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hi everyone~
first of all... HAPPY NEW YEARS! hope you all have beautifully clear skin throughout 2005...
as for me, i'm sorry to say, i've quit spiro. it was way too much. i only had a little acne on my cheeks, but after spiro, i broke out ALL OVER MY FACE... cheeks, forehead, jawline, etc etc... after 6 weeks of getting WORSE, i stopped taking the stuff.
it's been a week since i've been off spiro, and my skin is clearing up- i haven't seen any new volcanic activity going on my face and the old ones are slowly drying up. so i'm guessing that maybe i have an allergy to spiro or sumthin.
i decided to take the "au natural" route- basically, duke it out until i'm done with this horrendous disease.
i will be checking this thread all the time though... so hopefully i will be able to hear of all your improvements...
Wow,that's scary to hear,Audrey I've been on spiro for nearly 2 weeks now at 100mg.I'm going to up the dosage to 150mg after the weekend.
I'm really upset at the state of my skin at the moment.I don't know if the spiro could be making it worse because it wasn't doing very good in the couple of weeks before spiro;although during the last few days it has gotten worse
I'm not sure if it's like this because it's a spiro initial breakout or if it's because my skin is extremely dry(it was like this before spiro),and because of this it's irritated and causing spots.Since before spiro it's become really dry this winter.It's flaky and feels tight and sore.Like really parched.Kind of like it was when i was on roaccutane but i finished that last march!It's so dry that i can't even eat an apple the normal way because it feels sore when i stretch my face.
I'm going to try using a moisturiser to see if it is the dryness that's irritating my skin.I'm wary about moisturisers though because i always think that they cause spots.I'm going to look through the boards and see what's recommended anyway and i'll give that a try.
If that doesn't help this breakout then maybe it is an initial breakout.If it is i'll just try to ride it out i suppose I have got afew come up on my jawline so maybe it's the spiro?
If it is an initial breakout;i know some of you did experience that.Could you tell me when the initial breakout happened and how long did it take to pass?
Also,when did you guys start seeing an improvement and when was your skin actually clear?
I'm worried that i might have a rough few months.I'm not sure i could handle it I'm just thinking that if it's not good i'll ride it out for a couple of months but by march i should see an improvement.Then i'll decide if i think it's working.
hey kelley,
well... it sounds like you are in a better boat than i am, cuz at least you are having decreased oil production. i was taking 100 mg and there was NO decrease in oiliness... i upped (on my own without my doctor's supervision) to 200 mg... and STILL no decrease in oil production. i was like, HUH? but everyday, my face was still slick. initial breakout began 1 week into it, and got progressively worse, to the point where my face shape had altered (as a result of my swollen and bumpy jawline). my lymph nodes were swollen too, because there were so many pimples on my face.
i don't know if this is a very good "observation" but lots of people were telling me that in asia, derms don't usually give oral medication. they try to solve the problem from the outside. i'm thinking that since i am asian, perhaps oral medications don't have as positive of an effect as expected? then again, i've got lots of friends who've tried accutane and have *lovely* babybutt-like skin.
anyways, if i were you, i would continue, since you have been having better results than i have...
GOOD LUCK EVERYONE!!!!
Louise ~ I noticed less oil after a few weeks on Spiro and then continuously less over time. Usually by about 4pm my skin was so gross I wanted to wash my face again. After several months on Spiro I hardly even notice oil anymore at the end of the day.
Kelly ~ Thanks for the advice. I wish I could up my dose, but I'm a little hesistant to do it against my doctor's sugesstion. I am desperate, but not sure if I want to risk anything serious at this point, even though it would be very rare if anything did happen. I am going back to see him in 3 months, and if there is no improvement then I'm going to beg for him to give me a higher dose. I mean, I'm definitely seeing some results, but nowhere where I want to be, so there must be something I can do!!!!
Keep it up ladies!! Oh, as far as BC goes, I really don't know. I haven't tried too many different kinds. I am on Ortho Lo now and it works fine, I don't know if it's helped my acne or not since I was on Mino when I started on it and then switched to Spiro. I think Yasmin is another BC that has Spiro in it? I don't know anything about that though, sorry. THere are lots of threads on here about BC, so you might read through those to get a better idea of what has worked for people and what hasn't. Good luck
Hey ladies,
I'm new to message boards and still figuring out how this works! I've tried almost everything for my mild cystic acne over the last 10 years, and all that has worked was birth control pills. I went off them because of the cost and the fact that Ortho Tricyclen stopped working on the acne after several years. But my cysts are back so I am going to try Yasmin. My question is about spiro. My new dermatologist said to try spiro with Yasmin. Any input on starting both at the same time?
My feeling is that I should try the Yasmin alone, and then try spiro if it doesn't work. But she said Yasmin can take three months to work, and spiro could help with any intital outbreaks I'd get from the change in hormones. I can deal with my skin being like it is for a few more months if it eventually gets better, but if it gets worse, I'm going to be so depressed. I'm supposed to go on a first date, and I've been avoiding it because my skin looks like crap.
Any anecdotal evidence out there? Thanks!
Randa ~ I'm not positive about this, but I thought I read on here somewhere that Yasmin has a low dose of Spiro in it. Also, if you couldn't afford Ortho, Spiro is just as expensive unless you've got insurance or something I don't know. For future reference, organizations like Planned Parenthood have programs to help pay for Birth Control. Spiro and BC will both take about 3 months to give you their full effect. There aren't any guarantees about what is going to help each individual person, but my guess is if you've seen results from BC in the past, you should see some results again from Yasmin and then you could toss in Spiro if you needed more.
Best of luck to you!
Thanks! I think I will give the Yasmin a try alone first. I have about a hundred topical medicines and face washes--enough already! If I try too many things at once, I won't know what is working. I love this smiley because this is what it sometimes feels like dealing with acne!
hello everyone!
this is just for the informational purposes of anyone who is considering spiro...
i used spiro for 6 weeks, and couldn't take it anymore because my zits were SO bad... ieach week was getting WORSE and WORSE... t was to the point where i couldn't go outside anymore cuz the cysts were connected to each other and making one BIG amoeba shaped pimple that traveling all over my face.
so i quit. and it's been 2.5 weeks and i am really clear. i know, WTF, that is so weird. right now i'm not using any drugs (i was using ortho tri lo and spiro) but now... all i have left are dark bruising from the past acne i had, which is relatively easy to cover with concealer.
i find this funny because everyone else seems to have such a positive experience with spiro. like i mentioned before in another post, perhaps i am just allergic???
anyways, i just posted this for the consideration of ppl who may want to hear another side of spiro, not to rain on the parade of the spiro supporters.
i hope the rest of you ladies on spiro are continuing to have lovely skin~~!
Hi everyone, Shortee told me about this thread. It's really great and informative. I started spiro 2 weeks ago. So far, I really don't know if there has been improvement, I guess my face is less oily. Anyway, I'll post myprogress (hopefully) and questions, as you are experts on this matter To all of you, how are things going?
Thanks!!
Being I was the one who started this thread, i thought i should provide an update.
I'm going off Spiro in two days. I've been on it for almost 4 months (i think, can't remember when i started this thread) and have seen ZERO improvement. The only positive aspect was less oily skin, but the cysts on my jawline have continued throughout the months with no end in sight.
I live in Vancouver, BC and just went to the top derm in the city (Dr. Dantow) and he told me to go on Accutane. Just so you all know, I was on 100 mg/day without the BC pill (can't take it cuz i got a blood clot in my lung from it) and was spotting continuously throughout the month, so the derm said to not UP the dosage b/c the side effects would get worse (ie. perma period!). Sooo, I'm really happy to hear lots of you having success on Spiro but it should be known it's not a cure-all for everyone. Hopefully Accutane will work better for me (i've avoided taking it forEVER!).
blue_eyez ~ so sorry to hear that Spiro didn't work for you. I hope your Accutane goes well. I am kind of surprised that your derm wants to put you on Accutane since my derm told me since my acne is hormonal, it would only come back after I had quit taking it. What did your derm say about this?
Best of luck to you!
hi everyone~
now, it's been quite some time since i've quit spiro... i am soooo glad i quit. my acne is under control and it is getting clearer and clearer each day. i've been steaming my face with a face sauna (i know, ppl say it does NOTHING, but i'm set on doing ANYTHING possible for the betterment of my skin) and washing pretty frequently...
but i think it really was spiro that was causing the craziness in my jawline (i think someone else mentioned this on a previous post) with the mountain range of cystic acne. i decided to not go back to my derm because the team would probably yell at me for not sticking to it.
so, since i didn't have weird breakouts after quitting, maybe those of you who are going to end it soon will be ok? keep posting~!
Hi everyone! Please keep reporting your expeirence with spiro, I need positive reinforcement! Also, I have a question: I'm only using spiro, not any topicals. As many of you have experienced, those medicines only seem to worsen the condition of the skin. So in the morning I just wash and mosturize (oil free), and at night I use a great cream called Affirm, which contains retinol and helps in fading red marks (and wrinkles, I'm 30). It seems to be enough, but any recommendations are welcome. By the way, I found a great website www.dermadoctor.com They sell great stuff, and it's also very informative. Good luck, keep in touch.
Hi you guys...
I take yasmin and spiro 100mg for the past three to four months.... ever since I started taking them I developed terrible acne on my chin jaw line and around my nose....some place I never had it before. In fact, I got a cyst on my nose and it is huge. I have had injected with cortisone twice to no avail.
I guess spiro is not for me either. I started it first and that is when the breakouts started coming later I added yasmin and it has continually gotten worse. Many less cysts but lots of tiny little ones with white heads....eek.
Plus, my doctor told me that spiro should not give me an initial breakout as it should be blocking androgens and helping to get my out of whack hormones back on track. He did say it could take 4 months to see improvement, but it should not create a worse problem on the way. Hmmm...makes since to me since so many of you have not had an initial breakout on yasmin.
Good luck to all
Jenny
Jenfen and Audrey - wow, sounds like we're all in the same boat. I was getting jawline acne when i started Spiro, but never got cystic acne on the jawline/chin until after starting Spiro too....i've been on it for four months and literally NO end in sight for the cysts.....i know Spiro can take a while to show, but there should be SOME improvement. Very interesting that I'm not the only one who experienced this problem.
Shortee: i never did ask him about, since my acne is hormonal, after Accutane if it would come back. He DID say that Accutane was to be used after everything else failed and Minocyclin and Tetracycline did nothing for my skin (and they're antibiotics). He said my acne was hormonal because those antibiotics didn't help at all. I think no matter what, women will get hormonal acne at least at some point during the month b/c of our menstrual cycles, but it's how severe that is the issue. I think some of us are experiencing terrible consistent monthly break-outs, rather than the occasional small pimple come period-time, so if we can make the break-outs less, i think that's the most we'lll accomplish. Now you've got me second guessing my treatment Shortee! Oh well...i'm at wits end.
OHH! for you ladies asking about topical treatments, my Dr. is the top derm in Vancouver and he said he believes topicals do NOTHING for people's skin other than irritate it. He said the problem is internal. I'm quitting my Retin-A applications right away!
I've nearly been on spiro for 4 weeks now so that's one month gone.The breakout i had at the start went away quickly and for a couple of weeks my skin was doing good.But,i woke up this morning to an awful breakout I feel rotten about it
I even have a couple of big spots on my forehead and i hardly ever get them on my forehead
I've noticed more peeing but that's not as much now;and i've noticed some weight loss.
I increase my dose to 200mg in two days so we'll see.Hopefully it'll work then
i started spiro almost 4 months ago at 100 mg/day. I also take orthotricyclen. At first it seemed like the oil on my face was decreasing but i think it was psychological. Anyway I still continued to get about 2 large cysts on my chin per month and I got a bunch of smaller pimples in the same area. Not the effect I was hoping for. So I am starting accutane next Thursday. Even if your acne is hormonal accutane can help greatly. It basically stops your glands from producing oil while you're on it. After treatment most people see a reduction in the severity and frequency of acne. You might breakout but for most it's much, much less and easier to control. It's really a personal choice and I'm ready after 10 years of battling. I had hoped spiro was the answer but alas...
blue eyes...you'll have to let me know your dose etc... we'll be going on the 'tane at the same time!
This is just an exerpt from a website (www.hormonehelpny.com) that I thought was interesting. I read a lot of women on here asking what they think a good dose of spiro would be and here seems to be an answer (which I personally agree with)...
However the 3 mg of drospirenone in Yasmin is equivalent to only 25 mg of spironolactone. The doses of spiro which seem to be effective for androgenic skin and hair problems (persistent acne, increased hair growth and alopecia) are usually 100 to 200 mg per day. Less than 75 mg, at least in my experience, tends not to be effective. So using Yasmin is like taking a very small dose of spiro. It might help somewhat but is unlikely to be as effective as spiro in higher doses. It is, of course, effective as an oral contraceptive.
Hope this is helpful.
Sincerely,
Geoffrey Redmond, MD
Here is a link to that question and site:
Well i'm increaing to 200mg tomorrow so i hope i fair better with that!
Still breaking out badly.I'm so scared in case spiro makes things worse!!!!!!!!!!It's not good at the moment.I don't know what's going on with my forehead;it's breaking out and i hardly ever get them there like i said.My face feels wierd;really dry and irritated but it did that before spiro;since winter really.I really hope it gets better soon.It' really gets me down when it's like this and especially when i'm worried i could have a big breakout from spiro.
Shortee;the breakout you had in the beginning;how long did it last?Can you remember when it was in the week number sense?
aliciany: Yes, it has worked WONDERS for my skin. My oil is almost nil and my skin stays very clear with the exception of a tiny pimple or two that pop up every couple of months. That websit is pretty cool isn't it?!?
Kelly: Sorry to hear you havn't had that much success with it yet. How long have you been taking it? I saw an even bigger differnece when I increased from 100 to 150 and then finally to 200 to really get rid of my oil. You may try increasing in 50 mg incriments to see if that would help.