212 replies to this topic

[birdybird41]

I have been using the Aleve too...I love it!! Now I am older and had an abblation, so I do not have periods any more...but I still get the pms symtoms (oh do I) andyway, it is hard for me to keep track of when...so I take the aleve if I see a cyst (pimple) coming, I was getting them real bad, then I read about Aleve and ...man it does wonders, with in 2 days it is gone, and never gets real big...wonder drug if you ask me!!

I also use Mario Badescu products, stumbled upon them in Nordstroms..his Acne line is WONDERFUL....I was a basket case 3 months ago...another doctor wanted to pu tme on accutane, yes my face was that bad...thankd goodness for Aleve and Mario!!!

I've had ablation done too and I'm also older- 43 to be exact, soon to be 44. ( on a side note, I am SO happy with the ablation- no more terrible periods!!yay!) I still get the PMS too, like you...AND the zits/cysts on the chin to boot. I just happen to have some Aleve in my office as I was reading these posts and figured, what the heck, might as well try! I've got 3 whoppers on my chin today- one under my lip that is quite painful, so at the very least the Aleve will help with the pain. I"ve tried Ibuprofen for zits before too and had some success, but I figure, trying Aleve when you feel a biggun coming on is worth a shot! I'll have to take a look at the research link too..
I haven't tried Mario Badescu, but i might take a look. My acne goes from totally clear, to minor little flares, to 2-3 nodules/cysts on the chin at one time. I NEVER get pimples anywhere else anymore but the chin. And, to add to the confusion, my skin seems to be worse in the fall/winter months- i'll get 1-2 cysts a month from about October to April....then, from about May through August, Im usually almost 100% clear....SO FRUSTRATING!!!

[HateThis]

Wow, I'm definitely going to try this out. I usually get pimples either the week before my period or during...so it's going to be tough for me to figure out exactly when will be best. I guess as soon as I see one brewing, I'll get to poppin' Aleve.

[cuddlebug]

Does anyone notice that their face looks calmer, less irritated, and less red when using aleve? Whenever I take it, my skin has a more normal skin tone as opposed to redness, that I usually have? I wish I could take it everyday but I would rather not have health problems:) So I do as LQ recommends and use 3 days prior to my period.
Thanks LQ for this information!!!

[angel1]

I have been using Aleve during my past two cycles and have not had any of the pimples or cysts that I have been struggling with since I stopped BC pills! Thanks for the great tip! I tend to scar more easily as I get older so anything that stops the inflammation is number one in my book. I also recommend Neutrogena Oil Free Stress Free lotion for a night time treatment. It dries up the little whiteheads without making skin flaky.

[hopingforclear]

I'll have to try this, thanks for the tip. I have taken ibuprofen in the past when I have a painful pimple and it SEEMS to help (or maybe I just think it does). But I never would imagine to try an NSAID like Aleve to PREVENT. Hm, I'll have to see how it works for me. I recently switched my BC to Yaz so hopefully that will make a difference too.

[QueenofApathy]

This didn't work for me. I got the same amount of acne I always do. And it made my stomach feel like it was bleeding (probably was. XD)

[MuffinsRock]

wow I've never heard of this, I will definately be trying this next time, but thats a month away, I hope it helps!!! I get acne all year round, but its only bad during PMS

[Alyssa M]

hello all. this is my first time on acne.org. anyways, you should avoid taking aleve if you are on yaz,yasmin,or spironolactone. my doctor told me to avoid them because the combination of the bc or spiro and aleve will increase potassium levels in your body which can cause heart failure or liver problems. just a heads up!

[xxemilyxx]

Oh awesome! I have some Aleve! I wish I saw this about a week ago because I'm in full breakout mode right now. Still it may help the stuff that's already going on.

[sznooze]

I tried it and it worked. Usually i have painful PMS inflammation right now and i got a small one right above my lip, hardly noticeable. Also I do use BP for spot treatment and that works too -- together this just might solve my "around my period break outs."
awesome

oh i just took 1 a day for a few days (no more) and it worked enough for me. Im small tho, so i usually gauge my dosages based on how susceptible i am to things.

[ThreeDaysWasTheMorning]

***Hi. I already started a separate thread for this, and am fully confident it will be at the bottom of the Adult Acne heap in no time, flat. My apologies for duplicating a comment here, but I really think this information is relevant and important.***

I've been experimenting the last 2-3 months with Aleve to relieve inflammatory cysts that sprout during ovulation and PMS. It helped squelch the inflammation but created another, more serious problem.

Last month, I had the longest cycle EVARRRR--38 days. I ovulated almost 2 weeks late and attributed it to just not getting enough sleep, stress at work, etc., and vowed to take better care of myself this cyle.

This month, although I can usually tell when I'm ovulating, THERE WERE NO NORMAL SIGNS TO NAVIGATE. I tried not to stress about it too much and just figured I was "getting back to normal." Today is day 31, with no signs of a period on the horizon. So I spent some time with Dr. Google and came to this:

"Doctors may not mention this to women who are trying to get pregnant, but the use of non-steroidal anti-inflamatory drugs, including Advil and Aleve, and aspirin cause ovulation problems. Specifically, the use of these medications can cause a failure of the follicles to burst and release eggs -- called luteinizing unruptured follicle syndrome (LUF or LUFS)." (http://www.fertiline...edquestions.htm)

Also:

"NSAIDs – the use of NSAIDs such as aspirin, Advil, Motrin and Aleve can cause ovulation problems by preventing the ovarian follicle to burst and release eggs. Women attempting to conceive should avoid NSAIDs around the time of ovulation." (http://diseasesandco...nfertility.html)

NSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, like Advil, Aleve, Aspirin, etc.) interfere with ovulation. I did not spend any time investigating LUF/LUFS, since I'm not going to continue with the Aleve and I hope my body will go back to normal. I am not messing with my fertility, thank you very much.

If you are taking Aleve to treat your inflammatory acne and your cycle is delayed or interrupted, this might be the reason. (Woe be unto you if you are also trying to conceive a child!) A Google search for "delayed ovulation Aleve" will bring you several returns from family planning sites and even a few scholarly abstracts on the subject.

My apologies for any burst bubbles.

[xxemilyxx]

***Hi. I already started a separate thread for this, and am fully confident it will be at the bottom of the Adult Acne heap in no time, flat. My apologies for duplicating a comment here, but I really think this information is relevant and important.***

I've been experimenting the last 2-3 months with Aleve to relieve inflammatory cysts that sprout during ovulation and PMS. It helped squelch the inflammation but created another, more serious problem.
...

If you are taking Aleve to treat your inflammatory acne and your cycle is delayed or interrupted, this might be the reason. (Woe be unto you if you are also trying to conceive a child!) A Google search for "delayed ovulation Aleve" will bring you several returns from family planning sites and even a few scholarly abstracts on the subject.

My apologies for any burst bubbles.

Thanks for pointing this out..I took Aleve when I was getting the pre-period acne and then...2 weeks later it showed up. Seriously LATE. I suppose that's likely why. Fortunately we aren't trying to get pg right now.

[Rainbow Brite]

My acne goes from totally clear, to minor little flares, to 2-3 nodules/cysts on the chin at one time. I NEVER get pimples anywhere else anymore but the chin. And, to add to the confusion, my skin seems to be worse in the fall/winter months- i'll get 1-2 cysts a month from about October to April....then, from about May through August, Im usually almost 100% clear....SO FRUSTRATING!!!

Your skin sounds just like mine!! Every once in awhile I'll get a zit on my forehead or on my neck, but 99% of the time it's on my chin And yup, it'll get completely clear during the summer!! GRR!!!

hello all. this is my first time on acne.org. anyways, you should avoid taking aleve if you are on yaz,yasmin,or spironolactone. my doctor told me to avoid them because the combination of the bc or spiro and aleve will increase potassium levels in your body which can cause heart failure or liver problems. just a heads up!

As long as you don't overdo it, you should be ok to take both together:

http://www.healthboards.com/boards/showthread.php?t=388355

I got two big zits over the weekend and my period is due to start tomorrow. Just started taking Aleve today (because I have stitches in my hand...lol), so we'll see if it makes a difference!

[annakarenina83]

Im going to try this asap, I hope they sell it in Australia

I hate BCP because I get a lot of symptoms like headaches and broken capillaries with it...and weird cramps.

Thanks a lot for your market research

[Rainbow Brite]

For me at least, looks like taking Aleve after you've broken out doesn't do any good. So next month I'll try taking it sooner and hope it keeps the zits from ever forming!

[didi78]

Thank you for this thread! For over a year, I've been getting those gigantic cysts that stay at least 5-6 weeks, and leave bad scars. Always just one or two a month, but after a year of accumulation, it really has impacted my overall complexion. After reading this thread, I went through my day planner (where I keep track of my periods), and realized that I ALWAYS GOT THE CYSTS DURING MY OVULATION WEEK! I remembered that I had a cyst during my birthday week, my vacation week, the first week of my job (which caused a lot of embarassment for me), etc....all of which occurred during the 2nd week of my cycle. It was an amazing piece of insight. This month, I took Aleve 4 days, 2 times a day, during the week of my ovulation, and also took it for 3 days prior to my period (just once a day), and NO CYSTS! This is the first time in over a year where I have not gotten a cyst. Granted, I'm also on differin (in my 9th week, had a horrible cystic breakout during week 4-5), but it's really amazing that I have not gotten a cyst. Very happy!!!

For those of you out there who get cysts during ovulation, I started using www.mymonthlycycles.com to track my ovulation and menstrual cycle, and even get monthly emails to remind me of when I'm ovulating, etc. This really helps me know when to start taking the Aleve. Thanks so much!

[junebug1991]

haha, that looks like an awesome website ^ I'm def signing up. ;P

[Kriszti]

***Hi. I already started a separate thread for this, and am fully confident it will be at the bottom of the Adult Acne heap in no time, flat. My apologies for duplicating a comment here, but I really think this information is relevant and important.***

I've been experimenting the last 2-3 months with Aleve to relieve inflammatory cysts that sprout during ovulation and PMS. It helped squelch the inflammation but created another, more serious problem.

Last month, I had the longest cycle EVARRRR--38 days. I ovulated almost 2 weeks late and attributed it to just not getting enough sleep, stress at work, etc., and vowed to take better care of myself this cyle.

This month, although I can usually tell when I'm ovulating, THERE WERE NO NORMAL SIGNS TO NAVIGATE. I tried not to stress about it too much and just figured I was "getting back to normal." Today is day 31, with no signs of a period on the horizon. So I spent some time with Dr. Google and came to this:

"Doctors may not mention this to women who are trying to get pregnant, but the use of non-steroidal anti-inflamatory drugs, including Advil and Aleve, and aspirin cause ovulation problems. Specifically, the use of these medications can cause a failure of the follicles to burst and release eggs -- called luteinizing unruptured follicle syndrome (LUF or LUFS)." (http://www.fertiline...edquestions.htm)

Also:

"NSAIDs – the use of NSAIDs such as aspirin, Advil, Motrin and Aleve can cause ovulation problems by preventing the ovarian follicle to burst and release eggs. Women attempting to conceive should avoid NSAIDs around the time of ovulation." (http://diseasesandco...nfertility.html)

NSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, like Advil, Aleve, Aspirin, etc.) interfere with ovulation. I did not spend any time investigating LUF/LUFS, since I'm not going to continue with the Aleve and I hope my body will go back to normal. I am not messing with my fertility, thank you very much.

If you are taking Aleve to treat your inflammatory acne and your cycle is delayed or interrupted, this might be the reason. (Woe be unto you if you are also trying to conceive a child!) A Google search for "delayed ovulation Aleve" will bring you several returns from family planning sites and even a few scholarly abstracts on the subject.

My apologies for any burst bubbles.

Thanks for this information. I haven't tried this treatment, becasue Alleve upsets the heck out of my stomach and I'm ttc right now. Interestingly, I do use ibuprofen for headaches and back pain sometimes- at least a few time a month. I wonder if this has contributed to my not getting pregnant yet? I've been ttc for 1.5 years now.

[Fadonna]

I agree. After one year, I am weaning myself off the Aleve each month b/c of weird things happening in my cycle.

I do propose a solution--I've been living in the UK for almost 2 years now, trying new facial products (but still using Dan's good ol' BP). I've found I can make it thru my monthly cycles spot-free with this regimen:

Morning:

Cleanse w/ Origins Clean Energy oil cleanser (sounds greasy, but cleans deep down. Haven't got a blackhead since I started using this)

Spray Avene or Evian thermal spring water mist over face, pat dry

Apply Dan's BP, let dry for a minute or two

Apply Eucerin Q10 Active Anti-Wrinkle Moisturiser w/ SPF 15 (this stuff is a miracle--they don't have the exact same thing in the US, but I've been reading up on drugstore.com reviews for Eucerin Q10 Sensitive Anti-Wrinkle moisturiser w/ SPF, and it seems to provide the same result--CLEAR SKIN and LESS WRINKLES!!)

Same routine at night except I use the Eucerin Q10 Night Cream, which I don't think is available in the US.

I don't know what it is about Eucerin stuff, but it's heaven for my skin.

[e.m._1]

Hmmm.....very interesting.....