It's kind of embarassing, but also nice, when people who know you well and have seen your face through it's bad stages say "Your skin is looking better today!" That happened twice to me today. Anyone looking for an alternative to BP should check out the thyme tincture!!! It's really helping my spots and my redness

Manuka honey was on sale at the store and I bought some. Has anyone tried it as a face mask or just eating it every day? I usually do face masks with regular honey, and I thought I'd try manuka because it's supposed to work better.

I used it everyday for a long period of time and my face got progressively worse and worse and worse. I'm not saying it's the honey, more likely a lack of proper acne medication. But it certainly didn't heal anything. Not trying to be negative, just don't want you to get your hopes up....

On 9/27/2013 at 9:54 AM, dejaclairevoyant said:

I used it everyday for a long period of time and my face got progressively worse and worse and worse. I'm not saying it's the honey, more likely a lack of proper acne medication. But it certainly didn't heal anything. Not trying to be negative, just don't want you to get your hopes up....

hey deja...long time no see! I hope you are still doing well

Uh oh...I only did a test spot to see if I have a reaction to it. Have you used regular honey, and did it also make your acne worse? Regular honey usually helps my skin, that's why I assumed manuka might also do the trick.

I'm doing good, thanks! Figured I'd stop by and check in. I still read on the site, I just don't post often because I feel silly saying "still clear" over and over.. what a terrible problem to have I know, lol. I eat pretty much everything now with no problems, although I still steer clear of gluten. I even went out to eat, which was huge for me! I pretty much only break out if I drink a ton of coffee, which I rarely do since I know it causes me problems. Once I eliminated coffee, most of my health problems seemed to get better.

I used mostly raw honey when I was doing it, not the Manuka and not the regular. Like I said, I don't think it made it worse exactly, it just was getting worse anyway the longer I went without using the acne meds. I didn't really have a reaction, I just got sick of coating honey on my face every night and still breaking out. I've tried thousands of things but nothing has really consistently helped other than benzoyl peroxide.

What kind of reaction did you have? They say you can easily be allergic to honey.

I used manuka honey masks for a while too. It helped my skin tone and made my skin feel softer but it didn't help my acne at all. Didn't make it worse but I think like deja said - for me it was lack or 'proper' acne medication / something that worked for me that kept my acne coming during that time.

I would still use it again for my skin in general but I know that I'd need to use something else for my acne to help with that.

Nice to see you around deja - good to hear things are still going so well for you

I'm doing good, thanks! Figured I'd stop by and check in. I still read on the site, I just don't post often because I feel silly saying "still clear" over and over.. what a terrible problem to have I know, lol. I eat pretty much everything now with no problems, although I still steer clear of gluten. I even went out to eat, which was huge for me! I pretty much only break out if I drink a ton of coffee, which I rarely do since I know it causes me problems. Once I eliminated coffee, most of my health problems seemed to get better.

I used mostly raw honey when I was doing it, not the Manuka and not the regular. Like I said, I don't think it made it worse exactly, it just was getting worse anyway the longer I went without using the acne meds. I didn't really have a reaction, I just got sick of coating honey on my face every night and still breaking out. I've tried thousands of things but nothing has really consistently helped other than benzoyl peroxide.

What kind of reaction did you have? They say you can easily be allergic to honey.

It's nice to hear you're staying clear. In what way do you think coffee affected your health? I have a definite addiction and drink a couple of cups a day on weekdays, and I've always wondered if it's bad for my health or acne, but I just haven't come across anything to give me the incentive to quit. They even claim coffee is healthy these days, although I don't believe it. Maybe my coffee habits are one of the reasons I still battle with acne.

It is impossible to feel good about having four cysts on your forehead. When, oh when will this go away?!

 

I'm doing good, thanks! Figured I'd stop by and check in. I still read on the site, I just don't post often because I feel silly saying "still clear" over and over.. what a terrible problem to have I know, lol. I eat pretty much everything now with no problems, although I still steer clear of gluten. I even went out to eat, which was huge for me! I pretty much only break out if I drink a ton of coffee, which I rarely do since I know it causes me problems. Once I eliminated coffee, most of my health problems seemed to get better.

I used mostly raw honey when I was doing it, not the Manuka and not the regular. Like I said, I don't think it made it worse exactly, it just was getting worse anyway the longer I went without using the acne meds. I didn't really have a reaction, I just got sick of coating honey on my face every night and still breaking out. I've tried thousands of things but nothing has really consistently helped other than benzoyl peroxide.

What kind of reaction did you have? They say you can easily be allergic to honey.

It's nice to hear you're staying clear. In what way do you think coffee affected your health? I have a definite addiction and drink a couple of cups a day on weekdays, and I've always wondered if it's bad for my health or acne, but I just haven't come across anything to give me the incentive to quit. They even claim coffee is healthy these days, although I don't believe it. Maybe my coffee habits are one of the reasons I still battle with acne.

Here's my theory:

Basically, anything that stresses your adrenal system is going to be bad for acne. This is just my experience and the experience of many others. How many of us break out after a fight with a boyfriend, problems at work or some other issue? That's stress--it inflames the human body, plain and simple. However, emotional stress is only part of the equation. There are also physical stresses, and bombarding your system with caffeine is one of them.

If you ever have gone a long time without caffeine and then drank a cup of strong coffee, you will feel the effects. It makes shaky, jittery, almost like you did a hard drug or something. This effect, although it might not be noticeable after you get used to caffeine every day, is always there. It's always affecting your system like that. So if you drink a few cups of coffee a day, you're bombarding your system with a drug that inflames you and stresses you. Ever day. Think about that.

I'm not saying we can't enjoy a cup of coffee once in a while, but I urge anyone suffering from bad acne to consider giving it up for a long period of time. I gave it up for 3-4 months and that was when I saw the most improvements in my heath. I continued to see improvements even weeks later. Now, I usually break out from coffee but there are times I don't. I think that's because I happened to drink it in a time where my body wasn't as stressed. I think we all basically have a "stress threshold" and when something pushes us past that, it makes it more likely for us to get acne. I think a lot of things can push up the stress load, including emotional stress, harsh drugs like caffeine, bad foods, hormonal shifts (pms, steroid use, etc). This is why people see reactions to so many of these things but not consistently. There is no consistency usually because it all depends on the balance of various things going on at any given time. This is why I constantly broke out when I had my eating disorder even though I was avoiding every "bad" food on the planet--I was constantly stressed and worried. Now, I eat a lot worse but I look and feel better. Why? I decided that life is short, food is good and I don't have that stress anymore. Much less of it as I continue working in recover, at least.

It's just funny, I've been on these boards a long time and seen soooo many people go down the road toward eating disorders from avoiding so many foods and trying to follow all these special diets. It seems like a lot of people are willing to adjust their diet in any way necessary but most aren't willing or don't even realize they can get off the daily coffee train and see major improvements. Coffee is such an accepted part of everyday life in our society, most people don't understand how terribly unhealthy it can be. But google some studies on caffeine and how it affects the body. It's scary. Coffee should be an occasional treat only.

I'm doing good, thanks! Figured I'd stop by and check in. I still read on the site, I just don't post often because I feel silly saying "still clear" over and over.. what a terrible problem to have I know, lol. I eat pretty much everything now with no problems, although I still steer clear of gluten. I even went out to eat, which was huge for me! I pretty much only break out if I drink a ton of coffee, which I rarely do since I know it causes me problems. Once I eliminated coffee, most of my health problems seemed to get better.

I used mostly raw honey when I was doing it, not the Manuka and not the regular. Like I said, I don't think it made it worse exactly, it just was getting worse anyway the longer I went without using the acne meds. I didn't really have a reaction, I just got sick of coating honey on my face every night and still breaking out. I've tried thousands of things but nothing has really consistently helped other than benzoyl peroxide.

What kind of reaction did you have? They say you can easily be allergic to honey.

Wow, I'm glad you can now eat more foods without the fear of breaking out.... that's a huge accomplishment!

I tried raw honey before, but didn't really see a difference. The honey I usually use is the one the comes with the Greek yogurt on the side....I don't know why, but that honey is the best I've tried so far, I've been using it for years with and without yogurt as a face mask.

No, I haven't had a reaction to manuka...I only applied it to a few spots to see if I would get a reaction but I haven't noticed anything. The texture is kind of thicker than regular honey, so I don't think I would apply it all over as it could clog pores.

Btw, you said you cut out caffeine almost completely. I did too a few years ago, with a few exceptions, but I still drink oolong tea or sometimes black tea. Do you think it applies to teas that have caffeine too, or do you think tea is better if I had to pick between coffee and tea?

The previous days i had only these little white comedones that don't really bother me, even though i ate pringles. But now i live with my mother again and oh my god.. i am here for 6 hours and she already tried to convince me to drink milk, eat white bread and cheese.She thinks my skin is ok (yeah except some red marks and hypertrophic scars, great) and i should live my life without thinking about acne,perhaps using only some homemade herbal antiseptics. I just hope spiro will start working soon because with her cooking i am going to destroy my skin...

Could this be true?? I ate much less recently, had more stress and felt fatigue almost all the time. Today I noticed that my forehead scars got deeper. Could this happen because of these factors and so quickly?

 

I'm doing good, thanks! Figured I'd stop by and check in. I still read on the site, I just don't post often because I feel silly saying "still clear" over and over.. what a terrible problem to have I know, lol. I eat pretty much everything now with no problems, although I still steer clear of gluten. I even went out to eat, which was huge for me! I pretty much only break out if I drink a ton of coffee, which I rarely do since I know it causes me problems. Once I eliminated coffee, most of my health problems seemed to get better.

I used mostly raw honey when I was doing it, not the Manuka and not the regular. Like I said, I don't think it made it worse exactly, it just was getting worse anyway the longer I went without using the acne meds. I didn't really have a reaction, I just got sick of coating honey on my face every night and still breaking out. I've tried thousands of things but nothing has really consistently helped other than benzoyl peroxide.

What kind of reaction did you have? They say you can easily be allergic to honey.

Wow, I'm glad you can now eat more foods without the fear of breaking out.... that's a huge accomplishment!

I tried raw honey before, but didn't really see a difference. The honey I usually use is the one the comes with the Greek yogurt on the side....I don't know why, but that honey is the best I've tried so far, I've been using it for years with and without yogurt as a face mask.

No, I haven't had a reaction to manuka...I only applied it to a few spots to see if I would get a reaction but I haven't noticed anything. The texture is kind of thicker than regular honey, so I don't think I would apply it all over as it could clog pores.

Btw, you said you cut out caffeine almost completely. I did too a few years ago, with a few exceptions, but I still drink oolong tea or sometimes black tea. Do you think it applies to teas that have caffeine too, or do you think tea is better if I had to pick between coffee and tea?

It seems the same, it's just that tea has a little less, so I think you can probably get away with a bit more. But I've definitely broke out from tea too, unfortunately.

 

I'm doing good, thanks! Figured I'd stop by and check in. I still read on the site, I just don't post often because I feel silly saying "still clear" over and over.. what a terrible problem to have I know, lol. I eat pretty much everything now with no problems, although I still steer clear of gluten. I even went out to eat, which was huge for me! I pretty much only break out if I drink a ton of coffee, which I rarely do since I know it causes me problems. Once I eliminated coffee, most of my health problems seemed to get better.

I used mostly raw honey when I was doing it, not the Manuka and not the regular. Like I said, I don't think it made it worse exactly, it just was getting worse anyway the longer I went without using the acne meds. I didn't really have a reaction, I just got sick of coating honey on my face every night and still breaking out. I've tried thousands of things but nothing has really consistently helped other than benzoyl peroxide.

What kind of reaction did you have? They say you can easily be allergic to honey.

It's nice to hear you're staying clear. In what way do you think coffee affected your health? I have a definite addiction and drink a couple of cups a day on weekdays, and I've always wondered if it's bad for my health or acne, but I just haven't come across anything to give me the incentive to quit. They even claim coffee is healthy these days, although I don't believe it. Maybe my coffee habits are one of the reasons I still battle with acne.

Here's my theory:

Basically, anything that stresses your adrenal system is going to be bad for acne. This is just my experience and the experience of many others. How many of us break out after a fight with a boyfriend, problems at work or some other issue? That's stress--it inflames the human body, plain and simple. However, emotional stress is only part of the equation. There are also physical stresses, and bombarding your system with caffeine is one of them.

If you ever have gone a long time without caffeine and then drank a cup of strong coffee, you will feel the effects. It makes shaky, jittery, almost like you did a hard drug or something. This effect, although it might not be noticeable after you get used to caffeine every day, is always there. It's always affecting your system like that. So if you drink a few cups of coffee a day, you're bombarding your system with a drug that inflames you and stresses you. Ever day. Think about that.

I'm not saying we can't enjoy a cup of coffee once in a while, but I urge anyone suffering from bad acne to consider giving it up for a long period of time. I gave it up for 3-4 months and that was when I saw the most improvements in my heath. I continued to see improvements even weeks later. Now, I usually break out from coffee but there are times I don't. I think that's because I happened to drink it in a time where my body wasn't as stressed. I think we all basically have a "stress threshold" and when something pushes us past that, it makes it more likely for us to get acne. I think a lot of things can push up the stress load, including emotional stress, harsh drugs like caffeine, bad foods, hormonal shifts (pms, steroid use, etc). This is why people see reactions to so many of these things but not consistently. There is no consistency usually because it all depends on the balance of various things going on at any given time. This is why I constantly broke out when I had my eating disorder even though I was avoiding every "bad" food on the planet--I was constantly stressed and worried. Now, I eat a lot worse but I look and feel better. Why? I decided that life is short, food is good and I don't have that stress anymore. Much less of it as I continue working in recover, at least.

It's just funny, I've been on these boards a long time and seen soooo many people go down the road toward eating disorders from avoiding so many foods and trying to follow all these special diets. It seems like a lot of people are willing to adjust their diet in any way necessary but most aren't willing or don't even realize they can get off the daily coffee train and see major improvements. Coffee is such an accepted part of everyday life in our society, most people don't understand how terribly unhealthy it can be. But google some studies on caffeine and how it affects the body. It's scary. Coffee should be an occasional treat only.

I like your theory. I think my skin get worse after a breakup with my ex girlfriend because of a lot of stress with moving out, finding a new place and getting everything in order and on top of that all the emotional stress. I was a mess and I couldn't keep clear although I was using the Regimen.

Can someone please kill my mother? I have one nodule forming and a pimple! After days with non inflamed acne barely visible around this time of the month i was starting to gain my self confidence again. And she gave me this bread (i ate it because she didn't even cook and had nothing else to eat-except of course dairy or corn flakes or egg etc) and a teaspoon of "try and tell me what this is"-sesame seeds that i know they cause nodules to me! While i was thinking all these, drinking a spearmint tea to help with hormones she told me.. "are you drinking this thing again? it's morning!". She just doesn't want to cure my acne because she THINKS that there is nothing wrong or i should go to a dermatologist (yeah i did and guess what-nothing worked except spiro which my dermatologist didn't want to prescribe!). O hate her. It is so hard to keep away from things like bread or dairy and she asks all the time if i want to eat them...

Can someone please kill my mother? I have one nodule forming and a pimple! After days with non inflamed acne barely visible around this time of the month i was starting to gain my self confidence again. And she gave me this bread (i ate it because she didn't even cook and had nothing else to eat-except of course dairy or corn flakes or egg etc) and a teaspoon of "try and tell me what this is"-sesame seeds that i know they cause nodules to me! While i was thinking all these, drinking a spearmint tea to help with hormones she told me.. "are you drinking this thing again? it's morning!". She just doesn't want to cure my acne because she THINKS that there is nothing wrong or i should go to a dermatologist (yeah i did and guess what-nothing worked except spiro which my dermatologist didn't want to prescribe!). O hate her. It is so hard to keep away from things like bread or dairy and she asks all the time if i want to eat them...

That sucks, I'm sorry. Have you thought about talking to your Mom about eating healthier in general, not only for the purposes of acne. What about going with her when she grocery shops and picking out veggies and healthy things for yourself? You could even offer to cook dinner a few nights a week.

 

Can someone please kill my mother? I have one nodule forming and a pimple! After days with non inflamed acne barely visible around this time of the month i was starting to gain my self confidence again. And she gave me this bread (i ate it because she didn't even cook and had nothing else to eat-except of course dairy or corn flakes or egg etc) and a teaspoon of "try and tell me what this is"-sesame seeds that i know they cause nodules to me! While i was thinking all these, drinking a spearmint tea to help with hormones she told me.. "are you drinking this thing again? it's morning!". She just doesn't want to cure my acne because she THINKS that there is nothing wrong or i should go to a dermatologist (yeah i did and guess what-nothing worked except spiro which my dermatologist didn't want to prescribe!). O hate her. It is so hard to keep away from things like bread or dairy and she asks all the time if i want to eat them...

That sucks, I'm sorry. Have you thought about talking to your Mom about eating healthier in general, not only for the purposes of acne. What about going with her when she grocery shops and picking out veggies and healthy things for yourself? You could even offer to cook dinner a few nights a week.

I am going to.. i already bought some vegetables for salads and sardines. I will buy rye bread that doesn't break me out. I told her to use whole grains, spaggeti, rice etc but i don't think she is going to do it because others may have problems with the taste (i don't see any difference) and they are more difficult to cook. I will cook something else to eat these days and replace her some times of the week.. she doesn't eat unhealthy herself but she urges me to eat things that make my skin explode.. sesame or almonds in small quantities for example are very healthy but they happen to break me out. She behaves as if i don't know my own body.and expects me to ignore the zits and nodules forming after eating certain foods. Basically she doesn't even accept the link between diet and acne because this is what dermatologists had been saying for years (except chocolate because it is the only thing that breaks her out) even if it is now proven scientifically and by our self-experiments.

Yeah.. she took all my veggies to make a pie with cheese in it.. Isn't it great?

Yeah.. she took all my veggies to make a pie with cheese in it.. Isn't it great?

Have you tried taking digestive enzymes to help with food intolerances? I take them every time I go out for a meal, or if I feel like eating something I'm not supposed to and they help minimize flare ups. Acidophilus probiotics can help with digestion too...that way you can worry less about eating something unhealthy if you can't avoid it.

 

Yeah.. she took all my veggies to make a pie with cheese in it.. Isn't it great?

Have you tried taking digestive enzymes to help with food intolerances? I take them every time I go out for a meal, or if I feel like eating something I'm not supposed to and they help minimize flare ups. Acidophilus probiotics can help with digestion too...that way you can worry less about eating something unhealthy if you can't avoid it.

I have read about them but didn't pay attention because i doubted if i could find them in my country.. i found out about foods that trigger acne only a few weeks ago and decided that the best solution was returning to spironolactone, now i am waiting for it to start working. I searched for them and there are some supplements mainly with acidophilus. Do they work from the first time or you have to take them for some time before they start working?

 

Yeah.. she took all my veggies to make a pie with cheese in it.. Isn't it great?

Have you tried taking digestive enzymes to help with food intolerances? I take them every time I go out for a meal, or if I feel like eating something I'm not supposed to and they help minimize flare ups. Acidophilus probiotics can help with digestion too...that way you can worry less about eating something unhealthy if you can't avoid it.

I have read about them but didn't pay attention because i doubted if i could find them in my country.. i found out about foods that trigger acne only a few weeks ago and decided that the best solution was returning to spironolactone, now i am waiting for it to start working. I searched for them and there are some supplements mainly with acidophilus. Do they work from the first time or you have to take them for some time before they start working?

Probiotics need time to work. I recommend starting with just acidophilus because some people break out from probiotics that contain multiple strands. Then you can see how your body feels....but it does take a while to repopulate your gut with good bacteria, so the changes won't be immediate (depending on how many million/billion you take per day, etc).

Digestive enzymes work differently. You have to take them with each meal, or with meals that you know are going to cause issues. I was originally taking them with every meal, but then it got too expensive so now I only take them when I eat things I shouldn't be eating. I noticed a difference within the first week - I had less flare ups and could tolerate more foods (but in small quantities). I am even able to have a slice of cheesecake or carrotcake with no issues. I tried having cheesecake without taking digestive enzymes beforehand, and I broke out in the same spot I break out whenever I eat too much sugar or dairy.

Are solgar supplements available in your country? It's an international brand. I take Enzymedica's digestive enzymes which are top quality, but solgar has some good options too.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yeah.. she took all my veggies to make a pie with cheese in it.. Isn't it great?

 

Have you tried taking digestive enzymes to help with food intolerances? I take them every time I go out for a meal, or if I feel like eating something I'm not supposed to and they help minimize flare ups. Acidophilus probiotics can help with digestion too...that way you can worry less about eating something unhealthy if you can't avoid it.

 

I have read about them but didn't pay attention because i doubted if i could find them in my country.. i found out about foods that trigger acne only a few weeks ago and decided that the best solution was returning to spironolactone, now i am waiting for it to start working. I searched for them and there are some supplements mainly with acidophilus. Do they work from the first time or you have to take them for some time before they start working?

Probiotics need time to work. I recommend starting with just acidophilus because some people break out from probiotics that contain multiple strands. Then you can see how your body feels....but it does take a while to repopulate your gut with good bacteria, so the changes won't be immediate (depending on how many million/billion you take per day, etc).

Digestive enzymes work differently. You have to take them with each meal, or with meals that you know are going to cause issues. I was originally taking them with every meal, but then it got too expensive so now I only take them when I eat things I shouldn't be eating. I noticed a difference within the first week - I had less flare ups and could tolerate more foods (but in small quantities). I am even able to have a slice of cheesecake or carrotcake with no issues. I tried having cheesecake without taking digestive enzymes beforehand, and I broke out in the same spot I break out whenever I eat too much sugar or dairy.

Are solgar supplements available in your country? It's an international brand. I take Enzymedica's digestive enzymes which are top quality, but solgar has some good options too.

Yes the zinc supplement i am taking is made by solgar. Thanks for the information!

Looks like it's going to be another day of not eating for me. Thanks a lot acne.

So confused what to do. I don't want to start a new regimen because of the breakout, but at the same time do because if it works but I've tried stuff since I was like 13. The whole cutting foods and things out seems pointless because what if you cut out dairy and for four months and thats not even the reason. There should be a way to test what foods you react to. Hating life at the minute

 

I'm doing good, thanks! Figured I'd stop by and check in. I still read on the site, I just don't post often because I feel silly saying "still clear" over and over.. what a terrible problem to have I know, lol. I eat pretty much everything now with no problems, although I still steer clear of gluten. I even went out to eat, which was huge for me! I pretty much only break out if I drink a ton of coffee, which I rarely do since I know it causes me problems. Once I eliminated coffee, most of my health problems seemed to get better.

I used mostly raw honey when I was doing it, not the Manuka and not the regular. Like I said, I don't think it made it worse exactly, it just was getting worse anyway the longer I went without using the acne meds. I didn't really have a reaction, I just got sick of coating honey on my face every night and still breaking out. I've tried thousands of things but nothing has really consistently helped other than benzoyl peroxide.

What kind of reaction did you have? They say you can easily be allergic to honey.

It's nice to hear you're staying clear. In what way do you think coffee affected your health? I have a definite addiction and drink a couple of cups a day on weekdays, and I've always wondered if it's bad for my health or acne, but I just haven't come across anything to give me the incentive to quit. They even claim coffee is healthy these days, although I don't believe it. Maybe my coffee habits are one of the reasons I still battle with acne.

Here's my theory:

Basically, anything that stresses your adrenal system is going to be bad for acne. This is just my experience and the experience of many others. How many of us break out after a fight with a boyfriend, problems at work or some other issue? That's stress--it inflames the human body, plain and simple. However, emotional stress is only part of the equation. There are also physical stresses, and bombarding your system with caffeine is one of them.

If you ever have gone a long time without caffeine and then drank a cup of strong coffee, you will feel the effects. It makes shaky, jittery, almost like you did a hard drug or something. This effect, although it might not be noticeable after you get used to caffeine every day, is always there. It's always affecting your system like that. So if you drink a few cups of coffee a day, you're bombarding your system with a drug that inflames you and stresses you. Ever day. Think about that.

I'm not saying we can't enjoy a cup of coffee once in a while, but I urge anyone suffering from bad acne to consider giving it up for a long period of time. I gave it up for 3-4 months and that was when I saw the most improvements in my heath. I continued to see improvements even weeks later. Now, I usually break out from coffee but there are times I don't. I think that's because I happened to drink it in a time where my body wasn't as stressed. I think we all basically have a "stress threshold" and when something pushes us past that, it makes it more likely for us to get acne. I think a lot of things can push up the stress load, including emotional stress, harsh drugs like caffeine, bad foods, hormonal shifts (pms, steroid use, etc). This is why people see reactions to so many of these things but not consistently. There is no consistency usually because it all depends on the balance of various things going on at any given time. This is why I constantly broke out when I had my eating disorder even though I was avoiding every "bad" food on the planet--I was constantly stressed and worried. Now, I eat a lot worse but I look and feel better. Why? I decided that life is short, food is good and I don't have that stress anymore. Much less of it as I continue working in recover, at least.

It's just funny, I've been on these boards a long time and seen soooo many people go down the road toward eating disorders from avoiding so many foods and trying to follow all these special diets. It seems like a lot of people are willing to adjust their diet in any way necessary but most aren't willing or don't even realize they can get off the daily coffee train and see major improvements. Coffee is such an accepted part of everyday life in our society, most people don't understand how terribly unhealthy it can be. But google some studies on caffeine and how it affects the body. It's scary. Coffee should be an occasional treat only.

You pretty much hit the nail on the head. I think the (un)healthiness of coffee depends entirely on how many other stressors you have in your life and where the balance is. My mother-in-law is perfectly healthy drinking one big cup of coffee every day, but she's retired and doesn't have much trouble in life, so it's perfectly fine with her. But for me personally and many others suffering from stress, coffee is one more factor compounding the effects on our health. So I'm working on quitting it completely (apart from occasional treats). I've now started to replace coffee with black tea most of the time, it's hard at the moment but hopefully it will get easier.

I think I had sort of an eating disorder this past spring as well due to fear of breaking out from specific foods and getting more scars. Or partly I was just very stressed over my skin and lost my appetite as a result, I don't know. I'm now much better, have gained weight again and eat more or less anything (gluten-free) and deal with break-outs with topical clindamycin and progesterone cream instead of dietary restrictions. I still worry over my skin and scarring too much, but I'm trying to stop that and at least make sure I'm always eating enough. I think my skin is finally starting to get better as well.