Even if you have severe acne I highly recommend NOT to take the acne drug
accutane.
 
If you are thinking about taking accutane then it's extremely important that
you read this article...
 
Let me tell you about my accutane experience. I was 17 when I went on it,
and I was warned by my dermatologist about the possible physical side effects; like
itchy and dry skin, chapped lips, hair loss, nosebleeds and headaches. 
 
I was also told about the possible psychological side effects; such as mood
swings and depression.
 
Hey, I was willing to take the risks, and I thought that the discomfort of chapped
lips or whatever was worth it. And I was already down about my skin, so depression
wasn't something that made much of a difference to me...
 
I just wanted clear skin! And didn't care much about how I got it.
 
But what I wasn't told by my dermatologist was that accutane was so dangerous
that it caused birth defects in pregnant women. Perhaps that's because I'm a guy, but
still, I should have been told...
 
And I wasn't told about the cases of suicide caused by accutane. If I had
known about that I most certainly would NOT have taken it. No way.
 
Another thing about accutane is that you can't drink alcohol and you need to
have a cholesterol test every month as it can raise cholesterol levels. Can you see
how this drug could be unsafe, and is definitely BAD for YOUR health?
 
Anyway, so I took the accutane for 5 months, and then my dermatologist stopped
the course. During this time it had NO positive effect on my acne. In fact, my skin
health had gotten worse.
 
My skin felt and looked overly dry and resembled goose flesh. This was in
addition to the continued acne I was STILL getting. (Man, can you believe these
dermatologists get paid the amount they do?!)
 
Anyway, my dermatologist felt I had had enough accutane for one course and
took me off after 5 months, which is apparently the average length of time given. Apart
from dry disgusting skin, chapped lips and occasional dry eyes, I managed to avoid
severe discomfort that can occur from taking accutane.
 
But what about my acne?
 
Well, I still had acne. Nothing had changed. But then after about a month my
acne did clear up somewhat, not perfect, but it wasn't so fierce as before. I was
glad it had done something, but not that pleased at the results. Anyway...
 
What happened next was a nightmare. After enjoying about 1 single month of
relatively clear skin, the acne came back - with a vengeance. It was worse than it
had ever been BEFORE the accutane!
 
I was not best pleased, and was told that I might need more courses of
accutane to properly clear up my skin, although my dermatologist said it wasn't good
to take too much accutane.
 
At this point I did my own research into accutane, and after reading all the
horror stories about it, coupled with the fact that it had actually worsened my skin in
the long run, I decided not to take another course of accutane.