Accutane is a very serious step...one that I can personally not recommend to anyone. It made me break out THE WORST I have ever broken out. After finishing the proper cycle, it helped with my breakouts for hmm, maybe 3 months, then I started breaking out the same again. It will really dry out your skin and make it red and irritated, and you have to get a LOT of bloodwork done.
I am 20 years old and I haven't had a problem with acne until this year. Lately it's become an obsession- staring into the mirror, worrying about how I look, and my face constantly itching and hurting.
I went to a dermatologist for the first time on Saturday and it was incredibly overwhelming. He told me that on a scale of 1-10, my acne is an 8 and that I should have come in months earlier.
He prescribed me BenzaClin and Ziana (topical acne products) and Adoxa (tablets to swallow).
I have my fingers crossed, hoping for the best.
He asked me to research Accutane and consider taking it. I have heard so many horrible things about it, I was wondering what experiences everyone else has had.
My dermatologist also thinks that the Depakote I take for migraines might be causing my acne. Does anyone know of Depakote causing acne?
I am crying right now because I am so frustrated. Depakote has helped me so much with my migraines (I used to get them everyday, now only 1-2 times a week). And now I find out it may be causing my acne.
If anyone has any suggestions, please reply. It is much appreciated. Thank you so much.
do not take the accutane. this drug has ruined my life. It had disabled me and seriously damaged my bones. also, it has messed me up mentally. please don't risk it it's not worth it.
Hi
I just went to my derm today to have a few topicals switched and I asked him about the possibilities of putting me on a LOW dose of Accutane so my ocassional cystic acne will stop once and for all. He did inform me that it is NO LONGER possible to be put on a low dose of this medication. Only people who suffer from SEVERE cystic acne will be treated with this, and it is government regulated and only given in a supply of thirty days at a time with treatment ending at the end of the fifth or sixth month.. He told me in the past one would be able to be put on a low dosage of this, but not anymore... I asked him about the overall safeness of this and he did tell me that out of all of the patients that were under his care and on this med, he only had to stop treatment on two of them.. He also said that ACCUTANE is the best and nothing else can come close to it... I have been put on adoxa for my cystic outbreaks and its been just a little over two weeks now and I am beginning to see rapid inprovement in my skin.. I also use Klaron lotion and a new face wash called Rosula that I was put on today. He said using these in corabination should be a great beneficial factor to my sometimes severe cystic breakouts.. I have also used TAZORAC in the past with great results and continued to use it even after the treatment course was over. I used it for daily maintaining and it continued to work wonders... At the time when I started using it few months back I didnt like the initial breakout period as my skin would go ballastic on me... If I am to use it again (DERM) said the choice would be mine that if I take Adoxa in conjunction with it, that it should corabat or make the initial breakout period a lot less severe... GOOD LUCK in whatever steps you take to clear skin
Accutane is the gold standard for severe acne... the severe side effects are extremely rare... you still drive a car, even though there is a small chance of being injured... same thing here... small risk, big benifits.
I've been using the Ziana gel every day and it helps a lot. I've been taking Adoxa and it's been helping a ton!! My skin has cleared up (although I'm noticing some scarring more and more). I have an appt. with my dermatologist next Saturday so I will find out how MUCH clearer my skin is. (Before, he told me I was at an 8.)
I don't want to go on Accutane, and hopefully he will change his mind once he sees me.
accutane is a very serious drug, basically everyone here has said bad things about it.
the before and after stages for me was absolutely amazing.
I can safely say without hesitation that my back was a 10 (like your derm saying you were an 8). I had spots.. maby quarter the size of a golf ball on my back. If you got a ruler, you wouldn't have been able to find a spot more than 5cm away from the other.
Now, my back is amazing, just like someone who has never seen acne in their life.
It helped unbelievably with the scarring - my derm was sure that I was going to have quite a lot of scarring.
The side effects I had? Pretty much everything on the instructions that a boy could experience (most people won't have had the nuraber side effects I had). I didn't really enjoy life during those 3-4 months (or whatever).
read up on the drug. check out the message boarRAB and see what people who have taken the drug say. This drug is listed nuraber 4 on the list of drugs that cause mental problems. Roache just started making everyone who takes the drug join a registry. Severe side effects may not be extremely common but there are many side effects that are extremely common. Trust me this is a dangerous drug. Did you know it is really a chemotherapy drug? Think about that. I can understand taking this drug if you have cancer and theres a good chance you will die without it. But using it for acne is ridiculous.
Update:
It's been a long time (since 11/04/07) since I started this thread. Thanks for all of your responses. I ended up NOT going on Accutane. I'm finishing up Adoxa soon, and I've continued using Ziana and Benzaclin.
In Noveraber, my derm said I was an 8 on a scale of 1-10. Now, I am at about a 2!!!
The best decision I ever made was seeing my dermatologist. My face is so much clearer now. I've been using Cetaphil lotion every day, and using the Proactiv renewal cleanser.
