4 replies to this topic

[Lily7]

I have been taking minocycline 100 mg 2 times a day for three weeks and my acne is the worst it's been in a long time. I usually break out on my forehead and now I just seem to be getting pimple after pimple. I'm also breaking out on my cheeks where I usually don't break out. I've also been on retin-a .025 % for about a year and benzoyl peroxide (5%) and erythromycin (3%) topical gel for about 2 years. The topical gel was working pretty well until I ran out and I stayed clear for a month and then I started breaking out again. I was prescribed tetracycline with the topical gel about two years ago and I continued to take the tetracycline when I ran out of the topical gel. I was still breaking out on the tetracycline so I stopped using it. I went to my dermatologist last month and she prescribed me minocycline for three months. I've had acne since I was 11 or 12 and I'm 17 now so it's an ongoing struggle. I'm still using the retin-a and the topical gel. If anyone's used mino I would like to know how long it took and how effective it was. Any help would be appreciated!

[Marce521]

I was on minocycline for 2.5 years. For me, it worked right away, and consistently worked for me for 2.5 years. Though mino's benefits for me were immediate, don't let that put you off; give it another month. By then you should know if it's working for you.

However, I will add this, and it's not meant to scare you - the reason I went off minocycline is because I developed drug-induced lupus from it. Not a big deal, since it can be reversed by stopping the medication, but I had to switch to Bactrim. Just get blood tests every six months or so to make sure you haven't developed lupus. If you get a blood test and you test positive for Syphilis, odds are it's a false positive - that's exactly what happened to me, and the FP was from lupus I'd developed due to the minocycline.

[alecwhardy]

What you are describing is typical of minocycline and the topical medications. Your skin will purge within a month or so, and then as your body generates new skin cells your skin will slowly clear up. What the topical medications are doing is litterally drawing out the bad, "infected" skin to allow your body to more quickly generate healthy new skin. The minocycline is only their to prevent further acne, by killing the bacteria that causes the whole thing. While minocycline is more of a preventative (and slowly helps clear the problem), it is the combination of the topicals and the mino that will clear and prevent further lesions.

[AutumnT]

I was on Minocycline for the past 2 years and questioned whether it was helping or making my acne worse ever since I started it. I kept telling myself maybe it gets worse before it gets better...maybe I haven't given it enough time to help, etc. Overall, during the 2 years, I actually feel like my acne got worse instead of better. I just started seeing a new doctor and when she asked me about minocycline I told her about my side effects - heartburn multiple times/day, stomach ache if I didn't take the medication with food (they recommend you take it on an empty stomach so maybe that's why I didn't see much benefit). I also started breaking out on my back, which i've never had problems with in the past until I start taking minocycline. Before minocycline, I had tried many topical treatments that contained either benzoyl peroxide or salicylic acid and they worked a little bit, but mostly dried out my skin too much.

Anyways, when I went off minocycline 2 weeks ago, the doctor prescribed me to "Sodium Sulfacetamide 10% and Sulfur 5% Lotion". It's a lotion that you put on after washing your face (and before makeup). I have had pretty good luck with sulfur products in the past so I was excited to use this. So far my results have been fantastic - I noticed a difference almost the morning after I started using it (and no more heartburn). Within about 7 days, my face was almost entirely clear! I don't think i've ever been able to say that before (at least not in the last 15 yrs or so). Hopefully it continues working

[Green Gables]

I have been taking minocycline 100 mg 2 times a day for three weeks and my acne is the worst it's been in a long time. I usually break out on my forehead and now I just seem to be getting pimple after pimple. I'm also breaking out on my cheeks where I usually don't break out. I've also been on retin-a .025 % for about a year and benzoyl peroxide (5%) and erythromycin (3%) topical gel for about 2 years. The topical gel was working pretty well until I ran out and I stayed clear for a month and then I started breaking out again. I was prescribed tetracycline with the topical gel about two years ago and I continued to take the tetracycline when I ran out of the topical gel. I was still breaking out on the tetracycline so I stopped using it. I went to my dermatologist last month and she prescribed me minocycline for three months. I've had acne since I was 11 or 12 and I'm 17 now so it's an ongoing struggle. I'm still using the retin-a and the topical gel. If anyone's used mino I would like to know how long it took and how effective it was. Any help would be appreciated!

Antibiotics like Monocycline kill harmful pathogens but they also destroy the good bacteria in your gut. Your gut flora is your MAIN line of defense in your immune system. Through use of oral antibiotics you will kill off your body's ability to fight infection on its own. Once killed, gut flora do not magically reappear. You have to restore them through months or years of fermented food intake and probiotics.

You may have never had a strong gut flora presence. Many acne sufferers do not. This often starts in infancy if you were formula-fed as a baby. Only breast milk properly populates the baby's gut with antibodies and necessary gut flora. The condition is worsened over time on a processed Westernized diet.

See this post: http://www.acne.org/...g-the-gut-diet/