Acne.org Products
Hi everyone!
I've been a lurker of these boards on and off over the years looking for help (and encouragement) at various points on my acne rollercoaster ride. This is my first time posting on these boards and reaching out directly for help. My skin has never looked worse in my 10 year battle with acne. I suspect that stress is a MAJOR trigger for me because the worst of my flare-ups occur during periods of transition or change in my life (going to college, graduating college, starting a new job, etc.) I've suffered through 1 and a half rounds of Accutane - I say half because I had to quit halfway through my second round because of the psychological and physical side-effects. My acne has never completely cleared but it's been manageable and under control until now. I was even at a point a few months ago where I would say my skin looked "great!" (no active acne, scars fading, etc.). But mind, that period was when I was enjoying my summer, getting outside, almost 0 stress.
Fast forward to now. This is the first breakout in my entire life that has totally debilitated me. I have clusters of small cysts concentrated on either sides of my chin and along my jawline. T-ZONE is 100% clear (and has been for years). My cheeks, which used to be a problem area for me, are clear too. It's insane the contrast between these areas and the sides of my chin. It's sad because this is a period in my life that I should be glowing with pride after landing and working the first successful month of an amazing internship! But this is my routine: I wake up, go to work, then come home and never leave the house. I've lost weight because I don't want to go out on my lunch break and face the world. My naturally confident, relaxed, content, easy-going personality has been replaced with flightiness, shyness, and reluctance. My self-esteem has absolutely crumbled in the last month since this breakout started. It's scary and it's sad.
So, to address this, I made an emergency appointment with my derm who has been with me through the worst of it. She has started me on 100mg of Spironolactone daily plus a nightly topical, Ziana. I was cleared up on Spiro about a year ago but stopped usage because I ran out of refills and was away at college. It wasn't urgent to me because my skin was behaving so I never made a follow-up. I want to go back in time and punch myself in the face for that because these 7 months or so off of it have probably completely set-back all the progress made by the previous round. Anyway, I DID experience wacky periods while on Spiro last time, so my GP has started me on the generic of Ortho Tri-Cyclen Lo. I've added a BHA (Corsx BHA Blackhead Power Liquid) to my morning and nightly routines as well to help with the congestion on either sides of my chin.
I should also mention that I've significantly reduced dairy and gluten in my diet. Cheese and the occasional cookie at work is my only cheat, really.
Anyway, I just wanted some input/suggestions on my new routine and/or words of encouragement because I'm really having a hard time coping with this.
I'd appreciate anything.
My stats if it matters: 114lbs / 5'3" / 22 y/o female.
Hi!
Reading your paragraph was like reading about myself. I am 24 years old (female) and have suffered slight hormonal issues my entire life,the hormones did not contribute to the acne so much except as a young teenager and up until January 2016.
I want you to know you are not alone. I can totally relate to you. I too do not leave my office ,nor house.I don't see my closest friends and avoid doing anything at all that means me being in public, because of how terrible i feel with my skin. I have a very outgoing personality and this situation has truly stripped me of all self esteem.
I know that although i have had hormonal issues, the root of this issue for me is stress.
I had a facial threading experience in December that i believe caused a severe bacterial infection in my pores and resulted in acne, and since then any stress i feel has immediately turned into the 'new reaction zone' - my face.
My initial problem area was just alike your cheek area, and now it has moved to my jaw area.
I managed to calm the cheeks down from acne through herbal remedies and acupuncture (if you perchance live in NY i have a Dr. i highly recommend).
The one thing that helped me SO much is "Heparex Extract - Xiao Chai Hu Tang Wan" - i took ten tablets with tea in the morning and evening (two bottles back to back so approx. 2/3 weeks) - this was miraculous for me. I had a week of beautiful skin, then I ran out of pills and have been off them for two weeks and my skin has gone worse again (if i took the pills for longer before i ran out i don't think this would have happened). I have ordered more pills as they clear the body of heat (heat causes many problems including acne), and 150% saw a great result from them so will see if they can combat the jaw.
Being that although my cheeks have cleared a lot, i developed 12 cysts on my jaw area within the space of two days.Yesterday, i went to an amazing dermatologist, and started a new face wash by Molekule (2x day), Bactrum antibiotic pill (1x day),sodium sulfacetamide(2x day) with Retin-a on top of the sodium cream at night. I do see it much calmer within just 24 hours, i will keep you updated as i truly believe this cure is more simple than we are made to believe.
The food is huge factor - any Dr. that says otherwise is the same Dr. that gets paid to prescribe. No dairy, no NUTS (even almond milk), no gluten has helped. Adaptogenic herbs ( Ashwagandha tea is a favorite of mine) help a lot as they decrease inflammation in all aspects of the body. Try drinking 1-1.5L of water a day, PH balanced.
P.S. I have hyperthyroid so the spironolactone is not a good decision for me, however do you think this was the answer for you? Did you see side effects?