Back in the day , when I was young, well around my 30's I took the miracle pill. It worked really well ,I had never seen my face , free of pimples. My face got so red , like a sunburn , it was the first time I really needed a moisturizer ,I slathered aveeno moisturizing lotion ,I mean the one for the body , but it felt good ,I had no pimples . I only took Accutane like for 4 months because I have high cholesterol and my liver couldn't take it anymore , it also made me really , really depressed .I was kind of going insane.I mean I didn't really wanted to stop it but sadly I had to.I had to choose between my clear face or my liver and sanity. The effects of Accutane helped me for about 4 years,I mean I didn't have to use any major acne treatment ,just simple proactiv , that is why I thought that proactiv was a miracle too,LOL. I mean after Accutane I could have peanuts and chocolate , it was wonderful. I think that Accutane is to be used on only extreme cases or as a last alternative, even at 52 I'm still dealing with hormonal acne ,I have hypothyroidism and believe me ,on my last visit to the dermatologist , he suggested Accutane ,I said no way! My cholesterol levels are high, and he asked, how high ? Really? High enough , so my advice , if you really think that you need Accutane only as a last result, then go ahead , but it's not a miracle drug , it will help you get your acne under control , and after that you are gonna have to use a topical treatment to manage your acne , which is all about managing, and controlling it. And my advice is to run some tests before using it and during treatment and watch for signs of trouble ,don't damage your body, if it doesn't feel right , then its not right. I think these days dermatologist are using really low doses on people who are older and are at risk of developing skin cancer , so that is probably why the dermatologist suggested Accutane, he doesn't know what to make of my acne anymore.I really feel sorry for him,and I'm kind of speculating about the reason why he wants me to try Accutane again ,ok . Best wishes.

I started getting acne in middle school and tried about every antibiotic and topical out there. They helped get my acne under control for a while; I wasn't completely clear but I could cover it with make up and my mom was really against accutane. My senior year of high school came around and everything just stopped working, my skin started to get really bad again and after talking with my doctor, my mom finally allowed me to try accutane. I am a division 1 athlete and one of my biggest concerns was the joint pain. I have been on it for almost six months an I have not had to stop participating in any of my training due to pain. The biggest side effect I have noticed is the thinning skin. I have at least one new bruise after practice and my skin gets really red really easily. I also had nose bleeds for a few weeks but those went away after probably the second month. And like everyone says, USE AQUAPHOR!!! I have three days left of my 6 month treatment and I am very pleased with my skin. I can't wait till the red marks have a chance to heal up once I'm done taking it to see the final result. I was afraid of the side effects, but in the end it was so worth it!

I began my first round when I was 16, which left me with clear skin that lasted around 5 years until the nightmare returned. I began my second round when I was 21. Side effects were severe depression (I've been on Celexa since I was 16, had to up the dosage at 21.) I no longer can wear contacts because my eyes never did gain their moisture back. Even so, I wouldn't take it back for the world. Isotetrin gave me my life back. I'm 24 now and am so grateful. Anyone who is turned away by the side effects isn't as desperate as us who would give anything to take a picture with confidence. It is TOUGH don't get me wrong, but absolutely worth it. Love it.

I was on 60/mg a day for 7 months... I had horrific cystic acne on my face, and an even more severe amount of disease on my back. I wish I had done Accutane years ago, so that I could have prevented the scarring. I did have mild side effects while on the drug, as you should expect, but nothing too serious, and everything has cleared since I stopped. I am 99.9% acne free now, I would call that cured. Basically, I have healthy, normal skin. I do not use any anti-acne treatments, just gentle cetaphil cleanser on my face and back, and will get the occasional tiny zit, but they are infrequent and I think nothing of them... they are just as any normal person might get. I did have hair thinning while on the drug, but my hair has come back strong and seems as thick as before.

I always promised myself that after all was said and done with my accutane treatment that I would come back onto these blog and share my story in the hopes of helping a skeptical, scared person like myself. I am now 21 years old and completely acne free. In high school, I never had acne. My skin was pretty much clear my entire life untill college. I started breaking out a lot on only my chin and forehead. Pretty much every breakout was "cystic" and never rose above the skin. Unfortunately this meant that they took forever to go away and they completely dropped my confidence. Absolutely nothing worked for me. I tried topical creams but the pimples were too deep and no antibiotic did a thing. Finally I decided to try accutane although I was absolutely scared. I already had some health issues (headaches, neck problems, etc.) I thought that I would never be able to handle any "side effects" because I'm already dealing with my own Health problems. Once I stared the treatmant, I quickly realized it was worth it. I started to see results within the first month. My face is also not oily at all. So I thought I would be painfully dry on this stuff. however, my skin and lips got dry but it was nothing lip balm and lotion couldn't fix. As for the side effects, I truly could not notice much of anything. Accutane truly just becomes apart of your life for a short period of time and then next thing you know, it's over! I was on it for 6 months and I am beyond grateful that I tried this. My skin has been flawless, soft and beautiful for 5 months since I have been off it. I never break out and I almost forget sometimes that I used to have bad skin. Accutane is COMPLETELY WORTH IT! If you are on the fence about it, please try it! I remember calling my dad crying before the day I was about to start it, and he convinced me to give it a shot. I am soooo glad he did! If you are worried that you already deal with some discomfort due to health issues like I did, don't let that stop you! If anything, any previous health problems you had only makes you tougher, so accutane should be a breeze for you! I want everyone to feel this way about their skin.. If you are a candidate to take accutane, please give it a try :)

I'm a 21 year old female on my 3rd month of taking Accutane (Claravis) at 30 mg twice a day. I love accutane so far, it has completely cleared up my skin and saved my self-esteem and social life. My Side Effects on Accutane: -High Cholesterol: my cholesterol increased the first month after I started taking accutane and is still high at month 3. It isn't much above the normal range and apparently it is pretty common, so my doctor said she isn't worried unless it continues to increase. -Dry lips: my lips are only really dry if I forget to bring/put on chapstick, but if I keep them hydrated then it's not too bad. -Dry skin: my skin wasn't too dry the first 2 months, but this 3rd month, it's been much more dry, so more lotion and aquaphor! -Dry hair: makes my hair frizzy but it doesn't get greasy like it used to -Sore joints: very mild the first month, very painful the second month, and now very mild the third month Tips for Those on Accutane: -You may have to get used to a new skin type. My skin is much more delicate and dry now that I'm on accutane. It took me a while to get used to this and in my first month I made the mistake of trying to pop a pimple and I ended up tearing off a layer or so of my skin which lead to a big, red, painful, dry spot that was much worse and lasted longer than the pimple would have. So, be very gentle with your skin! -Also, now on that I'm on accutane I've noticed that pimples go away on their own very quickly, but a dry spot is usually left behind for a week or so. -So, I've learned to only pop a pimple if it's a white head and I pop it very gently! -If you have a particularly dry spot, aquaphor healing ointment works really well to help heal it up! I usually apply it to dry spots when I go to bed (after I put on lotion) -Cetaphil gentle skin cleanser, Cetaphil sunscreen (spf 50), and Cetaphil moisturizing lotion all work great for me. I wash at least twice a day and always apply lotion afterwards Other (possibly irrelevant) Tips: -I don't let anything dirty touch my face; I never touch my face with my hands unless I've just scrubbed them with soap, I change my pillowcase every night, I use a clean towel each time I dry my face, I make sure my hair doesn't get on my face, etc. I know it's a bit excessive but I'm just terrified of breaking out -I don't eat/drink dairy. I stopped eating dairy 6 or 7 years ago and it really helped improve my acne. It may be worth it to cut or reduce your dairy intake and see if it helps you at all -I try to get a lot of sleep because if I don't, I often wake up with a pimple or two (which is a lot now that I'm taking accutane) The side effects and blood work, Dr. appointments, etc. for accutane can be pretty annoying, but it's totally worth it to me. Acne is a terribly painful disease--psychologically and physically! Before I took accutane I was very healthy, but I was also very depressed and isolated because of my severe acne and hopeless that I would ever feel normal again. Now, I am not as physically healthy (high cholesterol, sore joints), but I am incredibly happy, confident and excited about life. For me, the side effects are worth the benefits. What's the point of keeping your body completely healthy and pain-free if you're too depressed and embarrassed by your acne to actually go outside and live your life? For those of you who are struggling with acne, especially if you are avoiding your friends and family or are scared to look at yourself in the mirror or cringe every time you have to wash your face or cry because you feel like a monster, like I was, please try Accutane. I was so scared and embarrassed to take it. I didn't want to accept that my acne was so severe and I was worried about all the side effects. But thank god I did because Accutane has given me my life back. Good luck!

I started Accutane in February of 2014 and just finished under a month ago on July 24th. I am currently 13 and started when I was 13. 5 years ago my mom went on it and had more side affects than me, she had dry skin everywhere, cracked lips, very irritated skin (the usual.) As for me, i only had dry lips and for a portion of time my chin was always cracking. Otherwise I had no issues. Like I said, i was on it for 5 months. For the first month i was on one 1, 40mg pill a day, the next month i was upped to 2, 30mg pills a day, for a total of 60mg's a day. Iwas on that same dosage for 2 months after that. To simplify that I was on 60mg's a day for 3 months. :). For the last month I went to only 30mg's a day. When I started I was scared of looking anyone in the eye and my face was always oily. I tried 7 topical gels and another set of pills in the past and no luck:(. Accutane was our last resort. My dermatologist wasn't skeptical at all. I trusted him fully and family supported me. I did it and now I'm as happy as i've ever been. I love my skin and am not afraid to wear no makeup in public anymore! I fully recommend Accutane to anyone who needs it.

HELLO EVERYONE, If you're reading this, you're most likely struggling with acne and on accutane or deciding whether you should go on it or not. Well I'm here to tell you that its an incredibly difficult choice (obviously) but it is so incredibly worth it. Anyways this is going to be long but I'd like to share my story so that I can help others make a choice that can change their life for the better. In the beginning of high school, I would get occasional break outs. Nothing too serious, it didn't bother me that much. Once I hit my junior year of high school, my skin seemed to get so much worse within a matter of months. My first semester of junior year was spent going on pointless antibiotics and topical gels in order to fix my increasing problem. My cheeks had tons of spots, it seemed like no place was spared. While my acne was not the scarring/cystic type, I could not leave home without a face of foundation at least. My skin would bring me to tears, and I didn't like close up eye contact because I felt that it was incredibly noticeable. I always knew about accutane, but I had stayed away from it because of the things I had heard. Once summer began after my junior year, my skin improved a little from the sun exposure. However, I vowed that I would seriously consider accutane my senior year if my skin got worse after the summer. Sure enough, about a month into senior year the condition of my skin began to worsen once again. Now, I was still debating accutane. As many of you know, you cant drink any alcohol while on it and the side effects listed are quite terrifying. As a senior in high school, i wont lie, I went to parties regularly on the weekends and drinking just happened to be a part of my social life. I know it shouldn't have been this way, but that was why it was such a hard decision for me. Basically I decided to forgo parties with friends in order to have the clear skin that I always wanted. SO I began the whole process, the month long wait and the first blood test and whatnot. I began on 30 mg for my first month. Im a 5'7'' girl and I weigh about 130 lbs. After about two weeks, I noticed that my face wasn't producing as much oil. IT WAS AWESOME. My hair stayed clean for days. It was super great. So I saw small improvement from there on. For my second month and then the rest of my course of 5.5 months, I was on 60 mg/day. I didn't notice a big difference in side effects with the dosage increase. My side effects were manageable- there were only two things that really bothered me (besides not drinking). First of all after like 3 months my eyes were F**KED UP. I would wake up with eye gunk and they would be red all the time. People always thought i was stoned. IT WAS AWFUL' And secondly, my finger tips got extremely dry (weird as hell I know) - but yeah they looked wrinkly and it was so awful. So by the fifth month, my skin hit a new level of clear. It was crazy. It took five months to get there and then I took the pills for two more weeks after that. I was worried about stopping, but its been about half a year and my skin is in the same wonderful condition! The oil returned but the acne didnt. I feel like a brand new person. I want to tell everyone to at least try this drug if you're struggling. Also to any girls- I suggest birth control. I started halfway through my course and I think it has also helped to keep my skin clear. My eyes are still dry sometimes before I fall asleep, but it isn't horrible. Either way I am willing to put up with it in order to have my acne gone. Please please let me know if you have any questions. This can change your life!

Last week I began Accutane ... Something I was hoping it would never come down to but unfortunately after 11 years of suffering with constant breakouts I think it is time to do something a little more drastic. I first started getting breakouts when I was 12. I had just hit puberty and a majority of the kids in my class had a few spots here and there so I didn't make a huge deal out of it (at first anyway). It wasn't until I turned 14 that I really noticed that their was a problem with my skin. My forehead was covered in tiny little red nodules that it eventually made its way to my cheeks and back. I still remember boys in my class asking what was wrong with my face and it making me feel like complete and utter sh**! At this point I started Pro Activ which to be honest helped clear up a few spots here and there but overall burnt the absolute crap out of my face. I have used other products before that contained benzoyl peroxide of the same dosage and never did that happen to my face. I am going to put it down to the harsh beads along with the chemicals in this product that basically turned my skin into a big red inflamed mess. I am not a dermatologist and maybe that product works for some but I feel to avoid further damage to your skin you need to be gentle when it comes to acne. (topical treatments anyway) By the time I was 15 up until now, I am 23, the breakouts have been pretty inconsistent. They are always there but the nature of the breakouts I find is constantly changing which makes it difficult on my part to combat. I go from crazy hormonal breakouts to chest pimples, back pimples, crazy hairline acne, oily skin etc etc etc, I have used minocycline and others cycline's along with duac, benzac, differin, the contraceptive pill (of all sorts), natural supplements from the chinese doctor, dermalogica (different ranges), ella bache, supermarket brands, exposed skincare, skin doctors t-zone and the list goes on. I see results but I can honestly say my skin never looks that good. It wasn't until the past year when my acne turned from scattered blackheads and whiteheads, which as ugly as they were they were coverable to an extent, to large painful cystic lumps along my jaw line and neck that I realised that this problem was not going to go away on it's own. My self esteem is depleted. I am currently studying to be a personal trainer, slothing handfuls of foundation on my face is a complete waste of time when I will just sweat it all off not to mention my wallet has really taken a beating over the years due to all the product and expensive skin treatments I have forked out for. I am 23 and I still feel like an insecure 16 year old when it comes to my skin. My mother always drilled it into my head that Accutane was a dangerous drug (I asked previously in my teens to go on it) and that it would always cause more harm than good. For me to be on this product was not a decision that I have taken lightly. I understand the side effects completely and I currently take medication for depression. I really feel that no special diet, antibiotic, topical treatment or contraceptive pill will clear my skin. And honestly if you are going to fork out $100's of dollars a year on skincare you would expect your complexion to be flawless? My self esteem and wallet have had enough! So here I am typing this review, sipping my peppermint tea with bleeding chapped lips, extremely dry skin around my nose which hurts every time I move it in the slightest and the biggest most painful cystic pimple on my neck I have ever had. I can only hope this is what people refer to as the initial breakout and that my skin will finally clear. I will be sure to keep you guys updated. Wish me luck!

Ok, so I'm going into my junior year of high school and my acne had always been a challenge for me. I'm a natural redhead, and my skin is VERY sensitive. Also, most products and acne treatments that I've used I've been allergic too. I also swim every morning and afternoon every day so my skin is always dry. When I took accutane, my dryness and redness on my face was terrible. It was also extremely sensitive. (it actually hurt putting on makeup sometimes) The first month was horrible. My acne got worse and worse and I couldn't even use topical stuff. It's been almost 3 months and I only have 2 pimples on my face (which is absolutely crazy) and none on my chest or back. With all the crazy and terrible side effects that I went through it was way worth it too have a clear face. I would recommend it too anyone and everyone.