Hi everybody! After scavenging through the internet looking for people with similar stories to my own, I thought the right thing to do would be to contribute my own story and progress for other people to benefit from. I didn't post anything my first day but just decided to start this now.
My name is Dalton, and I am 18 years old. I am 6'2" and weigh 190 pounds. A little info about my acne being treated: My acne is typically on my chin and forehead, with a great deal of black heads on my chin and nose that go unnoticed by everyone. I really only see them when I get closer to a mirror and kind of bite my lip to tighten the skin up around my chin. The nose ones are easily seen though by anyone looking for them. As far as my nose and chin go, their isn't one square millimeter that does not have a black head on it. I tend to just have mild acne but for some reason my skin tends to get really good and then all of a sudden will get absolutely awful. When my mild acne flares up the way it does, it becomes more moderate to even severe. Something that I constantly am trying to remind myself is to to not pick, though it is something I nervously do subconsciously. As a result of this I have dark spots on my chin and forehead. Does anyone know if acne scars smooth out and fade over the course of an Accutane cycle?
Today, is the eighth day since I took my first pill. I have been initially prescribed a 40 mg/d dosage. Some things I have noticed since beginning this medication are the usual dry skin and lips. Something I did notice that I don't typically see from people (not sure if they are embarrassed to report or if it just a not very common symptom) is blood in the stool. After bowel movements I would notice excess amounts of blood. Nothing that made me feel worried to the point where I felt that I should call my derm/doctor, but more than enough to easily notice. The blood, however, has slowly tapered off to the point where it's extremely minimal or non-existent. The first day I took it I also had a bad headache. I am pretty tolerable with pain and rarely ever get headaches, but I believe Accutane to be the culprit to the headache. I have not had another occurrence similar to this since. Cotton mouth has been a consistent symptom, though easily manageable. I work in a grocery store and am constantly on my feet and a little more than 3 months ago, I suffered an ankle injury playing basketball that was pretty severe. The swelling in that ankle is still rather large and I notice towards the later end of my typical 6 hour after-school shift, my ankle begins to become sore. I will be supplementing with fish oil for joint support so I will keep everyone posted on how that helps. I believe I am hitting the initial breakout. My black heads which are pretty much not noticeable are growing in size and prominence but still not easily seen unless you were to look closely. I have also had an increase in active, cystic acne on my forehead. I usually put my hair up with a product to keep it off of my forehead but I now leave it down to cover up the breakout.
This is my first post, and I will post weekly updates in addition to sudden changes in my skin condition. I hope this "blog" so to speak, helps some people out there who have questions.
Hey! Glad to read your post.
Something that caught my attention and is worth noting is the blood in stool. As you have noted, I too have read a lot about the experience with accutane through individual blogs, you tube videos and this site and I think it's important to mention I have not come across this. I don't think is something you should ignore. You should contact you derm office right away and explain what you are experiencing, how it's decreasing over time. It's my unprossional opinion that this would be considered a serious side effect. I know first hand how awful it can be to deal with acne but your health should come first.
Make sure you're taking your med on a full stomach and fats like olive oil & avacado can increase uptake and absorption!
Drink plenty of water... As much water as you can (atleast a large glass/ bottle per hour) staying hydrated is really important. Vaseline lip therapy is your best friend, I've been on 40 mg and I'm 5'2" 115 and I've hardly had dry lips or skin. Are you moisturizing your face?
Aloe Vera juice is a great internal anti inflammatory for your ankle- and joints 
)
An after thought, I hope you don't mind me posting this but since this is a place we can all feel comfortable and open to help each other-- you should probably see the family doctor too. There is a chance you could have hemrrhoids, which could be a non serious explaination for the blood. My younger brother had internal hemrrhoids and was getting blood in his stool and didn't know because he couldn't see them. If there's nothing visible I'd call the derm office still but also get in with your doctor so they can do a check or refer you for diagnostic testing. Blood in stool can be indication of ulcers too or other serious GI. Different colours of blood re: red vs black can be signs of issues in different areas of the organs- something worth looking into!
Okay - I'll put it out there that I did have this side effect at the beginning of my course. Like you, I was incredibly worried. Also like you, it only lasted a few days and then went away. I did check in with my doctor (you should too!), and everything was totally fine. She said that you sometimes get a few weird things in the first couple weeks. I also had this weird nose pain for the first week that disappeared after.
To be totally gross, it seemed to me that I got kind of 'dry' down there, which may have caused some skin to tear, which caused the bleeding. It was sore, and that's how it felt. I felt a bit constipated, too, and I think drinking more liquids helped. After a couple days it just went away. I am 120 days into my course now, and it has not returned.
Anyway - this is one of those things you should get checked out right away. I did. But I just wanted to let you know that you're not alone on this one, and that it is likely nothing to worry about. But still talk to your doc - it will give you peace of mind too.
Letting your doctor know on your next visit is definitely a good idea. If it resolves on it's own, it's probably nothing to worry about. However, if you are still experiencing the bleeding every time you go for much longer, you should definitely check in with your doc now - *especially* if you experiencing other side-effects like stomach pains, cramping, unusual constipation/ diarrhea , etc.
Wow, I really wasn't expecting much of a response. I did go ahead and contact my derm and she said that some people experience this initially in the first few weeks. I'm still in High School and prom is coming up here at the end of next month. I heard from some people that sitting in a sauna can really help speed along the process of the initial breakout and get you on your way to healing. Can anyone validate this? I would like to have a somewhat clear complexion before prom.
For those wondering: Yes I am using a moisturizer.. I put it on at night and when I wake up I wash it off and my skin is super smooth. I just started doing that last night. My lips are getting increasingly chapped even with using a lip balm. Considering switching to Aquaphor? Is it really that nice or is just hype? Thanks again for the responses. I really do appreciate them!
I have never heard of anyone wanting to induce an IB on accutane so I can't give an evidence-based opinion, but I would say avoid it. Saunas are extremely dehydrating, which is a NO-NO. Trust me, you do not want to dehydrate yourself on accutane - your skin and your insides will hate you for it. Also, the heat from the sauna may be very irritating to your skin, possibly making things much worse than they would have been without. For most people, the IB happens in the 3rd or 4th week. You should be past the worst of it by the end of April. If not - I recommend making an appointment with your derm (if you tell him / her that it's prom, I am sure they will make concessions) for a couple of days before your prom to inject any inflamed blemishes with cortisone. The cortisone will drop the inflammation like it's hot. If you have any red marks, you can cover them up with a little concealer. Just find one that matches your skin tone, and no one will notice! 
Also, I recommend using a moisturizer in the morning as well, preferably one with SPF.
Hey guys! Sorry I was in-between computers the past week or so. Computer just up and fried on me! I can report on my skin now though so that's all that matters! But I asked if anyone had heard of sitting in a sauna would help get past the IB faster in a prior post. Without reading anything on here due to not having a computer, I went ahead and did it. I am happy to report that it did WONDERS for my skin. Literally night and day results. My IB started in the first week of me using Tane. I started getting cystic acne on my forehead and even started to get some acne on my cheeks, which is really rare for me. After about mid week two I started sitting in my family's far-lamp infrared sauna for half an hour each day. I turn it on, let it warm up for half an hour while drinking a tall glass of water, and then jump in and sit for about another half an hour. I will attach some pictures so you guys can see. All I did was increase my water intake to compensate for sweating and the IB just died. Thoroughly pleased. I would recommend this to anyone to help speed along the IB process. Drinking water is key though. Here are some pictures of my progress. First is taken 15 minutes after my dose, second is taken exactly one week later, and the third one week after that. Tomorrow will be week 4 and I will post that picture after it is taken.
Okay I am not sure what order it's going to show up for you guys but I labeled each picture by the week it was taken. I couldn't really figure out how to upload directly to the website so i just made a photobucket. Here you guys go!
http://s1144.photobucket.com/user/Deequarius/library/?sort=3&page=1
Glad the sauna worked for you.
And now a word about the aquaphor hype.
When my son was born (he's 5 now), every baby site I went to recommended aquaphor for any possible skin ailment. They talked about it like it was made of magical golden baby healing angels. At that time it wasn't widely available in Canada (where I'm from), and I honestly felt like a bad mom for not being able to provide this glorious healing salve to every bit of diaper rash. He grew out of the rashy baby phase quickly, and I forgot all about it.
Until I came here to log about my Accutane journey, and discovered it is known to be made of magic here, too!
A couple weeks ago I saw it in the store and I was like "HOLY SHIT! NOW I WILL KNOW ITS GLORY!"
Anyway - the highest expectations always lead to the greatest disappointments.
I'd say it's like slightly better vaseline. It absorbs a bit better. I do like it for my overly dry nostrils (yuck!), but it's not blowing me away. Vaseline would do as well. I'm just trying to find a use for the whole tube I bought. I much prefer blistex for lips, but the other handy use for my tube I found was putting it on my lips right after I wash my face, and then layering lip balm on top after it sinks in a little. Again, a job vaseline could do. But I have this whole tube of aquaphor . . .
I think it's one of those things you have to try, though, to know if it is magical for you. There has to be some reason why everyone loves it for every conceivable skin issue. So I say try it - it's pretty cheap, and even if you're not wowed it's handy to have around when everything is so dry.
UPDATE: Literally an overnight flare up. It's better than t was at around week 2 but I notice several pimples have sprung over night and i have a cold sore on my lip. Should I contact my doctor and ask about sending a script for one of those cold sore meds??
And thank you Kim28 I appreciate someone being honest with me about this one. Looking at it I just couldn't see what was so different about it. May purchase it though as I just got my first nose bleed. A very rough one too.
@Kim28 I ended up just conforming and purchasing some Aquaphor.. My nose bleeds started to get pretty frequent and when visiting the college that I will be attending next fall, I met up with the girl that I've been talking to for some time now and my nose started bleeding really bad in the middle of a conversation (pretty embarrassing) so I was just fed up with the nose bleeds and now put some in my nose every night before going to bed. Doing this my nose bleeds have completely gone away.
Hey guy! My acne is really starting to clear up! I should have a clear complected by prom if it continues to follow this trend! The nosebleeds have stopped completely now with regular application of Aquaphor in my nose. I saw my derm the other day, and incurred a $250 speeding ticket to get their on time... (85 in a 65 on the interstate) and she said that I am seeing really great results from this stuff. Very few of her patients see immediate results from this stuff and that I what I am seeing. I will keep you posted and will get around to adding this week's and last week's progress pictures.. Can't believe it's already been a month!
Well a little update... Had probably two of the largest cysts on my chin that I have ever had. I've noticed with my acne that my outbreaks are becoming fewer and fewer but the physical characteristics of them are becoming deeper and more solid feeling to the touch. And question for you guys... I have been going out pretty often on the weekends to parties and I see that most people who drink tend to have bad blood tests... I on the other hand do not have this issue. I went out last Saturday and drank very heavily (19 shots over the course of 3 hours) then had a blood test on the following Monday and my blood test came back even better than they did on my first blood test and I hadn't even drank in 3 weeks before that blood test. Not sure why this would be but I have not experience any adverse side effects with this. I never have been one to get a hangover and that has remained consistent. Accutane hasn't gave me the "killer headache" that everyone talks about.
Let me know what you think... I'm honestly a curious if anyone's even reading this still.
Until Next Time,
Dalton.
Hello
I'm still reading your thread so your efforts are not entirely wasted haha. I'm starting my course today, which just so happens to be my 22nd birthday - weird that it's worked out like this lol. I'm starting on 20mg for the first two weeks then if I feel comfortable increasing to 40mg. I'm apprehensive for the side effects but hopefully optimistic for the results. Dreading an IB but I guess I'll just deal with it as it comes.
Thanks for taking the time to document your experiences.
Jason
Hi there Dalton!
Okay, I admit it, I have developed an appreciation for aquaphor. It helps my lips a ton when I put it on under my lip balm, it keeps the edges of my nose from being flaky, and it makes those little Accutane rashes that show up on my hands sometimes disappear in an hour.
Regarding the alcohol - I think a drink now and then is quite fine. I have read in a few places that alcohol consumption interferes with the absorption of Accutane. I don't drink very much, so I haven't looked into this in my regular ultra-researchy type way, but you might want to if you are doing quite a bit of drinking on the weekends.
Glad all is well!
Good to hear from you Kim!
I actually really have started to like Aquaphor as well for my chin gets pretty flaky after my skin dries in the morning from stepping out of the shower. Looks like we both hopped on the bandwagon! As to my drinking, I don't drink every weekend but I will be graduating in just 2 weeks so there will be a lot of graduation parties so my typical alcohol consumption is going to be a lot higher than it normally is. I have found that drinking liquor is easier on my skin then beer. When I drink beer I tend to get more breakouts then if I had been drinking liquor the night before. I will do some extra research on that information though!
Dalton
Hi Dalton,
thanks so much for your post. I just started accutane 5 days ago, and I have been sitting in the sauna as well after my workouts. I have extremely oily skin so the dryness hasn't started quite yet. Also aquaphor has become my best friend!! I am starting on 40 mg/day and will continue with the sauna as long as I'm hydrated. Hope you journey is still going well!!!
Jess
Jess,
Yes, hydration is key! Let me know how that works out for you! Aquaphor is best thing I have for my lips, and I love how just a little bit goes a long way. I don't expect to need to purchase another container of it before my accutane cycle is over. One thing I have been doing lately is not washing my hair everyday. I jump in the shower and rinse my body off in the mornings but only wash my hair 3 times a week. If I was working out I would wash it everyday but since my ankle injury is not allowing me, I don't wash my hair everyday. Not washing allows what little oil my skin actually produces build up so my hair looks healthy and has the thicker feeling that it used to have when I wasn't taking it. I hope to hear back from you on your progress!
Best,
Dalton
I just thought I would report to everyone about something amazing that has happened. This is a first in my life since I have had acne.... I AM COMPLETELY ACNE FREE. I doubt it will last as I am only now starting my third month of Accutane but since I have started I have not missed a single dose and now have a completely clear complexion. It is literally take 100% of my mental restraint to not just rub my hands all over my face. I haven't known this feeling since the 5th grade and 8 years later it has returned... at least for the time being.
Hope everyone is doing well and I wish anyone running an Accutane cycle now or in the near future a smooth journey. This is definitely a miracle drug. I've been on so many different things from proactive to antibiotics and on every single one of them I always had at least some acne left over somewhere.
AND ON THE 8TH DAY, GOD MADE ACCUTANE.
Best wishes,
Dalton
Hey Dalton,
That's great news ! I'm so happy for you . I can't even remember how being completely clear feels, I hope you stay clear now !
I've literally just taken my 14th day's 20mg. I've not had any significant side effects yet, not even chapped lips (though I have been using lip care products since day 1 so perhaps that's why). As per my derms advice I'm going to up my dose to 40mg tomorrow - I hope to see some results soon !
All the best,
Jason