I have been struggling very much with something recently and I feel the need to share my conclusion as advice (warnings) against what I have discovered with experience.

I begin taking accutane 2 weeks ago. Oddly, about one week ago I noticed my adderall was having no effect anymore. I begin feeling immensely sedated, non-stop. I searched and searched and spent hours on this damn forum trying to figure out why suddenly my medication was not working. I discontinued any use of caffeine, took it on a completely empty stomach, even upped my dosage moderately. Nothing.

Then (what probably appears obvious to all of you) it finally dawned on me it could be the accutane. Duh, right? I found a similar forum devoted to accutane and discovered this drug has terrible side effects; especially weakness, fatigue and drowsiness. (Among very serious other effects!!)

Additionally, I posted about this on that forum and had some responses with fellow ADDer's which all agreed that their stimulate Rx do not work during the majority of the accutane treatment. (Apparently, it comes back near the end, but who wants to wait at least four months to start functioning again??)

Basically I suppose I just wanted to let everyone know that although their is no listed drug interaction between the two, I would strongly advise against mixing them as it has effected me in such a debilitating way.

Accutane from what I understand makes people severely depressed and is only prescribed when all else has failed, that explains the effect you describe.

Wow my face is pretty clear but I have heat bumps so I figured I would go on Proactive maybe that would be bad what do think?

Wow my face is pretty clear but I have heat bumps so I figured I would go on Proactive maybe that would be bad what do think?


Proactiv is a topical treatment; so no, I do not think it would be bad at all. Accutane is PO, therefore it produces systemic effects.

I'm so disappointed in myself for not researching about this drug more extensively prior to taking it. There is a whole forum which represents a support group for those who have been off accutane for years, and are suffering from severe and permanent side effects. Depression, psychosis (between schizophrenia and biopolar disorders), permanent vision loss, myopathies, headaches, so much more. Interestingly, it was originally marketed as a chemotherapy agent during its initial release to the general public in the 80s.

I'm just still so nervous these awful feelings are not going to go away..

Accutane should be more tightly regulated, IMNSHO. And the NA doctors should use it the way the Europeans doctors do. (half the dose for twice as long)

Proactiv ROCKS, but I could only use it about 3-4 days in a row. (Serious Desert face.)

A book I recommend reading is Dr. Perricone's book. He covers how food reactions affect skin and how this have never been scientifically studied as a link to acne (except by the Meat and Dairy and Junk Food companies).

FFAs (free fatty acids) and sebum production and inflammatory hormones seem to be triggered by certain foods/drinks in acne-prone people.

Ah, if i could only give up dairy...

reL #4

A lot of acne is "internal" (inflammatory hormones; sebum production; internal hormones) though.

No external or topical thing like Proactive will "cure" our acne.

External treatments are just another form of "management" of this condition.

I think getting hormones checked is wise (women can take the Pill to lower Acne; cyproterone acetate).

So is exploring supplements (e.g. zinc; other vitamins) and knowing what to avoid food (iodine-rich foods like kelp/sushi) and bad habits to stop (no touching face) and product-wise (e.g. avoid topical products with mineral oil in them, etc; "don't go to the cosmetics counter w/o me" book), etc.

I prefer multiple management strategies. This should all be taught and tried before Accutane. (Another example of Pills being used by MDs, before Education and Skills. Grrr.)

Just had to chime in here. The post was about how adderall doesn't work when used at the same time as accutane. I don't know if this is true, because i've never taken them together, but it would be very helpful for the original poster to get information on that particular subject if anyone out there has taken the two together, or knows of any good sources of info.

On the subject of acne/accutane in general, not to go off topic, but I will just say this to anyone who thinks management of acne is an easy thing. If you are a person who gets a few pimples here and there and can clear it up with a supplement or over the counter product, count your blessings. Persistant, cystic acne is a very serious condition, and it does more than just make one look bad. It had lasting damaging effects on self-esteem and can wreak havoc on one's life. I know, because I began breaking out at the age of 9 and tried EVERYTHING: supplements, a bunch of differnet birth control pills, antibiotics, not touching my skin, not wearing makeup, changing my pillow case every day, using only fragrance free detergents, eating a special diet, trying every product in the drug store. I read EVERY book in the library and could practically have earned a dermatology degree with all the studying and research I did, and nothing that I read worked for me to any degree. It was awful and it was everywhere. There wasn't one spot on my face that didn't look red and inflamed, and it wasn't until I was in my early 20s and given accutane that I was able to look at myself in the mirror without feeling like practically crying.

Some people have acne that cannot be cleared up with diet, exercise and thinking happy thoughts, and even though I have great skin now, just hearing someone say it can be managed through lifestyle changes is enough to bring me right back to feeling like an ugly freak with no self-esteem. Accutane was not offered to me until I had failed with EVERYTHING else possible, but if it had been offered to me earlier, it could have helped me to see that I was not a freak. Looks aren't everything, but when you have a severe case of acne, believe me...just believe me, you can't know what it's like unless you go through it. Now people tell me I'm beautiful and it's so humbling to hear, and I know what's really important in life, but I was not able to fully experience those important things when I had severe acne because of the damage it caused to my self-esteem.

So my point is, no, some acne cannot be managed without serious intervention.

Accutane, like adderall, is not evil. Some poeple have bad side effects from it and some don't, JUST LIKE ADDERALL. Certainly you should learn the facts on it before using it, but don't avoid it if you need it out of fear. I used it not once, but TWICE, the highest dose available, and I haven't had any adverse effects, not then and not now, 7 years later, and my skin looks like I've never had a pimple. (For the record, I broke out a bit a while back from taking provigil, tried Proactive and broke out much worse. Now I just take fish oil and it works great. My skin is back to being good. But fish oil didn't work on my old, persistant acne. Nothing did.)

Anyway, back to the subject at hand, dalitwil, I'm so sorry that accutane negates, or appears to negate the effects of your adderall. That really stinks, because for me accutane was a wondeful thing that worked when absolutely nothing else did. You don't say how persistent your acne problem is, so I'm assuming it's probably not as bad as mine was, but I truly hope you will talk to your doctor about what options you have, and don't be nervous about continuing accutane until you do discuss it with your doctor. As I said, I have not had a single bad side effect, and nor have any of my family members who took it, or several other people I know. There are risks, and you should certainly know about them and weigh those risks for yourself, but, just like with adderall, your response to accutane will differ possibly from mine or anyone else's. Good luck!

Accutane, like adderall, is not evil. Some poeple have bad side effects from it and some don't, JUST LIKE ADDERALL.

I most certainly agree with you. I apologize if my original post was persuasive of anti-accutane; I had just wanted to share my experience that for some very odd reason, took me longer than I would expect to resolve.

I also very much agree with serious acne being a very debilitating condition. Many of my friends with such a condition had had wonderful results from this drug; thus my decision to try it--although my condition is rather far from serious. I suppose I was one of those rare cases in which the side effects became extreme, and very quickly. In all reality, it had nothing to do with losing effect of my adderall. It effected my entire body in such a way that nothing could counter it. Most especially, it retarded my mentality. Today, I am 2/3 past the half life of this drug, and I feel almost completely recovered.

The majority of my research of this drug has come from similar forums, dedicated to individual experiences throughout the course of therapy on accutane. Being a progressive member of health care, I am almost sad to state the most valuable information I have found about varying medical related things have come more from here (and there) than what my doctors can really provide (and even some of my professors). Nothing beats experience.... and now I'm way off topic.

On the subject of acne/accutane in general, not to go off topic, but I will just say this to anyone who thinks management of acne is an easy thing. If you are a person who gets a few pimples here and there and can clear it up with a supplement or over the counter product, count your blessings. Persistant, cystic acne is a very serious condition, and it does more than just make one look bad. It had lasting damaging effects on self-esteem and can wreak havoc on one's life. I know, because I began breaking out at the age of 9 and tried EVERYTHING: supplements, a bunch of differnet birth control pills, antibiotics, not touching my skin, not wearing makeup, changing my pillow case every day, using only fragrance free detergents, eating a special diet, trying every product in the drug store. I read EVERY book in the library and could practically have earned a dermatology degree with all the studying and research I did, and nothing that I read worked for me to any degree. It was awful and it was everywhere. There wasn't one spot on my face that didn't look red and inflamed, and it wasn't until I was in my early 20s and given accutane that I was able to look at myself in the mirror without feeling like practically crying.

Some people have acne that cannot be cleared up with diet, exercise and thinking happy thoughts, and even though I have great skin now, just hearing someone say it can be managed through lifestyle changes is enough to bring me right back to feeling like an ugly freak with no self-esteem. Accutane was not offered to me until I had failed with EVERYTHING else possible, but if it had been offered to me earlier, it could have helped me to see that I was not a freak. Looks aren't everything, but when you have a severe case of acne, believe me...just believe me, you can't know what it's like unless you go through it. Now people tell me I'm beautiful and it's so humbling to hear, and I know what's really important in life, but I was not able to fully experience those important things when I had severe acne because of the damage it caused to my self-esteem.

So my point is, no, some acne cannot be managed without serious intervention.

Accutane, like adderall, is not evil. Some poeple have bad side effects from it and some don't, JUST LIKE ADDERALL. Certainly you should learn the facts on it before using it, but don't avoid it if you need it out of fear. I used it not once, but TWICE, the highest dose available, and I haven't had any adverse effects, not then and not now, 7 years later, and my skin looks like I've never had a pimple. (For the record, I broke out a bit a while back from taking provigil, tried Proactive and broke out much worse. Now I just take fish oil and it works great. My skin is back to being good. But fish oil didn't work on my old, persistant acne. Nothing did.)
This post could not be any more TRUE. Unless you have dealt with the persistent pain and suffering that real, cystic acne can cause, you do not know the half of it. Thank you, Desperate1 for bringing this up and sharing your experience.

Personally, (an i am not going into detail here), without the help of Accutane, I WOULD NOT BE ALIVE TODAY. I am almost 100% certain of that. Being hit with incredibly severe acne at 17, I contemplated suicide multiple times and had plenty of plans to follow through with. When my doctor finally put me on Accutane--a decision that was put off for FAR too long, it was the only thing that even made a dent in my acne. Accutane, along with huge diet changes and regular visits with a facial aesthetician, I eventually saw results. That was 4 years ago, and I still break out to this day, but nothing like the heartache and suffering I went through my senior year of high school. Those memories forever irk my mind, and I will always be sure to enlighten those who do not understand what a profound effect this condition can have on an individual. Accutane saved my life.

I am sorry to the OP, I don't have anything to add regarding the mixing of Adderall and Accutane, as I was not on Adderall when I took Accutane back in 2004...

I just wanted to say that I am currently on tane for the second time and have not noticed it nullifying my adderall at all. I take on average 30 mg/day and the only side effect is occasional dry lips and an increased disposition to scarring. I think its better to try a lower dose, especially if your acne isn't severe. I'd also like to say that by all means accutane should be avoided if at all possible, you should only consider it if your are desperate, whether or not your on adderall. In terms of innability to functon, Acne>ADD, no question.

Hi - I am new here but ADD and I go way back..... :)

I've been experiencing major frustration recently with my ADD meds (strattera) not working and although I'm a googleholic it took me ages to associate it with Accutane. (grunting cave woman voice: "me brain broken"):eek:

So I've had ADD, depression & OCD forever (thankfully, all well managed for years with strattera+lexapro) and for the last 3+ months I've been on my 3rd course of Accutane over my lifetime (first was 2o yrs ago) for persistent adult acne. I promised my doc (and myself) I'd keep a really close eye on any scary effects -- (depression, suicidal ideation -- gulp! suicide??! yikes!)

But blessedly, I've experienced nothing like that! I thought I was home free (only 2 or 3 more months to go on the Accutane).

Funny how when I started having mystery joint pain....(I'm getting old??!).... in various areas?? (shoulder, hip, ankle).... I calmly looked it up: ("yup -- joint ache -- it's right there on the Accutane side effects list") and said to myself "well if it gets any worse...."

But when I started having difficulty getting my work done, finishing things, proofreading projects, normal productivity, leaving work on time..... (you know - small, teeny, really minor stuff like my LIVELIHOOD!) foolishly it NEVER occurred to me it was the Accutane. I mean I've been really spoiled for years on my meds. Normally I can tell an hour into my workday if I forgot them... ("where's that emergency bottle in my purse?"). However lately I have been really struggling -- like the "bad old days".

Well I thought I'd dodged the bullet by not getting depressed - but going back to PRE MEDS ADD??? -- total DEALBREAKER!!!!!

WOW!!!

Thank you, dalitwil.

I sincerely appreciate this topic and the caring and thoughtfulness that everyone has shared here. Sad to say, I have had pretty awful acne on and off for 30 years (the Accutane seems to slow down the oil production for years at a time for me, anyway) and my heart truly breaks for folks with the very worst kind, so I KNOW how important it can be to get the help you need. *However this is clearly my last go round with the stuff!

Please do your homework and consider if it's worth it. At least PROMISE to pay attention to the side effects -- all of them!! I just hope that stopping the Accutane will eventually let me get back to the functionality to which I had formerly become accustomed!

ADD is my life sentence .... oh sure I'm better that way (stoically) ;) but (sob) please --sniff -- need my brain back!!!

Take care all!:o

No. Freaking. No.
Don't even go there.
Don't.

Accutane is already so tightly regulated that it is difficult for me to get it.
And it works fine with Adderall for me. So please do not grossly generalize.
I had/have extremely severe acne, and I would have tremendous PERMANENT scarring were it not for Accutane.
So PLEASE. Do not try to make it harder to get, because for people like me, whom Accutane is made for, nothing else will work -- and having huge scars and open sores on my face is not pleasant, and were you to experience it, you would agree.

When my dermatologist first looked at my face on my first appointment, this is literally what he said: "OH ****!!!!!!! WOW." I'm like... "...I know."

Okay, here's me before accutane. Notice the enormous open sores, and the two forming scars under my lip.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v507/Mack2150/Photo11.jpg

And ~4 months later (Yes, I sound like a commercial.) Notice I'm a freaking beautiful porcelain doll.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v507/Mack2150/Photo95.jpg
And I still have 2 - 3 more months. So yeah. More improvement.
Though I don't know if some of the small red areas (they look like pimples but they aren't, they're not bumps, they're flat) will ever heal. I should have started Accutane earlier; I let my acne go for too long in the condition shown in the first picture. I started it at the age of 18 and a half, and it had been like that since I was 15. And those red areas might be permanent damage. Maybe if I had tried it earlier instead of grain-of-salt-lessly listening to demonized reports (which are factual, but **NOT THE TYPICAL**) I wouldn't have those scars. If you have acne like my first picture and you're 15 or so... don't wait. If it's that bad, it's probably not going to go away until well into your 20s.

Chapped lips? Yes. A little achy? Yes.
Tiredness? Please, I was tired before.
All this is temporary.


So you know what? Don't freaking play with me on this. Maybe it's prescribed too liberally or whatever, but don't rip this drug. For some people, acne is "omgz i have a zit, lolz," but that, what you see right there, is what my face looked like all the time. It's different from what you typically think of. Nothing triggered my acne, and it wasn't "breakouts," it was constant. Perhaps some people don't really know what REAL acne is, but Accutane is a freaking miracle drug, and don't knock it until you've seen what it can do.

If you have severe acne that doesn't work by anything topical, DON'T HESITATE TO TRY ACCUTANE. It is widely demonized, but you know what? Be aware of the side-effects and GO FOR IT. PERMANENT SCARRING IS NOT WORTH IT.

I'm going on my third month on accutane 40mg twice daily. It's been a miracle drug for me since nothing else worked. Tons of antibiotics, creams, face washes, etc. Guess I've been lucky - so far only side effects are dry lips and vulnerability to scarring. Thankfully, it has not interfered with my Adderall.
I also believe this drug is demonized just like Adderall is. If let all the info on heart failure, permanent depression, addiction, etc. influence me, then I would not have ever tried adderall. It's good to have all information available to help aid in the decision to try a medicine.

Hey I feel your pain. I also had really bad acne as a teen and took acutane for a few months. Actually I had it worst than you. I recommend you research dieting and educating yourself how to eat healthy. It makes a dramatic difference in your skin. Get the book called "eating for beauty" by David Wolfe.

It cleared up my skin. Also, in my family early onset of grey hair runs in my family. So for a while I had a lot of grey hairs and people were saying "wow u have a lot of grey hair for a young guy". But when i changed my diet...90% of it went away. I only have a few strands of grey here and there. good luck.



No. Freaking. No.
Don't even go there.
Don't.

Accutane is already so tightly regulated that it is difficult for me to get it.
And it works fine with Adderall for me. So please do not grossly generalize.
I had/have extremely severe acne, and I would have tremendous PERMANENT scarring were it not for Accutane.
So PLEASE. Do not try to make it harder to get, because for people like me, whom Accutane is made for, nothing else will work -- and having huge scars and open sores on my face is not pleasant, and were you to experience it, you would agree.

When my dermatologist first looked at my face on my first appointment, this is literally what he said: "OH ****!!!!!!! WOW." I'm like... "...I know."

Okay, here's me before accutane. Notice the enormous open sores, and the two forming scars under my lip.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v507/Mack2150/Photo11.jpg

And ~4 months later (Yes, I sound like a commercial.) Notice I'm a freaking beautiful porcelain doll.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v507/Mack2150/Photo95.jpg
And I still have 2 - 3 more months. So yeah. More improvement.
Though I don't know if some of the small red areas (they look like pimples but they aren't, they're not bumps, they're flat) will ever heal. I should have started Accutane earlier; I let my acne go for too long in the condition shown in the first picture. I started it at the age of 18 and a half, and it had been like that since I was 15. And those red areas might be permanent damage. Maybe if I had tried it earlier instead of grain-of-salt-lessly listening to demonized reports (which are factual, but **NOT THE TYPICAL**) I wouldn't have those scars. If you have acne like my first picture and you're 15 or so... don't wait. If it's that bad, it's probably not going to go away until well into your 20s.

Chapped lips? Yes. A little achy? Yes.
Tiredness? Please, I was tired before.
All this is temporary.


So you know what? Don't freaking play with me on this. Maybe it's prescribed too liberally or whatever, but don't rip this drug. For some people, acne is "omgz i have a zit, lolz," but that, what you see right there, is what my face looked like all the time. It's different from what you typically think of. Nothing triggered my acne, and it wasn't "breakouts," it was constant. Perhaps some people don't really know what REAL acne is, but Accutane is a freaking miracle drug, and don't knock it until you've seen what it can do.

If you have severe acne that doesn't work by anything topical, DON'T HESITATE TO TRY ACCUTANE. It is widely demonized, but you know what? Be aware of the side-effects and GO FOR IT. PERMANENT SCARRING IS NOT WORTH IT.

Chapped lips? Yes. A little achy? Yes.
Tiredness? Please, I was tired before.
All this is temporary.

You forgot "Crohns Disease" and "Irritable Bowel Syndrome". (Estimates right now are that 30% of Crohns disease today is due to Accutane).

PERMANENT SCARRING IS NOT WORTH IT.
I would rather my face be scarred than my intestines have to be removed, constantly have diarhea w/ bleeding stools, have to vomit at least 5 times a week, be on immunosuppressants my whole life which would reduce my life expectancy, have to worry about getting invasive surgery multiple times for the rest of my life, worry about how I'm going to afford paying for health insurance when no one wants to cover me because I'm too much of a risk, and worry about the huge possibility of other disabling illnesses developing as a result (such as ankylosing spondyitis, which is where your spine fuses it's own vertabrae together).

Yeah man, a few scars on the face are definitely worth all that.

So should all medications that cause bad side-effects be banned, then?

Those two side-effects are extremely, extremely rare. Adderall causes an enormous profile of heart diseases -- e.g. heart attacks, tachycardia, hypertension, arrhythmia. Those are also rare, but you certainly can't tell me that just because Accutane has side-effects it should be banned when Adderall can be deadly as well.

Typically they happen due to Accutane being taken for longer than it is supposed to be (~6 months). Many Crohn's Disease reports come from patients taking it for upwards of 5 YEARS. In addition, research has suggested that Accutane doesn't actually cause Crohn's disease on its own. It only

Accutane is tightly regulated, in an EVEN STRICTER way than Adderall. Not only is it non-refillable, 30 days only, but also it MUST be dispensed in a package that folds 5 times and clearly spells out every possible side-effect and even includes no pregnancy warnings over each pill's bubble. Furthermore, you must bring an ID card to the pharmacy which checks that your dermatologist has authorized the prescription to be filled in a computer system. This is so that the dermatologist can wait to authorize it until they have male blood test results and female blood test and pregnancy test results.

Although this thread is called AVIOD ACCUTANE, that's not accurate how I feel about it. I responded here because dalitwil described a similar psychopharmalogical experience to mine.

My intention in sharing my own experience was only to reflect on how lucky I feel to have been diagnosed and treated successfully for ADD and to share how I believe Accutane has affected the efficacy of my meds. And how scary it is while I wait to see if they can work again!

I for one don't agree with banning medication that has done so much to help so many. While I feel a goal of no Accutane affected pregnancies (and the related terrible birth defects) is humane and reasonable, it's certainly a wonder drug and it's worth the hassle to make sure folks can get it and still not get pregnant. Not only do I hope people who need it can get it, I wish it was more affordable so more folks could benefit from it's life changing benefits.

In the early 80s i first tried Accutane and experienced it's amazing affect on my acne when my college roomate "gave" me a few pills from her prescription - it's no excuse but we were 18. [soon after saw my doctor and got my own prescription]. My not getting the facts about the risks and my friend not understanding the seriousness of sharing this specific drug are two of the totally valid concerns that the current "IPledge" safety campaign is designed to address. So I think it's already highly regulated.

Just that if ADD folks think of they might be experiencing a psychological effect they might weigh the pros and cons differently. The current strong FDA warnings about the risk of depression and related symptoms are being shared with anyone being prescribed Accutane but maybe because we are are a group who have already experienced frustration with our AD/HD [and possibly other] symptoms and life before diagnosis and treatment so it might be hopeful to mention one risk which might be a bigger concern to this group --even if this specific side effect it may be a fairly minor risk to the general population.

Clearly, it is a very personal thing. :) I respect everyone's viewpoint and choices.

I think we all mean to help each other here and I am grateful for the openness of this forum. I am new here but I stayed up all night reading the forum learning about the struggles people are facing which are so familiar to me.

Thanks everybody for the opportunity to share my views in this trusting environment. :)

So should all medications that cause bad side-effects be banned, then?

Those two side-effects are extremely, extremely rare. Adderall causes an enormous profile of heart diseases -- e.g. heart attacks, tachycardia, hypertension, arrhythmia. Those are also rare, but you certainly can't tell me that just because Accutane has side-effects it should be banned when Adderall can be deadly as well.

Typically they happen due to Accutane being taken for longer than it is supposed to be (~6 months). Many Crohn's Disease reports come from patients taking it for upwards of 5 YEARS. In addition, research has suggested that Accutane doesn't actually cause Crohn's disease on its own. It only

Accutane is tightly regulated, in an EVEN STRICTER way than Adderall. Not only is it non-refillable, 30 days only, but also it MUST be dispensed in a package that folds 5 times and clearly spells out every possible side-effect and even includes no pregnancy warnings over each pill's bubble. Furthermore, you must bring an ID card to the pharmacy which checks that your dermatologist has authorized the prescription to be filled in a computer system. This is so that the dermatologist can wait to authorize it until they have male blood test results and female blood test and pregnancy test results.

Whoa whoa whoa turbo, I never said it shouldn't be legal, just that I don't think it's worth the tradeoff of getting rid of acne for possible risk of a life-long disease like crohns. What you want to put in your body is your own deal.

http://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/cgi/reprint/162/5/983.pdf
http://www.beforeyoutakethatpill.com/images/accutane_brain.jpg

It has been shown Accutane reduces brain metabolism up to 15% in the orbital prefrontal cortex. I took accutane two years ago and was morbidly depressed and my Adderall completely ceased to work. To this day it still does not function in the same manner BUT my Acne is finally gone after years of anti biotics etc essentially anything you can imagine. Would I change my decision to take Accutane ? Most def not but I think people should be aware of all the factors. Just thought I'd throw it out there.

I didn't get to read the entire study on the links you provided. How long were the subjects on accutane?






http://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/cgi/reprint/162/5/983.pdf
http://www.beforeyoutakethatpill.com/images/accutane_brain.jpg

It has been shown Accutane reduces brain metabolism up to 15% in the orbital prefrontal cortex. I took accutane two years ago and was morbidly depressed and my Adderall completely ceased to work. To this day it still does not function in the same manner BUT my Acne is finally gone after years of anti biotics etc essentially anything you can imagine. Would I change my decision to take Accutane ? Most def not but I think people should be aware of all the factors. Just thought I'd throw it out there.

http://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/cgi/reprint/162/5/983.pdf
http://www.beforeyoutakethatpill.com/images/accutane_brain.jpg

It has been shown Accutane reduces brain metabolism up to 15% in the orbital prefrontal cortex. I took accutane two years ago and was morbidly depressed and my Adderall completely ceased to work. To this day it still does not function in the same manner BUT my Acne is finally gone after years of anti biotics etc essentially anything you can imagine. Would I change my decision to take Accutane ? Most def not but I think people should be aware of all the factors. Just thought I'd throw it out there.

Interesting. Thanks for the link. I think I might be frequenting beforeyoutakethatpill.com.

I'm a mom of a kid with ADHD. I took Accutane about 17 years ago. It did wonders for me and I never had any side effects (other than extremely dry skin which was easily alleviated with the right creams). Following that, I did develop rosacea but it has all but dissappeared since I went gluten free a year and a half ago. (in case anyone cares! :) )

I believe they were on it for the standard duration of 6 months. Don't quote me on it though.