I have a docs appointment about my acne tomorrow and I am really stressed. I am hoping for Accutane but have a feeling they wont let me because my acne isn't incredibly severe just moderate, nonetheless its seriously inhibiting my life and has done for 7 years.

 

Maybe birth control is the answer, but my spots do not change with my cycle, they are always there, however they are mainly on the lower half of my face particularly cheeks and near the chin but never directly on the chin.

 

What should I ask for antibiotics worked for me but you cant stay forever. I am so tempted to just get more antibiotics but I want a perm solution x

Hi! Be sure to bring a list of everything you have tried (focusing on the antibiotics and topicals). Dermatologists will typically prescribe accutane for moderate acne (i.e., not severe nodular-cystic acne) if it is considered "refractory". All "refractory" acne is, is acne that has not responded to at least one topical regimen and two different antibiotics (taken for at least a month). If your dermatologist knows you have tried prescriptions in the past that haven't worked (or that you relapsed from), they will be more inclined to prescribe you accutane if you ask. That being said, you will need to be on a birth control while taking accutane, so your dermatologist will likely want you to try one anyway.

Yeah I found I had to try every single thing going before I was put forward for accutane! It doesnt matter if it isn't severe. If you have had acne for years and you've tried antibiotics, birth control and topicals etc any good doctor will still give you it

can I lie a little bit lol and say these things didn't work out even if I didn't give them a chance e.g dianette made me crazy so I stopped on week 2. And doxycycline gave me insomnia so I stopped that.

Can I just say they didn't work to get them to agree to Accutane, or will they have a way of knowing that im lying

it goes like this-

lymecycline- worked but relapsed

dianette- made me crazy so stopped

benzyl peroxide- not greatly effective and drying

doxycycline- insomnia

do you reck they'll say yes to Accutane after that? x

Have you tried retinoids? I would recon you try spiro before trying accutane as it is not a guarantee and extremely grueling on the body. Good Luck!

thankyou for your input, the thing is about b/c and spiro, I am not sure if my acne is hormone related, as there is no change whatsoever with any stage of my cycle, and ive heard hormonal acne is on the chin, mine is never exactly on the chin but around it and on my cheeks sometimes forehead.

Having said that I have painful periods, so maybe it is hormonal.

i'm scared of getting depression on the pill as im very prone. and tbh in the uk I don't even think spiro is prescribed. it's not on the nhs website x

I hear you. Well good luck. Keep us posted on the outcome.

It depends on how your doctor is really. Some are really strict and others may prescribe it right away if you say you tried a few other things.

The issue I was having with dermatologist is that my acne did not look super bad when I went into my appointments. Thats because I was still using topicals, vitamins and eating a good diet. Basically everything I could do to keep it under control. They only saw what was currently on my face and not what my acne would look like if I quit doing all my maintenance stuff. They would try to treat whats left and not treat the whole problem which never worked. You could tell them your skin gets much worse if you quit using topicals and your routine and say your tired of applying topicals everyday,

guess frickin what guys, she said yes to Accutane xD oh my life I cant believe it. Thankyou for all your advice it really worked.

Mind you, she has just given me the referral for the derm that's all, but she is giving me blood test next week so looks like its probable. Also got antibiotics cos its gonna take three months or so to start. I hope this works, hope I don't go crazy, blind or have my bowels removed. But i'm excited!! xxxxx

Congrats, glad that it worked out! Since its a doctor referral I dont see why they would not give it too you! Don't worry none of that will happen, just dry everything and then clear skin =)

have you evr been on lymecycline?

Wondering how long it'll take to kick in xx

I have not but if it is anything like other brood spectrum antibiotics it should start working almost immediatly. A few weeks down the raod when your other marks have faded is when you should really notice the results. Good luck!

Lymecycline worked really fast for me but the results didnt last long but if youre getting your accutane then you may not need to worry about that haha! Congrats on getting what you want and good luck x

oh man this guy from acne.org messaged me saying I seriously warn you do not take Accutane. It's freaking me I feel like its a sign or something.

It's not a sign, don't over think it. There are people that have had bad experiences and are bitter about it. That goes for any prescription. Look at the reviews on the site for Accutane 4/5 stars, Lymecycline is 3/5 stars. Accutane is a serious drug with rare but potentially serious side effects. This is why its a final option. If you get clear or can get clear on other prescriptions than you do not need to risk it. It's got to be something you really want and are confident to take. I think many people have issues on it because they are afraid of it in the first place. It has worked for many many people and it would not still be around if everyone was having negative outcomes.

Think about it, talk to your doctor and your new dermatologist about it. If you guys all feel its a good option give it a shot.

Thankyou for your support

Good to hear it worked out for you, just something to consider though.

You might feel silly if you go through a whole course of accutane when all you needed to do was get on birth control.

Since you haven't tried it and it is often effective, it might be worth a shot to just take birth control for a few weeks and see if you notice anything. You have to take birth control on accutane anyways so you could just wait a few weeks before taking the accutane and see how that works.

I just say this because accutane most definitely has it's place for acne that will not go away, but It's best to be sure you need it.

I am on accutane in my third month now and I'm very glad I started taking it, and that is because I literally have that cystic condition that scars.

About the other treatments that didn't work, I really don't think they do work in the long term. I have been on like 7 rounds of antibiotics and for me they work while I'm taking them but they lose effectiveness as the bacteria adapt.

I'm obviously not a doctor but my advice would be get blood tested for accutane and everything, see that they prescribe it for you, and then take the birth control and set a date like a month or two later that you will begin taking the accutane if it doesn't fix your problem.