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Spiro And Low Blood Pressure And Ib

MemberMember
1
(@softfocus)

Posted : 01/19/2014 5:57 pm

Hello,

I have been having the worst time on spironolactone. I am now entering my 5th month I think (I lost track,it's been at least 4 months) and still breaking out the same as before. Surely I should be past the IB phase by now, right? The only improvement I'm seeing is when I cut out gluten because I tested positive for gluten sensitivity and this helped a little bit with the acne.

I am still gaining weight, losing more hair... should I give up on spiro? I started on 25mg, bumped up to 50mg, then 75mg, but had to come back down to 50mg and then back to 25mg due to low blood pressure. My doctor won't put me on a higher dose than 25mg because my blood pressure has dropped too low. Is 25mg enough to see any improvement though, or am I taking spiro for nothing? I obviously don't want to risk fainting if my blood pressure drops any lower. What do you think I should do?

I don't want to go back on birth control, I would like to see if there are any other options at this point....most medications drop my blood pressure too low, especially anti-androgens. I'm looking into inositol and my doctor said it's better for my blood pressure to stick to something natural. I'm not sure if I should give up on spiro yet but my blood pressure is more important than acne

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MemberMember
3
(@jlcampi)

Posted : 01/20/2014 6:06 pm

Hello,

I have been having the worst time on spironolactone. I am now entering my 5th month I think (I lost track,it's been at least 4 months) and still breaking out the same as before. Surely I should be past the IB phase by now, right? The only improvement I'm seeing is when I cut out gluten because I tested positive for gluten sensitivity and this helped a little bit with the acne.

I am still gaining weight, losing more hair... should I give up on spiro? I started on 25mg, bumped up to 50mg, then 75mg, but had to come back down to 50mg and then back to 25mg due to low blood pressure. My doctor won't put me on a higher dose than 25mg because my blood pressure has dropped too low. Is 25mg enough to see any improvement though, or am I taking spiro for nothing? I obviously don't want to risk fainting if my blood pressure drops any lower. What do you think I should do?

I don't want to go back on birth control, I would like to see if there are any other options at this point....most medications drop my blood pressure too low, especially anti-androgens. I'm looking into inositol and my doctor said it's better for my blood pressure to stick to something natural. I'm not sure if I should give up on spiro yet but my blood pressure is more important than acne

If you have a gluten insensitivity, then check for cross gluten sensitivity (other foods that have a similar effect as gluten but could be unrelated). The lab will test and tell you what foods to avoid. Cyrex labs will do that for you. Your best bet is diet modification if you have the will power.

Spiro is not for acne, it's a blood pressure med that is used off label. So, lower blood pressure is not an unwanted side effect, it's the primary indication for the drug

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MemberMember
1
(@softfocus)

Posted : 01/20/2014 7:17 pm

Hello,

I have been having the worst time on spironolactone. I am now entering my 5th month I think (I lost track,it's been at least 4 months) and still breaking out the same as before. Surely I should be past the IB phase by now, right? The only improvement I'm seeing is when I cut out gluten because I tested positive for gluten sensitivity and this helped a little bit with the acne.

I am still gaining weight, losing more hair... should I give up on spiro? I started on 25mg, bumped up to 50mg, then 75mg, but had to come back down to 50mg and then back to 25mg due to low blood pressure. My doctor won't put me on a higher dose than 25mg because my blood pressure has dropped too low. Is 25mg enough to see any improvement though, or am I taking spiro for nothing? I obviously don't want to risk fainting if my blood pressure drops any lower. What do you think I should do?

I don't want to go back on birth control, I would like to see if there are any other options at this point....most medications drop my blood pressure too low, especially anti-androgens. I'm looking into inositol and my doctor said it's better for my blood pressure to stick to something natural. I'm not sure if I should give up on spiro yet but my blood pressure is more important than acne

If you have a gluten insensitivity, then check for cross gluten sensitivity (other foods that have a similar effect as gluten but could be unrelated). The lab will test and tell you what foods to avoid. Cyrex labs will do that for you. Your best bet is diet modification if you have the will power.

Spiro is not for acne, it's a blood pressure med that is used off label. So, lower blood pressure is not an unwanted side effect, it's the primary indication for the drug

Thank you for responding. You are right, blood pressure is what spiro is for, not acne. But what other options do I have? Birth control also lowers my blood pressure and blood sugar for some reason - I tried most pills supposedly good for acne. I also get very depressed on birth control.

My diet is completely gluten-free. My husband is a whole food chef and we were never that big on gluten anyway. I took the lab test and am already avoiding the foods I'm intolerant too. This has reduced some painful swelling on my face and stomach, but not much else. My doctor said I need a DHT blocker for the acne. I also have facial hair and thinning hair on my head. Typical androgen excess signs. Spiro was the only thing I hadn't tried. What should I do?

I'm not sure if there are any foods I should be eating more to raise my blood pressure...like more salt or something? Or should I stop spiro and try something else? The question is what.

I tried saw palmetto, cyproterone drugs (very bad for the liver), spearmint tea....and I get similar symptoms as with spiro in terms of bloating, muffin top and irritability. And on top of it, my acne was still there. Could it be that I have estrogen dominance and by blocking testosterone I'm just increasing estrogen even more?

Quote
MemberMember
3
(@jlcampi)

Posted : 01/21/2014 8:43 am

Hello,

I have been having the worst time on spironolactone. I am now entering my 5th month I think (I lost track,it's been at least 4 months) and still breaking out the same as before. Surely I should be past the IB phase by now, right? The only improvement I'm seeing is when I cut out gluten because I tested positive for gluten sensitivity and this helped a little bit with the acne.

I am still gaining weight, losing more hair... should I give up on spiro? I started on 25mg, bumped up to 50mg, then 75mg, but had to come back down to 50mg and then back to 25mg due to low blood pressure. My doctor won't put me on a higher dose than 25mg because my blood pressure has dropped too low. Is 25mg enough to see any improvement though, or am I taking spiro for nothing? I obviously don't want to risk fainting if my blood pressure drops any lower. What do you think I should do?

I don't want to go back on birth control, I would like to see if there are any other options at this point....most medications drop my blood pressure too low, especially anti-androgens. I'm looking into inositol and my doctor said it's better for my blood pressure to stick to something natural. I'm not sure if I should give up on spiro yet but my blood pressure is more important than acne

If you have a gluten insensitivity, then check for cross gluten sensitivity (other foods that have a similar effect as gluten but could be unrelated). The lab will test and tell you what foods to avoid. Cyrex labs will do that for you. Your best bet is diet modification if you have the will power.

Spiro is not for acne, it's a blood pressure med that is used off label. So, lower blood pressure is not an unwanted side effect, it's the primary indication for the drug

Thank you for responding. You are right, blood pressure is what spiro is for, not acne. But what other options do I have? Birth control also lowers my blood pressure and blood sugar for some reason - I tried most pills supposedly good for acne. I also get very depressed on birth control.

My diet is completely gluten-free. My husband is a whole food chef and we were never that big on gluten anyway. I took the lab test and am already avoiding the foods I'm intolerant too. This has reduced some painful swelling on my face and stomach, but not much else. My doctor said I need a DHT blocker for the acne. I also have facial hair and thinning hair on my head. Typical androgen excess signs. Spiro was the only thing I hadn't tried. What should I do?

I'm not sure if there are any foods I should be eating more to raise my blood pressure...like more salt or something? Or should I stop spiro and try something else? The question is what.

I tried saw palmetto, cyproterone drugs (very bad for the liver), spearmint tea....and I get similar symptoms as with spiro in terms of bloating, muffin top and irritability. And on top of it, my acne was still there. Could it be that I have estrogen dominance and by blocking testosterone I'm just increasing estrogen even more?

Hi Softfocus,

There are at least 3 things going on here.

1. DHT is causing body hair (including face) growth and loss of hair on your crown.

2. Aldosterone is the primary hormone (there are others plus other mechanisms) primarily responsible for maintaining blood pressure.

3. Acne is caused by elevated free testosterone (converted primarily from DHEA in women) and exaccerbated by elevated insulin.

When looking at a hormonal problem it't critical that endocrine system be examined. An appropriate metephor is the symphony. If one section is too loud, soft or out of key, it wont sound right. You may need to increase or decrease the level of several other sections for balance.

You need a comprehensive serum panel to determine what is too loud/soft or not playing at all. An outstanding doc uses this to confirm exam only, however finding that person is difficult.

Estradiol (estrogen) stimulates the sympathetic nervous system (increases energy). It also increases the number of aldosterone receptors. This is why elevated esgrogen causes bloating. It's opposed by progesterone. Increasing progesterone too much can make you feel tired, depressed and drop blood pressure.

Estradiol opposes testosterone and DHT.

If you get a comprehensive blood panel (day 21 of cycle), it will provide some additional information. Not enough data yet, however it sounds like you are very ssensitive to progesterone and not so sensitive to estrogen.

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MemberMember
1
(@softfocus)

Posted : 02/17/2014 10:59 pm

Spiro is not working out for me. What are any alternatives without side effects?

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