Hey guys,
I am new here but figured I would share my experiences and see if any of you have insight that you can share with me. Ive been to several dermatologists over the last decade and tried countless medications, none of which have really worked except for Accutane. Through trying all sorts of medications (and minimal success), I am now suspecting my comedones/scalp folliculitis are the result of somehormonal imbalance.
-I hit puberty around 11 which started with acne on my face. It was mostly just normal acne, but it continued with me as I got older. 95% of all the acne I currently get and remember getting were comedones (whiteheads). I dont entirely understand sebum, but it played a role in my high school life when I started getting chalazions on both of my eyes. They were terrible and unsightly, and lasted for months. I was told by an eye doctor that excess sebum caused this.
-Thankfully those have stopped (not sure how!). I am 27 now. What has not stopped is whiteheads on my face and a few on my scalp. The rest of my scalp is covered in red bumps that are painful and unsightly (folliculitis). Sadly my body decided these last few years would be a good time to start balding. It started very slowly but my dermatologist was able to identify it at age 19 or so. I have the typical Male Pattern Baldness with the crown most affected with a receding hairline in the M shape. I have come to terms with this, even though it hit me so young, and shave my head and keep it very short in general. The problem, of course, is that when I do this my scalp has all sorts of unattractive red bumps (that are also painful!). It feels somewhat like being trapped, I cant grow my hair out, but if I shave it, it doesnt look good either. I dont care about getting my hair back on top, I have let that one go. However, I want to get a clean scalp and face.
Baldness runs in my family, but it hit me earlier than my dad, grandfather, etc. I started to wonder if this was somehow connected to my breakouts on my face and scalp.
-Additionally I noticed something weird with my facial hair. The area around the goatee grows about half dark brown hairs and half white hairs. My normal hair color is dark brown, almost black. I dont know if this is just purely genetics, or another hormonal imbalance. This also has been happening for years.
With all of this being said, I went away from my wife on a 2 week business trip over the summer. I went to Louisiana, where during the summer it's very hot and its easy to be sweating like crazy. Additionally, I did not make smart choices in the food I ate. Much to my amazement, my comedones on my face drastically reduced, even though I was soaking in the humidity and eating BBQ and ice cream. What changed? I was not sexually active and did not masturbate or anything. I simply stopped all things sexual until I got back. Once I got home and things went back to normal, my issues flared up again. However my scalp folliculitis did not seem to go away; it was just my face that really cleared up. This is of course a troubling conclusion to come to, as abstinence in my marriage is not an option! While that wont change, this again makes me believe the issue is internal and is stemming from some hormonal problem.
It makes me somewhat mad that dermatologists kept on flipping pills and topicals at me (that werent cheap and didnt work). Not one came to me and tried to draw a connection with the multitude of (visible) symptoms going on. I have read on a few boards that (for some people) there is a major connection between DHT and hair loss/folliculitis/comedones.
In conclusion, all of these pieces of evidence are pointing me towards needing to try something that inhibits DHT. Between premature MPB, white/gray hairs in goatee, zero success with acne medications other than Accutane, and my experience over the summer in Louisiana, something needs to give. I have been scared off by saw palmetto after hearing some horror stories related to impotence.
Here are some products I am thinking of trying: Zinc 50mg daily, or Clearogen products. Has anyone had experience with either of those? If anyone has similar stories or ideas I am all ears.
Thanks so much
On 1/12/2017 at 3:59 PM, KTD90 said:Hey guys,
I am new here but figured I would share my experiences and see if any of you have insight that you can share with me. Ive been to several dermatologists over the last decade and tried countless medications, none of which have really worked except for Accutane. Through trying all sorts of medications (and minimal success), I am now suspecting my comedones/scalp folliculitis are the result of somehormonal imbalance.
-I hit puberty around 11 which started with acne on my face. It was mostly just normal acne, but it continued with me as I got older. 95% of all the acne I currently get and remember getting were comedones (whiteheads). I dont entirely understand sebum, but it played a role in my high school life when I started getting chalazions on both of my eyes. They were terrible and unsightly, and lasted for months. I was told by an eye doctor that excess sebum caused this.
-Thankfully those have stopped (not sure how!). I am 27 now. What has not stopped is whiteheads on my face and a few on my scalp. The rest of my scalp is covered in red bumps that are painful and unsightly (folliculitis). Sadly my body decided these last few years would be a good time to start balding. It started very slowly but my dermatologist was able to identify it at age 19 or so. I have the typical Male Pattern Baldness with the crown most affected with a receding hairline in the M shape. I have come to terms with this, even though it hit me so young, and shave my head and keep it very short in general. The problem, of course, is that when I do this my scalp has all sorts of unattractive red bumps (that are also painful!). It feels somewhat like being trapped, I cant grow my hair out, but if I shave it, it doesnt look good either. I dont care about getting my hair back on top, I have let that one go. However, I want to get a clean scalp and face.
Baldness runs in my family, but it hit me earlier than my dad, grandfather, etc. I started to wonder if this was somehow connected to my breakouts on my face and scalp.
-Additionally I noticed something weird with my facial hair. The area around the goatee grows about half dark brown hairs and half white hairs. My normal hair color is dark brown, almost black. I dont know if this is just purely genetics, or another hormonal imbalance. This also has been happening for years.
With all of this being said, I went away from my wife on a 2 week business trip over the summer. I went to Louisiana, where during the summer it's very hot and its easy to be sweating like crazy. Additionally, I did not make smart choices in the food I ate. Much to my amazement, my comedones on my face drastically reduced, even though I was soaking in the humidity and eating BBQ and ice cream. What changed? I was not sexually active and did not masturbate or anything. I simply stopped all things sexual until I got back. Once I got home and things went back to normal, my issues flared up again. However my scalp folliculitis did not seem to go away; it was just my face that really cleared up. This is of course a troubling conclusion to come to, as abstinence in my marriage is not an option! While that wont change, this again makes me believe the issue is internal and is stemming from some hormonal problem.
It makes me somewhat mad that dermatologists kept on flipping pills and topicals at me (that werent cheap and didnt work). Not one came to me and tried to draw a connection with the multitude of (visible) symptoms going on. I have read on a few boards that (for some people) there is a major connection between DHT and hair loss/folliculitis/comedones.
In conclusion, all of these pieces of evidence are pointing me towards needing to try something that inhibits DHT. Between premature MPB, white/gray hairs in goatee, zero success with acne medications other than Accutane, and my experience over the summer in Louisiana, something needs to give. I have been scared off by saw palmetto after hearing some horror stories related to impotence.
Here are some products I am thinking of trying: Zinc 50mg daily, or Clearogen products. Has anyone had experience with either of those? If anyone has similar stories or ideas I am all ears.
Thanks so much
Hey there. I'm sorry you've been struggling so much with this. My ex took Saw Palmetto for early MPB (he was like 23 when it first started and wanted to try and stop the loss)...and it made him get mild acne on his forehead and shoulders that resolved when he stopped taking it. The only thing I can think of is that SP stops Testosterone from being converted into DHT, so maybe the pills made his T levels increase which therefore caused more acne. If you're deficient in Zinc, it can raise T levels so be careful. I've never tried Clearogen but I really like products by The Ordinary for calming inflammation and acne.
http://supernaturalacnetreatment.com/saw-palmetto-excellent-acne-plant/
