Roaccutane - those of you who have been on it and had children

[Troton]

Thank you to some of you lovely mums-netters on here I made a gp appt about my acne and she immediately referred me to the dermatologist for roaccutane.
I have two young children and haven’t ruled out having a third. However I need to get my skin sorted first as it’s effecting my self esteem and mental health and has been a huge crush on my confidence.
What I’d like to know is if any of you have had roaccutane and then had children after and if so how long after stopping treatment did you ttc or conceive?
I’m worried about the long term health effects of roaccutane eg. Could it harm your eggs etc or have any effect on fertility etc
I don’t want to have a huge age gap between children but also don’t want any risks to baby of course as I know roaccutane is hugely unsafe to an unborn baby

If in doubt have your baby first then take the Roaccutane as you may be stressing about it whilst pregnant.

That said I took roaccutane and had 2 perfectly healthy DC afterwards.
I understand perfectly how having acne affects your self esteem and mental health but interestingly other people never see it as badly as we do, in that they see the person we are and not our acne.

Thank you TantricTwist
I have thought about having baby first however, my acne has got me so down in the last 1-2 years it’s really bashed my mental health. It’s got to the point where I avoid going to toddler groups and seeing friends etc as I want to put a bag Uber my head so I definitely need to prioritise fixing my skin foremost over everything else, a third baby included.
How long did you leave before coming off roaccutane and having your children?

*over not Uber!

Have you tried everything else first?

I think the dermatologist will advise you when the course comes to an end. I’m currently taking it and the advice is very much “do not get pregnant” and nothing beyond that. I imagine once I go to my final appointment they will advise on future ttc and if not, I will ask them.

I would guess waiting 6 months, but I am by no means a medical professional.

I am on it at the moment and was told by my derm to wait a minimum of 1 month before ttc. I'll be going for no 3 once I've finished my course although might wait a little longer than 1 month to start ttc. My last two dcs took approximately a year each to conceive though.

I 100% understand where you are coming from. I was exactly you. Only thing I'd say is that I first went to Gp and got a referral over a year ago. NHS is really slow to get appointments and due to me having a low weight I can't take a high dose so my course has been very long. Still got 2 months to go. Consider this if you want no 3 close together as it could be a long time before you can ttc again

Thank you all for your replies.
And to answer some of your questions, my skin was pretty awful throughout my last pregnancy. I was prescribed erythromycin antibiotics and two topical prescriptions. The antibiotics helped and I’ve been taking them on and off now for about a year while pregnant and breastfeeding. I wasn’t terribly happy about taking them while pregnant as concerned about the baby etc but again I was at the point of not wanting to leave the house with my toddler which was unfair on him.
Over the years I’ve been on pretty much every antibiotic and lotion and potion!
I think roaccutane, whist serious and not nice to take, is the only thing that has some hope of offering me a more permanent solution.

Oh and yes, I’m travelling to another town to get seen quicker, the first dermatology appt at my nearest hospital was in late feb!!
I’ve got an appt in 4 weeks but have to travel to another hospital but felt it was worth it to be seen quicker

I’d wait I had roacutane in late teens and it worked really well for years afterward however after I had my kids the acne returned. The weight gain and hormonal changes triggered it to start again.

I've been prescribed it twice, in my early & mid twenties- definitely recommend and wish I'd had it sooner. Had children many years later (mid 30s) but your dermatologist should be able to advise on how long to wait before ttc. I would think a month or two after treatment maybe.

Thank you! Great to hear from people who have said it’s been a success.

Hopeful bump in case there’s anyone else!