Anyone taken Roaccutane?

[Chimchar]

My ds (17) has just started taking this.
The Dr gave him a huge bottle of moisturiser along with the meds. I know it's to help with the side effect of dry skin, but is he supposed to use it on his face, where his acne is, or is it just to treat the body?
Any tips from anyone else who's taken it?
I've heard many success stories with this medication...really hope it works for ds.

Thanks.

I was prescribed it nearly 20 years ago at about the same age as your son.

I needed moisturiser for my face only, I don't remember the rest of my body being dry. I do remember being told to moisturise my face daily and use Vaseline on my lips and inside my nostrils.

As it is so drying I would imagine it should be used wherever he needs to. It's not specifically for the acne.

Oh and it was a wonder drug for me, cleared my awful acne in a few short months compared to the years I'd had it as a teen.

Hi OP. I took this when I was 22, I'm now 34 and honestly I have never had a spot since. It changed my life, I had terrible acne which gave me cysts on my cheeks and my confidence was at rock bottom.

I used moisturizer on my face every day and I would advise doing so because it does really dry you out and your skin can look worse initially because of this (good of he's prepared). I also used lip balm every day but might be harder for a guy. I know some people have needed eye drops but I didn't find I did. I was out of the habit of moisturising because it always made my acne worse but it really helped the look of my skin while on the drug.

Word of advice - my brother also too this drug and it didn't work for him because he was terrible at remembering to take it. He often skipped days and as a result his skin never fully cleared up. I think you have to be really disciplined and take it consistently.

There are a lot of horror stories out there about this drug as it can cause mental health issues in some patients. I didn't suffer this at all but it helped to be aware of it and I made an agreement with my parents to always tell them if I was starting to feel low/ different while on it.

Best of luck to your son!

Oh and tell him to drink lots of water too!

Wonder drug for me too, but the dry skin is tricky in the short term. My biggest problem was peeling lips so as PP advised a Vaseline regime may be helpful.

Great, thanks ever so much.
I'm nervous about him taking it...he had a period of depression about 18 months ago, and obviously, I've read about the side effects.
I'm glad it worked for you. Was your dry skin manageable? I'm not really sure what to expect.

Xposted.
Thanks everyone.

My ds is very good at taking meds,..he's been on skin treatment for years. He doesn't mind using Vaseline, so will tell him to start now, to try and prevent his lips from cracking.

Great tip on the drinking lots, will remind him.

I really appreciate your posts.

I’m 21, just finished my course of this last Thursday.. and it’s worked wonders for me!
Just tell him to moisturise as often as he can, I did morning, after my shower, then before bed.
It only effected my mood a small bit, I got upset every now and then about my acne, and felt down every now and then, but nothing too drastic where I thought I should stop taking them.
But with the check up every 4/5 weeks and speaking to the nurse, they’ll keep track of how he is on them.
My mum was worried about me being on them too, but being spot free now is the best feeling.
Tell your son it’ll be worth it in the end!

My DS has been taking this for just over 3 months. The difference in his skin is amazing. He had ready bad skin on his face, back and shoulders. Apart from dry skin and cracked lips he's had no other issues. He is reluctant to use Vaseline though.

It's REALLY reassuring to hear the positives! The booklet that came with the tablets was terrifying!

Thanks again.

I was on roaccutane 10 years ago and I dread to think my mental state if I hadn't had it. It cleared up my awful skin and I have barely had a spot since.
Definitely moisturise like it's going out of fashion, which I know is an odd concept if you suffer with acne. Get a good lip balm, my lips in particular got quite dry.
From memory I was monitored monthly in the derm clinic and they were quite good with checking up on mood etc.

What moisturiser is it? There should be directions on the prescription or the product itself.

But body dryness isn't really a thing ime. It's mostly on the face.

I took it, it cleared me up completely for about a year then it slowly came back and I might need to go back on it.

Hello again!

Ds has been on his meds for almost a month now... his skin was great for about a week but it's got a bit worse since. His mood is fine though which was my main worry.

His face skin is dry, and his lips are quite bad. Any recommendations for a good lip balm. Vaseline isn't cutting it, and another one we bought isn't enough either.

Also, his head/scalp is very itchy. I bought some baby shampoo because it's mild, but any experience with this anyone?

He's got his next appt in a few weeks. Any advice most welcome!

Thanks.

Neutrogena Norwegian Formula Lip Balm is very good.
The La Roche Posay products are great, esp for sensitive skins, they have a few dry skin creams. Boots and most pharmacies sell both brands.

Thanks. I'm going to boots in a minute so will keep an eye out for the two you mentioned.