Considering TRT for Accutane related hormonal changes

[FunkOdyssey]

Does your acne come back now on TRT?

At 70 mg weekly, my skin was perfectly clear and smoother than pre-TRT which was shocking to me. Since I increased to 105 mg weekly, my skin is slightly worse and about the same as pre-TRT. My levels are still increasing though and minor acne might be a result of the fluctuation in levels and not the levels themselves. From my experience so far, it seems like I would need to get my levels cranked up really high in order to get any significant acne.

I should mention that injecting subcutaneously caused an immediate and severe eruption of acne. I won't make that mistake again. My reaction was so negative that after two subq shots I gave up on TRT until my provider convinced me to try IM instead.

 

[Frizzle]

At 70 mg weekly, my skin was perfectly clear and smoother than pre-TRT which was shocking to me. Since I increased to 105 mg weekly, my skin is slightly worse and about the same as pre-TRT. My levels are still increasing though and minor acne might be a result of the fluctuation in levels and not the levels themselves. From my experience so far, it seems like I would need to get my levels cranked up really high in order to get any significant acne.

I should mention that injecting subcutaneously caused an immediate and severe eruption of acne. I won't make that mistake again. My reaction was so negative that after two subq shots I gave up on TRT until my provider convinced me to try IM instead.

Good pointer! do tou know what your serum levels DHT are?

 

[FunkOdyssey]

Good pointer! do tou know what your serum levels DHT are?

Yes, my pre-TRT DHT was 38 ng/dL and that increased to 54 ng/dL at 70 mg weekly. The higher DHT was counterintuitively associated with clearer skin. I will measure again after stabilizing at 105 mg weekly.

 

[Frizzle]

Yes, my pre-TRT DHT was 38 ng/dL and that increased to 54 ng/dL at 70 mg weekly. The higher DHT was counterintuitively associated with clearer skin. I will measure again after stabilizing at 105 mg weekly.

Nice to talk to you man.

 

[Frizzle]

Nice

Yes, my pre-TRT DHT was 38 ng/dL and that increased to 54 ng/dL at 70 mg weekly. The higher DHT was counterintuitively associated with clearer skin. I will measure again after stabilizing at 105 mg weekly.

Have you tried Boron raise free T? How high are you aiming your DHT?

 

[FunkOdyssey]

Have you tried Boron raise free T? How high are you aiming your DHT?

Now that I'm on TRT there's no reason to take supplements that claim to increase free T. I would just increase my TRT dose.

I don't have a DHT target. I'm only measuring it to see what happens to it at different TRT doses and how it might correlate with benefits or side effects I experience.

 

[Mr.63]

I've taken 3 rounds of Accutane in my life and each time I felt my energy levels dwindle a bit more.

Now that I'm on HRT I don't feel good on normal doses (100-150mg test) possibly because of long-lasting 5AR downregulation. I feel like complete crap on those doses.

I need at least 180-200mg to feel good. Interestingly, 150mg testosterone + 35mg masteron takes care of the problem, which further leads me to think DHT is indeed the issue.

At what frequency do you inject 180-200mg?

 

[Frizzle]

At what frequency do you inject 180-200mg?

What’s your story Mr.63?

 

[Frizzle]

I've taken 3 rounds of Accutane in my life and each time I felt my energy levels dwindle a bit more.

Now that I'm on HRT I don't feel good on normal doses (100-150mg test) possibly because of long-lasting 5AR downregulation. I feel like complete crap on those doses.

I need at least 180-200mg to feel good. Interestingly, 150mg testosterone + 35mg masteron takes care of the problem, which further leads me to think DHT is indeed the issue.

Do you have high / higher SHBG?

 

[Mr.63]

What’s your story Mr.63?

I used a ton of AAS starting at 18 years old and acctually never came off. Around 19 i used accutane too wich took care of my acne. I kept blasting and cruising after that but slowly started losing my libido over the years. Not sure if its the accutane or not. By the time i was een 25 i quit all AAS. Stayed off till i was 27-28 but never recovered. Been on trt since but unable to find libido. Had some periods when things were good but always faded away. Im 31 now btw

 

[Frizzle]

I used a ton of AAS starting at 18 years old and acctually never came off. Around 19 i used accutane too wich took care of my acne. I kept blasting and cruising after that but slowly started losing my libido over the years. Not sure if its the accutane or not. By the time i was een 25 i quit all AAS. Stayed off till i was 27-28 but never recovered. Been on trt since but unable to find libido. Had some periods when things were good but always faded away. Im 31 now btw

What type of TRT do you use? And how much of it? Have your other symptoms resolved with TRT?

Guys that I know who’ve fixed their libido after Accutane are on higher than normal doses TRT.

 

[Mr.63]

What type of TRT do you use? And how much of it? Have your other symptoms resolved with TRT?

Guys that I know who’ve fixed their libido after Accutane are on higher than normal doses TRT.

Only thing that has been resolved for me are gym gains. But thats the least important for me. Im still pretty letargic, poor mood i just dont care much at all about things. Excitement of life is juste a bit gone, its hard to explain.

I was once completely dialed in on cream + injections. Everything was great, good mood, got stuff done, amazing libido + rock hard erections, could bang as much as i wanted in 1 day. Then my new batch of cream came in and all was lost. That was a pretty hard slap in my face. I had to search so long for something to work. And then in 2 days with the new batch im back to where i was.

I use injections right now. 10mg daily. This has only been 2 weeks. Have been on different protocols. So im just trying something new. If this doesn’t work im gonna try an cream+ injection protocol again in hope to find something that works.

 

[Mr.63]

What type of TRT do you use? And how much of it? Have your other symptoms resolved with TRT?

Guys that I know who’ve fixed their libido after Accutane are on higher than normal doses TRT.

What doses and frequency are they on?

 

[Frizzle]

What doses and frequency are they on?

Good thing you already saw some temporary success. Do you have a competent Dr. to guide/advise/treat you?

They are or were on 180-200mg, different protocols.

 

[Mr.63]

Good thing you already saw some temporary success. Do you have a competent Dr. to guide/advise/treat you?

They are or were on 180-200mg, different protocols.

No. I live in Belgium. Im lucky to have acces to pharmacy testosterone injections and cream. But unfortunately no competent doctor to treat me.

 

[Frizzle]

I’m from Holland, so I’m your neighbour. You could contact The Hertoghe clinic in Belgium, Balance my Hormones Europe or The Mens Health Clinic in England.

 

[Fortunate]

I have taken Accutane on two occasions. Both as an adult. I can't remember if it was pre-TRT or while I was on TRT. I have always had acne issues, even before TRT, but TRT has either made it worse and/or difficult to eradicate.

I have no idea if Accutane jacked me up from a hormone perspective. It was never really even on my radar as a possibility when I was on it, so I didn't really attempt to connect any dots between my mood/libido and Accutane. I suppose it is possible that it contributed to issues that led me to TRT, but I can't say for sure.

Meanwhile, I still struggle with acne. Small, daily doses seem to be least offensive, while larger (50mg or more), more periodic doses cause breakouts. One of the biggest offenders for me is hCG. Within a few days, doses as small as 100IU per day give me greasy skin and acne flare ups. I think, but am not sure, that when I take anastrozole, my greasy skin improves. This would suggest that, at least for me, acne is either related to E2, or at least multifactorial.

I am currently on Sarecycline. It helps a little, but hasn't been great. I am seeing a new dermatologist, and the NP recently brought up Accutane. I am considering giving it a go again, but obviously don't want clear skin along with a miserable mood.

Are there guys out there that took Accutane without an obvious negative impact on mood? Do we think Accutane is as problematic as finasteride? How convinced are we that the Accutane stories are more than anecdotes? I am absolutely not dismissing anyone's concerns - just trying to get a sense of what we as a community of TRT guys think of Accutane before I consider using it again.

 

[Gman86]

Definitely stay far away from accutane. Not worth it imo, and not needed to treat acne. Apart from the obv things like cutting out processed dairy, gluten, and processed seed oils, as well as other inflammatory foods from ur diet, I would recommend trying to get in more bioavailable vitamin A (retinol). Beef liver, or probably any liver from another ruminant animal is one of, if not the highest source of retinol on the planet. So I would recommend getting some liver in ur diet. But there’s other good food sources of retinol as well that u could implement. I’d also recommend using azelaic acid and sulphur soap. Both have been known to be very effective at treating acne

 

[nbbrown1982]

i'm actually glad to find this chat. I took accuatane when i was 17 for bad acne and had a healthy sexual function at that time. After that i noticed something was wrong for about 10 years. I was trying to have children with my wife and it was working, I was infertile and very low testosterone. I started trt and its been a wild ride for another 10 years. Whatever accutane does to our body completely fucks up your system. I have tried almost everything with regards to trt. Injections make me feel horrible(high estrogen with low dht) and in order to feel ok on gels i have to take a lot and it makes me feel numb mentally. Only thing that seems to work ok is very low dose injections and test gel on scrotum. Id like to hear other experiences with trt as well maybe we can learn something from each other.

 

[ZK46]

Hi I have just joined this forum and this is a thread that greatly interests me. I'm 38 now but been suffering side effects of Accutane since 24.

Over the last 10 years I've tried many different protocols with liitle success. (Too much to list)

My symptoms started a few weeks after I stopped the drug, but they hit hard. ED and libido were the main problems along with severe joint pain and emotional numbness. Although I don't get pains anymore the sexual sides are still bad and got worse (genital shrinkage). Emotional numbness is still there, I wouldn't call it depression but more that I feel emotionally disconnected and just not bothered by things.

Currently I'm on sustanon 50mg (0.2ml) every 5 days and HCG 500iu MWF.

It's important to point out that when I first started HCG it was excellent for 3 months great libido and erections and HCG also improved the mental sides, I had the 'zest for life' again. Then in the fourth month all that vanished much to my disappointment. I still don't know why that happened. I am currently in my 5 month of HCG being added to my protocol but the benefits I had in the first 3 months are gone.

I was so excited when the HCG was working I thought I was on the road to recovery when it stopped I was devastated but it prompted me to post my experience for the first time. Sorry if this post is really long, any help and feedback from you guys is much appreciated.