New to Accutane

[girl00]

Hi everyone! I'm on my 4th day of accutane and I have a few questions that I hope someone can help me with. i have seen these topics brought up on other boards and my derm did not mention it to me so hopefully you guys can help!

1) Is it ok to drink on Accutane. I usually have a few drinks on the weekends with friends would that be ok?

2) I heard you were supposed to avoid carrots. Is this true? Any other foods or drinks I need to avoid?

3) I currently have a cold can I take over the counter meds? are daily vitamins ok? What about alieve for cramps?

Any other advice would be great too! So far I'm not having any major side affects. My face is slightly dry and so are my lips but today I have only had to put chapstick on twice. Well thanks to anyone who can answer these questions and hopefully accutane will solve all my problems. BTW I'm on 40mg once a day.

[jillr]

Hi, Welcome to the board. I just finished up a 6 mo. course of Accutane and it worked like a miracle!! To answer your questions: We're not soposed to advise people that it's ok to drink while on any meds. A thread was deleted for that.
You don't have to avoid carrots or any other food while on Accutane.
You can take cold med as long as there's no Tylenol in it. Tylenol can cause your liver levels to rise while on accutane. You can't take vitamins because if they contain vitamin A, it can interfere with accutane. I used Cortibalm for my lips(you can do a search on the web to find it) and CereVe moisturizer.
Good luck!

[MSNik]

Hi, for what its worth, I have done 3 rounds of Accutane. And, I have to tell you that it didnt work for me. Besides killing my liver, and escalating me to Multiple Sclerosis, which the doctors are fairly sure came from the Accutane and the fact that I was taking so many supplements, my immune system gave out- my skin is an absolute cystic mess.
Every single time I was on Accutane, my skin cleared up instantly...and then within a month of being off of it, bingo- it was worse than ever. After the third round, when my eyes literally turned yellow from liver damage, I was finally taken off of it.
I will tell you though, carrots are high in vitamin A, and you should be avoiding foods high in A. You should also be using a very good sunscreen, and plenty of whatever lip product you find works....they will peel and they will hurt. Now that winter is here (do you live in cold weather?) you might also want to double up on an oil free moistuizer with sunscreen. DO NOT TAN, do not drink, as drinking affects the liver as well, and most of all, GET THE REQUIRED BLOOD WORK DONE REGULARLY. IT took me almost 24 months of on and off Accutane to find out that my liver is really damaged...it didnt happen overnight, but in all honesty, I was lax about going for bloodwork figuring that it had been fine the last 3-4-5 times....and then when it was too late, it was really too late. I was in the ER, and on dialysis. Then I was having numbness and severe cramping of the legs..and then MRI's and now MS for life...
Do yourself a favor, read everything you can on this drug, and make sure you know what you are taking. Also, if you have any signs of depression, contact a doctor immediatly. There are some pretty scary stories, real life stories, about what Accutane does to the brain as far as depression. All of which is reversible when you get off the drug.
Good luck.
Nik

[Oranguman]

No, I would'nt drink. Never drink any alcohol while on a medication.

Foods to avoid, Polar Bear liver, foods extremely rich in Vitamin A. Carrots are fine.

[meg86]

I would never reccomend accutane.
Although Accutane may temporarily clear your skin, the possible side effects are just not worth it.

I had never had a suicidal thought in my life, until one night (while on Accutane) something little upset me & I wanted to kill myself. It kept happening more & more often, my parents were terrified. I am lucky they were there to stop me.

I became suicidal after only a couple months of taking accutane. I developed severe depression & an eating disorder. I was immediately taken off of Accutane, & only after intense therapy for 8 months was I able to get my life back.

I know I am biased because of my exerience, but like I said; I don't think the results are worth the risk.

Please be careful,

Meg