Accutane - San Antonio,TX

I took it when I was 22. I took one pill per day for about 3 months and then was done. The only side effect I had was extremely dry skin. It worked great for me. I didn't have oily skin anymore and no more breakouts. I am now 42 and still glad I did it.

My nephew did, and it really helped him. My SIL was kicking herself for not getting it for him sooner, before he ended up with scars from his acne.

Dawn

I took accutane when I was 22-23 years old. It did work very well. I am now 40 and the acne has never been as bad as it was back then. But I do still have breakouts, just probably 80% better. I can usually keep things under control with topical things and make-up which, like you, would never have been enough before.

However, I would NEVER take it again, and I will not let my daughter take it. There is a huge risk of liver damage, plus apparently some mood things. I didn't have any of those problems. I did get CRAZY dry skin and dry lips- painfully so. That went away after I was done using it. Also, I developed IBS later, which they believe is a common side effect.

If you do go for it, please be cautious, it is a big deal drug. If you haven't asked about it, ask about IPL- it's a laser treatment, they basically zap your skin (feels like being snapped by a rubber band). You'd need treatments every 6 weeks or 3 months or something, maybe 5 treatments depending on your skin. No side effects. I did this about 5 years ago during a particularly bad year of skin breakouts. It worked very nicely. They do it in the office, you can go home and wash your face and go on as normal, you'd never know you had it done. I would try things like this before accutane. But again, if you've asked about it or tried it, then I know you are frustrated. Just please proceed with caution. Good luck.

I think it ultimately depends on what's causing the acne. I tried everything and finally my doctor put me on Accutane back when I was in my 20's. While there may be a lot of opinions and controversy around it, it was a miracle for me. My acne came from within, face and back. I get so many comments now on how good my skin looks and think to myself "if you only knew." I have pictures of me as a teen and you can see scars on my shoulders and back...ugh! I definitely agree it's not for everyone but that's why you talk with your doctor. And most of the negative comments are from people who never took it. I am living proof it works! It dries out your oil producing sebaceous glands and my side effects were dry eyes and dry lips. I used to have super oily skin and now just normal to combination with a rare blemish every now and then. Knowing how it changed my life as a young adult, I would do it again in a heartbeat. I didn't have to go through a lot but I don't think it had been out very long when I started it. My guess is the paperwork is to reduce their liability if you were to get pregnant.

Hi R.,

I actually have a lot of experience with acne. I can tell you I suffered for YEARS with severe disfiguring cystic acne. If I ever had a recurrence (which hasn't happened yet), I would not hesitate to resort to accutane for help.

I was 13 when my doctor resorted to accutane. My acne was so bad that nothing else worked, or it made it exponentially worse. I actually took the stuff for FOUR YEARS, which I don't even think is legal any more. I'm 30 now, so I started taking it about 17 years ago, and at that time, there weren't as many hoops to jump through. This is a very dangerous drug with some potentially very dangerous side effects, so be as understanding as possible with the process. Those protocol are there to keep you safe. But do not be deterred, this drug does work miracles.

The side effects were nothing short of miserable for me. It dries out your mucous membranes something fierce. I had to always have eye drops, saline spray for my nose, vaseline, lotion, etc. on me, as well as ointment for my lips, because all of those things would dry out terribly. You can't stay in the sunlight, your skin is very sensitive to it. It also causes depression, which I unfortunately did experience, but I think doctors are much more careful about monitoring that side effect nowadays because people don't always notice it sneaking up on them.

In the end, I have never regretted it. I am so grateful that my parents made the choice to give me the drug at such a young age. They were worried to do it, but I'm so glad that they did. I still have a lot of scarring, but nothing more than the occasional pimple. It changed my life.

Good luck to you!

My experience was just as Nikki G. I did several courses over several years...years ago. My skin responded very well, but after I was off the medicine, the breakouts would return so I'd restart. As my dermatologist at the time put it, "you should have pre-pubescent skin." My final course was longer (6mos) but half the standard dosage, and that finally did the trick. My skin was very clear, and I'm never good about washing my face and make-up off at night (always falling asleep). You will be dry to the bone and with pretty sensitive skin. Keep that in mind as summer approaches. Recently, I've started getting a pimple here and there, which I think is largely hormonal as I'm getting older. Cystic acne really affects your self-esteem, and Accutane should be the drug of last resort. I'm glad that I took it, side effects and all. Good luck!

I have had problems with cystic acne too and I had a dermatologist tell me it was Red #40 that was causing it. This chemical is in alot if foods, some drinks and snacks. I tried eliminating foods with this chemical completely out of my diet and it was a miracle. Red#40 is also in makeup. I quit using makeup with Red #40 in it too. This chemical has been banned in most countries because its so bad for our bodies but its not been banned here in the US. I never found a medication that worked but getting this chemical out of my diet and makeup works. Hope this info helps you.

i have done 2 courses of accutane. I have to say it works..worked great then after 8 or 10 years my acne came back.. and that is when i did the second course.

you will be really dry when you are on accutane. dry skin, dry hair dry lips.. you will need lots of lip balm to keep your lips from getting really chapped. the second time I took accutane I was about 30 and I had a lot of bone nad joint pain. I felt achy and arthritic.. It all went away when I stopped taking the drug.

there are side effects while you are on the drug but once you stop it all goes away. It is well worth it..

I have used accutane with great results. I was in college and on the pill at the time. It was very expensive 20 years ago and not covered by insurance. Not sure of that status now. I only took it for a year and my acne was significantly better since. I so still break out at the age of 40. I would say its worth it. Just waiting for my son, who has terrible acne like I did, to be old enough to take it.

My only side effect was really dry skin. I used a really good moisturizer and it was fine.

I am in my mid 30's and have taken Accutane twice. Once when I was 15 and a second time around the age of 32 after the birth of my son. It worked great in my teens and kept me clear for almost ten years. During that time I experienced extreme dry skin and achiness in my muscles/joints. All went away once I stopped the medication.
*************************************************************************************************When I took the drug the second time around in my early 30's, I had worse side effects. The usual dry skin and achiness, however I noticed some depression and most importantly, I developed a condition with my eyes. It is called RECURRENT CORNEAL EROSION and is listed as one of the more serious side effects with Accutane. (vision/corneal problems) I now have to sleep in special eye drops, eye gel and a mask every night or my eyes will dry out to the point where my eye sticks to my eyelid and I tear my cornea. When I try to open my eyes in the morning or middle of night, my cornea tears and it is extremely painful. Once you tear your cornea you can't open your eye for hours until it repairs itself and then for the next few days my vision is blurry. I'm hoping to try and fix this problem via an implant that can be inserted into my tear duct that will continue producing the necessary moisture needed at night to sleep. I now have to get up at least once every night to re-gel my eyes or I risk a tear in the early morning hours. I can no longer sleep with a ceiling fan due to too much airflow and the gel for my eyes is a recurring cost of $45 per month. There is a risk with taking this drug and possibly a greater risk the older you are. Be careful.

My husband took it a few years ago. He experienced the same drying and severe bone pain others described below. Additionally it did a number on his kidneys (Since the Accutane, any pain meds give him kidney pain) and his liver values never went back to normal - to the point where he was turned down for life insurance and is not insurable.
I would try to exhaust all other options if you have not already, e.g. food allergies (Via blood test), or new forms of antibiotics (Seldane works well for my husband, but is super expensive). On the flip side, we have a friend who had good success with Accutane, without much side effects.
Best of luck, cystic acne really stinks!

I too had really bad cist acne and tried it briefly and had a weird incident with having a strong sudden urge to drive my car into a deep ditch. NEVER have I had any kind of emotional or suicidal tendencies before. When I researched it is linked to suicides in some people. I immediately stopped it.
By accident I got rid of my acne when I went to a naturopath/chiro dr for another issue and he ran a test and found that I had this bad bacteria in my colon. When I began taking herbs to fix that and clean my colon my acne disappeared. It was so weird and wonderful! I have had clear skin ever since.
Research side effects. and good luck.

I know this is not your question, and I swear I don't work for this company, but have you thought about trying Proactiv? I struggled with cystic acne since I turned 30 (years ago!!) and I finally began Proactiv last summer. My face has been completely clear ever since. I just thought I'd ask if you had tried it. I think the side effects aren't as bad? Accutane sounds really scary (to me). Of course, if it is the only thing that works for you then go for it. But if you haven't already, maybe you should consider Proactiv? Good luck. I KNOW how painful those cysts are!!

I was on accutane 7 years ago (in my mid-40s) and it was amazing. Don't believe all the scare stories about it. There are scare stories for just about everything.

(I tried everything there was to try for a good part of my life and nothing worked. Nothing. Actually tried proactive, and that made it much, much worse.)

I was on it for about 8 months and never had a problem. My face cleared up and to this day it is clear. I am thankful every day when I look in the mirror. All you can do is try it. Some people do experience side effects. All I can tell you is I didn't have one single problem with it other than very dry skin for a few months. And that is one of the side effects. It was all worth it to me. Good luck!

I am 28 yrs old and took it at 16. I had to go through the same paperwork and birth control. I took 1 round for 3 months and it has never come back. I had a friend take 3 rounds before it went away. It has been known to cause depression problems to please inform people around you of it so they can keep an eye on you. They actually took it off the market right after I took it to put suicidal labels on it. I had to get blood work taking monthly to monitor my liver levels. My mom swears its the devil, but it worked great on me!

Hi R.!
I have not tried Accutane because antibiotics worked for me...kinda. Anyway, I have known people who have tried it. Their results were absolutely great! I have never heard any of them complain about side effects. I feel that it can be a great product if you are willing to stick with the strict guidelines. As someone who has always struggled with breakouts/acne, I wish you luck and confidence : )

I do know a few ppl that used acutaine and it did fine for them.

I have become more of a find out whats causing the issue and fix that. Are you stressed, period, eating well, allergic to your face wash. If its going to cause birth defects it might be kinda harsh on your body. If you can treat a bladder infection with cranberry why not use something all natural and much cheaper than doctor bills. If your having acne issues why not find out why and treat that. Because if your ph/hormones/overdry/overoily/not enough water or what ever is causing the issue is only treated with meds once you stop those meds are you still going to have the acne? Try a all natural approach. My sil from China suggested grape seed for my pms pimples. Also my aunt and very good friend both have white blotchy hands/skin due to over taking anti biotics and now are loosing pigment in the skin. Yes if you need antibotics then by all means take real perscription meds. But for acne??? Try something more natural.