Many of you, those who have suffered from acne throughout their lives, might be familiar with this name.
I used to have mild/moderate acne that has "ruined" my life for a long period of time (3 years or so.) and now I'm completely 100% clear thanks to Accutane.
In this post I will try to answer all the questions you might have about this drug in a Q&A/FAQ form.
So without further ado, let's get started!
Q: What is Accutane?
Accutane is just the marketing name of "Isotretinoin" another derivative of Vitamin A, in other words, it's another retinoid like those we've talked about before, including Adapalene (Differin) or Tretinoin (Retin-A)..etc. However, this drug is much stronger than other retinoids, and it's prescription only. It comes in the form of a pill.
Q: Who can use Accutane? This is a very important point. In my case, during my long struggle with acne, I have been prescribed all forms of acne medication, from topical creams, washes, gels, to the combination of antibiotic pills with retinoids. Some never worked, some worked quite well but I wasn't perfectly clear, and acne also came back shortly.
I decided not to give up and I went to a new dermatologist and he told me: "It's your choice:" He would either give me another "mild" treatment (topical creams and other pills because my acne wasn't really severe or anything) or he would give me the "bomb" treatment. He said it was extremely effective at getting rid of acne for good but he was worried about the side effects (we'll come to this later.)
I most definitely asked for the strong medication because I knew mild treatments worked only temporarily and my acne was very persistent, though moderate.
Long story short: Accutane is the last hope of the those who are tired of their skin breaking out like crazy all the time. It's basically used to treat severe acne but you can also use it to treat moderate acne. The secret is in the dosage and we'll come to that in a moment.
Q: What is the right dosage of Accutane for my acne type? Like I said, you can't get Accutane unless your doctor prescribes it, and he will decide what dose is right for you.
In general though, if your acne is mild/moderate, you will start with a very low dose (to minimize side effects) that is proportional to your weight (starting at 0.5mg/kg ) and it will be increased gradually depending on your case, but the dose will always be relatively low compared to that used for severe acne which can be a little over 1mg/Kg.
So yeah, this totally depends on your weight and acne type. Your doctor will know what's right for you.
Q: Does Accutane Work? Here comes the most important and sought after question here. From my experience (and according to everyone else including all dermatologists) YES YES YES!! It f***ing works!
Still, the first disappointment (at least for me) was the time it takes. The regular Accutane course is at least three months but the ideal is five to six months (my case for instance.)
First, it's because of the low dose that I was prescribed, so yeah, the lower the dose, the longer it will take. You might as well have an initial break out, and of course we're all pretty used to that.
Q: Will my acne come back?
Another very important question. The relapse chances vary depending on your acne type. If you have severe acne, a low dose won't do much for you even over a year, so your doctor will probably prescribe a very high dose to minimize relapse rates.
As for mild to moderate acne, a relatively low dose for six months or so is proven to clear skin completely with very low relapse rates, so yeah, practically, acne's gone forever!
Well, even if acne comes back, it won't be as bad as it used to be.
Q: Will Accutane help with Backne/Chestne? Yeah, most definitely. Not only your face will be clear for good, your body as well. Accutane works from the inside out, you know.
Q: How to maintain results?Again, your doctor knows best, they will prescribe the right way to maintain your perfectly clear skin and prevent acne from coming back. They will usually recommend a topical retinoid or so.
Q: Does Accutane help with scars?No, sadly it does absolutely nothing to help your scars. It doesn't seem to worsen them either.
Q: What are the side effects?
Accutane works by simply stopping your pores from producing sebum (oil) and by pores I mean pores all over your body!! From your scalp to your feet. So yeah, the first and most common and obvious side effect is that your skin will be super super dry, especially in winter months. A Good moisturizer will help with that.
The worst part of it are the lips though. You will need to apply a very thick lip balm constantly. You will also need to wash your hair less often and with a milder shampoo (fortunately I CO wash so it helped a lot because my hair is naturally kinda dry.)
As far as I'm concerned, this was the only side effect I experienced, probably because my dose was quite low.
Accutane also causes serious birth defects and that's why it's strictly regulated. Pregnant women should not use Accutane under any circumstances. Doctors wouldn't allow it anyway.
Common side effects may include joint/back pain, nose bleeding, nausea.. you can do some research but don't worry, your doctor will try to avoid all that, and after all it's totally worth it haha. You will also need to do some blood tests every month or so to ensure your triglycerides/cholesterol levels and such are not going crazy because the drug does affect them.
So, that's about it, I only wanted to share with you all I've learned during my six months on Accutane. Today I've been clear for over one month. Not the single tiniest whitehead on my face!!
If you're tired of acne, just go to your doctor immediately and ask them for Accutane, it's totally worth it.
I used to have mild/moderate acne that has "ruined" my life for a long period of time (3 years or so.) and now I'm completely 100% clear thanks to Accutane.
In this post I will try to answer all the questions you might have about this drug in a Q&A/FAQ form.
So without further ado, let's get started!
Q: What is Accutane?
Accutane is just the marketing name of "Isotretinoin" another derivative of Vitamin A, in other words, it's another retinoid like those we've talked about before, including Adapalene (Differin) or Tretinoin (Retin-A)..etc. However, this drug is much stronger than other retinoids, and it's prescription only. It comes in the form of a pill.
Q: Who can use Accutane? This is a very important point. In my case, during my long struggle with acne, I have been prescribed all forms of acne medication, from topical creams, washes, gels, to the combination of antibiotic pills with retinoids. Some never worked, some worked quite well but I wasn't perfectly clear, and acne also came back shortly.
I decided not to give up and I went to a new dermatologist and he told me: "It's your choice:" He would either give me another "mild" treatment (topical creams and other pills because my acne wasn't really severe or anything) or he would give me the "bomb" treatment. He said it was extremely effective at getting rid of acne for good but he was worried about the side effects (we'll come to this later.)
I most definitely asked for the strong medication because I knew mild treatments worked only temporarily and my acne was very persistent, though moderate.
Long story short: Accutane is the last hope of the those who are tired of their skin breaking out like crazy all the time. It's basically used to treat severe acne but you can also use it to treat moderate acne. The secret is in the dosage and we'll come to that in a moment.
Q: What is the right dosage of Accutane for my acne type? Like I said, you can't get Accutane unless your doctor prescribes it, and he will decide what dose is right for you.
In general though, if your acne is mild/moderate, you will start with a very low dose (to minimize side effects) that is proportional to your weight (starting at 0.5mg/kg ) and it will be increased gradually depending on your case, but the dose will always be relatively low compared to that used for severe acne which can be a little over 1mg/Kg.
So yeah, this totally depends on your weight and acne type. Your doctor will know what's right for you.
Q: Does Accutane Work? Here comes the most important and sought after question here. From my experience (and according to everyone else including all dermatologists) YES YES YES!! It f***ing works!
Still, the first disappointment (at least for me) was the time it takes. The regular Accutane course is at least three months but the ideal is five to six months (my case for instance.)
First, it's because of the low dose that I was prescribed, so yeah, the lower the dose, the longer it will take. You might as well have an initial break out, and of course we're all pretty used to that.
Q: Will my acne come back?
Another very important question. The relapse chances vary depending on your acne type. If you have severe acne, a low dose won't do much for you even over a year, so your doctor will probably prescribe a very high dose to minimize relapse rates.
As for mild to moderate acne, a relatively low dose for six months or so is proven to clear skin completely with very low relapse rates, so yeah, practically, acne's gone forever!
Well, even if acne comes back, it won't be as bad as it used to be.
Q: Will Accutane help with Backne/Chestne? Yeah, most definitely. Not only your face will be clear for good, your body as well. Accutane works from the inside out, you know.
Q: How to maintain results?Again, your doctor knows best, they will prescribe the right way to maintain your perfectly clear skin and prevent acne from coming back. They will usually recommend a topical retinoid or so.
Q: Does Accutane help with scars?No, sadly it does absolutely nothing to help your scars. It doesn't seem to worsen them either.
Q: What are the side effects?
Accutane works by simply stopping your pores from producing sebum (oil) and by pores I mean pores all over your body!! From your scalp to your feet. So yeah, the first and most common and obvious side effect is that your skin will be super super dry, especially in winter months. A Good moisturizer will help with that.
The worst part of it are the lips though. You will need to apply a very thick lip balm constantly. You will also need to wash your hair less often and with a milder shampoo (fortunately I CO wash so it helped a lot because my hair is naturally kinda dry.)
As far as I'm concerned, this was the only side effect I experienced, probably because my dose was quite low.
Accutane also causes serious birth defects and that's why it's strictly regulated. Pregnant women should not use Accutane under any circumstances. Doctors wouldn't allow it anyway.
Common side effects may include joint/back pain, nose bleeding, nausea.. you can do some research but don't worry, your doctor will try to avoid all that, and after all it's totally worth it haha. You will also need to do some blood tests every month or so to ensure your triglycerides/cholesterol levels and such are not going crazy because the drug does affect them.
So, that's about it, I only wanted to share with you all I've learned during my six months on Accutane. Today I've been clear for over one month. Not the single tiniest whitehead on my face!!
If you're tired of acne, just go to your doctor immediately and ask them for Accutane, it's totally worth it.