Blog posts : "nodular acne"

Tetracycline Update

I have been having motivation issues the past week and a half! Along with Tetracycline, I started another medication which made my energy levels plummet the first week. I seem to be adapting now :)

Tetracycline is a huge pain in the butt. For the best results, you should take it one hour before eating or two-three hours after eating. You are also expected to avoid dairy products within one hour of taking it, though the warning should really be to avoid calcium-rich foods which includes soy milks, fortified beverages, dark green vegetables, some fish, calcium suppliments and so forth. Tetracycline has a tendancy to bind to calcium, rendering the drug ineffective.

So far, I have managed to get one new nodule since I started taking tetracycline. I heard that it is supposed to take a few weeks to start working, but it seems to have held the current breakouts at bay while almost eliminating new ones.

Side effects... I've thrown up once and have learned that I should be trying to take the second dose of tetracycline before supper time so that my stomach has time to digest it and so that the nasuea that it causes me can subside enough. I get nausea after I eat, before I eat, and while I sleep... Unfortunately, this is a minor trade-off for how painful the breakouts can be. I'm hoping my body will adjust to it.

The biggest issue I have with it is timing the doses. I'm thinking I'm going to try setting a new alarm up to go off one hour before I'm to get out of bed, then taking it and going back to sleep. Then I can have my coffee and I should be able to take the second dose 2-3 hours after lunchtime.

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