Accutane sufferers

Welcome to our community. Please fill in the following template as a way of introducing yourself, and helping others to understand your background and situation.

Where are you from (country)? UK

How did you find this forum (Google search – if so, what search terms? Via link from a forum or website – if so, what page? Other?) Recommended

What is your current age, height, weight? 38 5’8" 200lb

What specific drug did you use (finasteride, dutasteride, saw palmetto, isotretinoin/Accutane, fluoxetine, sertraline, citalopram, leuprorelin, etc…)? Accutane

What dose did you take (eg. 1 mg/day, 1 mg every other day etc.)? 40mg day then 10mg low dose

What condition was being treated with the drug? Cystic acne

For how long did you take the drug (weeks/months/years)? 4 years on and off

Date when you started the drug? 2004

Date when you quit the drug? March 2008

Age when you quit? 24

How did you quit (cold turkey or taper off)? Cold turkey

How long into your usage did you notice the onset of side effects? After cessation

What side effects did you experience that have yet to resolve since discontinuation? Most

Check the boxes that apply. You can save your post first, then interactively check/uncheck the boxes by clicking on them. If your symptoms change, please update your list.

Sexual
[x ] Loss of Libido / Sex Drive
[ x] Erectile Dysfunction
[ ] Complete Impotence
[ x] Loss of Morning Erections
[X ] Loss of Spontaneous Erections
[X ] Loss of Nocturnal Erections
[ ] Watery Ejaculate
[ ] Reduced Ejaculate
[X ] Inability or Difficulty to Ejaculate / Orgasm
[ ] Reduced Sperm Count / Motility

Mental
[ ] Emotional Blunting / Emotionally Flat
[ ] Difficulty Focusing / Concentrating
[ ] Confusion
[ ] Memory Loss / Forgetfulness
[ ] Stumbling over Words / Losing Train of Thought
[ ] Slurring of Speech
[ x] Lack of Motivation / Feeling Passive / Complacency
[ ] Extreme Anxiety / Panic Attacks
[ ] Severe Depression / Melancholy
[ ] Suicidal Thoughts

Physical
[ x] Penile Tissue Changes (narrowing, shrinkage, wrinkled)
[ ] Penis curvature / rotation on axis
[ ] Testicular Pain
[ ] Testicular Shrinkage / Loss of Fullness
[ ] Genital numbness / sensitivity decrease
[X ] Weight Gain
[ x] Gynecomastia (male breasts)
[ ] Muscle Wastage
[X ] Muscle Weakness
[ x] Joint Pain
[ ] Dry / Dark Circles under eyes

Misc
[ ] Prostate pain
[X ] Persistent Fatigue / Exhaustion
[ ] Stomach Pains / Digestion Problems
[ ] Constipation / “Poo Pellets”
[ ] Vision - Acuity Decrease / Blurriness
[ ] Tinnitus (ringing or high pitched sound in ears)
[ ] Hearing loss
[ ] Increased hair loss
[ ] Frequent urination
[ ] Lowered body temperature

[ ] Other (please explain)

What (if any) treatments have you undertaken to recover from your side effects since discontinuation of the drug? TRT various protocols

If you have pre or post-drug blood tests, what hormonal changes have you encountered since discontinuing the drug (please post your test results in the “Blood Tests” section and link to them in your post)?

Anything not listed in the above questions you’d like to share about your experience?

Tell us your story, in your own words, about your usage and side effects experienced while on/off the drug.

I basically took accutane on and off in early 20’s. The symptoms hit hard once I stopped the drug in 2008. I started TRT in 2012 and have had limited success at revering sexual sides.

Self-reporting template - ONLY USE FOR FUTURE POSTS TO REPORT ANY TRIALS OF TREATMENTS, NOT YOUR INITIAL MEMBER STORY

  1. Name of the therapy/substance:
    • Dosage:
    • How often you took it:
  2. Status
    • Still using [ ]
    • Stopped with no lasting change to initial symptoms [ ]
    • Stopped with persistent change to symptoms [ ]
  3. Duration of use: Days [ ] Months [ ] Years [ ]
  4. Response when you started:
    • Greatly improved [ ]
    • Slightly improved [ ]
    • Stayed the same [ ]
    • Slightly worsened [ ]
    • Greatly worsened [ ]
  5. Current response (if you’re still using the therapy/substance) OR Response in the time before you stopped the treatment
    • Greatly improved [ ]
    • Slightly improved [ ]
    • Stayed the same [ ]
    • Slightly worsened [ ]
    • Greatly worsened [ ]
  6. Lasting changes to initial symptoms after cessation (if you have stopped for more than 3 weeks)
    • Greatly improved [ ]
    • Slightly improved [ ]
    • Stayed the same [ ]
    • Slightly worsened [ ]
    • Greatly worsened [ ]
4 Likes

Welcome to the forum @Stung ! I’m sorry you’re suffered these symptoms for so long!

Have there been any fluctuations or major changes to your symptoms over the years?

1 Like

Hi I’ve detailed my recent experience in the following thread

Hey,
I find this temporary recovery effect pretty weird. I also experienced something like that for a brief period (about two weeks), although I’ve never tried HCG. Basically, all the sides seemed reversed except for the numbness and somewhat lower libido. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to re-create it. I wonder how is it possible that something could help only once.
BTW, are you experiencing any sensitivity issues?

1 Like

Temporary recvoeries is what gives me so much hope that this is cureable - it seems that pur bodies are not irreversibly broken. So let’s all come together to advance research :slight_smile:

3 Likes

Yes mate. Somedays I can’t even feel it’s there. During the 3 month recovery I was even getting nocturnal erections again. I’m just baffled as to why HCG stopped working