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Hello!
I wanted to share my story and symptoms with you, looking for anyone with knowledge. I am a 22 year old male, I've had acne since about 15 years old. Went on accutane freshman year of college (about 4 years ago), did not have any lasting symptoms (that I remember... maybe a little more red?). Went on accutane again this past school year (from June to October 2013).
After the second round of accutane, my skin has not been the same. In the morning, I wake up with an oil slick on my face... I feel absolutely disgusting. I take a shower (short and not too hot) and have extremely dry skin, which becomes very oily in 30 minutes to an hour (I am assuming to being over dry). I have extremely thin hair now that still falls out, I have bumps that last months it seems (like acne), and I scar easier I feel. My skin is also flushed, red and hot 24/7.
I was just recently diagnosed with slight hypothyroidism (maybe from accutane?). I have been taking medication for a couple days now, but symptoms remain the same.
Are the symptoms related to hypothyroidism or am I forever cursed to live as a shell of my former self due to making the worst decision of my life twice (accutane). Please tell me there is a chance things can get better with this medication! I can't take acne, oily and dry skin, hairloss, red/flushing ANYMORE!
I also hae other hypo symptoms like unexplained weight gain etc. I drank alot on accutane and still do 3-4 days a week, and drank soda quite often.
Hypothyroid usually = cold temperatures, dry skin, hair loss, weight gain
Hyperthyroid = hot temperatures, oily skin, red skin, weight loss
Accutane really jacks with your whole system and could be giving you any number of side effects. Sorry to be discouraging, but yeah, going on accutane twice probably hurt you permanently. The redness is sometimes called "accutane induced rosacea."
Hi mk2-
You're not doomed. I took Accutane twice, too, once at 19 and again at 26. I just didn't know how awful a med it really is, but I'm working my way back.
I am also hypothyroid- was just diagnosed after what I suspect is many years. Same symptoms as you. That's a whole other topic, but the short answer for that is that hypo can affect your hormones and screw up your skin. I'm on NatureThroid because I didn't want synthetic dyes or fillers for my skin to react to. So far, so good. If you're on something like Synthroid, you might want to look into natural dessicated thyroid hormone.
Sure, Accutane screws with everything, but your hypo may be independent of the Accutane entirely. Look into causes of hormonal acne and see what you find. A GREAT book on this is "Why Do I Still Have Thyroid Symptoms When My Lab Tests Are Normal?" by Datis Kharrazian. There are 22 causes of functional hypothyroidism, and more than a few are hormonal. If you can figure out which one you might have, you'll be closer to treating your acne successfully. Don't lose hope, and be patient as you try new things.
Also check out Green Gables hormonal acne post- full of great info and possible natural ways to treat hormonal acne.
Cheers!
I feel your pain!! I've had acne since I was 13. Severe cystic bumps everywhere. I couldn't lay my face on anything to relax or sleep or it'd ooze. Just nasty. But I started accutane around 14 I do believe.. I lost so much hair, I had a bald patch. Embarrassing! But my mother had quickly taken me off of it and tried so many creams and stuff. Nothing helped. Until I turned 16 I started in with symptoms of severe migraines and such, found out I had hypothyroidism. I was put on levothyroxine (no help at all may I add) but not only that now at age 22, I looked into the definition of my condition. Low hormones and not enough vitamins stood out to me. I started taking vitamin a&e, hair skin and nails supplements, fish oil, and vitex. I also asked my doctor to switch me to armour, a non synthetic drug for hormone replacement. I tell you what, my face cleared up amazing! And, I felt a million times better with my overall health. Now idk much about men taking vitex for hormones considering woman mainly take it. But before I found vitex, I saw about zinc. Being hypothyroid, your body isn't getting the correct amount of things it needs. From what I've read, many many people have had so much success with zinc who have thyroid disease and acne. Common side effects of lack of zinc are white spots in nails, acne, hair loss, frequent colds, dry skin..
I'm no doctor, but I'd give it a shot with the vitamins and a switch to non synthetic hormone replacements. Only thing about taking zinc is you haft to eat when you take it.
Other than that, I hope you get better!!