call your doctor ask for a short term dose of prednisone...and go get a few injections

most initial breakouts pass quickly, but not fun while they do...so chin up, it works wonders for most people, the odds are with you!

call your doctor ask for a short term dose of prednisone...and go get a few injections

most initial breakouts pass quickly, but not fun while they do...so chin up, it works wonders for most people, the odds are with you!

he did give me prednisone. but i stopped after 3 weeks cause I was taking prednisone 5 hours before accutane and I was worrried that would negate the accutane

 

call your doctor ask for a short term dose of prednisone...and go get a few injections

most initial breakouts pass quickly, but not fun while they do...so chin up, it works wonders for most people, the odds are with you!

he did give me prednisone. but i stopped after 3 weeks cause I was taking prednisone 5 hours before accutane and I was worrried that would negate the accutane

dammit why did I stop the prednisone? i stopped two weeks ago.. I still have the pills, but the damage has been done

the initial breakout stinks, just horrible no other way to say it.....you just have to push through

take the prednisone I don't think it will negate the effect and it will help you get through the inflammation...just a few days, try to keep it to a week then taper off...and with any luck the breakout will subside

don't go crazy...keep your sanity and stay the course

but it's week 5? is that still an initial breakout?

Yeap, totally normal - in fact alot of people seem to get an IB around week 5 (I think that's about when mine started too). mrsrobinson is right about the prednisone and cortisone shots. You can also try a short course of azythromicen (brand name is Z-pack). It doesn't interact with accutane and *can* help reduce the inflammation of the IB. It takes about 10 days to improve but it WILL improve. Also, it is worth going to the derm for a cortisone injection. I did that for my IB and it greatly reduced the pain and redness of the big ones. Don't worry - it will heal. Try not to pick them or squeeze them and scarring shouldn't be an issue.

Well im taking prednisome now for a week or so.but this is so bad its still terrible and my back is getting acne that HURTS.

Im so discouraged

I thought the breakout had ended but NOPE I feel 7 painful cysts forming on my forehead right now. And I also broke out on my chin...

I thought it would improve in 10 days but it hasn't I don't know what to do

loool i can relate, IB was bad at week 5/6....and remained for a few weeks. Was the worst time ever, had to take time off work and hide. Add to the embarassment I was complaining that I had not had enough warning and would never have taken it bla bla, only for it to clear up after few weeks to the clearest its ever been in my life!!!! Hang in there because it really does get a million times better and you will be kicking yourself like i was over the fuss. now im more worried about the long term effects, theres too many stories on here.

Hi -

Yeah, I am sorry you are still breaking out, that really stinks. You will continue to break out during your course of accutane, it's just that the breakouts will become less and less severe over time. The difference between the initial breakout and these following breakouts is simply the severity and the length of time between breakouts. In my case, the severity did not significantly decrease and the length of time between didn't really increase until around the end of my third month This is a very slow process - so don't be too discouraged.

hi thanks for the words of encouragement my skin has not gotten better I'm trying to stay positive but it's really I don't even want to go out in public I'm just too humiliated I feel like other students are staring at me.. but I'm trying to stay as positive as I can.

I understand. There are a few things that you can do for a severe flare-up to reduce the inflammation, for example. a short course of oral steroids like prednisone is indicated for severe flare-ups caused by accutane treatment (I think someone else mentioned this). Also, your dermatologist can inject cortisone directly into severely inflammed nodules / cysts with which will immediately reduce pain and swelling. There is nothing wrong with calling your dermatologist and asking for help or discussing your options regarding the IB.

My IB came at the beginning of my 2nd month, as when I started I had been unusually mostly clear for a few weeks, and stayed that way for a while. I did not stop breaking out badly until probably the beginning/middle of month 4 (first week of month 5 now). It was the worst in month 3-- I don't have crazy severe acne, just very very persistent cystic acne. I would cry almost every morning looking at the state of my face. Very rough time. But I realized a few things that I probably never would have realized if I were not on Accutane.

1- Literally nobody cares what you look like. Everyone is too absorbed in what they look like and what everyone thinks of themselves. I had people who I've known my whole life say "really you have acne? I've never noticed" when I told them I was on Accutane.

2- Things may not get better instantly, but they will. I decided during month 3 that I wasn't going to get a positive result from Accutane. I was so discouraged because everyone I spoke to (including my horrible dermatologist- switched this month finally!) told me I should have cleared up by then. I did not. But right now I'm 1 week into month 5 and I didn't even realize until a few days ago that I don't think I've had one pimple in weeks. Insane.

3- You can't just expect something to work, you need to put a lot of effort into it as well. Yes, Accutane works without any outside interference, but you really have to be mindful of how you are treating your skin. I have changed so many products, moisturizers, cosmetics, etc so many times when it wasn't reacting with my skin nicely (maybe it had before, maybe it was new and wasn't great). It just takes a lot of effort to find what is going to calm your skin when its that bad, or keep it dry-free, etc.

It's totally doable! I'm lucky enough to get those terrible muscle aches as my biggest side effect, and right now even cringing in pain on a particularly bad night, I'm so overjoyed that my skin is finally almost there, after what I really thought were the 3-4 longest months of my life. Seriously good luck, it's gonna get weird, and then eventually so much better.

Hi there,Thank you for sharing this! I'm in week 5 now and am experiencing a really bad breakout. It's awful. How is your skin doing now? I am in need of a little hope right now.

My IB came at the beginning of my 2nd month, as when I started I had been unusually mostly clear for a few weeks, and stayed that way for a while. I did not stop breaking out badly until probably the beginning/middle of month 4 (first week of month 5 now). It was the worst in month 3-- I don't have crazy severe acne, just very very persistent cystic acne. I would cry almost every morning looking at the state of my face. Very rough time. But I realized a few things that I probably never would have realized if I were not on Accutane.

1- Literally nobody cares what you look like. Everyone is too absorbed in what they look like and what everyone thinks of themselves. I had people who I've known my whole life say "really you have acne? I've never noticed" when I told them I was on Accutane.

2- Things may not get better instantly, but they will. I decided during month 3 that I wasn't going to get a positive result from Accutane. I was so discouraged because everyone I spoke to (including my horrible dermatologist- switched this month finally!) told me I should have cleared up by then. I did not. But right now I'm 1 week into month 5 and I didn't even realize until a few days ago that I don't think I've had one pimple in weeks. Insane.

3- You can't just expect something to work, you need to put a lot of effort into it as well. Yes, Accutane works without any outside interference, but you really have to be mindful of how you are treating your skin. I have changed so many products, moisturizers, cosmetics, etc so many times when it wasn't reacting with my skin nicely (maybe it had before, maybe it was new and wasn't great). It just takes a lot of effort to find what is going to calm your skin when its that bad, or keep it dry-free, etc.

 

It's totally doable! I'm lucky enough to get those terrible muscle aches as my biggest side effect, and right now even cringing in pain on a particularly bad night, I'm so overjoyed that my skin is finally almost there, after what I really thought were the 3-4 longest months of my life. Seriously good luck, it's gonna get weird, and then eventually so much better.

I really can't emphasize enough how true those three statements are! I was not clear by month 3, in fact, I wasn't even remotely clear until around month 5 - that being said, It was a massive improvement from day one. Because of the drama surrounding accutane, I guess people expect it to work very quickly (and it does for some people, no doubt). But it is a very gradual process. I kept very detailed notes and pictures during my course to keep track of my progress, and it truly helped keep everything in perspective for me. Like yours, my dermatologist was also a little grumpy that I wasn't clearing up by month 3. He is, however, very excited to see that I am clearer than I have ever been six months after! Hang in there, chances more likely than not that accutane will clear you up substantially. Unlike every other acne medication out there - you actually have a good chance of successfully clearing your skin on accutane if you just stick with it

Glad to hear these positive stories!

and that things worked out in the end

Can I ask if the flare up or IB centered around dose increases (this is a fear of mine)

I started on 20mg, than 40 and my Dr wants to bump me to 80 mg

Only on day #3 of 60mg

I did great until about my 4/5 weeks and like most of you, had a few of the worst breakouts of my life

I feel for all of you!

Its been about 3 -4 weeks since and I am clearing up....Im just always fearful of another breakout or that I will be the 1 in a million that tane doesnt work

I think its also scary because i want to make sure that I am not using anything (moisturizer or makeup) that might be aggravating my skin issues

I dont think accutane is a free pass to use anything w/ out worrying about breaking out?

Or maybe I am wrong...

kim

Glad to hear these positive stories!

and that things worked out in the end

Can I ask if the flare up or IB centered around dose increases (this is a fear of mine)

I started on 20mg, than 40 and my Dr wants to bump me to 80 mg

Only on day #3 of 60mg

I did great until about my 4/5 weeks and like most of you, had a few of the worst breakouts of my life

I feel for all of you!

Its been about 3 -4 weeks since and I am clearing up....Im just always fearful of another breakout or that I will be the 1 in a million that tane doesnt work

I think its also scary because i want to make sure that I am not using anything (moisturizer or makeup) that might be aggravating my skin issues

I dont think accutane is a free pass to use anything w/ out worrying about breaking out?

Or maybe I am wrong...

kim

 

Understandable fear. Going from 40 to 80 sounds like a pretty big jump! Yes - unfortunately, I did have another (less severe) flare-up when the doc increased my dose from 40-60. It wasn't as bad as the Initial breakout, and it took a week or so to begin healing. That being said, I broke out continuously while I was on accutane, the breakouts just became less and less severe over time. I never went from full on breakout to clear in a week like some people say they do.

Just to be clear I was on 40mg about a mnth and just bumped to 60mg

not sure when but dr commented last visit she wants me on 80mg as soon as possible

I want my treatment over with asap...but not sure im confy with 80mg

I weight 128-130 thought 60 was a good solid dose and at this rate coukd be done in 5ish mnths

dont know dr rush..lol

I seem to bounce back and forth from 2 weeks clear to breakout city

this last episode was 3 small ones...so trying to be hopeful

I like those NEX bandaids for breakouts. They cover completely, are clear aound the sticky part and dont lift on the sides.

Wish they had been around when I had a bad IB on Accutane 15 years ago.

Hi its me juelzz. Forgot my password lol.

Since starting this topic, my skin has improved. My derm showed me a pic of my face from around the time i wrote this and its so much better now. But not perfect. Im actually flqring up now and my whiteheads between my eyebrows have become full blown pimples why im starting to see whiteheads return after they were gone.

But YES I can say it DID get better. Dont give up.