My Skincare Story: A guy's take on acne and Accutane

When you see acne products and skin care commercials, the majority of the time the models are girls. Most advertisements when it comes to acne completely ignore the fact that we deal with acne just as often as girls do. It’s always been sort of taboo for guys to talk about taking care of their skin, so when I went on Accutane I had no idea what I was in for.

I started to break out around 8th grade/freshman year which was pretty early on compared to my friends. I learned later on that most guys don’t start to deal with acne until later on in high school and even college, so when I was breaking out and none of my friends had acne I felt self-conscious about it. It got to the point where I wouldn’t take any pictures of myself.

Before going on Accutane, I tried to get rid of my acne myself. I saw commercials on TV for different acne brands, so I thought I would try them. I wasn’t even the slightest bit educated on how to get rid of acne so I was willing to try anything.

First, I tried Proactiv and I think I stuck with that for about a month or two and my acne was just getting worse not better. Another ad I saw was for XOut which ended up being another waste of money so my mom finally stepped in and made me schedule a dermatologist appointment. I was willing to go in order to get rid of my acne, but I felt even more embarrassed because I didn’t know anyone else going to the dermatologist and it’s not like we openly talked about it either. On top of that, making the appointment was another annoyance on its own. I realized it was much harder than I thought it would be to actually schedule an appointment when you do not already have a dermatologist. Some dermatologists had waiting lists while others you had to book appointments way out in advance. I had to wait over a month before I could ever actually see anyone.

Once I had a derm it was much easier, but the waiting was so hard when all I wanted was to get rid of my acne.

The first thing the derm did was set me up with a benzoyl peroxide face wash and a simple moisturizer. Once my skin was used to using that and my skin didn’t improve much my derm got me a prescription for a topical clindamycin. I started out using it once every other day and then eventually used it every morning and night. I saw a little bit of improvement and stayed on that for a while. But I was a 3 sport athlete in high school and I noticed the more I worked out and sweated the less effective my skincare routine was on my acne. It always came back. So at my next dermatologist appointment the derm recommended Accutane as my next step.

The derm gave me the whole speech about the possible side effects and the monthly blood tests, but honestly I was sold. My mom was a bit more hesitant, and she asked the derm a bunch of questions and did her own research. She was not totally sold on it but she knew I was struggling with my acne both physically and mentally, and since nothing else had really been effective up to this point, she agreed to it since she also knew how my acne made me feel given just how effective Accutane can be.

I was on Accutane for 6 months and it was a bit tiring. One of the side effects of acne is increased exhaustion so with school, sports, and taking Accutane it was a lot. All I could think the whole time I was on it though was how my skin would look afterwards. Also yes, the dry skin and lips you hear about is definitely real but manageable. The end of my freshman year and beginning of my sophomore year was tough but being completely honest, it was totally worth it for me. The 6 months went by so much faster than I thought they would. The acne scars stayed for a while after Accutane but they slowly healed over time and my skin is basically 100% clear now. It’s a big deal when I get even one pimple now because it happens so rarely.

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I’m now a freshman in college and I don’t feel self-conscious about my skin anymore. When I tell people I was on Accutane, a lot of them don’t believe me because my skin is so clear. After getting off Accutane I realized how many girls AND guys had been on Accutane too either in high school or now while in college. I don’t do much for my skin anymore, and I really should be more diligent about a skincare routine but I’m a lazy college student. I hope this reaches the right audience and makes some guys feel more comfortable in their skin and know they’re not alone. On top of that I am jealous of people who go on Accutane today because Clear Health’s Accutane process is almost completely online. I may sound lazy but actually having to make and physically go to the dermatologist appointments each month was so tedious.

I’d say if you’re thinking about Accutane, really take into account how your acne makes you feel since that was a big deciding factor for me. If you’re already on Accutane, stay the course! It definitely gets better and I couldn’t have been happier with my decision to stick it through.

Nick