Accutane information..... If you are thinking of using it..... PLEASE READ

[Hazard]

Hey guys,

There has been a lot of questions surrounding accutane, it's usage, and it's risks/benefits...... so i'm going to give you my experience and thoughts on the subject.

Accutane (isotretinoin) is an oral medication used to treat severe acne - most commonly in teenagers. There is a place for accutane in bodybuilding but the first thing you have to understand is that the reason we (bodybuilders) use accutane is slightly different than a teenage kid.

A teenage kid has natural hormonal acne - it's not steroid induced. Their hormone levels are all over the place but they aren't superhuman. When they are given accutane - it shuts down the oil glands, the skin dries out, and acne goes away. They are under a doctors care and they also receive blood work. Since their hormone levels aren't in the superhuman range - those oil glands can stay shut down for a very very long time if not forever. Resulting in clear skin..... pretty much for the rest of their life maybe with exception to an occasional pimple.

Bodybuilders have steroid induced acne. Our hormone levels go THROUGH THE ROOF and it causes us to produce more oil than normal. Not all bodybuilders get acne - they're the lucky ones. Those of us that do know how painfull and embarrassing it can be. What do we do when we're loaded with acne and don't want to take our shirts off at the beach? We do what we always tend to do..... go straight for the strongest compound.

Before I touch on accutane I just want to let everyone know that there is a post I made regarding acne treatments. Phate has it linked in his link database under "acne control"

Accutane as most of us know is rough on the body. It certainly is liver toxic..... How liver toxic? I don't know for certain. Most of us don't have the means to get bloodwork done every 30 days when cycling so we never truely know how harsh orals are after we're done running them. If you decide to take accutane there are a few things you should know 1st.

1) It is liver toxic. Live toxicity is, in my opinion, overstated for a lot of things. Does this mean taking accutane with anadrol is a good idea? NO. If you choose to take accutane with oral steroids..... that is your perrogotive. If you get bloodwork done - please let us know how your liver enzymes look as it would benefit everyone just to know one persons experience. Tho..... we can't use one experience to base truth for all of us.

2) It WILL take care of your acne problem. There's no doubt about it.... the stuff works.

3) If you use it "on cycle" and stop it's usage - they acne can and probably will come back.

4) PCT is the worst time for acne. If you used accutane for the last 6 weeks of your cycle and stopped before PCT..... your acne will most likely come back. You need to figure out when you want to be acne-free and time out your usage.

5) Accutane can severely dry out your skin. This means everything..... not just your back. Your lips can become chapped and split open - this is always awesome when on a 1st date.

6) Accutane can make your skin more sensitive to sunlight. Tanning and being in the sun all day IS NOT recommended as you may burn easier.

7) You can abuse it or you can be as safe as possible about taking it.


Here is a brief rundown of how I believe one should take accutane in the safest yet still effective way..... I'll give it to you in 3 steps.

Step 1 - (only for severe acne cases) Use 40mg's of accutane per day until the acne is visibly starting to reduce. Usually no more than 10 days - I would not continue this dosage past the 10 day mark just to be SAFE.

Step 2 - Use 20mg's/day until the acne is just about clear. You may still have red spots (scars) but as long as the acne is subsiding you are ok to continue to step 3.

Step 3 - Use 5-10mg's/day as a maintenance dosage for a couple weeks and keep an eye on the acne to make sure it's not flaring up again. If you are still clear after a couple weeks you can stop using the accutane. Just remember..... acne may come back.

There are pro's and cons to everything. Acne is just a rotten monster we sometimes have to deal with. While we'd always like to use the most powerful tool to get what we want..... it may not always be necessary. There are other options out there - please read up on them!

Lastly, guys..... Please use accutane carefully. It's not something to joke around with. Your doing something very serious by injecting exogenous hormones into your body, changing your body chemistry, and then attempting to restore your self months later. You need to be serious about every aspect of this - including how you use accutane.

I hope this helped!

~Haz~

[tronics]

thanks i never used its and was needing some more info on it...

[Critical Mass]

Im bookmarking this. Great post!

[Big]

Excellent thread Haz.

[spooledup]

The main issue with accutane isn't liver toxicity, but the main issue is triglyceride elevation and lipid profile skewing.

Both times I used accutane my bloodwork showed these issues after 4 months or so. Liver enzymes were never an issue.

So, the main reason you don't want to cycle while using accutane, is because AAS can also skew lipid profiles in a negative way.

You need to really watch your diet and bad fat intake.

Also, you need to use accutane for at least 4 months or so. It works slowly by shrinking the subQ glands that secrete sebum, an oily substance that is used to lubricate a hair follicle. Using it for a month or two is pretty much useless and you can count on having to use it again.

[Hazard]

The main issue with accutane isn't liver toxicity, but the main issue is triglyceride elevation and lipid profile skewing.

Both times I used accutane my bloodwork showed these issues after 4 months or so. Liver enzymes were never an issue.

You need to really watch your diet and and bad fat intake.

Also, you need to use accutane for at least 4 months or so. It works slowly by shrinking the subQ glands that secrete sebum, an oily substance that is used to lubricate a hair follicle. Using it for a month or two is pretty much useless and you can count on having to use it again.

The lipid profile is definately a concern - but we shouldn't be intaking a ton of fat to begin with.

Regarding using it for 4 months..... i'm not totally on board with it. I've used it for 2 months with great success. I started mine durring PCT and continued for a month past my pct and the acne never came back. That is until I cycled again.....

You can use accutane for 8 months and once you cycle again.... that acne can come right back. It's very person dependant.....

~Haz~

[spooledup]

Also, accutane is a retinoid, and there have been studies that show retinoids reduce testosterone levels in males. Using accutane during PCT can adversely affect your ability to restore your natural test levels.

I can tell you first hand that I felt totally down in the dumps when I was using it.

Here is a study on rats, I can't find the human one right now.

Retinoic acid and accutane are the same thing..

http://grande.nal.usda.gov/ibids/ind...&therow=662476

[Hazard]

Also, accutane is a retinoid, and there have been studies that show retinoids reduce testosterone levels in males. Using accutane during PCT can adversely affect your ability to restore your natural test levels.

I can tell you first hand that I felt totally down in the dumps when I was using it.

Here is a study on rats, I can't find the human one right now.

Retinoic acid and accutane are the same thing..

http://grande.nal.usda.gov/ibids/ind...&therow=662476

Interesting.... didn't know that. I didn't seem to be effected as my testosterone levels were normal 2 weeks past PCT while still on accutane.

Good info tho! Lets get as much info on accutane in here so more people can make smarter decisions.

~Haz~

[spooledup]

When using accutane, drop any vitamin A supplements you're using. Retinoids are vitamin A derivatives. Vitamin A can be toxic in large quantities.

No multi vitamin, and limit foods rich in vitamin A like broccoli.

[Vitruvian-Man]

Excellent read, and an excellent summary Haz.

I've got one things I might add though:

-- You never mentioned any protocol for actually shutting down your oil producing glands permanently. I realize you probably didn't want to include this protocol into your OP, because it requires running quite high dosages, for a longer period of time (and should 100% be run under doc supervision, with regular blood-work) but I think it should definitely be included. (if you give me approval I'll post up, how to do this...)

BTW.... "What do we do when we're loaded with acne and don't want to take our shirts off at the beach? We do what we always tend to do..... go straight for the strongest compound." = the story of EVERRY bodybuilders life!! haha.

[Hazard]

Excellent read, and an excellent summary Haz.

I've got one things I might add though:

-- You never mentioned any protocol for actually shutting down your oil producing glands permanently. I realize you probably didn't want to include this protocol into your OP, because it requires running quite high dosages, for a longer period of time (and should 100% be run under doc supervision, with regular blood-work) but I think it should definitely be included. (if you give me approval I'll post up, how to do this...)

Yeah - I have never ran mine under doc supervision so I never have gone crazy with dosing. If you want to post it up - be my guest. I would just caution users against doing it without doc supervision. This is really just a summary of my experience with it. I have had bloodwork done while on it.... another time after using it.... I had no adverse health effects. NON of this tho was done under direct supervision of a dermatologist.

BTW.... "What do we do when we're loaded with acne and don't want to take our shirts off at the beach? We do what we always tend to do..... go straight for the strongest compound." = the story of EVERRY bodybuilders life!! haha.

LMAO yeah..... I knew that would hit home for a lot of us LOL. Thats why I referred everyone to the link database..... there are other treatments. Also.... a simple search will yield a bunch of acne treatments including "Acne annhilator"

~Haz~

[Vitruvian-Man]

Yeah - I have never ran mine under doc supervision so I never have gone crazy with dosing. If you want to post it up - be my guest. I would just caution users against doing it without doc supervision. This is really just a summary of my experience with it. I have had bloodwork done while on it.... another time after using it.... I had no adverse health effects. NON of this tho was done under direct supervision of a dermatologist.

Ok. Here I'll add a LOT to this thread right now. You better appreciate this bro

Protocol for Eliminating Acne:

Accutane can be run effectively at 1mg per every 2.2kg of bodyweight.

However, for awful acne, one needs to "shock" the system with vitamin B, which will cause an instant recession in acne (note: the first week on accutane acne MAY flare up even worse, do not worry, it's just your body excreting all the trapped oil under your skin!)

Begin your dosage @ 30mg each day. If you can deal with the side affects continue to bump the dosage up. (increase by 10mg each week) My doctor left me at 60mg for 4 weeks. (but I've heard of people running accutane at 80mg each day -- I could not even imagine how horrible this would be for your lips, etc.)

LMAO yeah..... I knew that would hit home for a lot of us LOL.

lol. The funny thing is that I never got acne before. It's when I started experimenting with 19-nor compounds that I got screwed.


.... Now this is my piece de resistance: This is my blood-work, which was taken while on my last cycle of accutane...

Hematology Panel

wbc (4 - 10) -- 5.2 -- giga/L
rbc (4.2 - 5.4) --5.03-- tera/L
hemoglobin (133 - 165)--149--g/L
hematrocit (0.38 - 5)--0.43--
mcv (82 - 98)--86--fl
mch (27.5 - 33.5)-- 29.6--pg
mchc (305 - 265)--246--g/L
rdw (11.5 - 14.5)--13.1--%
platelet count (150 - 400)--162--giga/L

wbc differential

neutrophils (2 - 7.5)-- 2.4--giga/L
lymphocytes (1 - 4)-- 2.1-- " "
monocytes (0.1 - 0.8)-- 0.6-- " "
eosinophils (0 - 0.7)-- 0.2-- " "
basophils (0 - 0.2)-- 0 -- " "

tsh (0.38 - 5.5) -- 1.2 -- mU / L

glucose fasting (3.3 - 6.0) -- 5.5 -- mmol/L

Urea (2.5 - 7) --8.1--umol/L
Creatinine (70 - 120) -- 134 -- umol/L
eGFR ( >=60) -- 78 -- mL / min

ggt (10-- 58) -- 15 -- u/L
ast ( <30) -- 19 -- u/L
alt (<50 ) -- 12 -- u/L

Cholesterol (2 - 4.59) -- 3.68 -- mmol/L
Fasting = YES
Triglyceride (0.45 - 2.29) -- 0,81 -- mmol/L
HDL-Cholesterol ( >0.9) -- 1.11 -- mmol/L
Chol: HGL ratio ( < 4.9 ) -- 3.27

LDL cholesterol (1.5 - 2.99) -- 2.15 -- mmol / L

[TITANIUM]

Excellent post Haz.

Running it my next cycle.

Excellent post bro!

Putting this info in a folder.

Thanks

Best

T

[T.STEEL]

Great info! Thanks!

[Swifto]

Also, accutane is a retinoid, and there have been studies that show retinoids reduce testosterone levels in males. Using accutane during PCT can adversely affect your ability to restore your natural test levels.

I can tell you first hand that I felt totally down in the dumps when I was using it.

Here is a study on rats, I can't find the human one right now.

Retinoic acid and accutane are the same thing..

http://grande.nal.usda.gov/ibids/ind...&therow=662476

Really?

Because I posted 2 studies yesterday showing it had no effect on endogenous T.

I'd like to see the study you refer too...

[Swifto]

Hey guys,

There has been a lot of questions surrounding accutane, it's usage, and it's risks/benefits...... so i'm going to give you my experience and thoughts on the subject.

Accutane (isotretinoin) is an oral medication used to treat severe acne - most commonly in teenagers. There is a place for accutane in bodybuilding but the first thing you have to understand is that the reason we (bodybuilders) use accutane is slightly different than a teenage kid.

A teenage kid has natural hormonal acne - it's not steroid induced. Their hormone levels are all over the place but they aren't superhuman. When they are given accutane - it shuts down the oil glands, the skin dries out, and acne goes away. They are under a doctors care and they also receive blood work. Since their hormone levels aren't in the superhuman range - those oil glands can stay shut down for a very very long time if not forever. Resulting in clear skin..... pretty much for the rest of their life maybe with exception to an occasional pimple.

Bodybuilders have steroid induced acne. Our hormone levels go THROUGH THE ROOF and it causes us to produce more oil than normal. Not all bodybuilders get acne - they're the lucky ones. Those of us that do know how painfull and embarrassing it can be. What do we do when we're loaded with acne and don't want to take our shirts off at the beach? We do what we always tend to do..... go straight for the strongest compound.

Before I touch on accutane I just want to let everyone know that there is a post I made regarding acne treatments. Phate has it linked in his link database under "acne control"

Accutane as most of us know is rough on the body. It certainly is liver toxic..... How liver toxic? I don't know for certain. Most of us don't have the means to get bloodwork done every 30 days when cycling so we never truely know how harsh orals are after we're done running them. If you decide to take accutane there are a few things you should know 1st.

1) It is liver toxic. Live toxicity is, in my opinion, overstated for a lot of things. Does this mean taking accutane with anadrol is a good idea? NO. If you choose to take accutane with oral steroids..... that is your perrogotive. If you get bloodwork done - please let us know how your liver enzymes look as it would benefit everyone just to know one persons experience. Tho..... we can't use one experience to base truth for all of us.

2) It WILL take care of your acne problem. There's no doubt about it.... the stuff works.

3) If you use it "on cycle" and stop it's usage - they acne can and probably will come back.

4) PCT is the worst time for acne. If you used accutane for the last 6 weeks of your cycle and stopped before PCT..... your acne will most likely come back. You need to figure out when you want to be acne-free and time out your usage.

5) Accutane can severely dry out your skin. This means everything..... not just your back. Your lips can become chapped and split open - this is always awesome when on a 1st date.

6) Accutane can make your skin more sensitive to sunlight. Tanning and being in the sun all day IS NOT recommended as you may burn easier.

7) You can abuse it or you can be as safe as possible about taking it.


Here is a brief rundown of how I believe one should take accutane in the safest yet still effective way..... I'll give it to you in 3 steps.

Step 1 - (only for severe acne cases) Use 40mg's of accutane per day until the acne is visibly starting to reduce. Usually no more than 10 days - I would not continue this dosage past the 10 day mark just to be SAFE.

Step 2 - Use 20mg's/day until the acne is just about clear. You may still have red spots (scars) but as long as the acne is subsiding you are ok to continue to step 3.

Step 3 - Use 5-10mg's/day as a maintenance dosage for a couple weeks and keep an eye on the acne to make sure it's not flaring up again. If you are still clear after a couple weeks you can stop using the accutane. Just remember..... acne may come back.

There are pro's and cons to everything. Acne is just a rotten monster we sometimes have to deal with. While we'd always like to use the most powerful tool to get what we want..... it may not always be necessary. There are other options out there - please read up on them!

Lastly, guys..... Please use accutane carefully. It's not something to joke around with. Your doing something very serious by injecting exogenous hormones into your body, changing your body chemistry, and then attempting to restore your self months later. You need to be serious about every aspect of this - including how you use accutane.

I hope this helped!

~Haz~

Excellent post Hazard.

I was actually going to write something on Accutane, but you've hit the nail on the head here.

[spooledup]

I'd like to see the study you refer too...

I found one but there is still another somewhere.

http://grande.nal.usda.gov/ibids/ind...s&therow=40257

Isotretinoin, used to treat severe acne, has been shown to induce hormonal changes, especially to reduce 5α-reductase in the production of the tissue-derived dihydrotestosterone (DHT) metabolite 3α-Adiol G. However, the effects of isotretinoin on other pituitary, adrenal or gonadal hormones have not been thoroughly elucidated. In the present study, isotretinoin administered at a dose of 0.5 mg/kg/day for 4 weeks caused no marked changes in the serum levels of pituitary, adrenal or gonadal hormones or 3a-Adiol G in patients with severe papulopustulotic acne (n=19). After 12 weeks of therapy, there was a decrease in the levels of the precursor androgens androstenedione, testosterone and 3α-Adiol G in 6/9 patients. Acne improved after 4.5 months in all but 2 male patients, who had very low serum hormone binding globulins (SHBG) and a high free androgen index (FAI). Isotretinoin did not affect the elevated LH/FSH ratio in a patient with the polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS); nor did it change the high FAI or low SHBG in the male patients. For comparison, tetracycline had no effects on the serum hormonal levels of patients with mild acne (n=19) after 7 days of treatment. This study confirms that the effects of isotretinoin on the serum hormone levels are small and unlikely to be of relevance for the resolution of acne or the suppression of sebum excretion.

[Roidbeginner]

Great post!

I take 10mg/day acutane for six months and my blood work came back w/o any changes in liver enzymes and cholesterol.

The key is to take accutane at low dose and for long duration. currently, the same regimen suppressed any appearance of acne during my cycle.

Another side of accutane is the proinflammatory response and slower healing effect. In other words, avoid squeezing any acne as your body tend to bruise more easily. You can take certirizine (zytrec) and/or hydrocortisone/gentamicin cream for such cases.

[E Police 183]

I just got blasted on another post when i said that the acne usually gets worse before it gets better. whoever said that I was WRONG by saying this. Its the truth, i'm sure it is partly case by case but there are actually warning on the box that say this may occur as well. Another thing is I didnt know that accutane worked that quickly, when i used it, it took at least a month if not more before it started clearing up. I dunno maybe the Dr. had me on low dosage or maybe teenage acne is just plain different.

[Swifto]

I found one but there is still another somewhere.

http://grande.nal.usda.gov/ibids/ind...s&therow=40257

Isotretinoin, used to treat severe acne, has been shown to induce hormonal changes, especially to reduce 5α-reductase in the production of the tissue-derived dihydrotestosterone (DHT) metabolite 3α-Adiol G. However, the effects of isotretinoin on other pituitary, adrenal or gonadal hormones have not been thoroughly elucidated. In the present study, isotretinoin administered at a dose of 0.5 mg/kg/day for 4 weeks caused no marked changes in the serum levels of pituitary, adrenal or gonadal hormones or 3a-Adiol G in patients with severe papulopustulotic acne (n=19). After 12 weeks of therapy, there was a decrease in the levels of the precursor androgens androstenedione, testosterone and 3α-Adiol G in 6/9 patients. Acne improved after 4.5 months in all but 2 male patients, who had very low serum hormone binding globulins (SHBG) and a high free androgen index (FAI). Isotretinoin did not affect the elevated LH/FSH ratio in a patient with the polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS); nor did it change the high FAI or low SHBG in the male patients. For comparison, tetracycline had no effects on the serum hormonal levels of patients with mild acne (n=19) after 7 days of treatment. This study confirms that the effects of isotretinoin on the serum hormone levels are small and unlikely to be of relevance for the resolution of acne or the suppression of sebum excretion.

Yes, but how much.

I quoted this study, highlighting the ending, "This study confirms that the effects of isotretinoin on the serum hormone levels are small and unlikely to be of relevance for the resolution of acne or the suppression of sebum excretion".

I'd like to see the full paper, as I dont think the "decrease" is significant at all.

[Hazard]

Excellent post Hazard.

I was actually going to write something on Accutane, but you've hit the nail on the head here.

Thanks big guy

~Haz~

[Hazard]

I just got blasted on another post when i said that the acne usually gets worse before it gets better. whoever said that I was WRONG by saying this. Its the truth, i'm sure it is partly case by case but there are actually warning on the box that say this may occur as well. Another thing is I didnt know that accutane worked that quickly, when i used it, it took at least a month if not more before it started clearing up. I dunno maybe the Dr. had me on low dosage or maybe teenage acne is just plain different.

I'm sure it can be true in some cases..... I personally have never had that experience nor has anyone i've talked to that has used accutane. I'm not saying you are wrong..... you had a different experience from accutane than myself. I do know that vitamin B5 (pantothenic acid) can push the rest of the oil up through the skin and increase acne for a slight period before it gets better.

Regarding how quick accutane works.... this also is person dependant. For me it seem to work really fast..... I'm not sure what dosage you were on..... if you can remember that would be really helpfull.

~Haz~

[sixey]

awesome thread guys, very informative. i am prone to very oily skin, never had very severe acne, the actual "acne bumps"/blackheads/cysts were moderate...but my forehead is veryy oily. has calmed down recently but im predisposed to oily skin. granted my cycle wont be for a few more years, but im pretty much expecting there to be some acne/oily skin issues while on cycle.
accutane is some scary stuff. like others have said, i am more nervous to take this than sticking a pin in my ass haha.

QUESTION IS: should acne/oily skin become a problem on cycle, will a low dose at 10mg a day incur that several month "get worse" period that is common for accutane, or will the low dose kick in within a week or two and reduce the oil/acne flare up? from everything i have been reading, the low dose is effective for controlling the oil/acne with minimal sides...rather than the higher doses which nuke the sebum glands and cause the NASTY sides.

[Hazard]

awesome thread guys, very informative. i am prone to very oily skin, never had very severe acne, the actual "acne bumps"/blackheads/cysts were moderate...but my forehead is veryy oily. has calmed down recently but im predisposed to oily skin. granted my cycle wont be for a few more years, but im pretty much expecting there to be some acne/oily skin issues while on cycle.
accutane is some scary stuff. like others have said, i am more nervous to take this than sticking a pin in my ass haha.

QUESTION IS: should acne/oily skin become a problem on cycle, will a low dose at 10mg a day incur that several month "get worse" period that is common for accutane, or will the low dose kick in within a week or two and reduce the oil/acne flare up? from everything i have been reading, the low dose is effective for controlling the oil/acne with minimal sides...rather than the higher doses which nuke the sebum glands and cause the NASTY sides.

I have the same problem..... the dryer my skin gets - the better.

I would wait until acne starts and then start taking 10mg's/day. Don't let it get out of control tho before you start. Accutane works extremilly fast for me..... i'm clear within 2 weeks. Each person is different tho and we can't say for sure how you will react.

~Haz~

[Reed]

So with Accutane pateints developing Crohns disease. Something maybe to think about before taking this???

[Hazard]

So with Accutane pateints developing Crohns disease. Something maybe to think about before taking this???

GOOD CALL REED! Forgot about this.....

It's being advertised all over the TV that people have developed Chrones disease from using accutane. Use at your own risk..... I still do

~Haz~

[boxin23]

Haz....so i posted some acne issues i ran into right when i hit PCT and you gave some comments....

I said i was going to my doc and he stated to me that accutane was being banned on the medical distribution list in the U.S.

Has anyone heard that?

Instead he gave me a scrip of tetracycline which is far less harsh he stated than accutane. It has been one week and it is drying up my acne already.

I know there are negatives on this drug also, but so far so good. I just got my blood work done and will post up what i find out in a couple days. I am interested if others use this drug and how it worked and also if anyone has run into the "banned" in the US thing with the accutane.

Great posts everyone...thanks for the info.

[sixey]

I have the same problem..... the dryer my skin gets - the better.

I would wait until acne starts and then start taking 10mg's/day. Don't let it get out of control tho before you start. Accutane works extremilly fast for me..... i'm clear within 2 weeks. Each person is different tho and we can't say for sure how you will react.

~Haz~

thanks brah. yeah im going to have 60 of the 10mg tabs on hand just in case. i specifically designed my cycle so that it allows for the steadiest and most balanced possible hormone levels, but just in case something goes out of whack i dont want my face to look like im in middle school again.

i have been reading up alot on low dose accutane. alot of people with similar conditions to mine have had perfect results with the only sides being chapped lips.

GOOD CALL REED! Forgot about this.....

It's being advertised all over the TV that people have developed Chrones disease from using accutane. Use at your own risk..... I still do

~Haz~

i think running it at such a low dose for a comparatively short duration (most cycles are high dose for 4-6+ months) is going to be completely fine.

[sixey]

Haz....so i posted some acne issues i ran into right when i hit PCT and you gave some comments....

I said i was going to my doc and he stated to me that accutane was being banned on the medical distribution list in the U.S.

Has anyone heard that?

Instead he gave me a scrip of tetracycline which is far less harsh he stated than accutane. It has been one week and it is drying up my acne already.

I know there are negatives on this drug also, but so far so good. I just got my blood work done and will post up what i find out in a couple days. I am interested if others use this drug and how it worked and also if anyone has run into the "banned" in the US thing with the accutane.

Great posts everyone...thanks for the info.

is your acne more of just pimples or do you get the extremely oily skin?

i have tried minocycline and im pretty sure tetra as well with no result. if your skin isnt oily and your getting little zits/cysts...that seems to be something antibiotics can help. but if your main problem is just excessive oil then your going to have to run some low dose accutane. (some people say B5 in massive doses helps...i tried it once and it didnt do anything, even chased with juice the bulk powder tastes horrible too haha)

[spicyer]

Great thread Haz,

I have and will continue to use accutane til Im dead or the acne is, thats the competitive, compulsive, addictive personality in me.

I've been on 20mg per day for about 6 weeks and my acne is under control, but not gone. I started that dose during my blast while using 250 test e, 450 prop and 600eq, I'll be back on normal trt dose in two weeks and then do bw 3 weeks after that.

My acne did get worse before better, but then I had just started the blast also and since Im so acne prone, hard to say if accutane or test caused excess breakout at the start.

I drink over a gallon of water per day, every morning I wake up my mouth and throat are so dry it hurts, my eyes dry out and itch, my body is itchy its so dry, but I'll be damned if that cyst type acne won't plant a couple on my neck or worst forehead.

Last I'll add I did keep tanning, wtf, with all the other abuse I put my body through this couldn't hurt, oh but it did, all the scarring that I had on my body is now bright red and some of that is on my face - ouch!

[boxin23]

is your acne more of just pimples or do you get the extremely oily skin?

i have tried minocycline and im pretty sure tetra as well with no result. if your skin isnt oily and your getting little zits/cysts...that seems to be something antibiotics can help. but if your main problem is just excessive oil then your going to have to run some low dose accutane. (some people say B5 in massive doses helps...i tried it once and it didnt do anything, even chased with juice the bulk powder tastes horrible too haha)

I've never had issues with acne until i cycled and only started getting acne when i hit PCT....my skin was not extremely oily but i was getting larger harder zits on my delts and lower/middle back...it hurt, sucked and is embarrasing. They were larger and were not small surface type zits. It is drying it up pretty good now.

I have also added b5 to my vitamin regiment. I have heard to do 2000 mg's for 2 weeks then scale back to 1000 a day when on cycle and 500 between.

[no1tou]

I have also added b5 to my vitamin regiment. I have heard to do 2000 mg's for 2 weeks then scale back to 1000 a day when on cycle and 500 between.

After seeing a suggestion by Haz in another thread I started taking B5 @ 5g a day and even though it's less then the suggested 10-20g for acne protocol it seemed to work wonders for me! Honestly my skin has never been this clear!

Thanks again Haz!

[boxin23]

After seeing a suggestion by Haz in another thread I started taking B5 @ 5g a day and even though it's less then the suggested 10-20g for acne protocol it seemed to work wonders for me! Honestly my skin has never been this clear!

Thanks again Haz!

How long after the b5 regiment did you start to see results and was this all you did?

[RED26]

Good post hazard.

[tembe]

i used it a while ago when i had a very bad acne problem

i did not find the acne came back so badly during cycle

only bit here and there particularly on chest

nuthing to bad however! just get a tan solves everything haha

[Hazard]

After seeing a suggestion by Haz in another thread I started taking B5 @ 5g a day and even though it's less then the suggested 10-20g for acne protocol it seemed to work wonders for me! Honestly my skin has never been this clear!

Thanks again Haz!

~Haz~

[no1tou]

How long after the b5 regiment did you start to see results and was this all you did?

The first day it got a tiny bit worse but by day 4 my skin was clear. Just a few red spots left from where zits used to be. Now it's day 6 and it's damn near spotless. And I'm kinda pale right now. I haven't tanned in a month or more. However don't give up to early. I read it take 3 days to 2 weeks to see results.

Ending hijack sorry.

[cherrydrpepper]

Great thread and hopefully we can reference this everytime someone new asks about accutane. I have been on Accutane about 20 days (10 days at 40 mg a day, 10 days at 20 mg a day). My acne has gotten a lot better but most of the acne started during my cycle. I started the accutane when I started my PCT of nolva/clomid. My acne is all but gone. I have a couple of spots but before I looked like a supreme pizza now its barely anything. I like to rotate UDCA, Liv 52 and Milk Thistle taking some of one every day.

Thanks Haz

[jackiekok]

Sorry for the bump, but nevertheless;

I'm currently on accutane for nearly 3 months.
First month 40mg ED
Second month 60mg ED
This month 80mg ED.
(acne not caused by AAS!)

After I'm done I'll be taking a cycle tbol, as it has low side effects, I hope I won't get acne from it. Anyways, if I do get acne from it, do I need to take these high doses of accutane again? Or can I stick with 20mg ED? Clearly I'll start accutane after PCT.

Good thread btw!

And oh yeah, don't fkn drink alcohol if you're taking accutane!

[gregghowie]

I heard people had success with runninng accutane should they need if at low doses for a number of months. Then they began their cycle just after they had finished. Because the accutane was still present in the body and would still keep the skin clear. I dont know how much truth there is in this but I am 20 days or so into accutane at 20 mg a day. And will probably continue on it for at least three to four months. And I figure I might give this method a go because do not want to put any additional strain on my liver whilst taking AAS as well. But trust me I will most certainly have some low dose on hand for the PCT. Cus in my twenties acne is not the exactly the highlight of my youth!