What to do now
- Tell someone now. Contact your prescriber and tell a trusted person what has changed. Family or friends may be able to help you get care if you cannot seek it yourself.
- Name the change clearly. Report sadness, anxiety, loss of interest, sleep changes, irritability, anger, aggression, withdrawal, trouble concentrating, dangerous impulses, suicidal thoughts, or seeing or hearing things that are not real.
- Use crisis help when needed. Call or text 988 for suicidal thoughts or emotional distress; you do not have to be suicidal to contact 988. Call 911 for immediate danger or an emergency.
- Follow direct clinical instructions. Do not make an independent dose or treatment decision; ask the prescriber what to do next.
Do not wait for the next routine visit
Prompt contact matters even when you are unsure whether the medicine, acne, stress, or something else is involved. Uncertainty about the cause does not change the need for prompt reporting; the prescriber can assess whether the medicine, acne, stress, or another factor is involved.
Can Accutane affect sleep?
Sleep changes, including insomnia and sleeping more than usual, are part of the warning pattern that requires calling your doctor right away.
Frequently asked questions
Should I wait to see whether a mental health change passes?
No. Contact your prescriber right away about new or worsening changes in mood, thoughts, behavior, or sleep.
Can Accutane affect sleep?
Contact your prescriber right away about insomnia, sleeping more than usual, or difficulty falling or staying asleep. These can be part of the mental-health warning pattern.
Can I call 988 if I am distressed but not suicidal?
Yes. People do not have to be suicidal to contact the 988 Lifeline.
Sources
- MedlinePlus — Isotretinoin Drug InformationMedlinePlus, U.S. National Library of Medicine
- 988 Lifeline — Get Help988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline