Hello acne.org.
I'm new to taking accutane: I started about a month ago. I'm seventeen and have had acne for a few years; it's generally been moderate in its severity. I'm not really sure what to expect on a personal level, though I've done some research, so I thought I'd joining a board like this while taking it so I can hear the experiences of those who have already taken it or know about it more than myself.
These are my questions.
- Have you ever taken accutane? How was your experience with it?
- I've had acne for a few years and, while I don't have pimples everywhere, I definitely have some areas of redness on my face. Will Accutane get rid of that too, or will it just handle pimples? (I'm particularly curious about this one.)
- Any advice for a new user of it?
- Does acne tend to come back after you use accutane?
Thank you!
I apologize if I'm messing up with the board rules, by the way.
I finished my course of accutane 3 days ago and have got great results- check out my log for the photos.
My red marks have faded throughout my treatment but I don't think this was accutane fading them, more time.
My best advice is to look after yourself and to try to stay positive.
People's acne does return after accutane in some cases 
Good luck 
Hmm, thank you for the response.
I'm more so bothered by the redness than the pimples, but obviously pimples bother me. Your logs are amazing and your skin looks great. If my skin looks anything like yours by the time I'm done, I'd be an incredibly happy camper! I'm just not sure whether or not I should expect that.
I also have dry lips now that I've started. Does anyone have advice about making this more tolerable?
Hmm, thank you for the response.
I'm more so bothered by the redness than the pimples, but obviously pimples bother me. Your logs are amazing and your skin looks great. If my skin looks anything like yours by the time I'm done, I'd be an incredibly happy camper! I'm just not sure whether or not I should expect that.
I also have dry lips now that I've started. Does anyone have advice about making this more tolerable?
Thanks 
I found that prevention is the best method of keeping your dry lips bearable. Apply lip balm constantly, BEFORE your lips feel really dry.
I don't know where in the world you are and so which lip balms you can get hold of but I've found Burt's Bees Lip Balms (the honey flavour is the best) and Blistex Relief Cream to be the best ones that I could get here in the UK.
Your skin may not be perfect by the end of your course (mine isn't but I'm still over the moon with it) but you can almost guarantee that it will be a whole lot better
1. I finished a 5 month course of Accutane 3 months ago. I had moderate-severe acne (moderate facial acne, severe body acne) and I had clear skin within a month of starting the drug although everyone's experience is different. I had acne for over 10 years prior to starting Accutane. I found Accutane to be a difficult drug to take and experienced a lot of the side effects although thankfully no severe side effects. I experienced extremely dry lips, dry skin, flakey scalp, dry eyes, dry mouth/throat, decreased appetite, headaches, significant fatigue, joint/bone pain, eczema, irritability and high cholesterol. I should point out that I am 31 years old and my dermatologist told me that "older" patients sometimes experience more side effects compared to teenage patients.
2. I'm not so sure about the redness, I don't have any personal experience with this. I think I've read about Accutane being used in extreme cases of rosacea but I've also read about it causing flushing/redness in some people, too. In most of the after pictures I've seen of people, it looks as if Accutane evens out the skin tone overall so I would assume that it is likely to help but I don't have any evidence to base that on. If you're referring to red spots left over from acne (hyperpigmentation), that will fade over time after your Accutane course.
3. Advice: Drink plenty of water, get plenty of rest, moisturize your skin and lips adequately. Give yourself a break and know that there are times you just aren't going to feel well on this medication. Be aware of the serious side effects of this drug and let your physician and loved ones know immediately if you develop any symptoms of those problems.
4. For some people it does--I can't remember the statistics but I'm sure you could google it or search this site. Some people take a second or third course of Accutane to completely get rid of their acne. In those who do develop acne again, supposedly it's not as severe as it was before Accutane. In my case, since I stopped Accutane about 3 months ago, I have started getting about 1-2 pimples a week but they are very small and non-inflammatory.
If you haven't already, you should take a look at some of the Accutane logs on this site. You can read along as some people go through their Accutane course and see what they're experiencing. That was very helpful for me as I went through my course. Good luck to you!