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[dreamer7]

Hey guys.


I've been reading posts on this site for a while now but I have never posted myself. I thought it was about time to start talking about my journey and become a part of the community, so that I could grab advice specific to my situation, from you guys, and maybe I might be able to give a little back. I have read countless posts on here, some of which have helped me, so I thank you all for that! It's a pain though, realising not everything works for everyone!

So really I'm starting this log to try and identify what works best for me I guess, and possibly for some of you guys reading.


My background:

I am an 18 year old male. My mother had acne in her teenage years, so I'm pretty sure there's a genetic link there. I've probably had acne for about 4 years now, so since I was 14. Now when I say acne, my case isn't the worst and I realise that, but it still does have an effect on me, which is why I'm here, don't forget that. I do not have acne on my cheeks, and I do not have nodular or cystic acne. For the first couple of years, it mainly consisted of breakouts, common 'zits', which I've come to learn are actually pustules. I've always thought they were called whiteheads, but whiteheads aren't actually inflamed (they're not red). This is my understanding anyway. On my face, my acne is inflamed, and these pustules are limited to the area between my mouth and chin, especially the outer area. Sometimes around the hair line, sometimes along the jawline. I usually would go a week being clear, a week not. But more recently, within the past year, it has been becoming more frequent, i.e., every week. I have a new breakout every time one heals. I have these breakouts on my face, arms, back, and on my upper legs sometimes too. Little inflamed pus filled pimples. Okay, so I could actually live with acne on my body, because it isn't the worst, and I'm sure I'm not going to be plagued with it forever (although it sometimes feels like it), but breakouts on the face is a real blow to your self esteem, especially in school. I hate it because it makes me feel dirty (which I know is not the case, but that's how people perceive it), I feel like everyone is always looking at it. It also makes me feel unhealthy, and I hate that, because I like to think of myself as a healthy person.

Anyway, thinking about why this may have become worse recently it's probably stress. As much as I hate to say it, because I don't feel stressed. I graduated high school in December 2010. I'm taking a year off, before I go to university, which I'm dreading if I can't get this under control. At the start of this year I think my acne had actually improved, it was a lot less frequent, and I didn't have a job at the time. I was mainly eating lots, working out, seeing people, and I was doing that almost everyday. I started a full time job which required early starts, and although I didn't feel stressed, maybe I was. I was working 40-45 hour weeks and stopped exercising and going to the gym. 6 months later and I've left the job, finally deciding that I really need to relax and get this under control before university. I'm currently working another job, 20 hours a week, so that I still save up some money. But I'm hoping this extra time will give me the chance to help myself.
What have I tried?

When my acne started getting worse, a month into my full time job, I thought, well may as well go see a doctor and get it sorted out. He prescribed benzoyl beroxide. Benzac AC to be exact. It was the first thing I had ever tried. I thought it worked great after a few days of using it, but by the end of two weeks I couldn't take it anymore. I broke out in places I'd never broken out before. My break outs were more painful and red than usual, and took longer to heal. By the end of the second week I had actually developed 3 large blackheads too. I had never had blackheads before. I tried googling this, but found nothing. Maybe I was using it wrong, but I stopped. This is what started my frustrating journey of product after product. I went back to my usual regimen, which is 1) what I've been doing for 5 years, and 2) so simple. Washing my face with a wash cloth x 2 daily. My face went back to normal after 1-2 weeks, breakout after breakout, but better than on BP. After learning that BP, was essentially bleach, I tried tea tree oil for 2 weeks. Same disappointing results.

After a month of not trying any new products, I decided to try salicylic acid, something which many acne sites list as second to BP, with a different mode of action. I thought that it sounded good in theory, and thought it might be the thing that would actually work for me, seeing as pustules are clogged etc. Again, breakouts in new areas, and now I have this annoying tiny little cyst type mark that is yet to go away, after about a month of being here even though I've stopped the salicylic acid! I am so angry. It was a neutrogena product.

After reading rave reviews about apple cider vinegar, I went out and bought braggs and was taking 1-2 tablespoons a day for two weeks, no results. Disappointed because everyone was saying it was working! I was skeptical though.

Went back to the GP and he prescribed epiduo. I'm yet to even use it after reading reviews. I'm starting to think that I might respond better to an internal treatment seeing as, even though I'm not concerned about acne on my body, it's more practical to try treat it from inside, rather than rub a load of topical all over my body, seeing as my problem is not limited to 'areas' specifically I guess, which is especially true for my body. However, I was only using topicals on my face, the exception being salicylic acid, which I tried on my body.

I considered antibiotics, but I don't know whether that's worth it, especially because it's only a temporary fix.

Which brings me to my current hope. I'm starting a sort of vitamin mega dose treatment. I hope to have my acne controlled by February 2012, which is when I leave for university. Which doesn't give me much time, hence the mega dose path, and hence why I'm giving each treatment idea floating around in my head a month to work. I'm going to be taking retinyl palmitate (Vit A) and zinc gluconate (zinc) for a month, and see how my health is after that. I guess from here onwards, I will start documenting my efforts.

So at the moment, as I've only just started, I'm currently taking:

Vitamin A: 5,000IU per day, which I will work up to 20,000IU by the end of the month (26th of October)
Zinc: 15mg per day, which I will work up to 60mg by the end of the month, possibly more if I don't experience nausea which some people have documented.

These I've been taking for a while:
Vitamin D: 1,000IU per day, as I'm deficient, found out through a blood test.
Fish oil: 2000mg per day, just because this is my secret weapon at school

And like I said before, the only thing I do to my face now is wash it using my wash cloth, as it's what I've always done before experimenting with topicals. At this point in time, I will never ever use a moisturiser. This is because I'm adamant that they break me out. I can't be bothered, nor do I wish to spend the money that it will require to experiment and find one that doesn't break me out.

I never really considered myself to have oily skin, but I probably do. Not a serious problem, but I get the classic T zone happening, and my hair get's so oily within 1-2 days of washing. I hope that vitamin supplementation will help decrease oiliness. Vitamin B2, or riboflavin, is said to do this apparently. The B complex will probably be my next line of action.

I should probably also say that I have keratosis pilaris, not sure if many of you know what it is. It's genetic, my mother had it and my sister has it. It's basically lots of little red dots. Mine is mainly on the back of my upper arms, and kind of on my upper legs too. It's not overly relevant, but I feel it could somehow be a link to my acne, as apparently it could be linked to vitamin A deficiency. So I'm hoping I might see a difference in my arms throughout the next month too.


My diet:

I'm glad my mother's such a health freak (she protested to the fact that I started using BP). I mainly have a good diet for this reason.
I haven't eaten fast food for a few years, and I do not drink soft drink, or soda, or whatever you call it from where you're reading this.
I eat whole grain and wholemeal grains, such as breads, oats, and rice. I know that the brown grains are better for you, and they help me gain weight, which I need! I avoid caffeine, which is hard seeing as my workplace serves it and I get it free if I desire.

If anything about my diet, that I need to change, it's probably sugar. I do get a fair bit of sugar, especially if my family is making desserts all the time or my sister is bringing home licorice. Which she does often, I'm a sucker for coloured licorice. I think I really need to cut down on my sugars, because I've heard of a link between sugar and hormones, namely testosterone.

The average day in terms of diet for me:

Breakfast - Lunch:
- Porridge, brown oats
- Multigrain toast
- Fruit, usually a banana

Lunch:
- Leftovers from dinner the night before OR Multigrain sandwhich x 2 OR scrambled eggs + multigrain toast x 2

Dinner:
- Different type/preparation of meat each night, usually lamb or chicken.
- Salad (lettuce, cucumber, capsicum, tomato, fresh carot, celery) OR vegetables, steamed/roasted/baked (potato, sweet potato, carrot, parsnip)

I know I probably don't eat as much as I'm meant to at this age, and I'm working on it. I also know that I'm probably not eating as many vegetables as I should, which is why I'm thinking vitamin supplementation might be important for me.

I will take my supplements for a month and If I clear up, I will reduce the amounts slowly as I know mega dosing is not good long term. If I don't see results, I will cut the supplements down to the recommended daily intake, and proceed to try the B complex.

If you've made it this far, congrats for reading a load of stuff about someone you don't even know. But I hope a few of you will be as interested as I am to see how my situation develops. Feel free to give me advice or ask any questions. Any feedback is welcome.

Thanks guys.

[dreamer7]

Well no difference yet. I did have a new breakout which is annoying, nothing more than usual though. So I'm pretty sure that's not an indication of the supplements not working as I've only been on them around 10 days. I'm up to a total of 15,000IU per day for vitamin A, and 45mg of zinc total per day. Not really noticing any side effects which is good. A lot of people say they feel sick with zinc, but if anything, I've only felt mild stomach discomfort and that was during the first few days. I haven't really had that now. I think I'm going to up the vitamin A to 20,000 IU, and the zinc to 60mg. This is just for two weeks. Not long term.

I've also had a bit of a dietary change too. I was reading one of my mothers health books the other day (titled 'the ABC's of diseases', or something like that) and they had a profile on acne in there. It was basically promoting an anti-candida diet. Which I've decided I will kind of lean towards. It will be hard for me, because dairy and grains are what make most of my diet.. They had a whole page of what not to eat, and then this little section with two dot points of what I could eat. Basically it's green vegetables, like sprouts, capsicum (bell peppers), lettuce, spinach, onions etc. (most of the ones listed I can tolerate, so I'm not too scared), and limited poultry/lamb/fish. Although it says to avoid grains, I won't be able to cut out them out altogether, because I need the calories If I'm going to continue to try and gain weight, so I'll just limit my grains. But I have decided to stop eating dairy. It kind of makes sense though, not drinking milk, because it's from a cow with cow hormones. We don't need cow hormones.. So now I'm drinking rice milk. I would have preferred almond milk but I need the calories. I'm also going to try eat more vegetarian meals now, with salads etc.

I hope I start to see results soon. I'm actually considering seeing a naturopath soon as well. I'm fairly sure my private health cover pays for it. I really want to get to the root of the problem rather than spend months treating each possible cause.

BTW: I posted this topic twice? I don't know how that happened. If someone knows how to delete the duplicate and would like to let me know, I would appreciate that.

Edited by dreamer7, 05 October 2011 - 02:03 AM.

[dreamer7]

I haven't recieved any replies yet, and I don't mind, because this is still helping me keep track of what is going on. But if you have any thoughts or advice, I would appreciate hearing it

It's been 2 weeks today since I started, and I think I'm noticing results. It might be to early to tell though, sometimes I get half clear only to break out again. And I'm not sure why that is, but most topicals (and the ACV) I've used tend to work that way. I'm hoping this is different. The new breakout I had, from my last post, is almost gone. I'm not sure if I can attribute that completely to the vitamins as I did end up using pure tea tree oil on that area overnight, for a few nights. I haven't used tea tree oil on breakout areas for a while, as I usually used BP, even though I've read that BP isn't effective as a spot/area treatment, I had found it effective in those cases purely to decrease the redness. Recently I thought I had found the best spot treatment, by leaving a dab of BP on each spot and not rubbing in, leaving it to dry itself. Even though that decreased redness dramatically, it left me with red marks on those spots, even after the pimple disappeared. It has taken about 2 weeks for some of those spots to fade. (Won't be doing that again). So if I do use BP again, it'll be rubbed in, and that is why this time I decided to use the tea tree oil, undiluted, and it seems to work effectively, whether or not it would have naturally faded that quickly, I'm not sure, so I suppose it's actually hard to be certain whether or not the tea tree oil did anything.

Last post I said I was considering upping the vitamin A. I have since decided I won't, as I've experience minor symptoms from the dosage I'm already taking (15,000IU). 10,000IU is usually recommended for those fighting acne, and 5,000IU if you're pregnant. Toxicity occurs around 20-25,000IU. I'm experiencing slight pressure in my head, it's not chronic and it's not unbearable, not even painful. Sometimes I don't even notice it. It's just a weird airy sensation.

As for the zinc, I've read about people taking up to 100mg per day without trouble, and I'm currently on 45mg. I'm going to increase to 60mg as of tomorrow

I've decided I will go see a naturopath. I'm going to book the appointment tomorrow, as they're closed on Sundays. I really want to get to the root, if they can find one, rather than me going through this process of elimination with each possible root cause.

I'm still currently off dairy. I went off a few days ago, so that may have contributed to some of my healing recently. I'm not sure. I guess it will take longer to actually know. Apparently 70-80% of people are actually lactose intolerant, so it will be interesting to see if my naturopath can find out whether I am or not.

I tried cutting out grains, which has been really hard. I eat a lot of grains and dairy, but I've been able to replace milk, and just eliminate cheese/butter easily. I'm still having 2-3 servings of grains a day, making sure they're whole grains. I don't know why people seem to think grains are bad for acne though? If it's because the carbohydrates are converted into sugar, and sugar is bad for acne, then that theory is flawed, because sugar that comes from healthy carbohydrates is processed at a much slower rate, and doesn't make our insulin levels fluctuate, whether processed sugar does. And even if you do eat many carbohydrates, that then produces a lot of sugar, making sure you exercise 30 minutes per day will help your body use up that sugar. My brother, who studied fitness health, was able to explain that to me. Hopefully I have relayed that correctly. But that's my understanding of it.

So no dairy, I'm limiting my grains but still need them because I need to eat (I can't lose anymore weight I'm already too skinny) and I'm eating more vegetables than usual, including tomato, spinach, sprouts, onion, bell peppers (which are my favourite veg), carrot. I know that's not a whole lot, I'm trying to introduce new things. I never used to eat spinach or sprouts but I have been since starting this regime. I love spinach, and sprouts I kind of have to force down but I feel good doing it I'm using rice milk instead, which doesn't taste the best, but has more calories than almond milk (which I imagine tastes amazing), and I need as many calories I can get.

I will update you again soon.

[throughbeingcool]

Good job eliminating dairy! Milk and cheese contributes to so many people's acne, and it's not very good for our bodies anyway (and if you're trying to holistically heal yourself, then you have to mind your entire body as a whole!).
I'd like to see a photo of your skin if you feel like doing so. It would help me try to help you if you'd like! The only thing I can say based of what I've read so far is to stop the topical chemicals (your mother is right!), see a naturopath and get a food allergy test done, and start focusing on your stress levels! Your thoughts (low self-esteem, etc.) really does affect acne. You probably don't feel depressed or anything, but it could be helpful to look up some self-help books or "zen" blogs or something (they're helping me). I know that sounds hippy-ish, but it's that important. Also, you're lucky that you don't have to worry about wearing makeup! If I were you, I'd just wash my face with water in the morning and again and night using a wash cloth and not have another thought about your skin. The less you think about it, the better, and the less you put on it, the better!
Good luck and let me know how things are going

[dreamer7]

Thanks for replying! I'm so glad I've cut out dairy. I'm normally not good at giving things up, but I'm not finding this particularly hard anymore. When you want something this badly, then you will have no trouble finding the strength to resist temptation! Haha. It's kind of empowering. It was hard for starters, because I love milk and cheese, but I haven't really missed cheese, even though I used to love it, which is weird. Milk is probably the hardest thing. I used to drink half a litre every day, which probably isn't as much as some people, but I guess it's still a lot for me. Rice milk and almond milk are okay, they do the job which is the main thing.

I'll try to get some photos uploaded soon!

I'm stopping all topicals now. I've come to the conclusion that my skin usually gets better when I stop using topicals, so I'm not sure whether the results I'm seeing my from supplementation at the moment are from that or not. I guess time will tell.

Thank you for all your advice! I just spent a while looking up some zen blogs, as I've never heard of them before, and the first one I read I bookmarked, so thanks! I went through my room on the weekend and took a 'minimalist' approach to cleaning. Everything that I didn't use on a daily-weekly basis got chucked in wardrobe. Now my room is so clean! Eventually I'll go through my wardrobe and chuck most of that junk out! I tend to have a lot of useless junk in my room, like school stuff from 4 years ago or magazines/books/junk/childhood letters that I never read (I don't even know how to explain all of the stuff I have). I think I get that from my mother. Holding onto everything. I'm going to throw most of it out because I never use it. It's just clutter.

Anyway, MY UPDATE:

So it's now 3 weeks in. This past week I've been clearing up really well. Whenever I have really bad breakouts I can't stop looking in the mirror, when I'm home that is. But now it's come to the stage where I don't want to look in the mirror because I'm scared that the more I look, the more it'll come back. I don't want to think it's real and jinx myself. So by the end of 4 weeks hopefully I'll have some sort of answer as to how Vitamin A and zinc has helped me. Even if it doesn't cure me, this past week has been so good. I just hope it lasts I'm still on 15,000 IU vit A, and 45-60mg of zinc, depending on how busy I am haha. I haven't been eating dairy either this past week or two. So that could have actually been what's cleared me up so well this week. Eh! I'm not sure. But I will be continuing the no dairy, it's not that hard. It's only hard at work (as I'm a barista) and the coffee smells so good. I can't drink soy. I'm thinking of just bringing in my own almond milk or something. Luckily we do decaf too

I will still be going to see a naturopath sometime in the next few weeks. My mother really wants to go with me, how supportive. She's working full time this week so it will probably be the following week. Can't wait!

Oh and my facial oiliness has decreased as well! Could be a combination of things causing this. But I used to wash my face with a wash cloth twice a day, but now I can get away with doing it once daily, just barely. It's still oilier than what I would like. Apparently vitamin B2 helps tremendously for oil. I will be trying that out next month

I haven't updated as much as I would like to, so sorry. (If any of you are actually reading my updates). So much has been going on this past week you wouldn't even believe!

Edited by dreamer7, 16 October 2011 - 04:49 AM.

[dreamer7]

Eh so I've lost count of the days, but the month is well and truly up. I had a breakout this past week. Although my acne seems to have cleared up on my face a little, I'm still getting breakouts. The vitamin A and zinc seems to have had no effect on the acne on my body. Darn. Acne makes me so angry. If it was a person I'd be in prison for murdering him/her in very unpleasant ways. Vitamin A and zinc only help if you are deficient in them, or so I've read, and I've been taking them having no idea whether or not I was, so I just tried and not much has happened, so my conclusion is I'm probably not deficient. My skin is a little better, no definitive change though. But I have to say that in no way has my skin become worse, like it did through the use of topicals. So, so far vitamin A and zinc has worked the best for me.

There has to be something going on within my body to be suffering acne. There has to be a cause. There HAS to be. When people get eczema or warts or rashes, they shouldn't have to live with it because they're all diseases, all medical conditions, and it's the same with acne. I shouldn't have to just accept the fact that I have it and move on. I shouldn't have to just accept the fact that I've got a disease/condition. I should be able to treat it and get on with life after that. So I'm going to the naturopath. I'm going to do everything in my power to get all the necessary tests done. IF, and only IF, everything comes back normal, will I consider giving up, and getting on with life. (But even then I have back up plans, i.e. hypnosis, acupuncture, I know going all out there right?)

In the meantime, I'm going to start my vitamin B regimen. A vitamin B complex once a day, with around 50-100mg of each B, and then also B2 and B5, 100mg twice a day. That is my plan so far. Just made it up. It will probably be changed at some stage. B2 to combat oiliness, and B5 because there's a little scientific research/evidence. I went and saw a psychic a year or so ago (let me say I'm not normally the one to believe that sort of stuff) but she was freakishly freakishly true and on spot with a lot of things. I had asked her about my skin, and she actually said she believed it was due to stress, and that one day I would see a naturopath and she would give me a ointment tube, and that would heal me. I never thought much of it before because: 1) I wouldn't ever accept that my acne is stress related. I've had acne for yearrrrs and I can't have been stressed for that long? I think stress may make mine worse, but in no way does it cause it. and 2) I've since lost all hope in topicals, so what's some naturopathic ointment going to do? Argh. I don't hold what this psychic says to be truth anyway, but it will be interesting to see. For now though, it'll be my vitamin B regimen, plus my ongoing vitA/zinc reg which will be continued..

I will inform you when I start my vitamin B's

OH, and PS. in 4 months time (exact to the day) I will be moving interstate for university. Can I get clear in time? Challenge accepted (very optimistic thinking)

Edited by dreamer7, 24 October 2011 - 08:40 AM.

[dreamer7]

So I started on my vitamin B yesterday. I have only bought a complex so far, because the health store I went into the other day didn't have B2 or B5 by itself, in high enough dosages. My B complex is from microgenics (http://www.micro-genics.com.au/) I'm really glad I bought this one because the doses are higher than most. It includes 100mg of B1, B2, B3, B5, and B6, with 50mcg of B12. I'm taking it once a day, and hope it will help with my stress and anxiety tooo. Should be interesting.

I have a naturopath appointment booked for the 16th of Nov. I think. It's around that time anyway. And then I'm seeing a psychologist on the 22nd I can't wait, because hopefully this will see the resolution of a few things.

I'll let you know how things go

[Skkaii]

Hey Dreamer7,

sounds like you've followed exactly the same path as me, step for step haha.
Just a word of warning, I did the whole megadose thing, and the problem lies in that it legitimately poisons you to a point of result. You seem like you've
done a god bit of reading, but just be careful with jumping from one megadose to the next. Both vits/mins that you've listed (Vit A and Zinc) can have pretty bad effects on your body if you're megadosing for a month and then stopping cold, especially in the case of you acne, which if itt's genetic is probably coming from hormonal factors (i.e. megadosing for short periods of time will throw your body even more out of whack).

Just throwing it out there. Keep with the B-complex and try to eat well/exercise. I've been there, my acne isn't too bad, but it's stubborn as hell, so I know what you're feeling. From what i've gathered from reading and experience, you will need to find a way to stop your acne coming up first, maybe continue with a daily regular dose of vitamin A (purely because its good for your skin), and then start taking daily zinc during the healing process for scars and tissue renewal. While new acne is perpetuating, the zinc probably won't do any good unless it is applied topically.

Good luck!

Edit: as an anxious person, i've thought my acne could be from stress now and then too. Weird thing; i've actually found that if I don't worry as much about my skin, the inflammation tends to decrease. Maybe it's a mind-trick placebo of something, but it's happened a few times. Less hiding my problem areas with my hand and coming to terms with it during the fixing process means less worry and less stress

Edited by Skkaii, 30 October 2011 - 04:00 PM.

[dreamer7]

Hey Dreamer7,

sounds like you've followed exactly the same path as me, step for step haha.
Just a word of warning, I did the whole megadose thing, and the problem lies in that it legitimately poisons you to a point of result. You seem like you've
done a god bit of reading, but just be careful with jumping from one megadose to the next. Both vits/mins that you've listed (Vit A and Zinc) can have pretty bad effects on your body if you're megadosing for a month and then stopping cold, especially in the case of you acne, which if itt's genetic is probably coming from hormonal factors (i.e. megadosing for short periods of time will throw your body even more out of whack).

Just throwing it out there. Keep with the B-complex and try to eat well/exercise. I've been there, my acne isn't too bad, but it's stubborn as hell, so I know what you're feeling. From what i've gathered from reading and experience, you will need to find a way to stop your acne coming up first, maybe continue with a daily regular dose of vitamin A (purely because its good for your skin), and then start taking daily zinc during the healing process for scars and tissue renewal. While new acne is perpetuating, the zinc probably won't do any good unless it is applied topically.

Good luck!

Edit: as an anxious person, i've thought my acne could be from stress now and then too. Weird thing; i've actually found that if I don't worry as much about my skin, the inflammation tends to decrease. Maybe it's a mind-trick placebo of something, but it's happened a few times. Less hiding my problem areas with my hand and coming to terms with it during the fixing process means less worry and less stress

Thanks for the post Skkaii!
It's frustrating isn't it?
I've thought about that, and I'm not actually stopping cold! I know that would be just as bad as starting out on high doses and not working your way up first. At the end of my first month on vitA and zinc, I still kept taking it in lower doses until I finished the containers And in fact, I'm still taking zinc at 30mg and vitA at 5,000IU.
Thanks for your advice! I'm still taking my B-complex. I will be buying another container of vitamin A and going on a regular dose of that. I never really thought about applying zinc topically.
I've found that too.. The more I think about a problem area the worse it gets. It's hard to come to terms with it though! Easier said than done. Practice makes perfect though



I also have a B2 supplement 250mg, and a B5 supplement with 500mg. I will be taking this as well. Hopefully things get better soooooooooon.

[dreamer7]

AH I'm so sick of NOTHING working. To be brutally honest, none of this diet stuff has done anything for me. I mean, I'm still eating healthy, and I'm still not eating dairy because I'm used to it now, but I've pretty much given up hope on diet changes working. For the meantime. I'm still taking my B complex, because apparently that's good for mental health, and my family has a track record of being a bit mentally off, so can't hurt to keep taking that. I'm on vitamin D also, because I know I'm low in that. But the others I'm kind of just dropping.

At my wits end, I went back to the doctors, and saw a new GP/physician, and I'm now on antibiotics. I'm putting my trust back into them and hoping this will help. I'm on doxycycline 50mg once a day for 12 weeks. Could be shorter than that if we see improvement before then. I'll let you know how it goes.

Oh and I'm also on a probiotic, taken as far apart from the antibiotic as possible, and it's also dairy free (bonus!)

[Omnivium]

What kind of zinc are you using? 45mg of zinc gluconate per day works for me. You could also take taurine with your b complex.

I would not recommend using antibiotics. I was on doxycycline for 6 months and i started hearing a ringing in my ears after about 4 months. I stopped using it, and after 18 months, my ears are still ringing. Also, whenever I use any kind of antibiotics, they give me horrible insomnia. I don't know if that happens to anyone else, but I just felt like the antibiotics were killing me. In a way they were, since they kill good bacteria and we need good bacteria to survive.

I know how you feel. I stopped using prescriptions, and I have not been able to get clear yet. My face doesn't look beautiful, but at least I am not harming my body with prescriptions anymore.

[dreamer7]

What kind of zinc are you using? 45mg of zinc gluconate per day works for me. You could also take taurine with your b complex.

I would not recommend using antibiotics. I was on doxycycline for 6 months and i started hearing a ringing in my ears after about 4 months. I stopped using it, and after 18 months, my ears are still ringing. Also, whenever I use any kind of antibiotics, they give me horrible insomnia. I don't know if that happens to anyone else, but I just felt like the antibiotics were killing me. In a way they were, since they kill good bacteria and we need good bacteria to survive.

I know how you feel. I stopped using prescriptions, and I have not been able to get clear yet. My face doesn't look beautiful, but at least I am not harming my body with prescriptions anymore.

Hey Omnivium. I was using zinc gluconate, too. I started off at around 30mg, but I ended up taking around 60mg, and after a month I didn't notice any changes. Which sucked, because the reasoning behind it sounds as if it could work.. I haven't heard of taurine? I might have to research it.

Oh wow! I've heard taking antibiotics long term can be devastating on your body, which is why I plan to be on them no longer than 3 months. I haven't noticed any insomnia, nor any nausea which many people complain about. But my jaw and teeth have been a little sensitive, when I walk and my feet touch the ground, I feel the effect/vibration in my teeth. It's hard to explain, and it's not painful at all, but it's strange. Haven't had it before. I'm sorry to hear you had such a bad experience with them. I'm taking a probiotic to replenish the good bacteria as much as I can, to minimise the loss of them.

At this stage, I don't think I'm necessarily harming my body. A lot of people take antibiotics, and sure, it would be better for my body not to take them, but if it does the job, then I'll be happy.


So for an update on how I'm going so far, one week in: put simply, no noticeable change in body acne, I'm clearing up nicely on the face, but this could be a coincidence. My face tends to go through periods. I have noticed a slight change in my keratosis pilaris though, on my arms, which is cool. It's fading. The probiotics is going fine, missed yesterdays, oops. I'm also being slack on the vitamin D, but I'll try my best to keep taking it.

[4Fours]

AH I'm so sick of NOTHING working. To be brutally honest, none of this diet stuff has done anything for me. I mean, I'm still eating healthy, and I'm still not eating dairy because I'm used to it now, but I've pretty much given up hope on diet changes working.

Did you see that Naturopath? I saw in your initial post that you eat a lot of breads and grains. I was really frustrated with the "healthy diet" until I realized that I am gluten-sensitive and the "healthy bread" I was eating was making my skin worse. Within 2 months of cutting out gluten, my skin cleared up. Your naturopath might be able to order blood tests for food allergies. It could be that you are depriving yourself of the wrong foods.

[dreamer7]

AH I'm so sick of NOTHING working. To be brutally honest, none of this diet stuff has done anything for me. I mean, I'm still eating healthy, and I'm still not eating dairy because I'm used to it now, but I've pretty much given up hope on diet changes working.

Did you see that Naturopath? I saw in your initial post that you eat a lot of breads and grains. I was really frustrated with the "healthy diet" until I realized that I am gluten-sensitive and the "healthy bread" I was eating was making my skin worse. Within 2 months of cutting out gluten, my skin cleared up. Your naturopath might be able to order blood tests for food allergies. It could be that you are depriving yourself of the wrong foods.

Thanks for taking the time to read and reply to my log 4Fours!

I uh, well it's a funny story, I never really ended up explaining, but on the day of my naturopath appointment I used my gps for directions to get there, but it took me to the complete opposite side of town to where I was meant to be. I called them and they gave me the proper directions. I decided to recheck the directions on my gps and it now gave me the right directions. My gps has never stuffed up like that before, so I took it as a sign that I wasn't meant to go. As stupid as that sounds. I decided to save my money. Not sure if it would have helped anyway. On the website she said she did that eye thing, among other things, where they look at your iris and can tell different things about your body. I'm not sure if I believe that could work. But I'm going to get my physician/GP to get me a referral to see an allergist sometime, so I can at least get that done.

I'm glad that avoiding gluten has helped you. I am so so hoping that I'm not gluten intolerant. That would be my worst nightmare, seriously! Grains are by far my favourite. But thanks for telling me that, because it's made me realise that I was sort of self diagnosing with the whole diet thing. I should get my allergies tested and make sure I'm not consuming the wrong foods.

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As for an update everyone, I'm just over 2 weeks on my antibiotics. My face is going great still. I've been really happy these past two weeks because of it, I feel so much more free. I hope that it lasts. I've learnt not to hold my breath though haha. My body acne is still present, less worse on my upper arms but no real change on my upper back. That could be because of sweating and stuff. I think I might need to take two showers a day, just to make sure.

I'm also still eating relatively healthy now. I'm not eating any junk, nor take out. I'm avoiding all dairy except for whey protein, as I'm also trying to gain weight! I've pretty much stopped taking all my supplements except the probiotic. I really want to get back onto the vitamin D and probably the B complex too. It's just hard because you have to take it as far apart from the antibiotic as possible, so I end up just not taking it.

[4Fours]

I would encourage you to find a naturopath that is fairly western (actually uses blood tests, not too much mumbo-jumbo, Bastyr grads are a great place to start). OR find a GP that is integrative and will do an IgG blood test, not just a scratch test. I have two MDs in my family and while they are great doctors, they do tend to fall out of touch with new research and not place much importance on the effect food has on us. Don't do what I did and avoid an allergy test because you are afraid of what the results will be. Gluten is a problem for most people because it looks like a foreign body in our bloodstream, and our body treats it like an invader.

I'm glad the antibiotics are working for you. If you are having any new acne, you might want to switch from whey protein to pea or rice protein. I was taking whey protein for a year and my skin got worse and worse. As soon as I switched, it cleared up.

[dreamer7]

I would encourage you to find a naturopath that is fairly western (actually uses blood tests, not too much mumbo-jumbo, Bastyr grads are a great place to start). OR find a GP that is integrative and will do an IgG blood test, not just a scratch test. I have two MDs in my family and while they are great doctors, they do tend to fall out of touch with new research and not place much importance on the effect food has on us. Don't do what I did and avoid an allergy test because you are afraid of what the results will be. Gluten is a problem for most people because it looks like a foreign body in our bloodstream, and our body treats it like an invader.

I'm glad the antibiotics are working for you. If you are having any new acne, you might want to switch from whey protein to pea or rice protein. I was taking whey protein for a year and my skin got worse and worse. As soon as I switched, it cleared up.

Thanks a stack! She's the only naturopath around my area. But I'm moving soon so after the move I might think about checking one out, I will wait until after my course of antibiotics though. I'm in Australia, so I'm not sure if I'd be able to find any Bastyr grads here? Never even heard of the uni/college. But yeah, I will definitely look into getting an allergy test and an IgG test done now. I've had acne long before I started taking whey protein, and it hasn't seemed to get worse whilst taking it, so I don't intend to stop using that as of now, but it's something I have looked into. I don't even know if I can find pea/rice protein powders around here.

Update:

For some reason, the underline won't go off? Haha, so this is now underlined. Anyhow, my face is still clearing up so well. I am actually amazed, it's been about three weeks and it's not normally this clear at all. I'm the happiest I've been for a while, which is quite vain I guess. I'm hoping I stay clear once the antibiotic course finishes, which is still another 2 and a bit months. My arms are really clear, and my back is going good, not clear, but it's not worse. Maybe that'll take a month or so.

I've found a non dairy milk I love, which is vitasoy rice milk. So much nicer than a lot of other rice milks. I'm not sure if that brand is Australian only, but worth trying if you haven't already., I haven't seen it in Woolworths, but it is in Coles.

[4Fours]

Ah, I should have paid attention... you are in Australia. Bastyr is THE school for Naturopathic medicine, located in Seattle, WA. Their grads aren't full of it, they actually use real tests... not just look at your aurora or whatever. Anyway, I'm glad the antibiotics are working well for you. I can definitely relate to feeling better when your skin is clearer. I don't think that's vain, I think its human!

[dreamer7]

Ah yeah, well thanks for helping. It might be more helpful for me to see a naturopath that isn't into all that new age stuff, so I will just wait until I move. Thanks for all your advice 4Fours.

Hope everyone had a good christmas/new years

I had my first breakout on my face, in an usual place, and I think it's probably because I've become complacent in my washing regimen since I was seeing such good results. So it's still really important to wash my face, as I already knew, but I just thought if I let it slip for a while it wouldn't matter, but I need to force myself to keep at it! So that happened earlier in the week, and it's pretty much nearly cleared up. I'm going great at the moment, hope this lasts. Anyway, time to hit the gym, wooo! (I've gained 2-3 kg in the last month or so! So keen to gain more. I'm aiming to gain a total of 10kg.

Seeya guys.

[dreamer7]

So my skin isn't the best, and I'm almost halfway through my antibiotics course. I hope things pick up in the last half. My skin isn't worse than before though, which is good. I move soon, for college, like 4 weeks or so, eek!

[bobbi364]

I have just read this post, interesting that you have breakouts at weird unexpected times isn't it? Actually it isn't. DHT testosterone is the main cause of acne, and that random breakout is the DHT testosterone peaking.