Yeah, it's definitely depression making you loose your concentration and general motivation to do anything. I've also been depressed for years and my school success also went down the drain when I became depressed. Sorry to hear Accutane made it worse. I have actually felt much better emotionally on tane, perhaps 'cause it takes good care of my skin and my skin is one of the biggest reasons for my depression.

I think it would be better if you talked to someone, maybe your school psychologist or something and try to find the root cause of your depression and try to work on that instead of treating the symptoms (depression) with medication.

I've heard varied things about how long Accutane stays in your body. Some say it stays for two weeks, others that it stays up to 6 months. Perhaps you should wait a couple of months and see if you feel better before thinking about anti-depressants.

I absolutely agree. Medicating for depression is not a good idea, except if, for instance, you're a single-raising mum and you need help quickly to keep going. (I am assuming you are not ;-).)

I have gone through bouts of depression, something which I think is directly related to suffering from a skin condition (which I think is both cause and symptom of the depression), and I've recently done a bit of therapy, and I am sure that if you don't work out the cause it's always going to catch up with you.

I found group therapy, especially art therapy, extremely helpful.

Basically I have been depressed since I was 16, so 4 years, and coincidentally unable to concentrate well, memory loss etc...

I doubt this is coincidence. When modern humans live in dim indoor light, carb malabsorption increases and this interferes with tryptophan digestion. Tryptophan is required to make both serotonin (a good thing to have in the brain to avoid being depressed) and melatonin (which gives you a good night's sleep and also is key to preventing acne). So it's no surprise that carb malabsorption correlates with depression.

I was thinking going on anti-depressants. Ive always crossed out that option because of potential addictions, but because of my personality I dont think I could get addicted to a substance.

Exsqueeze me? Exactly what anti-depressant were you considering that is addictive? Oxycontin is not an anti-depressant.

If you are loathe to try anti-depressants (which you should not be if depression, not lack of mental acuity, is greatly impacting your life), you can try to restore your natural melatonin cycle. Unfortunately, the simplest and most effective thing you can do to get it back is also the hardest: live with your eyes in bright outdoor light all day every day. This both decreases carb malabsorption (greatly reducing the ability of diet to affect acne and depression) and increases the nocturnal melatonin surge. But you may be able to make a dent with other, less effective, supportive routines:

• Go to bed at the same time every day.
• Sleep in total darkness.
• Eat foods that have tryptophan (e.g. meat).
• Avoid high-fructose foods (fruits, sodas, etc.).
• Sleep in total darkness.
• Exercise (but not close to bedtime).
• Eliminate caffeine, alcohol, drugs.
• Eliminate all tea drinking.
• Supplement: fish oil, zinc (<=50mg), Vitamin B complex, 200mcg selenium.
• Get your Vitamin D levels tested. When you find out you are D-deprived (and you will), take at least 3,000IU D3 (cholecalciferol) per day for 3 months, then retest to see if that got you above 50, or if you need to up the dose even more. Unfortunately, the only way to know how much D3 you need to take is to test your serum levels; things like body fat content can make some people require much more than others to get to the same level.

Medicating for depression is not a good idea

Medicating for depression has saved a lot of lives; I personally know some of them. While anti-depressants may be generally over-prescribed at this point, for many people facing serious, life-destroying depression, they can be a godsend. For those people, the hassles, expense, and side-effects are irrelevant -- they remember how unbearable life was before the anti-depressants.

^ It still all goes down to what is the root cause of depression. There's a big difference if you are depressed without being able to explain why or if you are depressed and can give a million reasons for why.

It cleared my skin for a moment I mean it really looked so good...but it also made me so so dumb, headache, extreme depression... I stopped to see if the side effects have gone away but no I can't think I am no longer creative I get made fun of... I am just praying the side effects go away yeah it will make you beautiful but at the price of everything you will be lucky to find someone who can deal with you dead brain... Just think about it

Please have your say about Isotretinoin - get the drug banned for under 18's.

Kids need to be protected nnot abused by their dermatologists.

https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/isotretinoin-call-for-information-to-be-considered-as-part-of-an-expert-review

Just now, timetoban said:

Please have your say about Isotretinoin - get the drug banned for under 18's.

Kids need to be protected nnot abused by their dermatologists.

https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/isotretinoin-call-for-information-to-be-considered-as-part-of-an-expert-review

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-6431453/Thousands-prescribed-Roaccutane-theres-disturbing-evidence-leave-men-suicidal.html

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-8613003/Two-bereaved-mothers-share-shattering-warning-acne-drug.html

All of this is probably due to vitamin B-12 depletion. Supplement with a good whole-food multivitamin. Accutane also induces a deficiency of folate/B-9.

Please read my posts here for more info:

https://www.acne.org/forums/topic/295030-repairing-the-long-term-damage-from-accutane/?do=findComment&comment=3637126

https://www.acne.org/forums/topic/295030-repairing-the-long-term-damage-from-accutane/?do=findComment&comment=3637128

https://www.acne.org/forums/topic/295030-repairing-the-long-term-damage-from-accutane/?do=findComment&comment=3637142

https://www.acne.org/forums/topic/295030-repairing-the-long-term-damage-from-accutane/?do=findComment&comment=3637176

https://www.acne.org/forums/topic/295030-repairing-the-long-term-damage-from-accutane/?do=findComment&comment=3637195

The study that revealed isotretinoin can do this is from 2014.

When you have low vitamin B-12 (do a blood test to confirm this) you may have all these symptoms:

- Weakness, tiredness, or lightheadedness
- Heart palpitations and shortness of breath
- Pale skin
- A smooth tongue
- Constipation, diarrhea, loss of appetite, or gas
- Nerve problems like numbness or tingling, muscle weakness, and problems walking
- Vision loss
- Mental problems like depression, memory loss, or behavioral changes

This is one of the worst deficiencies someone can have, if not THE WORST.

List of things I would do in your place:

- Healthy KETO diet with intermitent fasting (don't eat more than 2 or 3 times a day, so avoid any snacking, and prefer to eat in the 8 hour window, and fast for 16 hours)

- Proper sleep

- Proper workout routine aimed at increasing testosterone. More info:
https://www.artofmanliness.com/articles/how-to-increase-testosterone-naturally/
https://examine.com/nutrition/increase-testosterone-naturally/

Supplement with:

1) Vitamin D-3 and Vitamin K-2 (avoid MK-4, pick MK-7, at 100 or 120 Mcg). Stay within 35-50 ng/DL for your D-3 levels. Try not to exceed the 2000 IU dose for D-3. You may need more than 2K to achieve that. Once you do reduce the dose you are taking. Also avoid calcium supplements and calcium-rich foods, or reduce a lot them, to only a few times a month.

2) Boron. No more than 3-5 mg daily.

3) Magnesium Malate
4) Magnesium glycinate (to be taken only before going to bed)
5) Whole food multivitamin with selenium, zinc and all B-vitamins.
6) Astaxanthin (it's not only good for vision, it can boost memory and cognition): more info here
7) KRILL OIL or OMEGA 3 fish OIL
8) CREATINE (cheap and I recommend taking every single day)
9) VITAMIN C in acerola or camu camu powder
10) ASHWAGANDHA (KSM-66)

11) COLLAGEN

12) Perhaps some pea protein or WHEY PROTEIN (isolate if possible)
13) Perhaps peruvian MACA, Tribulus, Tongkat Ali, to help with libido and improving your mood, disposition
14) For improving your vision: lutein and zeaxanthin

About selenium, if you eat 2 BRAZIL NUTS per day you may get enough. Never exceed that to avoid toxicity.

In terms of magnesium you may benefit from taking MAGNESIUM THREONATE. Unfortunately it's more expensive, but some people don't have problems taking (no bad side effects).

More info about this form of MAG: https://thebrain101.com/improve-memory-supplements/magnesium-l-threonate-supplement-benefits-brain-boosting-effects/

Remember: always do multiple blood tests to detect deficiencies and hidden diseases. For magnesium and zinc you aren't going to detect a deficiency from common blood tests. So supplement them right away. For magnesium try to not ingest more than 350-400 mgdaily (in elemental form) and don't take more than 500 mg of calcium daily (from the diet, never from supplements). For zinc I would suggest 10 mg daily.

Don't exaggerate because too much zinc is definitely bad.

https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/326760#symptoms