How long were you taking probiotics for, and also how was your acne like prior to the photos you currently are showing us?

Been taking probiotics for over 2 months now (solgar - gluten & dairy free, advanced multi-billion dophilus = 5 billion). The pics below are from a few days ago, before starting the milk thistle. I also added vitex again, but a few days before milk thistle.

I would definitely stop taking it. I experienced something similar in October from St John's Wort, and the marks are still there.

milk thistle helped me a lot :/ as i think you already know. even though i dont take it anymore

but it seems that maybe its not a good choice for you?

i wouldnt really recommend vitex it has the same warnings that licorice does.

or the one i saw did, at least.

herbs that lower testosterone and are safe, that ive found, are: black cohosh, saw palmetto, and turmeric

i just added the black cohosh and turmeric in order to cut down on saw palmetto after every meal

now its a diverse variety and all of them have benefits.

sorry that you had an initial breakout youre still beautiful

lol You didn't gross me out with your photos. You're very pretty.

Hmmm.. I know that milk thistle is supposed to detox your liver, so that could be what's happening - just a hx reaction.

But then aggain, your body might just not like it. How much are you taking? Is there by any chance that you're breaking out because you stopped taking probiotics? And are you taking milk thistle everyday? Maybe try to cut back to every 2-3 days to see if it gets better. Usually if you are having a initial breakout, I find that the severity is lessened when you space it out. However, if you take it every 2-3 days, and you experience the same amount of severity, you might be better off without it.

<3

Keep us posted!

thanks for your responses. I was freaking out this morning, having to cover up this mess with a ton of makeup in order to go to work...it was very embarrassing to say the least, so thanks for offering your support. I finally caved and went in the hospital to get some blood work done to see if I can find out exactly what imbalances I have (I'm only getting my hormones, thyroid, and zinc tested - more tests were too expensive, so my doctor suggested to prioritize since my health insurance won't cover most of the costs). I think the results will be back in about 2 weeks, so I'll keep you posted.

In the mean time, I stopped taking the milk thistle today (along with all my other supplements) because last night I couldn't sleep at all - my face was itchy and my head was spinning. So I think it might be an allergic reaction because it's not just the breakout, I was also feeling physically sick. What do you think? Has anyone else experienced other symptoms besides an initial breakout while on milk thistle? Could it be that my liver had a lot of toxins, and that's why the breakout was severe?? I sure hope all those toxins are not dumped into my bloodstream now :/

The naturopath who recommended this to me insists I should keep taking it, along with N-Acetyl-L-Cysteine (NAC) . Have you heard of this combo, or of NAC?

I took L-cysteine and B5 for a while, it didn't do anything, and since quitting my skin's only gotten better. I take no supplements now, which seems to be the best option.

Hey WishClean,

I didn't realize you were experiencing other side effects. With that said, I'm glad you stopped taking it. I don't think that you should keep taking it because the symptoms you describe don't really sound like a detox thing. Milk thistle allergies are not that common, but there are people who have trouble with it especially if you have problems with kiwis and the other plants related to milk thistle family such as daisies, and ragweed.

I would avoid if I were you.

I totally understand about the makeup thing, but I have not worn makeup (foundation) in about a year. I said screw it.... lol

I took L-cysteine and B5 for a while, it didn't do anything, and since quitting my skin's only gotten better. I take no supplements now, which seems to be the best option.

Yeah, no supplements is definitely the cheapest and safest option, but my skin is too bad to just rely on diet right now. What's your diet like? How long did it take you to get clear?

Hey WishClean,

I didn't realize you were experiencing other side effects. With that said, I'm glad you stopped taking it. I don't think that you should keep taking it because the symptoms you describe don't really sound like a detox thing. Milk thistle allergies are not that common, but there are people who have trouble with it especially if you have problems with kiwis and the other plants related to milk thistle family such as daisies, and ragweed.

I would avoid if I were you.

I totally understand about the makeup thing, but I have not worn makeup (foundation) in about a year. I said screw it.... lol

Yes, the side effects were scary....I was up all night with heart palpitations, chills, fever...you name it! And then I went to work without any sleep and was a zombie for the rest of the day. Too bad, I wanted to give the milk thistle a shot. I had a similar reaction when I tried taurine, so I had to return it.

No foundation for a year?? wow, you are brave! I basically ran out of mineral makeup, that's why I piled on the foundation today but it looked horribly cakey. My face should carry a sign lol.

milk thistle helped me a lot as i think you already know. even though i dont take it anymore

but it seems that maybe its not a good choice for you?

i wouldnt really recommend vitex it has the same warnings that licorice does.

or the one i saw did, at least.

herbs that lower testosterone and are safe, that ive found, are: black cohosh, saw palmetto, and turmeric

i just added the black cohosh and turmeric in order to cut down on saw palmetto after every meal

now its a diverse variety and all of them have benefits.

sorry that you had an initial breakout youre still beautiful

yeah, I remember you saying you were taking milk thistle....how long did you take it for? I got so scared after the reaction I got last night...maybe because I took 2 pills instead of 1? Each pill contains 100mg of standardized extract and 350mg of powder. So, 2x that...= too much?

Have you ever taken Diane 35 or Spiro? I think it could work for you. And have you tried zinc gluconate? Because they are the only stuff that work for me. I had the same kind of acne, than you have, but actually thanks to Diane 35 + zinc, my acne is mild.

@ mikito, yes I tried diane and it completely messed up my metabolism and I gained a lot of weight fast, and took years to lose it (plus other side effects). I would rather avoid hormonal drugs if possible. I quit the milk thistle, but I'm still wondering if maybe I had an allergic reaction because I took too much? I only weigh around 100lbs, so maybe anything over 100mg (plus 350mg berry powder in the supplement) was too much...

Anyway, yesterday I just gave my body a chance to reboot and did not take any supplements, I just drank plenty of veggie juice and ate light. Today my skin is a bit better, and the massive jawline cysts are starting to deflate. I'm thinking of adding zinc and vitamin D3 - any suggestions on brands and zinc types? I heard opti-zinc is good, but most brands contain flour & magnesium sterate in the capsule.

WishClean, I honestly think you shouldn't experiment with your body like that... You're trying out so many different things, quiting, starting new ones, without knowing if your body will accept that. You quit probiotics and immediately put yourself on something totally new and unexpected for your body - even if it's herbal, doesn't mean it's harmless... Be more careful experimenting

Hello I hope you see this and reply, i started taking Milk thistle one day ago and I am breaking out so badly I'm thinking its a purge, did you continue taking it? My face is also itchy and painful due to the large zits, I'm taking about 4000 mgs a day and 2000 D3, did anything work for you?

Hello I hope you see this and reply, i started taking Milk thistle one day ago and I am breaking out so badly I'm thinking its a purge, did you continue taking it? My face is also itchy and painful due to the large zits, I'm taking about 4000 mgs a day and 2000 D3, did anything work for you?

Hello I hope you see this and reply, i started taking Milk thistle one day ago and I am breaking out so badly I'm thinking its a purge, did you continue taking it? My face is also itchy and painful due to the large zits, I'm taking about 4000 mgs a day and 2000 D3, did anything work for you?

Hi. I stopped taking milk thistle after the bad breakout it caused...it was too much for me. A small amount of milk thistle was in a multivitamin I used to take for a couple of years (solgar earth source) and that was fine, but anything that detoxes the liver causes a severe breakout for me so now I just try gentler approaches. L-glutathione helped me with inflammation and I took that one because it's more gentle (yet more effective in my case) than milk thistle, but it's not meant to be taken long term because it loses its effectiveness.

Some people experience an initial purging reaction with milk thistle, but if you have other symptoms (itchiness, dizziness, etc), then it might be an allergic reaction. I stopped taking it because it was making me ill, and if you are taking 4000mgs a day then that's definitely too much. If anything, you need to start slow and increase the dosage as you see fit.

D3 supplements worsen my acne because some of them contain yeast and/or oils, so my doctor gave me a prescription for D2 (plant-based) because I'm deficient. You should get tested for vitamin deficiencies and other things so that you are not taking supplements that you don't need.