Roaccutane, I'm so scared :(

[WhoStoleMyFlamingo]

Hey guys, I haven't had panic attacks in some time, but I'm worried I might start having them again because I'm so scared of starting the Roaccutane treatment...
I've had bad acne for 6 years now, and it has completely destroyed my self-esteem and it was very probably the origin of my anxiety problems.

Anyways, I'm really scared of this treatment because of the horror stories I've heard about it, and because I'm already taking three pills a day for other problems (anxiety, bronchitis, acid reflux) and with this treatment I'm going to be taking six pills a day, so I'm scared that all this will affect my liver or something :(

I'm sick of my acne problems, I'm sick of avoiding going out because my face hurts from all these horrible pimples, but on the other hand, I'm so
scared of taking so many pills for 6 months...

To anyone that decides to answer this thread, I am aware of all the risks so please don't try to scare me even more, I'm hoping that someone will help me calm down.

Thanks

[Fishmanpa]

One of the recurring themes I see on the boards is an extreme dislike of one's current situation along with a fear of meds. The situation, regardless of what it is, makes one miserable enough to see a doctor. The doctor offers help in the form of medication yet the individual fears taking the med which essentially cancels out the reason for seeing the doctor in the first place.

So then the person feels even worse for not taking the med and continues to suffer with the malady. Truly, this is one of the more curious aspects of anxiety disorder.

I guess it comes down to what you dislike more. The way I see it, the worst that can happen if you take the meds is that you have to stop for some reason. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

Positive thoughts

[bingjam]

I suffer from health anxiety I had a bad flare up of acne afrer having my son 3 years ago.... I went to the doctors as the acne was really getting me down even though I hadnt had it too long but the doctor sent me to a dermatologist and he put me on roaccutane..... like u I was terrified to take it... but I though to myself the likelihood of anything happening to you whilst taking the is miminal. .. I also knew what the side effects were too. ... two days of contemplating whether or not to take it... I did... I was fine!!! My acne cleared right up after like 1 month, I still get the odd spot now and then, im left with bad scarring though so my next step is to get that sorted now....

Habe a think about how much acne has effected tou and how bad tou want it gone, im sure you will end up taking them.

Good luck

[WhoStoleMyFlamingo]

One of the recurring themes I see on the boards is an extreme dislike of one's current situation along with a fear of meds. The situation, regardless of what it is, makes one miserable enough to see a doctor. The doctor offers help in the form of medication yet the individual fears taking the med which essentially cancels out the reason for seeing the doctor in the first place.

So then the person feels even worse for not taking the med and continues to suffer with the malady. Truly, this is one of the more curious aspects of anxiety disorder.

I guess it comes down to what you dislike more. The way I see it, the worst that can happen if you take the meds is that you have to stop for some reason. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

Positive thoughts

I think you're right, I've started taking them today anyway because acne is a problem that has ruined many things in my life, so I'm going to give it a try and hope that it won't be too harsh to my liver and stomach... I've contacted my GP and I asked the dermatologist about mixing all these drugs, and they said it was fine, but I've heard so many horror stories about Roaccutane, and being the hypochondriac I am I couldn't help feeling scared...

Thanks for being so helpful, you've answered other threads I've made and your answers always help me :)

---------- Post added at 17:36 ---------- Previous post was at 17:31 ----------


I suffer from health anxiety I had a bad flare up of acne afrer having my son 3 years ago.... I went to the doctors as the acne was really getting me down even though I hadnt had it too long but the doctor sent me to a dermatologist and he put me on roaccutane..... like u I was terrified to take it... but I though to myself the likelihood of anything happening to you whilst taking the is miminal. .. I also knew what the side effects were too. ... two days of contemplating whether or not to take it... I did... I was fine!!! My acne cleared right up after like 1 month, I still get the odd spot now and then, im left with bad scarring though so my next step is to get that sorted now....

Habe a think about how much acne has effected tou and how bad tou want it gone, im sure you will end up taking them.

Good luck

I love hearing success stories about this, I'm so glad you got better! Acne ruined so many things for me, sometimes my face hurts so much I barely have the courage to get out of bed and wash my face... and I've declined hanging out with my friends so many times because I felt so horrible about my face :emot-crying:
I'm going to give this a try and if anything happens I can just postpone it.
Thanks for your reply, and i hope your scars will go away :)

[Gemmal]

Hello !

I have been on roaccutane twice and honestly it's perfectly fine !! The horror stories you read about are totally over the top and very rare ! And I also went on roaxcutane with anxiety and noticed no difference !

Tbh I was like yourself , so miserable I didn't want to go out in public with my skin so I had nothing to lose really - I was already in a depressed state, infact my mood actually increased as my skin improved .

It's nothing more than some sore lips and stiff muscles ( for me )

Hope this helped !

Gemma

[WhoStoleMyFlamingo]

Hello !

I have been on roaccutane twice and honestly it's perfectly fine !! The horror stories you read about are totally over the top and very rare ! And I also went on roaxcutane with anxiety and noticed no difference !

Tbh I was like yourself , so miserable I didn't want to go out in public with my skin so I had nothing to lose really - I was already in a depressed state, infact my mood actually increased as my skin improved .

It's nothing more than some sore lips and stiff muscles ( for me )

Hope this helped !

Gemma

Hey!
I'm taking a small dose, 20mg, and I'm going to start taking 30mg in three weeks, so it shouldn't be too harsh right? I'm also going to take Aldactone, don't know if you've heard of it...

I'm sure that if this works, my mood will significantly improve, I can't stand having low self-esteem anymore, it's gotten so bad that I have forbidden my friends to take pictures of me, because when I see my face in a photo it completely ruins my day... it's really sad, I stop myself from doing so many things I enjoy because of this :(

I'm glad it worked for you, and I hope you'll only get better from now on :)

Thanks for your reply!

[yenool]

Hey!
I'm taking a small dose, 20mg, and I'm going to start taking 30mg in three weeks, so it shouldn't be too harsh right? I'm also going to take Aldactone, don't know if you've heard of it...

I'm sure that if this works, my mood will significantly improve, I can't stand having low self-esteem anymore, it's gotten so bad that I have forbidden my friends to take pictures of me, because when I see my face in a photo it completely ruins my day... it's really sad, I stop myself from doing so many things I enjoy because of this :(

I'm glad it worked for you, and I hope you'll only get better from now on :)

Thanks for your reply!

I've been on roaccutane twice and the most likely side effects you will get are dry lips, dry eyes, dry skin, constipation, occasional headache. Nothing horrific in my experience but drink plenty of fluids as it does dry you out.

Obviously it is a very powerful medication with some rare but serious side effects. That is why the doctors increase the dose gradually and the maximum dose is related to your body weight and other factors.

The blood tests they do (frequently) monitor for any changes that signal serious side effects and flag them up before they become serious, if that makes sense.

If you have been offered roaccutane then you must have quite severe or persistent acne and a lot of other treatments have failed already. So it is a case of weighing up the risks and benefits and then taking a leap of faith!