So I've finally gave in and decided to start accutane....
First off, I'm a 21 year old 155 pound male. I started getting mild acne at around age 15. I only have ever gotten acne in my T zone, primarily my chin and back. I went to a dermatologist at 17 and was able to stay clear with Sulfa facewash, BP wash, and topical Clindamycin. At 19 I began to get a little more severe acne like pustules and papules, but was able to clear it up by adding Dan's topical BP. My back got worse at this point as and I have not been able to totally clear it up. Right before I turned 20, I broke out in horrible cystic acne all over my Chin and back. The rest of my face remained 99% clear. I went on Minocyline and was completely clear within 2 months. Then I added Differin, and then Retin-A at that point and remained clear. That kept my face clear for about 8 months or so. Then I started getting the occasional cyst on my chin which hadn't happened in over 8 months. Along with this my back went back to a more severe condition (lots of cysts and papules). I remained on Minocycline and just dealt with the small chin cyst (never more than one at a time) and my bacne until I got home from school at the begining of May. My face looked actually pretty good throughout most of this time I must say but my back was a mess. I went to my dermatologist at this point and decided to start accutane. We had discussed it before but I did think it was necessary. His logic was the antibiotic is losing its affectiveness, and are useless for my back. I am getting older and my acne is only getting more severe. My T-zone is also very, very oily, despite all the topicals, and he said I would not see consistant clearing until we elminated some of this oil, which meant accutane was my last choice.
Currently my face has a few small spots from stopping the minocycline to begin accutane. My back is moderate. My biggest concern on accutane is the drinking. At school I'm in a large fraternity at a big state school. This means excessive drinking more days of the week than not (its actually pretty obnoxious lol). This is why I want to start my course in the summer when I will be less tempted to drink excessively. I plan on drinking lightly after my first month. I also am concerned that I have a history of eczema so I am hoping it does not flare as a side affect from the accutane.
Here is my plan:
50mg/per day of Claracis for Month 1. He said we will decide on monthly dose as we go depending on my side effects. I stopped Minocycline. I am stopping all topical acne medications. I will use Cetaphil gentle face wash morning and night. I will continue to use DML moisturizer for dryness. I got CeraVe AM spf 30 for sun. I tried it at the beach this weekend and love it! I will use Blistex SPF for daytime for lips and aquaphor (I already use aquaphor and love it.) I also am gonna try Cerave Cream for my eczema prone areas which are my ankles, feet, knees, and elbows. I've been reading to start this right when I start my course to be proatciv about it and this should control it. If anyone has any other product suggestions for good eczema creams for the body, I'm all ears. My girlfriend swears by Eucerin for eczema, but I think it feels kinda greasy so I'm not wild about it.
I'm gonna take my first dose with dinner tonite, and I'm super excited! I'll try to update everyday. The knowledge I've gained from all the great people on this site have helped to get me clear before, and I know your knowledge and support will help me through my accutane course as well. I'm so greatful there are so many helpful people on acne.org. I'll keep y'all posted. Lets do this!
So I've finally gave in and decided to start accutane....
First off, I'm a 21 year old 155 pound male. I started getting mild acne at around age 15. I only have ever gotten acne in my T zone, primarily my chin and back. I went to a dermatologist at 17 and was able to stay clear with Sulfa facewash, BP wash, and topical Clindamycin. At 19 I began to get a little more severe acne like pustules and papules, but was able to clear it up by adding Dan's topical BP. My back got worse at this point as and I have not been able to totally clear it up. Right before I turned 20, I broke out in horrible cystic acne all over my Chin and back. The rest of my face remained 99% clear. I went on Minocyline and was completely clear within 2 months. Then I added Differin, and then Retin-A at that point and remained clear. That kept my face clear for about 8 months or so. Then I started getting the occasional cyst on my chin which hadn't happened in over 8 months. Along with this my back went back to a more severe condition (lots of cysts and papules). I remained on Minocycline and just dealt with the small chin cyst (never more than one at a time) and my bacne until I got home from school at the begining of May. My face looked actually pretty good throughout most of this time I must say but my back was a mess. I went to my dermatologist at this point and decided to start accutane. We had discussed it before but I did think it was necessary. His logic was the antibiotic is losing its affectiveness, and are useless for my back. I am getting older and my acne is only getting more severe. My T-zone is also very, very oily, despite all the topicals, and he said I would not see consistant clearing until we elminated some of this oil, which meant accutane was my last choice.
Currently my face has a few small spots from stopping the minocycline to begin accutane. My back is moderate. My biggest concern on accutane is the drinking. At school I'm in a large fraternity at a big state school. This means excessive drinking more days of the week than not (its actually pretty obnoxious lol). This is why I want to start my course in the summer when I will be less tempted to drink excessively. I plan on drinking lightly after my first month. I also am concerned that I have a history of eczema so I am hoping it does not flare as a side affect from the accutane.
Here is my plan:
50mg/per day of Claracis for Month 1. He said we will decide on monthly dose as we go depending on my side effects. I stopped Minocycline. I am stopping all topical acne medications. I will use Cetaphil gentle face wash morning and night. I will continue to use DML moisturizer for dryness. I got CeraVe AM spf 30 for sun. I tried it at the beach this weekend and love it! I will use Blistex SPF for daytime for lips and aquaphor (I already use aquaphor and love it.) I also am gonna try Cerave Cream for my eczema prone areas which are my ankles, feet, knees, and elbows. I've been reading to start this right when I start my course to be proatciv about it and this should control it. If anyone has any other product suggestions for good eczema creams for the body, I'm all ears. My girlfriend swears by Eucerin for eczema, but I think it feels kinda greasy so I'm not wild about it.
I'm gonna take my first dose with dinner tonite, and I'm super excited! I'll try to update everyday. The knowledge I've gained from all the great people on this site have helped to get me clear before, and I know your knowledge and support will help me through my accutane course as well. I'm so greatful there are so many helpful people on acne.org. I'll keep y'all posted. Lets do this!
Welcome to the Accutane forums! I am on my 3rd month now at 60 MG. I was on 40 MG my first 2 months. Its really a up and down process. I will admit it is difficult some days. Try your best to stay positive! You came to a good place to get encouragement and support. The members on the Accutane board are wonderful and we help get each other through every single day. It is good to have other people to compare your progress with and share your experiences with. A few people usually join the boards everyday starting Accutane so it should be pretty easy to find someone close to your starting date if not with the same starting date!
You seem like you have a good start on the products! I love love love the CeraVe cream. It is a god send and I don't think I will ever stop buying it. It goes a long way and you get a ton of it in that tub. I have been using it pretty much daily since the beginning of my course and my tub is still 3/4 full. I love it! I also use the CeraVe AM which is really nice. I just got back from Florida a few weeks ago and I didn't get burnt once! Go figure my entire family did and the girl on Accutane didn't! I was even able to lay out in the sun (shame on me I know ) I just used a 30 SPF and I was great!
Hope your eczema doesn't act up too much while on the medication. I have little bouts of it showing up on my arms and hands from time to time. I didn't before the Accutane. I just put some of the CeraVe cream on there and the next day it seems to be gone! Just got to keep on top of the moisturizing! Also a good tip, start putting vaseline or even aquaphor in your nostrils at night time. It really helps avoid bloody noses. I'll be following your log! Best of luck!!!
So I've finally gave in and decided to start accutane....
First off, I'm a 21 year old 155 pound male. I started getting mild acne at around age 15. I only have ever gotten acne in my T zone, primarily my chin and back. I went to a dermatologist at 17 and was able to stay clear with Sulfa facewash, BP wash, and topical Clindamycin. At 19 I began to get a little more severe acne like pustules and papules, but was able to clear it up by adding Dan's topical BP. My back got worse at this point as and I have not been able to totally clear it up. Right before I turned 20, I broke out in horrible cystic acne all over my Chin and back. The rest of my face remained 99% clear. I went on Minocyline and was completely clear within 2 months. Then I added Differin, and then Retin-A at that point and remained clear. That kept my face clear for about 8 months or so. Then I started getting the occasional cyst on my chin which hadn't happened in over 8 months. Along with this my back went back to a more severe condition (lots of cysts and papules). I remained on Minocycline and just dealt with the small chin cyst (never more than one at a time) and my bacne until I got home from school at the begining of May. My face looked actually pretty good throughout most of this time I must say but my back was a mess. I went to my dermatologist at this point and decided to start accutane. We had discussed it before but I did think it was necessary. His logic was the antibiotic is losing its affectiveness, and are useless for my back. I am getting older and my acne is only getting more severe. My T-zone is also very, very oily, despite all the topicals, and he said I would not see consistant clearing until we elminated some of this oil, which meant accutane was my last choice.
Currently my face has a few small spots from stopping the minocycline to begin accutane. My back is moderate. My biggest concern on accutane is the drinking. At school I'm in a large fraternity at a big state school. This means excessive drinking more days of the week than not (its actually pretty obnoxious lol). This is why I want to start my course in the summer when I will be less tempted to drink excessively. I plan on drinking lightly after my first month. I also am concerned that I have a history of eczema so I am hoping it does not flare as a side affect from the accutane.
Here is my plan:
50mg/per day of Claracis for Month 1. He said we will decide on monthly dose as we go depending on my side effects. I stopped Minocycline. I am stopping all topical acne medications. I will use Cetaphil gentle face wash morning and night. I will continue to use DML moisturizer for dryness. I got CeraVe AM spf 30 for sun. I tried it at the beach this weekend and love it! I will use Blistex SPF for daytime for lips and aquaphor (I already use aquaphor and love it.) I also am gonna try Cerave Cream for my eczema prone areas which are my ankles, feet, knees, and elbows. I've been reading to start this right when I start my course to be proatciv about it and this should control it. If anyone has any other product suggestions for good eczema creams for the body, I'm all ears. My girlfriend swears by Eucerin for eczema, but I think it feels kinda greasy so I'm not wild about it.
I'm gonna take my first dose with dinner tonite, and I'm super excited! I'll try to update everyday. The knowledge I've gained from all the great people on this site have helped to get me clear before, and I know your knowledge and support will help me through my accutane course as well. I'm so greatful there are so many helpful people on acne.org. I'll keep y'all posted. Lets do this!
Welcome to the Accutane forums! I am on my 3rd month now at 60 MG. I was on 40 MG my first 2 months. Its really a up and down process. I will admit it is difficult some days. Try your best to stay positive! You came to a good place to get encouragement and support. The members on the Accutane board are wonderful and we help get each other through every single day. It is good to have other people to compare your progress with and share your experiences with. A few people usually join the boards everyday starting Accutane so it should be pretty easy to find someone close to your starting date if not with the same starting date!
You seem like you have a good start on the products! I love love love the CeraVe cream. It is a god send and I don't think I will ever stop buying it. It goes a long way and you get a ton of it in that tub. I have been using it pretty much daily since the beginning of my course and my tub is still 3/4 full. I love it! I also use the CeraVe AM which is really nice. I just got back from Florida a few weeks ago and I didn't get burnt once! Go figure my entire family did and the girl on Accutane didn't! I was even able to lay out in the sun (shame on me I know ) I just used a 30 SPF and I was great!
Hope your eczema doesn't act up too much while on the medication. I have little bouts of it showing up on my arms and hands from time to time. I didn't before the Accutane. I just put some of the CeraVe cream on there and the next day it seems to be gone! Just got to keep on top of the moisturizing! Also a good tip, start putting vaseline or even aquaphor in your nostrils at night time. It really helps avoid bloody noses. I'll be following your log! Best of luck!!!
Thanks! That's encouragig for sure. I actually tried the Cerave AM because I saw you liked it so much. I didn't get burnt either with it and being on BP and Retin-A I always burn. I tried the Olay that Dan recomends but it wasnt for me. The Cerave is so light and great protection like you've said. You've definately convinced me as well to try the CeraVe cream. I'm really hoping it keeps my eczema under control. Also, I like that tip about the nostrils. I have allergies so I take allergy medicine so the pharmacist said that could make me more prone to the already likely nosebleed sideaffect. The aquaphor in the nostrils should help. Great tip!
What are your thoughts on the CeraVe Cleanser? I'm actually just about to go out and buy a cleanser and was planning on cetaphil just because it seems like the most basic cleanser, but I'm loving the CeraVe brand cleanser. Do you find it drying at all with the accutane?
Thanks! That's encouragig for sure. I actually tried the Cerave AM because I saw you liked it so much. I didn't get burnt either with it and being on BP and Retin-A I always burn. I tried the Olay that Dan recomends but it wasnt for me. The Cerave is so light and great protection like you've said. You've definately convinced me as well to try the CeraVe cream. I'm really hoping it keeps my eczema under control. Also, I like that tip about the nostrils. I have allergies so I take allergy medicine so the pharmacist said that could make me more prone to the already likely nosebleed sideaffect. The aquaphor in the nostrils should help. Great tip!
What are your thoughts on the CeraVe Cleanser? I'm actually just about to go out and buy a cleanser and was planning on cetaphil just because it seems like the most basic cleanser, but I'm loving the CeraVe brand cleanser. Do you find it drying at all with the accutane?
I love the foaming facial wash. I haven't tried the hydration face wash because I heard it doesn't clean your face well. Being a girl I need something that can remove my makeup and whatnot. So I recommend the foaming one. It last forever too just like the other products!
I would recommend starting the aquaphor up your nose starting today then. I also have very bad allergies so my nose dries out super quick. I have had one light bloody nose towards the start of my 2nd month and I started the vaseline or aquaphor that day and I haven't had one since. Very helpful!
Day 2
So I took my second dose this afternoon. Not much to report here. No side affects and no signs of any drying yet which is kind of expected. I even worked outside opening a pool for most of today and was fine; no fatigue or anything. I love the CeraVe cream for my eczema prone areas. So moisturizing but not heavy or greasy. That was another great suggestion. I also tried cetaphil face cleanser for the first time and was not thrilled about it. It doesn't lather and just kinda smears on. Maybe I'm just used to strong BP medicated cleansers... Oh well, the resuts from the cetaphil have been good. I wanted to try CeraVe, but they were out at the store. When I started my course I was pretty clear other than a few small spots that came up from stopping the antibiotic, but they're tiny and hardly noticable. I'll update tomorow.
So I'm a little pissed off right now lol.
Quick background, on sunday before starting my accutane course on monday, I started getting some pain in my male area. This kinda persisted so I went to the doctor today. The doctor seemed like he didnt want to be bothered and slapped me with the run of the mill epiditimitis diagnosis seeing as its very common cause of this pain. The problem is this is treated with doxycycline. I'm a little concerned because you obviously can't take doxy with accutane. My idiot GP didn't even know that (so if I didn't know I could have seriously messed myself up.... reassuring about my doctor). The strange thing though is that I had been on Minocycline for over a year, and my symptoms began 2 days after stopping. Even my doctor admitted its unlikely that I could have devolped a bacterial infection in 2 days after stopping the Mino. Basically he just didn't know what else to do so he gave me doxy and said good luck. This 10 day doxy course will set my accutane back 2 weeks which will be 2 more weeks of being on it at college which has me very nervous. I'm pretty sure I'm not gonna take it and continue on with my acutane course and see if this pain passes. He also gave e a pain killer called Naproxen. Does anyone know if this is safe to take with accutane?
Im so frustrated. I'm gonna email my derm to see what he think because my normal doctor seemed pretty fucking clueless.
So I'm a little pissed off right now lol.
Quick background, on sunday before starting my accutane course on monday, I started getting some pain in my male area. This kinda persisted so I went to the doctor today. The doctor seemed like he didnt want to be bothered and slapped me with the run of the mill epiditimitis diagnosis seeing as its very common cause of this pain. The problem is this is treated with doxycycline. I'm a little concerned because you obviously can't take doxy with accutane. My idiot GP didn't even know that (so if I didn't know I could have seriously messed myself up.... reassuring about my doctor). The strange thing though is that I had been on Minocycline for over a year, and my symptoms began 2 days after stopping. Even my doctor admitted its unlikely that I could have devolped a bacterial infection in 2 days after stopping the Mino. Basically he just didn't know what else to do so he gave me doxy and said good luck. This 10 day doxy course will set my accutane back 2 weeks which will be 2 more weeks of being on it at college which has me very nervous. I'm pretty sure I'm not gonna take it and continue on with my acutane course and see if this pain passes. He also gave e a pain killer called Naproxen. Does anyone know if this is safe to take with accutane?
Im so frustrated. I'm gonna email my derm to see what he think because my normal doctor seemed pretty fucking clueless.
My experience with most doctors. They're trained to write chicken scratch on their prescription pads. I would research as much as I can before trying any meds they give. Also, second opinions can't hurt.
You know, I wouldn't worry about postponing accutane a couple weeks, your final weeks on tane will likely be with beautiful skin, so don't worry if you have to still be on tane when school comes around.
Good luck 
Also, I notice you're a finance major. I just graduated in finance:D Trying to find employment in this shitty economy.
So I'm a little pissed off right now lol.
Quick background, on sunday before starting my accutane course on monday, I started getting some pain in my male area. This kinda persisted so I went to the doctor today. The doctor seemed like he didnt want to be bothered and slapped me with the run of the mill epiditimitis diagnosis seeing as its very common cause of this pain. The problem is this is treated with doxycycline. I'm a little concerned because you obviously can't take doxy with accutane. My idiot GP didn't even know that (so if I didn't know I could have seriously messed myself up.... reassuring about my doctor). The strange thing though is that I had been on Minocycline for over a year, and my symptoms began 2 days after stopping. Even my doctor admitted its unlikely that I could have devolped a bacterial infection in 2 days after stopping the Mino. Basically he just didn't know what else to do so he gave me doxy and said good luck. This 10 day doxy course will set my accutane back 2 weeks which will be 2 more weeks of being on it at college which has me very nervous. I'm pretty sure I'm not gonna take it and continue on with my acutane course and see if this pain passes. He also gave e a pain killer called Naproxen. Does anyone know if this is safe to take with accutane?
Im so frustrated. I'm gonna email my derm to see what he think because my normal doctor seemed pretty fucking clueless.
My experience with most doctors. They're trained to write chicken scratch on their prescription pads. I would research as much as I can before trying any meds they give. Also, second opinions can't hurt.
You know, I wouldn't worry about postponing accutane a couple weeks, your final weeks on tane will likely be with beautiful skin, so don't worry if you have to still be on tane when school comes around.
Good luck
Also, I notice you're a finance major. I just graduated in finance:D Trying to find employment in this shitty economy.
Yeah I agree with you on that one. Some doctors just aren't all that great lol. I emailed my derm who is awesome to see what he thinks. I am considering going to another doctor for a second opinion for the epididymitis. And that is a good point that I will most likely be clear that far into my course. The one thing that does make me nervous is the pressure to drink excessively at school so the less time dealing with that the better lol.
And yes, I am pretty nervous about finding a job as welll. Hopefully it picks up so us finance folks can start makin some cash lol. What areas of work are you trying to get into with your finance degree just out of curiosity?
DAY 4
Okay, so I solved my dilema. I am now taking Levofloxacin for my epididymitis, which is awesome becuase it is fine to take with accutane. Yay!
Back to the accutane report... so far not much to report. My skin feels so nice being off all the topicals! It's more evenly colored and looks great. The few small spots I got from being off my antibiotics (and being drunk for a week straight at the beach with my college friends lol) are pretty much dried up. Even though I'm off all the topicals, I'm waking up with less visible oil on my face whic means I must be drying out from the accutane a little which is nice. My lips still feel the same. I've been using aquaphor morning and night for the past year or so, so I'm hoping this keeps them from drying out too bad. No signs of an IB on my face, but my back looks pretty bad. I don't look at it much but I think it's worse than when I started, but who knows. I'll keep up on it from here on out.
The new products are all going great. I love the CeraVe cream for my body. It's so hydrating! The Cetaphil facial cleanser is alright.... it's working so I'm sticking to it. And the CeraVe AM SPF 30 is still awesome. Been using it for for like a week now even before my accutane course for outdoor stuff and no signs of it breaking me out. It's so light and not greasy at all. It rubs right in, and kept me from getting burnt even at the beach.
And last but not least, I had a drink last night just out of curisoty because I have a wedding this weekend and would like to have a few beers at it so I wanted to test it out. I had a mixed drink with 2 shots of vodka. No side affects at all. Might have felt it more, but that could just be me. I decided I'm only drinking good vodka and good beer; no fancy drinks or shitty quality liqour. Still only drinking sparingly of course, but I'm glad it didn't make me sick or anything. I drank like a fish on Minocycline with no trouble, so hopefully accutane gives me no trouble if I keep down to a few drinks every here and there.
I'll keep y'all posted
So I'm a little pissed off right now lol.
Quick background, on sunday before starting my accutane course on monday, I started getting some pain in my male area. This kinda persisted so I went to the doctor today. The doctor seemed like he didnt want to be bothered and slapped me with the run of the mill epiditimitis diagnosis seeing as its very common cause of this pain. The problem is this is treated with doxycycline. I'm a little concerned because you obviously can't take doxy with accutane. My idiot GP didn't even know that (so if I didn't know I could have seriously messed myself up.... reassuring about my doctor). The strange thing though is that I had been on Minocycline for over a year, and my symptoms began 2 days after stopping. Even my doctor admitted its unlikely that I could have devolped a bacterial infection in 2 days after stopping the Mino. Basically he just didn't know what else to do so he gave me doxy and said good luck. This 10 day doxy course will set my accutane back 2 weeks which will be 2 more weeks of being on it at college which has me very nervous. I'm pretty sure I'm not gonna take it and continue on with my acutane course and see if this pain passes. He also gave e a pain killer called Naproxen. Does anyone know if this is safe to take with accutane?
Im so frustrated. I'm gonna email my derm to see what he think because my normal doctor seemed pretty fucking clueless.
My experience with most doctors. They're trained to write chicken scratch on their prescription pads. I would research as much as I can before trying any meds they give. Also, second opinions can't hurt.
You know, I wouldn't worry about postponing accutane a couple weeks, your final weeks on tane will likely be with beautiful skin, so don't worry if you have to still be on tane when school comes around.
Good luck
Also, I notice you're a finance major. I just graduated in finance:D Trying to find employment in this shitty economy.
Yeah I agree with you on that one. Some doctors just aren't all that great lol. I emailed my derm who is awesome to see what he thinks. I am considering going to another doctor for a second opinion for the epididymitis. And that is a good point that I will most likely be clear that far into my course. The one thing that does make me nervous is the pressure to drink excessively at school so the less time dealing with that the better lol.
And yes, I am pretty nervous about finding a job as welll. Hopefully it picks up so us finance folks can start makin some cash lol. What areas of work are you trying to get into with your finance degree just out of curiosity?
My ideal job would be a financial analyst or researcher. I love researching and I like stock markets. So something where I'm working closely with securities markets. If my ambition doesn't run out, someday I'd consider private equity. But, at this point, being jobless and all 
I'm trying to keep a lot of options open.
DAY 4
Okay, so I solved my dilema. I am now taking Levofloxacin for my epididymitis, which is awesome becuase it is fine to take with accutane. Yay!
Back to the accutane report... so far not much to report. My skin feels so nice being off all the topicals! It's more evenly colored and looks great. The few small spots I got from being off my antibiotics (and being drunk for a week straight at the beach with my college friends lol) are pretty much dried up. Even though I'm off all the topicals, I'm waking up with less visible oil on my face whic means I must be drying out from the accutane a little which is nice. My lips still feel the same. I've been using aquaphor morning and night for the past year or so, so I'm hoping this keeps them from drying out too bad. No signs of an IB on my face, but my back looks pretty bad. I don't look at it much but I think it's worse than when I started, but who knows. I'll keep up on it from here on out.
The new products are all going great. I love the CeraVe cream for my body. It's so hydrating! The Cetaphil facial cleanser is alright.... it's working so I'm sticking to it. And the CeraVe AM SPF 30 is still awesome. Been using it for for like a week now even before my accutane course for outdoor stuff and no signs of it breaking me out. It's so light and not greasy at all. It rubs right in, and kept me from getting burnt even at the beach.
And last but not least, I had a drink last night just out of curisoty because I have a wedding this weekend and would like to have a few beers at it so I wanted to test it out. I had a mixed drink with 2 shots of vodka. No side affects at all. Might have felt it more, but that could just be me. I decided I'm only drinking good vodka and good beer; no fancy drinks or shitty quality liqour. Still only drinking sparingly of course, but I'm glad it didn't make me sick or anything. I drank like a fish on Minocycline with no trouble, so hopefully accutane gives me no trouble if I keep down to a few drinks every here and there.
I'll keep y'all posted
Good progress.
The wedding's not yours is it? I'd say refrain from drinking if you can. Here's my logic: Because the liver filters out toxins from the blood, and it will be filtering out accutane from your blood, having alcohol and accutane in your liver just sounds like trouble. Too many toxins. And I've heard you become more easily drunk when drinking on accutane. I don't drink so I can't empathize
Glad to hear you are loving the CeraVe products, they really are wonderful aren't they? I can say drinking for me hasn't changed at all since starting accutane. I can still put down some drinks without getting trashed or feeling hungover or like death is upon me in the morning. I'm not drinking as often as I normally would but I am still going out and having a good time. My dermatologist told me drinking is okay periodically as long as your not binge drinking on a frequent basis. You I am sticking with that. So far so good with my blood results so I must be doing alright with it. Just have to be smart about it!
My back cleared up very quickly like within the first month and a half I'd say. Hopefully yours clears up soon!
Thumbs up for being able to stand the sun and have some drinks without serious implications!
Hey!! Droidone, it's not my wedding (thanks god) lol. But yeah, I definately agree that drinking certtainly isn't a good thing on accutane, but if kept in check, I believe it can be okay. The stress on the liver is certainly concering, so I'm definately gotta stay on my bloodwork. BeautifulDisasters, that makes me feel so much better that you have been able to drink a bit and still be okay. I was concerned because of all the scary stories about death hangovers and whatnot, but if I keep it to a minimum I'm hoping I'll be fine. My previous drinking at school was complete binge drinking (like 10 drinks a night) 3-4 days a week lol. Just seeing that sounds pretty appalling, but at my school that pretty much on par with a lot of the students. I go to a big party school lol. Obviously I won't be doing anywhere near that, but my plan is to still go out and have a few drinks with friends on weekends and whatnot, but if the the bloodwork changes at all, I'm cutting out all alcohol for sure.
Okay DAY 5
Once again, not much to report. Skin feels and looks the same as yesterday. The one thing I am noticing is drier lips. It's nothing drastic, but certainly noticebale. I've been good with my aquaphor and blistex lip balm so no problems. No sign of an IB as well so that has me super pumped! Still keepng my fingers crossed 
lol.
Hope y'all are doing well!!
Okay DAY 5
Once again, not much to report. Skin feels and looks the same as yesterday. The one thing I am noticing is drier lips. It's nothing drastic, but certainly noticebale. I've been good with my aquaphor and blistex lip balm so no problems. No sign of an IB as well so that has me super pumped! Still keepng my fingers crossed
Hope y'all are doing well!!
Good stuff! I think the only reason I had a breakout in the first place was because my skin was super clogged from the sudden oil drought. If I had exfoliated regularly and used a topical something to kill bacteria and clear the pores, I would've had clear skin right now.
Okay DAY 5
Once again, not much to report. Skin feels and looks the same as yesterday. The one thing I am noticing is drier lips. It's nothing drastic, but certainly noticebale. I've been good with my aquaphor and blistex lip balm so no problems. No sign of an IB as well so that has me super pumped! Still keepng my fingers crossed
Hope y'all are doing well!!
Good stuff! I think the only reason I had a breakout in the first place was because my skin was super clogged from the sudden oil drought. If I had exfoliated regularly and used a topical something to kill bacteria and clear the pores, I would've had clear skin right now.
I honestly think it is the Retin A usage prior to my course that is keeping an IB at bay. I had a very slight IB from my Retin A purging all the clogged pores. Overall my pores are pretty clear from the Retin A. I didn't get much of an IB anyways fro the Retin A so hopefully that means I wont get much of one when I get further into my accutane course.
DAY 8
Hey guys. So not much difference in my skin. Not really any drier, but still no breakouts. I had a small pimple on my jaw line when I woke up but it ws gone within a few hours without treating it. Nice! Also, I was out of town for a wedding and drank... a lot. I drink like 10 beers over like 4-5 hours which I would normally be fine with. Normally that would have had me buzzed but not wasted.... I was pretty wasted. It definately did not take as much to get drunk cmpared to before accutane. I woke up with a slight hangover, but nothing too crazy or out of the ordinary. I was worried I would get a death hangover, but I drank a ton of watter and gatorade before and after so I think that helped. I don't plan on doing that regularly, but I was with my whole family and we get pretty wild together lol. I know it was bad for me and all, but I don't plan on drinking at all for the next few weeks until I get my next round of blood work. I'm just happy that it didn't have any immediate consequences, and that I can drink for special occassions.
DAY 8
Hey guys. So not much difference in my skin. Not really any drier, but still no breakouts. I had a small pimple on my jaw line when I woke up but it ws gone within a few hours without treating it. Nice! Also, I was out of town for a wedding and drank... a lot. I drink like 10 beers over like 4-5 hours which I would normally be fine with. Normally that would have had me buzzed but not wasted.... I was pretty wasted. It definately did not take as much to get drunk cmpared to before accutane. I woke up with a slight hangover, but nothing too crazy or out of the ordinary. I was worried I would get a death hangover, but I drank a ton of watter and gatorade before and after so I think that helped. I don't plan on doing that regularly, but I was with my whole family and we get pretty wild together lol. I know it was bad for me and all, but I don't plan on drinking at all for the next few weeks until I get my next round of blood work. I'm just happy that it didn't have any immediate consequences, and that I can drink for special occassions.
Yeah, apparently accutane can really magnify drunkenness. Good to hear you didn't suffer anything more than a hangover.
My skin started getting REALLY dry in the third week. So it might be a while before you dry out. Since I had super oily skin, it was a real surprise, having literally no oil being produced. It was awesome.
DAY 8
Hey guys. So not much difference in my skin. Not really any drier, but still no breakouts. I had a small pimple on my jaw line when I woke up but it ws gone within a few hours without treating it. Nice! Also, I was out of town for a wedding and drank... a lot. I drink like 10 beers over like 4-5 hours which I would normally be fine with. Normally that would have had me buzzed but not wasted.... I was pretty wasted. It definately did not take as much to get drunk cmpared to before accutane. I woke up with a slight hangover, but nothing too crazy or out of the ordinary. I was worried I would get a death hangover, but I drank a ton of watter and gatorade before and after so I think that helped. I don't plan on doing that regularly, but I was with my whole family and we get pretty wild together lol. I know it was bad for me and all, but I don't plan on drinking at all for the next few weeks until I get my next round of blood work. I'm just happy that it didn't have any immediate consequences, and that I can drink for special occassions.
I've heard that Accutane can make you drunk faster! I'm taking a milk thistle supplement, which is supposed to really help the liver, and have actually noticed that my tolerance is the same as it was before, if not even better! I wasn't planning on any crazy drinking, but as you know.... plans sometimes change, haha 
I put away a good 7-8 drinks made of hard alcohol the other night, drank a bottle of water before bed and felt decent the next morning. I wasn't ready to run a marathon or anything, but there was no headache in sight. Anyway, I don't condone doing that too often, but consider taking a liver supplement to help things along
Yeah, apparently accutane can really magnify drunkenness. Good to hear you didn't suffer anything more than a hangover.
My skin started getting REALLY dry in the third week. So it might be a while before you dry out. Since I had super oily skin, it was a real surprise, having literally no oil being produced. It was awesome.
Thanks! And yes I can't wait to not have visible oil. That will be a welcome sight for sure. My lips are drying for sure so hopefully my skin will soon follow!!
I've heard that Accutane can make you drunk faster! I'm taking a milk thistle supplement, which is supposed to really help the liver, and have actually noticed that my tolerance is the same as it was before, if not even better! I wasn't planning on any crazy drinking, but as you know.... plans sometimes change, haha
I put away a good 7-8 drinks made of hard alcohol the other night, drank a bottle of water before bed and felt decent the next morning. I wasn't ready to run a marathon or anything, but there was no headache in sight. Anyway, I don't condone doing that too often, but consider taking a liver supplement to help things along
Nicely said lol. And yes... plans do change hahaha. But I was thinking about that milk thistle supplement so I'm glad you brought it up! My buddies at school take it cuz they claim its good for people who drink a lot to not damage your liver as much. Where do you get it? Is there a brand you recomend?
I got mine on amazon.com ... Jarrow's formula. Was around $14 for 200 pills (one daily). I think someone recommended it on these boards or it got really good reviews on Amazon... can't remember.
Awesome. I'm definately going to look into this. Have you talked to your derm about it? I'm paranoid that other things could negatively impact the effectiveness of the accutane. I guess it is natural but I'm still very concerned....
DAY 13
Hey everyone! Sorry for not updating.... I've been busy with work, and didn't have much to update lol. Okay, so I'm starting to notice some affects. First off, my lips are dry. If I go more than like 5-6 hours without chapstick they get pretty dry. Once they are moisturized with aquaphor or blistex though, they are fine. I've noticed my skin begining to dry too. I need more moisturizer after showering and I'm not as oily throughout the day. Still nothing durastic but definately noticeable. Last but not least, I'm having a mini freak out because I'm am getting tiny patches of eczema on my hands. They're tiny, but I'm worried they will get worse... I have not been good about moisturizing my hands as much as I should so I got a tube of Avon hand cream from my mom to use throughout the day. I've also showered twice a day for the past few days which I believe has contributed. I also spent about an hour and a half in a hot tub 2 days ago which I'm sure is just about the worst thing one can do for their skin while on accutane cuz it's so drying and iritating. I just need to be more thoughtful about stuff like that. The final thing that has me freaking out is a have a small patch of rough skin the is reddiesh on the corner of my mouth. It's barely noticable, but I can feel it when I moisturize. I've had it before from retin-a combined with cold weather, and miosturizing real well cleared it up. I'm hoping it will work the same with this. I haven't started using the CeraVe cream on my face yet, but I may start using it on the corners of my mouth because I do get rought patches of skin there.
But other than the expected drying, nothing else as far as side affects. Stil haven't gotten a pimple. Only 2 tiny whitehead the size of a pinhead since starting, and they were already clgged pores before accutane. I really think the retin A is helping me from experiencing an IB because my back is definately experiencing an IB, and that's where I didn't use retin A. But I havent experienced any headaches, muscle aches, tiredness, etc. The only difference I can notice is drying, slight eczema on my hands (which is really really mild and could be unrelated), and that I get drunk a little faster when drinking.
I have a few questions though for y'all. Is it okay to take allergy medicine while one accutane? And does anyone have any tips for the eczema? I don't want to use my topical steroid if I don't have to, and I obviously can't use it on my face so tips on how to keep it from flaring are grealy appreciated!!
I got mine on amazon.com ... Jarrow's formula. Was around $14 for 200 pills (one daily). I think someone recommended it on these boards or it got really good reviews on Amazon... can't remember.
Awesome. I'm definately going to look into this. Have you talked to your derm about it? I'm paranoid that other things could negatively impact the effectiveness of the accutane. I guess it is natural but I'm still very concerned....
Nah I haven't, seems like natural supplements are fine to take while on accutane, except cod liver oil (because it has vitamin A). Derm has never mentioned anything specific for me not to take, and the medicine seems to be working while my bloodwork has been fine