Week 2 Day 17
I have definitely been purging a lot lately, and actually since the microderm on Thursday, Friday evening a whole ton of clogged pores (like 8-10) around my jaw area looked real near the surface, and so I gently squeezed and they all kinda just came out. Additionally, this morning 2 clogs on my left cheek bone were looking kinda red/swollen and came out with some squeezes. None of them really left red marks so....im thinking its a lot easier to squeeze stuff out when not on retin a and maybe the microderm helped loosen stuff. I still have so many other clogs on my cheeks bones though and on the back of my jaw, and its so weird cause they're in the exact same place and pattern on each side of my face. I am thinking of rotating SA and retin a every other night so that maybe the SA helped dry stuff up that Retin a is trying to bring up. If I attempt another extraction appt next month I'll take a break from the retin a again. I really feel like the extractions can help since my issue is mostly tiny bumps that love to hang out under the skin. It just sucks getting them to come to the surface.
In other news, my labs came in today. All my thyroid came in totally normal, estrogen normal, but my testosterone is really low. I didn't really expect that. If anything I would have though it to be high since all my life I have been thin with very little fat (low testosterone usually causes the opposite of this and make it hard for women to loose weight, especially fat) and have had oily skin. Unfortunately I don't have hormone tests from before I was on Spiro, so I am wondering if the Spiro is dropping my testosterone so low and if it could have even had that much of an effect in 2 weeks....my doc will be talking to me about it on Monday.
Week 2 Day 18
Ok I am posting pics. Its so hard to know if you are really progressing when you see your face every single day. My husband tells me it is, but I usually don't believe him.
I went all out and squeezed my pores today. I was controlled about it and my husband helped me...I steamed and prepped my face with out humidifer and then went about squeezing every clogged pore in sight.....I just couldn't stand having all that gunk right at the surface all over my cheeks anymore and my $100 estetician appt this past week was unhelpful. I will be paying for it over the next few days as swelling and red marks from squeezing go away...but I hope to God that this is one of the last major rounds of clogged pores that has come up. I squeezed a bunch of stuff out. There are still some of course, but just kind of a scattering of small ones not so densely populated is what I am hoping. We shall see over the next few days.
Currently 0 active pimples...unless ones come up after this squeeze fest. I did stupidly mess with a tiny mila under my left eye and so now it looks like I got punched in the eye....go me.
Pics!
Really concerned about my low T...I am hoping the doc doesn't want me to come off Spiro....I have always been lean and gained muscle easily and have super oily skin.....not characteristics of low T! Maybe it has just recently gone low since my stress levels have been so high, I read that cortisol kills Testosterone in your body.
Well so far the next day after having a squeeze fest is good....nothing coming up and my face looks quite a bit less bumpy. I messed with a stupid milia in the tender part under my eye and it is swollen and really red...hopefully just from irritation and not infection. It looks like i got socked in the eye.
Talked to my doc about my low Testosterone today. He said its not significantly low to where we would do anything about it. So....guess I shouldn't worry?
Day 1 of Lexipro, hoping for some anxiety relief.
hey omg, I just looked at ur pics. you lookin freakin GREAT. I mean, i can see the bumps and I know how it feels, even just when you're touch your face...you're like wtf! but seriously you are beautiful and your acne looks very manageable. I uploaded the pics onto my profile as well...ugh it looks worse enlargened esp on the cheek.
Thanks so much for your kind words! I looked at your pics and your acne looks just like mine! Especially your cheeks...somehow my forehead managed to avoid breakong out and is pretty much clear but our cheeks are very similar. I wonder if clogged pores are typical of stress acne which I kind of think both of us have.
The Lexapro did not agree with me... I got so sick that I had to come home from work and go to sleep. I'm scared to take it again so the doc called in Buspar for me. We shall see how tomorrow goes. I swear the Lexapro made my anxiety worse and I felt like I was gonna throw up and pass out the whole morning. It kept me up half the night shaking too. Apparently my system does not like antidepressants.
hey omg, I just looked at ur pics. you lookin freakin GREAT. I mean, i can see the bumps and I know how it feels, even just when you're touch your face...you're like wtf! but seriously you are beautiful and your acne looks very manageable. I uploaded the pics onto my profile as well...ugh it looks worse enlargened esp on the cheek.
ahh shit yeah this is interesting cuz i actually take anti depressants. I take prozac, but I have taken lexapro before. The thing I will say about ssri's---for some ppl they work great, others they don't work at all and can even make you feel worse. Ppl say that "in the beginning they can make you feel more anxious before you start to feel better"...but the first time I started taking them this wasn't true at all. I was such an intense, high achieving teen that they just made me feel super relaxed and good about life. like literally, I felt like I was on happy pills. soooo happy. but, they took away some of my intense motivation. howevs i became more social and made more close friends.
NE way, i really wanted to go off them a year ago but I was already in a bad place and just got more depressed and anxious and developed ocd. so I went back on them after 10 months of feeling absolutely miserable. my second time going back on, I actually did feel more anxious b4 I felt better, so that gave some weight to that argument that u get worse b4 u get better, but you really have to follow your gut on this one. The first pill of prozac i took a few months ago made me feel a little funny in the stomach, but I did feel calmer (prolly just placebo). If you continue to feel bad and stop taking them, there are many other things u can do to help anxiety. And, it is tough to get off antidepressants. that's the only thing I don't like about them. It's good to view them as a helper and a buffer but not a cure all. like, i still focus really hard on therapy, my attitude, being healthy, being optimistic in addition to being on ssri's cuz them alone won't achieve optimum results, which i'm sure ur aware. I just know in the past I got a little too into the mindsight of "well i'm on antidepressants, how can I really be feeling like shit?" when I was cause i wasn't taking care of myself in real life.
Yes I think my acne is 100% stress acne related to stress induced hormonal imbalances. wow i just realized i'm typing like 100 words per minute haha. but my ezcema has gotten a lot better as of late and i can see this correlating with my skin purging excessively. I'm a ways off from 100% perfect skin but at least i've finally figured out the freaking direction to go in. xxxxxxxx keep us posted!!!
Week 3 Day 22
Kelsey - that's crazy about the SSRIs....I called my doc and he changed my prescrip to buspar which is a really mild anti anxiety. I took one yesterday and haven't felt anything good or bad yet. I think it takes a week or so, hoping it can at least take the edge off.
So I finally think I am improving... After weeks of purging hell from the retin a and my home extractions this weekend. Maybe I am seeing the light? I hope I haven't spoken too soon. I think my right side is almost done purging...it went from being the bad side now to the almost clear side while now my left has changed to the bad side. Also for the past 4 days my face has felt unusually drier and smoother....spiro? I suppose it could also be that time of my cycle, however I am really late on my period. Has anyone else has their period delayed by Spiro? Maybe the hormones are getting worked out. So...here it is:
Right side: 4ish clogged pores, 0 active pimples.
Left side: 10ish clogged pores, 3 healing pimples
Forehead: 1 clogged pore
Chin: clear
Red marks: many but starting to fade, a few new ones on left side.
I think Spiro is messing up my periods too. It has been only 2 weeks since I've had my last periods and I'm having them right now. I'm not too fond of this!! On the bright side, my face has been so smooth lately. I still have some clogged pores but I barely get pimples now ( used to have at least 6 pimples a day). My face is also less oily which is a huge improvement . I don't know whether it is the spiro working or the differin.
Speaking of differin, my samples are almost gone and my next follow-up appointment is in 4 weeks. Do you think i can just call my derm and ask her for the prescription over the phone or do I have to take an appointment. i don't see myself paying a 150 dollars consultation just to get a prescription.
Oh yes if you call in and tell them you'de like differin prescribed cause uour sample ran out they should just call it in. I do that all the time with my docs and even have them switch stuff as long as it hasn't been forever since you've seen them. Do you feel like the differin is helping with your clogged pores ? I am toying with the idea of going bavk to differin because I feel like the retin a leaves a lot more long lasting red marks than the differin did. I think the diff is just a little slower working but I only have like 20 or so left now instead of the 100 I had before.
I think I was a bit slacking on my count the other day because upon closer inspection today I really have like 8 clogs still on my right side and like 8 on the left (I squeezed 2 out that were starting to get red/swollen) I also squeezed one that prob wasnt reason on me right cheek do now it's swollen but I think I cleared it so hopefully it goes down. I still have that ugly red mark healing below my eye. I'm paranoid about new ones... I still feel like I get occasional new ones but maybe they were already there and the retin a just made them more noticeable? I'm so obsessive 
I need to stop messing with my face and leave it up to the pros or only once a month steaming!!
My doc moved me down to 100 mg doxy cause apparently he thinks it looks better. Said to stay on that until I am consistently not getting inflamed ones.
quote name="Aaniella" post="3347545" timestamp="1368229892"]
I think Spiro is messing up my periods too. It has been only 2 weeks since I've had my last periods and I'm having them right now. I'm not too fond of this!! On the bright side, my face has been so smooth lately. I still have some clogged pores but I barely get pimples now ( used to have at least 6 pimples a day). My face is also less oily which is a huge improvement . I don't know whether it is the spiro working or the differin.
Speaking of differin, my samples are almost gone 
and my next follow-up appointment is in 4 weeks. Do you think i can just call my derm and ask her for the prescription over the phone or do I have to take an appointment. i don't see myself paying a 150 dollars consultation just to get a prescription.
Week 3 Day 25
So I am starting to feel like I am possibly in the last month of this until being pretty clear...I hope I am not getting ahead of myself. I had a pretty good day today hanging out with friends and feeling less concerned about my face than i have in a while. I got a lot of sun and am hoping itll camo my red marks some. I have decided to pull the big guns back out and use Tazorac the next 2 weeks. The last time I used Tazorac it was for a little over a week and while it left my face burning and itchy, it purged a bunch of deep clogs I had had for months in a weeks time. It wasnt pretty, but it seems to work fast. I scheduled an appt with a new aestetician 3 weeks from now so I am thinking the Taz with purge purge the remaining bumps for next 2 weeks and then I'll take a week off and have the aestetician extract what's left and maybe do a light peel for my marks. We shall see if the plan works. I just want this over with!!! At that point ill have been on Spiro for a bit over 6 weeks which is when it's supposed to be becoming noticeable. So far I think maybe it's lessoned oil slightly and is messing with my period. I have a check up for it this week. Ill post new pics tomorrow. Wish me luck!
I feel you on the spiro ! It has been a little over 3 weeks that I'm on it and I've yet to see some improvements from it. I really hope it'll start kicking in in the next few weeks besides messing with my periods and making my face less oily. Don't get me wrong I love the fact that my face is not as oily as before but I just want more than that. I really think that right now Differin is doing all the work by itself and it's about time its little friend spiro starts giving it a hand lol. I want my clogged pores gone already.
I think I will be looking into seeing an aesthetician too now that school is over and I have a lot more free time on my hands. It might be a good idea to have some extractions done. I'll start looking for a good one in my area.
Week 4!!
Have my 1 month Derm checkup today. We shall see what they say. Still no period. I still need to upload new pics. I used 15% SA peel on my forehead and jaw this week because they were getting some bumps and my forehead is usually clear. It might be the 2% SA I use every other night bringing stuff up but I wanted to hurry it along. Nothing peeled but it brought up some little whiteheads of which I squeeze at so now I have red marks on my forehead. Makeup! The Taz is bringing the remaining clogs on my cheeks up....slowlyyyy.
Right side: 12 clogged pores, zero active
Left side: 6-7 clogged pores, zero active
Forehead: 4-5 red marks from squeezing, zero active
Chin: clear
Red marks: plenty but fading, wish theyde fade faster
Ok guys, I went to my one month on Spiro dermatologist checkup today and she wants me to go back to 50 mg since I am seeing improvement (she noticed the improvement) and I havent had my period in going on 2 months. Maybe if I drop down it will come back, but hopefully 50 mg is enough to keep my face clear. I didnt really have cystic acne issues, mainly lots of closed comedones that sometimes turned into pustules, so hopefully this will be ok!!
Also, while I was in there she closely examined the areas I told her I still had comedones that I was waiting to surface. She asked me if I wanted her to zap them with this electro-heat gun thingy. She said it would leave tiny scabs but it would dissolve the comedones. Normally they charge for the procedure but she did it for free. It stung a bit everywhere she zapped.but its been a few hours later and now they all look kind of redder and prominent like they might want to come out..so not sure what's going to happen now. Anyone have any experience with this or know what the treatment is called? (I forgot the exact name she said)
Well...after coming home from life group last night all the comedones she zapped were like noticeably pushing their way up and "looser" looking so I went ahead and steamed my face and extracted a whole bunch of them - probably the most ive ever extracted on my right side. I think the heat might have caused them to try and come out.
This morning there are some swollen areas from the extractions and tiny scabs all over from the heat gun like she said. It looks worse right now but I'm hoping as the redness and swelling goes away and scabs come off it'll be smoother. I'm so tired of this...just want it to be over. I feel like I am still getting some new clogged pores but at a slower rate. It has only been 1 month on Spiro so hopefully after another month or so they'll stop completely. First day going back to 50 mg.
Also I went to a psych nurse at my therapists request this week and she told me to stop taking the Ativan (alas, it was really working for my anxiety) and take Neurontin which so far has only made me feel sluggish. Still taking Buspar but not really noticing anything.
This weekend was really great, I felt like my face looked better than it had in a long time...almost all the cheekbone comedones gone from the heat gun thing and then extracting them all, just some tiny scabs left....but then Sunday after lunch it's like a bunch of tiny clogged pores near both sides of my mouth area/lower cheeks apeared overnight. I had kind of been noticing something happening there over the past week but now I feel like they are more apparent...just when I thought I wasn't getting new ones and just had the current old ones to purge!!!
I need some hope guys, I am on Spiro and have been on retinoids for over 3 months. Is getting new ones at this point normal?? :/ Maybe I am just being overly perfectionist...
SA peel last night - squeezed a bunch tonight. So much stuff still to come our especially on left side. I look red welted and scabbed now but at least I got a much of gunk out. Please God keep the pores from reclogging, medicines do your job. Lets see if I can go into work in the morning.. This is the reddest I have been. I'm going to have a big scab on the left lowr cheek. make it end!! Day 5 on 50 mg Spiro.
Week 5
Well I ended up going back to the Derm on Wed because I was kind of freaking out about my backslide...she noted that I was looking kind of oily again so I am going back up to 75 mg so maybe that will keep the oil away but let my period start. She seems pretty concerned about my lack of period. They made me do a pregnancy test at my apt the week before, negative of course! She also reminded me that I am only on week 5 Spiro and need to be more patient - still have 4-6 more weeks before full effect and there could be ups and downs in between even if it is already helping.
I am mostly recovered from my latest squeeze fest, I have a healing red mark where the scab came off on my left jaw, a healing chin pimple and a healing slightly swollen spot on my right cheekbone where I must have squeezed too hard and hurt something. Other than that its mostly red marks and some stray clogged pores. My face is really so much smoother than it was a month ago, sometimes I touch my cheeks and am surprised because I forgot what smooth skin felt like.
I have been using retin a and SA diligently every day now and am starting to feel a bit irritated and a little flakier than usual. I might have to give it a one day rest. I'm just so paranoid about new clogs popping up. I still have a bunch of red marks that need fading and am trying to heal and deal with my extreme anxiety that was uncovered from this whole situation. Sometimes I just get terrified that I'm going to get worse and never fully recover from this. I have a lot of irrational fearful thoughts even though I am actually improving a lot. Time for mental healing. My husband bought two LED warm light strips and installed them on the sides of our mirror and took off the top fluorescent light. It really is so much more flattering in this light. He really wants me to stop picking...the light we had before was atrocious - this old cabin in the woods house we rent has a bathroom that seriously used to be a front room or something in the 1930s and is so ghetto and unlike any other bathroom I have seen.
Two things of note, on my jaws my skin looks a little uneven when I look close, it feels smooth but looks like some patches of skin are missing really shallowy, maybe the retin a is exfoliating too much? Anyone ever have this?
Also I bought some Nizoral online because I was following a log that talked about the ketoconozal in it reducing androgen activity on the skin. Thought I might give it a shot since it was $7 to see if it actually does anything to help with sebum while the Spiro takes full effect.
I'm concerned about the fact you haven't seen your periods yet, I hope it is nothing serious. I think the spiro is working pretty well for me. I have stopped breaking out on my back, chest and upper arms. I still have some clogged pores on my face but I don't seem to have active pimples anymore, so I'm really happy about that. I'm still going strong with differin, it is working slowly but surely. Since I started using the differin, little plugs would come out of my previously clogged pores so you can see the plugs halfway out. Not a really flattering look lol but at least it is working.
You should stop scrutinizing your skin like this or else you'll never see improvements. Trust me; I used to that every day and I was never seeing improvements because I would worry about any single new clogged pores, new pimples and eventually would end up picking at my skin and then get depressed about my irritated, painful to watch skin lol. Try not to think about it too much, I know it is hard but at least you won't be so depressed about it. What's the nizoral for? I never heard of it. Is it a cream, gel?
Aaniella -
Have you had any change in your period or side effects from Spiro. You are taking 100 right?
The Nizoral is a wash for scalp, face and body. You can look up some threads of people using it on here. I think it's conventional use is for dandruff and hair loss in men by reducing sebum and testosterone in skin. Seems to work to control acne and clogged pores for some.
I'm concerned about the fact you haven't seen your periods yet, I hope it is nothing serious. I think the spiro is working pretty well for me. I have stopped breaking out on my back, chest and upper arms. I still have some clogged pores on my face but I don't seem to have active pimples anymore, so I'm really happy about that. I'm still going strong with differin, it is working slowly but surely. Since I started using the differin, little plugs would come out of my previously clogged pores so you can see the plugs halfway out. Not a really flattering look lol but at least it is working.
You should stop scrutinizing your skin like this or else you'll never see improvements. Trust me; I used to that every day and I was never seeing improvements because I would worry about any single new clogged pores, new pimples and eventually would end up picking at my skin and then get depressed about my irritated, painful to watch skin lol. Try not to think about it too much, I know it is hard but at least you won't be so depressed about it. What's the nizoral for? I never heard of it. Is it a cream, gel?
I'm still on 100 and I'm definitely experiencing a change in my periods. I thought I told you about it. I'm having my periods every 2 weeks now and I'm not too happy about it. Another side effect, I lost a lot of weight in the last month. It may be a coincidence but I really think the spiro has something to do with it. Concerning the plugs coming out, they eventually fall out on their own but when I want to speed up the process; I gently scrub my skin and it helps them fall out. I might go ahead and give the nizoral a try. My hair has been shedding a lot lately, it may help reduce it.
Week 6
I am like 90% clear at this point. I have to say that the retin a purging and me doing extractions over the past few weeks along with the microdermabrasion really helped get the last big batch of these clogged pores out. I still have a few but not in clusters and they aren't noticeable unless I scrutinize. The red marks are also fading thanks to the retin a and salicylic acid. Also got a lot of sun the past week so my face is Tanner which blends stuff. I have also started using Paulas choice skin balancing toner before bed to get my make up off and after shower as it also works as a hydrator in place of my moisturizer since I have oily skin. I had a really light barely there period this last week and am currently on 75 mg of Spiro. I have been exercising a lot more and getting outside enjoying life again. My anxiety has really improved over the last week. I pray to God this is here to stay. I'm still getting slightly oily skin at the end of the day and occasional new clogs pores but Spiro is definitely not to it's fullest effect yet. I have a facial scheduled in another Week to see about clearing up the very last of these clogged pores. It might be the last. I am trying to get away from thinking about perfection because whose skin really doesn't have a single clogged pore or never gets a single pimple? No ones skin is perfect.
Right side: 3-4 clogged pores
Left side: 3-4 clogged pores
Forehead: clear
Chin: clear
Red marks: Continuing to fade
Week 7
Well since I have been on 75 mg Spiro for 2 weeks now my face has become progressively oilier and oilier. I feel like my forehead is super oily and is having a mild breakout of some small whiteheads. Also today I felt a chin pimple coming up that hurts...that is not good. I globbed a bunch of 9 % SA on it and hoping it will stop it in its tracks. My right side is still pretty smooth with just like 3 small clogs left but I think my left now has 7-8 all in the lower cheek area right by my mouth and under my nose has been getting some clogs on that side. I am going back up to 100 mg. I feel like my face was the least oily it's been in my life on that and now it has progressively gone back since I lowered the dose. Hopefully my period issue will sort itself out. I can't wait for my facial on Friday to clear these clogs on the left side out!!! I don't know why new ones seem to form just on that side in a very specific area and under my nose. Perhaps 100 of Spiro is what I need to keep my oil at bay for now. I just wish my period would sort itself out. I kind of spotter today. Haven't had an anxiety attack in almost 2 weeks. 
Had a facial today. She used her fingers to extract instead of the metal device which I thought was cool. I didn't have a single red mark on my face after - was the nicest I've ever looked after a facial. However I noticed she left some of the clogged pores I was most concerned about so I went at my face afterwards and ended up going overboard as usual and squeezing at every tiny spot. Which... Ended up sending me into a panic attack I hadn't had in weeks... And now I have scabs and red marks. Way to mess up a $68 facial!
So a few days after facial - I dont have anything swollen, a couple of scabs from my squeezing on my cheekbones and jaw. My forehead and chin are pretty much clear. My right side might have one clogged pore that is covered by a scab on my cheekbone so I can't tell for sure. There is a tiny white head that came up on my cheek but its not a clog, its real on the surface but just looks pink. As for the left side...that is the bad side. I have a kind of big new clog that came up on my jaw line, a possible clogged pore under a scab on my cheekbone, and a line of little clogs that goes from above my lip towards my cheekbone, about 4-5 of them. I was really hoping that she was going to be able to help get rid of the last of these buggers, but I think her technique does not get deep ones. Last night I squeezed a clog out from the side of my face near by eye and under my left nostril that had been there forever so there are pink marks there now. My face really is clear now other than the now self inflicted scabs and marks..so my skin tone isnt even on my cheeks like it was getting to be. I wish these last little clogs would come out and my left side would stop acting up. I am starting the retin-a back up (from the break I gave it to have the facial) and going to try and hit it hard using it every night for the next week to help clear out these scabs and marks and hopefully bring up those few little clogs. I really need to have self control in not squeezing them because it looks worse when I do. My anxiety level has been high ever since the facial on Friday...I need to get back to doing better like I was. My sister is flying in this Saturday to stay with us for a few months so I am hoping having family here and someone else to think of will help me get my mind off negative things.
So 10 days later...passed Week 8
My face healed up nicely from the post facial squeezing. Last Wed I squeezed some plugs that were coming out under my nose and left a few scabs. The ones under my nose/around my mouth are really the only ones that just keep coming and coming, often as tiny white heads. I kind of suspect perioral derm cause when I was on 200 mg Doxy it cleared up, so I upping my dose back to that - maybe I started to taper down too soon. My anxiety finally came down Wed and I had a good rest of the week and weekend. My sister came in to stay with us on Sat. Sun it rained a ton which is rare for CO but great for the fires. It made it actually slightly humid for the first time ever. I gently squeezed out 3 clogs on my cheekbones that had been there for a few weeks - I think the last of the remnants on my cheekbones. I've been using retin a micro every day of the week and then break on the weekend with just sal acid. Exfoliating like crazy made those clogs have mostly soft white content instead of hard plugs. My remaining issues consist of a handful of small clogs around my jaw and lower cheeks, maybe 6 in total on my face? All very small though. Also, this Friday I am pretty sure I discovered the true culprit bedding all this mess and it involves the oil cleansing method. More on that next post.