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Hi Everyone!
I am a 28 year old female, and I've had acne since I was 21.. My first prescription was Doxycycline, which I took twice/day for 1 year. It cleared my face beautifully. I also used some topicals along with it (Clindamycin, etc.) Then.. my acne became resistant to it, and it stopped working. I then started Yaz birth control to try and stop my acne.. I took it for 2 months, and it made my acne WAY worse.. I started developing large, painful cysts on my chin that wouldn't go away.. As soon as I stopped taking it, they went away. Then, I tried Loestrin 24 FE.. I was on that for about 2 years. During that time, my face looked amazing!!! I didn't have any face or body acne at all.. (I also break out on my back and shoulders).
I had to stop the Loestrin because it made my migraines worse, and it made me have anxiety attacks and cry non-stop. I can't handle hormonal BCP's too well.. Of course, my face started to go crazy when I stopped taking it.. Currently, I'm taking a new vitamin supplement called "NicAzel," prescribed by my dermatologist. I also use 15% Azelic acid cream twice/day, and I'm trying to drink a lot of water, etc. I have a very healthy diet- I'm a vegetarian, I don't eat fried foods... However, the NicAzel is only working somewhat.. I am still getting those large, painful cysts on my chin, and jawline area (ladies, I'm sure you are familiar). They tend to come out before my period, but I also get them at other times of the month.. I had a blood test recently to look for a hormone imbalance.. My derm thinks that could be the culprit. What are other people's experiences? She said I probably dont have PCOS, because I am tall and thin, and I don't have the "typical" body type of women who have it. Thyroid problems are also a possibility, I guess.
The derm prescribed some new antibiotics, but I am reluctant to take them, because I feel like they are just a bandaid for the real problem... The biggest problem I am having is: I am getting MARRIED in 2 weeks... I have 2 active cysts right now, and they will not go away. I've tried my usual methods, but they are still there. I even had 2 of them injected with cortisone, but they haven't gone down totally yet. I'm so frustrated!
Hi there. I have hormonal acne too. It's good you are getting blood-work done but if the results come back totally normal that doesn't mean everything is. We have androgen receptors at the skin level and hormones operating at the skin level that can't be detected in blood work. Usually Spiro is given but since you had a bad reaction to Yaz, which contains a Spiro like progestin, then it may not be for you. What is the new antibiotic he prescribed? You might want to do that for the short term just to get through your wedding.
Get cortisone shots before your wedding so you don't have ugly cysts in all your pictures...
For the long-term, I would look into spiro. I really doubt your bad reaction to Yaz had anything to do with the spiro in it, it contains an extremely low dose, and most of the people who have bad reactions to Yaz are actually reacting to its synthetic progestin,