Hello all,

I am a 29 year old male. I have suffered from acne since I was about 16 years old. Between 18-24, my acne was very serious. Now, it has been just mild compared to what it was before, but still to the point where it is annoying. From October 2020 - January 2022, I was on Doxycycline. From January 2022 - October 2022, I went on Bactrim. While both didn't completely clear me, it worked for the most part. So when I got off Bactrim in October 2022, I decided to see how my face would look without any medication. When November 2022 came around, my acne came back. That is what led me to get on Accutane, with my first dose starting a few weeks ago (March 12th). I am taking 40mg twice daily (so 80mg/day) for 6 months. So far, I have dry skin and chapped lips, both are manageable for now.

However, I had a pretty bad initial breakout about a week into Accutane (March 19th). The spot that I broke out is the most common breakout spot for me. I could just feel it all coming on my face, and part of it hurt. I get acne below and around my mouth usually. While that part is calming down a little bit, I am still breaking out on other places right now.

So here is my question to everyone out there. I know the answer to this is probably different for everyone, but roughly how long will this initial breakout phase last? I had a sense that there could be an initial breakout, but my dermatologist didn't really say if one would happen to me. I was ready for it, but I don't think I was ready for this kind of breakout right away. I have read a lot of people's experiences on this, and the initial breakouts seem to vary from only lasting a couple weeks, to lasting about 5 months. I am going to be really patient with this medication because it is my last resort, but with the events and stuff I have coming up within this 6-month timeframe on Accutane, I really can't afford to continuously have these kind of horrible breakouts! I am sort of hoping to get a decent timeframe on these initial breakouts, if possible, on those that have been on Accutane.

The first two pictures are from the day I started Accutane. The last picture is from my initial breakout 7 days later. Again, that is the typical spot where I get most of my acne. I had moisturizer on my face in the picture of my breakout, so I guess that is why my face looks more pale.