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)?
Argentina
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?)
I think I found the forum in acne.org
What is your current age, height, weight?
26 years old. 1.80m 95 kg.
What specific drug did you use (finasteride, dutasteride, saw palmetto, isotretinoin/Accutane, fluoxetine, sertraline, citalopram, leuprorelin, etc…)?
Isotretinoin
What dose did you take (eg. 1 mg/day, 1 mg every other day etc.)?
I dont remember, maybe 40mg/day
What condition was being treated with the drug?
Acné
For how long did you take the drug (weeks/months/years)?
I did the courses over several years. The last one being at least 6-8 months long.
How old were you, and WHEN (date) did you start the drug?
I took isotretinoin for the first time at 15 (2007) then at 16 (2008) and the last course when I was 19 (2011)
How old were you when you quit, and WHEN (date) did you quit?
19 or 20, cant remember
How did you quit (cold turkey or taper off)?
taper off
How long into your usage did you notice the onset of side effects?
The worst came after finishing the last course.
What side effects did you experience that have yet to resolve since discontinuation?
Loss of libido, numbness, more liquid ejaculation, impotence, anxiety, memory loss, brain fog, depression, suicidal toughts, muscle twitching, joint pain, lack of motivation.
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
[*] Loss of Libido / Sex Drive
[*] Erectile Dysfunction
[*] Complete Impotence
[*] Loss of Morning Erections
[*] Loss of Spontaneous Erections
[*] Loss of Nocturnal Erections
[*] Watery Ejaculate
[*] Reduced Ejaculate
[*] 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
[*] Lack of Motivation / Feeling Passive / Complacency
[*] Extreme Anxiety / Panic Attacks
[*] Severe Depression / Melancholy
[*] Suicidal Thoughts
Physical
[ ] Penile Tissue Changes (narrowing, shrinkage, wrinkled)
[ ] Penis curvature / rotation on axis
[*] Testicular Pain
[*] Testicular Shrinkage / Loss of Fullness
[*] Genital numbness / sensitivity decrease
[*] Weight Gain
[ ] Gynecomastia (male breasts)
[*] Muscle Wastage
[*] Muscle Weakness
[*] Joint Pain
[ ] Dry / Dark Circles under eyes
Misc
[ ] Prostate pain
[*] 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)
It is a bit weird to write this, and I think itll raise skepticism but right after I finished my three courses of isotretinoin I had some kind of shift in my sexual preferences and had very high libido and persistent homosexual thoughts.
What (if any) treatments have you undertaken to recover from your side effects since discontinuation of the drug?
I’ve tried vitamin E. Also took paroxetine and lithium because of the anxiety and panic attacks.
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 first took isotretinoin when I was 15 years old because of my acne conglobata. The first time I experienced the typical side effects as dry lips, nose bleedings, joint pain, and some depression. The second time, when I was 16 the side effects were the same. It wasnt until a few months after the third course that I first suffered from the loss of libido and impotence. And a few years until I crashed and felt like shit.
It was in 2015 when the worst began. I had moved to another city and started studying to be a teacher. I had been suffering from importence since 2012 but then I started experiencing anxiety that felt like my brain was being stabbed, panic attacks, confussion, loss of memory, problems focusing, finding words, and persistent intrusive thoughts. Also obviously the sexual problems. I had to abandon college and come back to my hometown, in 2016 I started taking lithium and paroxetine to treat the anxiety, depression and intrusive thoughts, took the antidepressives for 6 months and left them cold turkey.
Since then things haven’t changed much. For now at least I dont have intrusive toughts or permanent sadness. Some days I feel better, some days worse. But I live with the permanent idea that I dont want to live another 10 years feeling like this while everybody else is going on with their lives. Everybody is having fun, progressing in their careers, meeting girls. And I am here, feeling like a sad 60 years old in my 20’s. I can have a more or less decent erection when I use viagra, but I just dont feel the desire or the pleasure when having sex.
I’ll post my blood tests here:
December 2014
July 2015
December 2015
August 2016
