associated with muscle and ligament inflammation. You may look into taking supplements good for joint health while you train. Double check with your dermatologist/ pharmacist about the supplements just to make sure they are ok to take with Iso, as there are some vitamins that you should avoid while on Iso.

Also, if you are at any time training outside (especially in the pool) you need to make sure you are CONSTANTLY applying sunscreen. People (including myself) really underestimate the degree to which accutane increases your skin's sensitivity to the sun. Even a few minutes of unprotected exposure can cause sunburns.

In terms of the chlorine effecting your skin, this might be an issue. Showering and applying moisturizer to your face and body immediately after your skin will probably help.

Good luck!

I'm in the same boat as you. I'm just now finishing up my 2nd week on zenatane with a dosage of roughly 1.1 mg/kg (almost exactly like yours). I started with no active acne on my face and over the first few days my face looked great. I was even complimented on how clear I was. Then my face became insanely tight by day 3-4 and as red as a tomato. On day 7 the redness started subsiding and I was back to my normal skin color (maybe a slight bit more pink). Then shit hit the fan. I broke out with 3-4 cysts around my mouth and a few unnoticeable whiteheads near my nose. I went from clear skin on my face to the worst my acne has ever been. However it has started improving drastically. I'm currently dealing with a tiny cyst on my chin but other than that it's starting to look good. I'm hoping that was the IB because it was terrible. I was supposed to go thank people for a scholarship but ended up having to write a letter instead because my face was awful. If you're planning on working out intensely I would just suggest taking a ton of fish oil (a pill with each meal). This has really helped with body aches. My face hasnt been overly dry because of the moisturizer I've been using and I'd highly recommend it. Lastly, it's weird for me being on this high of a dosage and not having any side effects besides overall dryness.

TLDR: At a mg/kg of accutane each day you are going to experience everything a lot sooner than everyone else. I'm convinced that was my IB and I got it 7 days into my treatment whereas others don't get theirs until weeks 2-3. A lot of people also don't notice any change to their skin the first week but mine changed completely within a few days. Also as soon as you get out of the shower just slap some moisturizer all over your body (not just your face). That way you reduce your risk of developing any rashes.

http://www.drugstore.com/products/prod.asp?pid=193423&catid=182946&aid=338666&aparam=193423&kpid=193423&CAWELAID=120142990000017565&CAGPSPN=pla&kpid=193423

I was started on 80mg and will be moving to 100 after this months. First 2 weeks were the hardest, massive face readness pealing 3 days in followed by overall body strangeness while it addapted. Right now 3 weeks in only problem is dry lips and pealing elbows.

I hit the gym 4 times a week training for a strongman competition and I have not experience any negative effectives working out hard so far.

Your dose is good, the more you take the lower chance of a relapse later. Side effects may hit you all at once instead of easing you in but once your past them its smooth sailing,

I'm in the same boat as you. I'm just now finishing up my 2nd week on zenatane with a dosage of roughly 1.1 mg/kg (almost exactly like yours). I started with no active acne on my face and over the first few days my face looked great. I was even complimented on how clear I was. Then my face became insanely tight by day 3-4 and as red as a tomato. On day 7 the redness started subsiding and I was back to my normal skin color (maybe a slight bit more pink). Then shit hit the fan. I broke out with 3-4 cysts around my mouth and a few unnoticeable whiteheads near my nose. I went from clear skin on my face to the worst my acne has ever been. However it has started improving drastically. I'm currently dealing with a tiny cyst on my chin but other than that it's starting to look good. I'm hoping that was the IB because it was terrible. I was supposed to go thank people for a scholarship but ended up having to write a letter instead because my face was awful. If you're planning on working out intensely I would just suggest taking a ton of fish oil (a pill with each meal). This has really helped with body aches. My face hasnt been overly dry because of the moisturizer I've been using and I'd highly recommend it. Lastly, it's weird for me being on this high of a dosage and not having any side effects besides overall dryness.

 

TLDR: At a mg/kg of accutane each day you are going to experience everything a lot sooner than everyone else. I'm convinced that was my IB and I got it 7 days into my treatment whereas others don't get theirs until weeks 2-3. A lot of people also don't notice any change to their skin the first week but mine changed completely within a few days. Also as soon as you get out of the shower just slap some moisturizer all over your body (not just your face). That way you reduce your risk of developing any rashes.

 

http://www.drugstore.com/products/prod.asp?pid=193423&catid=182946&aid=338666&aparam=193423&kpid=193423&CAWELAID=120142990000017565&CAGPSPN=pla&kpid=193423

Thanks for your story, it is very encouraging! Today has been a little worse, but nothing of concern. The only thing I've noticed is my forehead is very dry, and also I saw a small amount of blood on the toilet paper after using the bathroom. I'll talk to my doctor about it, but I'm fairly certain it's only because my skin is so dry down there and cracked.. Also, today my stomache has been rumbling and all weird, but that could have been from my lunch lol..

As for the IB, I don't think I've hit it yet. I'm worried because exaclty 4 weeks into my treatment I will be leaving for vacation and that is when most people experience it.

I was started on 80mg and will be moving to 100 after this months. First 2 weeks were the hardest, massive face readness pealing 3 days in followed by overall body strangeness while it addapted. Right now 3 weeks in only problem is dry lips and pealing elbows.

 

I hit the gym 4 times a week training for a strongman competition and I have not experience any negative effectives working out hard so far.

 

Your dose is good, the more you take the lower chance of a relapse later. Side effects may hit you all at once instead of easing you in but once your past them its smooth sailing,

I'm glad that you didn't see any negative side effects with your training. I'm going to start doing a 7 day plan, with 4 days swimming and 3 days biking + running. Also I'll most likely add some weightlifting in there if I'm feeling up to it.

I feel the body strangeness, I think. It's very hard to tell what is just an average stomache ache or what is due to the medicine. Nothing to terrible right now though.