Hi everyone,
I've been doing a lot of research into hormonal acne as i believe this is what I suffer from (painful red lumps/cysts along jaw line and chin, worse when i'm due my period), my GP has put me on Dianette to help treat this however she didn't do any tests beforehand and my skin has become so bad since taking Dianette (just finished the second strip) I went back and she prescribed zineryt to use along side taking the pill. I've been using this for approx 2 weeks and it did initially start to clear my skin up, mainly on the right side of my face, the left was still breaking out but white heads rather than cyst type spots, now i'm on the 7 day break, I've broken out all over again!! It's sooo frustrating and disheartening! I just want to hide away and not see anyone.
I've read your skin can purge when you first start taking the pill whilst your body adjusts to the change in hormones but i'm getting worried that i'm making it worse rather than better but want to persevere with it in case i'm only weeks away from it clearing up.
I'm due to go back to the GP next week and was wondering if/which tests I can request to check whether this is actually hormonal to make sure i'm doing the right thing and if I can request a referral to a dermatologist?
Thanks 
I forgot to mention my diet - I'm vegetarian and have been longer than I've had this problem, I cut out cows milk instead I have soya, I have cheese once per week but not a large quantity. I don't eat a lot of junk food, I may have chocolate or a treat once or twice per week, I eat fruit and veg, brown rice and wholewheat pasta instead of white, drink approx 8 pints of water per day, no fruit juice or sugary drinks but have a cup of tea or coffee each day, also drink green tea and peppermint tea.
My skin care regime is;
AM
Clearssil rapid action face wash
zineryt
Body shop aloe vera daily moisturiser
Body shop tea tree oil
Try not to wear make up when I can
PM
Clearasil rapid action face wash
zineryt
Body shop aloe vera Night moisturiser
Body shop tea tree oil
Sudocream left on over night
Any advice would be appreciated
Hi there, I feel your pain with Dianette! I was on that bcp for a while and it made my skin flare up (and I had to WORST mood swings)!Yasmin seemed to do the trick for me (although I have been treating my acne holistically for the past 6 months or so).
I understand how horrible it is when you're skin gets worse on treatments (you don't know whether to keep going with it to see if it improves or stop!?). When I went on Yasmin (the pill that completely cured my acne albeit some side effects), my skin didn't flare up and I could see visible results in the first month or so of taking it.
They can do blood tests to test for high levels of testosterone (which is the main cause of hormonal acne in women). I found out my acne was caused by pcos when I went for an ultrasound on my ovaries - so guess that's another test you can do. Good luck!
Hi, thanks for your reply!
How long were you on Dianette before changing to Yasmin? I don't know how long to wait before asking to change...I thought I could give myself a deadline to the of end of August so would have been on Dianette for 4 months, then i'm not just dragging it out wondering what to do and how long to wait every day.
I'm at the doctors on Wednesday so will be asking them to do some blood tests.
You say you've been treating your acne holistically, did you go to see someone about it? I've read into this too and found it really interesting.
I'm glad you found something which works for you and your skin, it's such an awful condition 