Accutane /side effects/please advise if you did

amother

Pumpkin

Tue, Nov 05 2019, 8:49 pm

amother [ Blonde ] wrote:

There are other causes of acne, and antibiotics wouldn’t have worked for any of these -
-Could be a distressed liver (if this is the case there are supplements to support the liver, like milk thistle and dandelion, etc)
-could be due to hormone imbalance (there are many other types of hormone imbalance other than just PCOS)- you could do salivary hormone testing to find out what’s going on.
-could be food sensitivity or intolerance that you don’t know about (even if it’s a “healthy” food, if your body developed a sensitivity to it then it will cause problems). Could also be the more common food sensitivities like gluten and dairy.
-could be worsened by environmental toxins and hormone disruptors like air fresheners, artificial fragrance, chemicals in typical laundry detergents and dryer sheets, cleaning supplies, etc.)
-could be leaky gut or compromised gut health (especially if she was on antibiotics multiple times)

There are so many more things to try before Accutane. And the difference is that any of these other methods will actually work to HEAL the body, whereas accutane takes a huge toll on the body (even if you don’t notice serious side effects, the body is working hard to process it and eliminate it from the body) and for many people it also has many damaging side effects.

What blonde said...

I posted upthread about long-term effects. I took accurate probably almost 10 years ago by now. I still think that my digestive and other health is not back to what it would've / could've been if I wouldn't have taken it. Now Im a natural healing practitioner and Im working on it slowly, but I only got into this after struggling with multiple skin issues and nothing helped...

amother

Blonde

Tue, Nov 05 2019, 9:44 pm

amother [ Pumpkin ] wrote:

So glad you were able to figure out what was going on and now will be helping others too. Yes this is exactly what I’m trying to say. People may not realize that certain side effects or symptoms that come up (either while on accutane or years after) are related to having taken accutane.

amother

Tue, Nov 05 2019, 11:32 pm

I'm taking all advice seriously.

So basically is it true if my neighbor has terrible skin, her health is not the best?

Why do some teenagers break out and some just dont (and eat all kinds of junk)? Don't genetics play a role here?

Incidentally they called me with the blood results today. Her liver enzymes is a bit elevated, so waiting for the dr. to see if she is even allowed in this case to do it.

amother

Blonde

Wed, Nov 06 2019, 2:15 pm

amother [ OP ] wrote:

Yes, since skin is a major detox organ (meaning toxins can exit through the skin- through sweating, pores etc,) when gut health is compromised or the person is exposed to and therefore needs to eliminate many toxins, skin can be affected. But it doesn’t mean that someone with glowing skin is necessarily healthy - symptoms come out in different people in different ways.

In regards to genetics - there’s a saying- “genetics loads the gun, but environment pulls the trigger.” One person may be predisposed to bad skin and then the environment (food, toxins, etc) will make the conditions to pull the trigger, resulting in bad skin. Another person may not be predisposed to bad skin (maybe they are predisposed to weight gain or mood issues or other conditions), so when they eat poorly and are exposed to toxins, their skin will be fine, but their specific predispositions will come out.

Now to address the liver enzymes - look into having your daughter take milk thistle. Research has shown it to be very effective at balancing elevated liver enzymes and supporting liver function. This could help the acne too since it is probably worsened by her liver function.

amother

Wed, Nov 06 2019, 3:39 pm

amother [ Blonde ] wrote:

I hear what you're saying. It's interesting to note that my daughters skin got better in camp, and she ate tons of sugar and junk there!

Also, it definitely gets worse prior to her period, so I believe it is correlated to hormone changes.

I'm not sure what milk thistle is. Upon googling, there seems to be possible side effects on that! What exactly is it and how much is recommended?

amother

Blonde

Wed, Nov 06 2019, 4:11 pm

amother [ OP ] wrote:

Right, environment includes food but it also includes things like stress, exercise, sleep, exposure to sunlight and outdoors (which is also integral for regulating hormone function). So maybe at camp her diet was worse, but maybe she was also less stressed, getting better sleep quality because of less electronics, better hormone regulation from time outdoors and exercise, etc.

Milk thistle is an herb. Nothing is free of side effects but milk thistle is considered generally safe when taken within proper dosage amounts. The side effect list is definitely WAY shorter and way less serious than the ones for accutane, that’s for sure. As with any supplement or medication or herb, it may interact with other medications so that’s also something to look into. Here’s some info on it - https://draxe.com/nutrition/mi.....fits/

Ima2

Mon, Nov 11 2019, 5:46 am

I had bad acne as a teen, but we were able to control it with proactiv. it really worked for me. we considered accutane, but my mother declined for the same reason as you, she was concerned about side effects. much less was known about the drug 20 some yrs ago. but as good as proactiv was, I couldn't take it during pregnancy or nursing b//c of the benzoyl peroxide and my face broke out terribly. it was so embarrassing to be in my 30's with such bad acne-like a teenager!!! I decided to go on accutane as an adult-in my 30's. I was terrified of getting preg by accident, but it was the best thing I ever did. other than dry lips I had no side effects. I know that you are concerned about side effects, but as you already know, there are side effects to everything. the side effects of accutane are not so common. I don't know percentages, but they are not high. plus, if you treat it with herbal remedies, she may turn out like me, not able to take them during pregnancy leaving her with embarrassing acne as an adult. if you've tried everything else, and your dr gives you the green light, take care of this now

amother

Ivory

Mon, Nov 11 2019, 6:01 am

Why not try bc pill instead?

I had the option to choose and I chose the pill after seeing my best friend get her acne back 1 year after her treatment

My skin cleared up and even though I'm off the pill for a few months now my skin is amazing.
I have PCOS so I had acne on my back, my butt, my face even my skull. It was really really painful and I'm so thankful it disappeared. I had no side effects from my pill.

amother

Pumpkin

Mon, Nov 11 2019, 9:31 am

amother [ Blonde ] wrote:

I learned that there is no quick fix. Don't take milk thistle and expect it to work. It has to be in combination with proper dietary and lifestyle changes (generally healthy might not be good enough).

amother

Fri, Mar 06 2020, 12:25 am

OP here.

I wanted to come back here if anyone is following, and let you know that my daughter is going on her third month, and it is the best thing I ever did for her bh.

I was so nervous, although the dr. pushed for it. I was so afraid of side effects. In the beginning, she was drying up all over, horrible lips, dry eyes....I was nervous about crankiness, depression...but in fact her skin is sooo much better - she is so much happier. She is so thankful to have done this, and I cant imagine a life (kallah, getting married, hormones) with horrible breakouts, scars and redness. Bh Bh.. She used to sit by mirror and pop and scar her face until she was left with bloody bumps.

I dont think its for everyone. The stuff is pretty strong. But for someone that had so many boils, cysts, constant breakouts, and nothing else worked..probiotics, water, health diet, antibiotics, creams etc.......
This is by far, the only real effect we saw.

amother

Brunette

Fri, Mar 06 2020, 8:16 am

amother [ OP ] wrote:

BH! So glad to hear!

amother

Blush

Fri, Apr 10 2020, 9:25 am

amother [ OP ] wrote:

Yay! So happy!
Mine did come back although not as bad because I have a hormone imbalance at the root of the issue but many of my friends it helped and I'm so happy you did it! I kept saying I only recommend it for someone who has acne for many years that is severe.

amother

Mon, Apr 20 2020, 9:23 am

You are right- I have many concerns. Will it come back? Will she have any side effects?

Im worried. All I can say now it completely changed her personality. She is much happier, confident, feels normal...

It is also the ONLY thing that helped her pimples. Nothing worked before. I hope and pray it will last, and even if theres 50% improvement, it is worth it for her self esteem.