My face broke out too after going off birth control. I decided to go back on it just because its the only thing that has really worked for me in the past. I'm also using topicals. Its been 3 months and I'm still breaking out but not as bad, things are slowly improving.

But yeah, I chickened out and went back on birth control but this time around I plan to work closely with my naturopath and dermatologist when I'm ready to wean off of it again.

I feel ya though, I don't want to be on BC but my acne was getting worse and nothing was working. Wish I had better answers for you. Hopefully someone else knows a better way. I've also experimented with my diet going gluten and dairy free, I think it helped but I still had acne.

^ I'm afraid I'm going to have to go back to it as well. I hate this so much. I always wonder if I'd even have this type of acne if I hadn't gone on birth control in the first place. And then I wonder.. do we ever outgrow this hormonal acne? I think about some of my friends in their 20s too and some of them still have acne as well, I don't know if it's cystic but I have hope we can all grow out of this. I'm really going to be diligent about being healthy and taking lots of vitamins and supplements if I start again. Is there anyway to stay as healthy as possible while on the pill? I know it starves your body of nutrients and vitamins. Now I'm beyond paranoid about when I'm ready to have kids in a few years

Yeah I hear that. I really didn't want to go back birth control but my acne was getting out of control and I didn't want to experiment with other things that may or may not work. My naturopath and I decided it was best to retrace my steps and get my acne under control then try going off BC again and using hormone supplements. Thats not to say that you have to absolutely go back on BC its just what I decided to do to balance my hormones. I have also found that the love vitamin website has some good info about hormonal acne and how to get rid of it, http://thelovevitamin.com/6855/treat-female-hormonal-acne/

I plan to discuss this with my naturopath as this is the direction I want to head towards.

Anyway, I know exactly what you're going through, it can be so frustrating and stressful at times but there's a solution out there for us!

Just take it day by day, the future isn't here yet so theres no need to worry about it now. We will be experts on acne long before getting pregnant and we'll know exactly what our skin needs to stay healthy. Hope things get better for you soon

Uggghhh so sorry you have to go through this. BUT better now that you are not pregnant. That way you can use any topical you can. I was on Yasmin for about 7-8 years with a few months off in between. Every time I got off my skin began to go to hell. I never ever put 2 and 2 together. I got off Yasmin in 2007, the month was January. Pregnant by march and a battlefield all over my face by May until he was born. I couldn't use shit...that worked anyway. I did actually take erythromycin and used benzoyl peroxide ...garb. The unfortunate thing is that if you are prone to hormonal acne, you will almost always have an explosion after coming off the pill. I have never been back on the pill in 8 years. I never will. I had another baby a year ago and the pregnancy went awesome. My skin was beautiful. Try a more natural route. I actually used the regimen my last pregnancy. My OB approved... Currently I am using African black soap by Nubian heritage (I think that's the name) and benzoyl peroxide night and day. I moisturizer with rosehip seed (carrier oil) that has frankincense, geranium and sometimes carrot seed oil ( all essential oils good for acne, hormonal balance and scarring) during the day. At night I just moisturizer with rosehip seed oil. Do you have Instagram? There's a bunch of info out there. I am going through some slight skin changes due to weaning of breastfeeding. Trying to catch it all now. Anyways...best of luck to you. Don't let yourself get down. I know how you feel. I obsess over my skin and get super depressed. In reality, the rest of the world does not see what we see. Send me a message with ANY questions. Have a great day

Uggghhh so sorry you have to go through this. BUT better now that you are not pregnant. That way you can use any topical you can. I was on Yasmin for about 7-8 years with a few months off in between. Every time I got off my skin began to go to hell. I never ever put 2 and 2 together. I got off Yasmin in 2007, the month was January. Pregnant by march and a battlefield all over my face by May until he was born. I couldn't use shit...that worked anyway. I did actually take erythromycin and used benzoyl peroxide ...garb. The unfortunate thing is that if you are prone to hormonal acne, you will almost always have an explosion after coming off the pill. I have never been back on the pill in 8 years. I never will. I had another baby a year ago and the pregnancy went awesome. My skin was beautiful. Try a more natural route. I actually used the regimen my last pregnancy. My OB approved... Currently I am using African black soap by Nubian heritage (I think that's the name) and benzoyl peroxide night and day. I moisturizer with rosehip seed (carrier oil) that has frankincense, geranium and sometimes carrot seed oil ( all essential oils good for acne, hormonal balance and scarring) during the day. At night I just moisturizer with rosehip seed oil. Do you have Instagram? There's a bunch of info out there. I am going through some slight skin changes due to weaning of breastfeeding. Trying to catch it all now. Anyways...best of luck to you. Don't let yourself get down. I know how you feel. I obsess over my skin and get super depressed. In reality, the rest of the world does not see what we see. Send me a message with ANY questions. Have a great day

Thank you so much Tban, I appreciate your reply and I will message you

I seriously am just so pissed I messed at all with my face this year. I never really had acne issues before this year. All I did was take Ortho Tri Cyclen and wash with Proactiv face wash and for years that worked. For me having 3 little pimples was a bad breakout and maybe I'd get a cystic pimple every 8 weeks or so before my period. It was good enough and most of the time I was clear and happy with my face. I just hate how I messed around with different retin a's and now coming off birth control. I wish I never messed with things. Can I ask you how long it took for your face to settle down after coming off the Yasmin?

Yeah I hear that. I really didn't want to go back birth control but my acne was getting out of control and I didn't want to experiment with other things that may or may not work. My naturopath and I decided it was best to retrace my steps and get my acne under control then try going off BC again and using hormone supplements. Thats not to say that you have to absolutely go back on BC its just what I decided to do to balance my hormones. I have also found that the love vitamin website has some good info about hormonal acne and how to get rid of it, http://thelovevitamin.com/6855/treat-female-hormonal-acne/

I plan to discuss this with my naturopath as this is the direction I want to head towards.

 

Anyway, I know exactly what you're going through, it can be so frustrating and stressful at times but there's a solution out there for us!

Just take it day by day, the future isn't here yet so theres no need to worry about it now. We will be experts on acne long before getting pregnant and we'll know exactly what our skin needs to stay healthy. Hope things get better for you soon

I really like that website, the love vitamin. I'm definitely going to wean off the birth control next time and take supplements like crazy. I'm just confused with all this androgen stuff and then excess estrogen like how do you know which supplements you need? It's nice that you have a naturopath, have they had success getting other girls off birth control without severe acne following? It's just so frustrating, I never ever remember my acne being this insane before birth control. I don't remember even getting pimples before my period. It's like my skin just got reliant on the birth control. If I could go back to my 20 year old self I'd never take it.

I really thought I was in the clear after a few months. My face was pretty flawless this last summer and I thought being on Dan's Regimen was keeping things at bay. But now that it's winter I can't use nearly as much BP as I could in the summer and yeah things have just exploded. I wonder why there is such a delay with these things. I mean 5 months later my face exploding? I've already started my birth control again, 3 pills in. Can I ask, did you see any improvement the first month or did things get worse again before being better? I hope there's not an initial breakout from starting birth control again, it's the same exact kind and only 5 months later so I hope my hormones remember and just start picking it back up. I hate how slow these things are.

And thank you so much for your encouragement too. We can help each other

I had go back on birth control too to get my acne under control about as year and a half ago, but since then I have stuck to my skincare regimen and use a topical called differin, so I'm hoping when I decide to come off BCP again that my routine and topical will keep things under control. Maybe try working a topical in to your routine once you are back on the pill so that you can continue it when you come off next time, but I hear ya, I'll probably only come off to have a baby and straight back on them again, I don't have any side effects so doesn't bother me too much, good luck xx

Yeah I wish I hadn't stopped using my topicals over the summer, I would probably have clear skin right now. But I'm taking it as a learning experience and using this opportunity to really address the root cause of my acne. Since I'm using topicals and birth control its hard to say if the BC caused an initial breakout. I've been breaking out for 3 months now on treatment, but I think the worst of it is finally over. I would give yourself a few months for the BC to start improving your acne. Although I should mention that I no longer get pimples along my jawline and chin and that happened within a month of using BC. Most of my acne is on my lower cheeks. So maybe since your breakouts are mostly on your chin you will see improvement much sooner since that is a classic sign of hormonal acne.

I had go back on birth control too to get my acne under control about as year and a half ago, but since then I have stuck to my skincare regimen and use a topical called differin, so I'm hoping when I decide to come off BCP again that my routine and topical will keep things under control. Maybe try working a topical in to your routine once you are back on the pill so that you can continue it when you come off next time, but I hear ya, I'll probably only come off to have a baby and straight back on them again, I don't have any side effects so doesn't bother me too much, good luck xx

Yeah I wish I hadn't stopped using my topicals over the summer, I would probably have clear skin right now. But I'm taking it as a learning experience and using this opportunity to really address the root cause of my acne. Since I'm using topicals and birth control its hard to say if the BC caused an initial breakout. I've been breaking out for 3 months now on treatment, but I think the worst of it is finally over. I would give yourself a few months for the BC to start improving your acne. Although I should mention that I no longer get pimples along my jawline and chin and that happened within a month of using BC. Most of my acne is on my lower cheeks. So maybe since your breakouts are mostly on your chin you will see improvement much sooner since that is a classic sign of hormonal acne.

Can I ask what pill you ladies are on? I've only ever been on Ortho Tri Cyclen and initially I never went on it for acne. I went on it for some severe cramps I was experiencing. Before birth control I had some mild acne, I actually miss my high school skin!!! I only remember about two times when I had breakouts that bothered me and that was during a trip in Italy when I was super sweaty the whole time and then again when I started college and I had no air conditioning in my dorm. Other than that my acne was not bothersome and I never had horrid cystic acne! I think OTC worked well the first year and kept me clear but then I noticed I started getting one big cystic pimple in the corner or my chin every month right before my period. For the longest time I kept putting it off thinking it was just because of my period but now I don't know if it's because OTC just wasn't helping the acne situation or possibly making it worse since it changes hormones throughout the month. There were periods where I was clear on this pill and then periods where I still had breakouts. It also made my periods longer. They're naturally around 4-5 days and on OTC they stretched to at least always a week, sometimes longer. I decided to go back on this pill because well it's all I've ever known and at least things weren't unbearable. Maybe if things don't improve in 6 months I'll try something else.

And actually I did start Dan's regimen before going off birth control! Maybe that's what has kept me clear up until this month. But it's winter now and I just can't use much BP gel at all. I tried retin a and that's actually what started all my skin troubles earlier this year. My skin is just sooo sensitive for most topicals.

So far I've take OTC 5 days now and the cysts have been kept at bay but dear god I hope and pray I don't get another huge cystic outbreak as my period nears. I have noticed OCT has been pushing out some clogged pores I've had on my chin for a few weeks now. I have some minor whiteheads which is rare for me so maybe this the initial breakout again just some whiteheads. As long as it's not cystic I'm ok with that!

Hey there...so once I got pregnant in 2007, by the 3rd month my skin went to hell. It didn't stop pretty much the whole pregnancy. It calmed down some but was still there for sure. I'd say in 2009, after cutting dairy out of my diet and getting regular facials, thats when the acne subsided tremendously. It wasn't a daily worry anymore. Then in 2012 I separated from my husband and went through soooo much stress. Acne started showing up again. Very annoying. Got pregnant in 2013 and was clear until now. I'm beginning to have like 5-6 pimples every other week or so. They get big and puffy, pop and for the most part are gone in like 2 to 3 days. But the fact that they're coming and I can feel them coming is making me depressed. Just hopin for the best though...keep us posted.

Hi there

I'm on Cilest in the UK, think it might be ortho tri cyclen or ortho cyclen in the US. I went on dianette about a year and a half ago to get my skin under control and switched the cilest about three months ago, with no issues so far. I do think that the pill messes with your hormone especially when you come off it. I have always had acne prone skin though but did notice that when I came off the pill my acne was more concentrated along my cheeks and jawline where as before it was mainly my forehead. They way I see it is that I need to be on it anyway, since my boyfriend and I use it as contraception so I have just accepted that it will probably always be part of my life until I hit the menopause lol or want to have kids. I think you need to make a decision to come off it entirely or stick with it as coming on and off it is probably the wost thing for your skin. If you get in to a good routine and find a topical that works then you might be able to work through the breakouts without having to go back on the pill. Some supplements can help, like evening primrose oil and flaxseed oil but it's different for each person depending on which hormone are out of balance. I did come off the pill about two years ago and for a whole year my skin was great but flared up all of a sudden after a year and that's how I ended up back on dianette last year. Skin is can have a mind of its own. I have found that getting in to a good routine and finding gentle products to use has made a big difference in my skin but who knows what would happen if I came off the pill xx

Thanks to both of you ladies for replying me, it honestly helps so much like you couldn't believe. Well I guess I spoke too soon :/ Over night my face has exploded again. It feels like old cysts that were dying have been brought to life again and are almost being pulled out. All the clogged pores on my chin are turning to white heads. I guess this is the initial purge after all. This whole week I've definitely gone back on my spironolactone stance. I've been reading up on it and it doesn't sound too scary, it's basically a water pill. I also am a little nervous about the headaches I get on birth control. Since I've started the pill again it feels like I'm medicated at times. Just kind of out of it and a bit dizzy like I'm in a trance. I guess it's the whole going back on it after 5 months, my body doesn't know what to do. If things don't improve in 2 months I might ask for Spiro. Then maybe in the next year or so I can go off the BCP and the Spiro will keep things under control since all it does is block androgens and doesn't alter hormones like BCP. It's rated higher than accutane on these boards so it might be perfect for me since my acne is ONLY ever on my chin and seems to be 100% hormonal. I'm still convinced stupid birth control is what gave me hormonal acne to begin with. I don't remember my acne ever flaring before my period or deep seated cysts like this. I feel like I probably would of grown out of acne (I was 20) if I had never gone on birth control and that makes me want to cry.

I may also try cutting out dairy too Tban. How long did it take to notice improvement with dairy? I still can't get over how clear my skin was for about 4 months after stopping birth control. I really thought I had outgrown it or something. I did nothing different in my diet either.

If you go off of the pill again, you have to wean off of it. Same thing happened to me when I quit bc, I went on spiro and it improved, now spiro stopped working and I'm searching for anything but the pill because I don't want to be chained to it forever.

^ Yeah :/ I'm not sure how to wean off Ortho Tri Cyclen though, the pills are already minuscule lol.

I'm so sorry Spiro stopped working do you think Androgens are no longer your problem? Perhaps it's just the fluctuations throughout your cycle that upset your skin? Are you trying natural things now? I really hope things improve as I get older, I read that androgens start to drop in your mid 20s and are less than half of that by the time you're 40. Fingers crossed that we get clear again, I know there is a cure out there for each of us.

Hey,

All birth control pills are small. You have to purchase a pill cutter at the pharmacy and just do your best. I agree, obviously androgens weren™t/aren™t my only issue anymore, otherwise spiro would still be working. Unfortunately, other hormonal imbalances cause acne too, and aren™t so easy to grow out of”I™m 31.

^ Yeah :/ I'm not sure how to wean off Ortho Tri Cyclen though, the pills are already minuscule lol.

I'm so sorry Spiro stopped working do you think Androgens are no longer your problem? Perhaps it's just the fluctuations throughout your cycle that upset your skin? Are you trying natural things now? I really hope things improve as I get older, I read that androgens start to drop in your mid 20s and are less than half of that by the time you're 40. Fingers crossed that we get clear again, I know there is a cure out there for each of us.

^ Thanks! The pill cutter seems like a great idea. Really thought 31 is still super young and plenty of women can still be acne prone at that age. You're putting good things into your body and things will improve. Do you think you maybe no longer need the Spiro? Have you tried getting your hormones checked? Maybe that could tell you what direction to go in. I got mine checked the other week at a health clinic I go to. It's all based on how much money you make so I think I only paid $20. I haven't gone over my results with my dr yet but I'm gonna make sure I get a copy of it.

So I think it took a total of 3 weeks to notice the drastic change in my skin after stopping dairy. I remember it like yesterday. I had met THE greatest esthetician on the planet and was supposed to get a facial from her. I hadn't had a break out in 21 days. I was getting daily breakouts of 2-3 papules that were red, swollen and itchy/sometimes painful. So after the 21 day mark I got one pimple and I ended up seeing the woman a few days earlier than we scheduled. I ended up getting frustrated with a period breakout the next month after, my new esthetician was on vacation for 2 months and I said eff this it's not the dairy. I ate pizza and immediately had 5 or 6 new pimples. I was soooo depressed. Long story short, it took 8 weeks for every mark and pimple to go away from the awful breakout. I had facials weekly to extract the acne and chemical peels on top of eachother to exfoliate for the acne marks and prevention of new acne. It was the worst time of my life besides the time when I was pregnant with a full face of awful, awful acne.

Now let me tell you this, and not scaring you. I just want to give a heads up. So I took spiro probably 5 weeks after my first pregnancy to eliminate breakouts. Now I took it for only 5 short days because it ended up giving me melasma. Dammit!!!! Lol, In my case I think it had to do with the hormones from pregnancy being triggered and causing this reaction. It's a darkening of the skin around your upper fucking lip, cheeks, forehead ...I only had a Charlie Chaplin stache. Now I get in around my under eyes and forehead and sometimes moustache. I didn't know if it was the spiro for sure. When my son was 9 months I started breaking out crazy again and went back on Yasmin, I had been on that for 8 years prior to my pregnancy. It also has spiro in it and guess what? My stache reappeared. Faaakkkkk.... I got off right away and I'll most likely never again be on BCP's. It's been 8 years since I was on them. It totally fucks you up. I wish doctors would give us this heads up. It's not just a small breakout we get after coming off the pill. It's like all the pimples we would have gotten times 10. It's awful. Both of my dermatologists told me it happens all the time. When I was 17 I was on ortho fri cyclen for a year. When I got off, about 5 months later my face was so broken out again AND my hair was shedding like mad. Years later is when I realized it was all from the pill. Cheers to being a woman! Sorry for rambling, I wanted to share my experience in detail. Melasma doesn't happen to everyone. I think it's just in my genes. We gain so much knowledge through the years by things like this. Just sharing...let me know if you have any other questions.

^ OH GOD. I'm so sorry about the bad experiences with Spiro and then Yasmin D: Being a woman does indeed suck. I swear, when I'm clear on BCP I'm NEVER GOING OFF THEM lol. Interesting about the dairy too.. I'm gonna see how I can start eliminating some things like that.

So I'm 11 pills in on Ortho Tri Cyclen and everthing looks twice as bad. This initial breakout absolutely sucks, it's like every clogged pore is getting super inflamed. My boyfriend said he doesn't care but he's probably secretly thinking "wtf she never had this when we met" like it's ridiculous looking how clear every bit of my face is except my chin. I've been taking advil to help keep some of the swelling down but I know I can't keep taking them every day this month. I just keep telling myself to get through the first pack. But now my period is coming in like 10 days too and who knows how that's gonna effect this initial purge too. I would still get breakouts the week before my period on Ortho, GOD I can't wait for this to be over. I've thought about also maybe trying out the regular Ortho Cyclen in a few months if I don't like my pre-period breakouts on here. I heard the level hormones on that one is usually better for women with hormonal acne as there aren't fluctuations throughout the month. Also you can skip the placebos sometimes so that you don't get a period. No periods = no acne for me at least. I may start a journal for all this stuff.

^ Thanks! The pill cutter seems like a great idea. Really thought 31 is still super young and plenty of women can still be acne prone at that age. You're putting good things into your body and things will improve. Do you think you maybe no longer need the Spiro? Have you tried getting your hormones checked? Maybe that could tell you what direction to go in. I got mine checked the other week at a health clinic I go to. It's all based on how much money you make so I think I only paid $20. I haven't gone over my results with my dr yet but I'm gonna make sure I get a copy of it.

Thats one thing I haven't done yet, is to actually get my hormones checked. I discussed it briefly with my naturopath and she said insurance doesnt usually cover it and costs around $150. But anyway I think its worth looking into if done right. Let me know how it goes

Getting my hormones checked is also not an option. I have been weaning off of spiro, but that hasn't resolved my acne. I'm on DIM, which isn't working that great. I just increased my metformin but since then, my nose seems more oily. I've been considering saw palmetto, but I'm wondering if it just does the same thing as spiro? Quote me, so I know to reply.

 

^ Thanks! The pill cutter seems like a great idea. Really thought 31 is still super young and plenty of women can still be acne prone at that age. You're putting good things into your body and things will improve. Do you think you maybe no longer need the Spiro? Have you tried getting your hormones checked? Maybe that could tell you what direction to go in. I got mine checked the other week at a health clinic I go to. It's all based on how much money you make so I think I only paid $20. I haven't gone over my results with my dr yet but I'm gonna make sure I get a copy of it.

Thats one thing I haven't done yet, is to actually get my hormones checked. I discussed it briefly with my naturopath and she said insurance doesnt usually cover it and costs around $150. But anyway I think its worth looking into if done right. Let me know how it goes

Oh yeah I think if I had gone to a regular clinic it was something outrageous like $800! I don't know your financial situation but I'm a student and go to a clinic now that is all based on what you earn. There may be a similar type of place in your area if you decide to look around.

Getting my hormones checked is also not an option. I have been weaning off of spiro, but that hasn't resolved my acne. I'm on DIM, which isn't working that great. I just increased my metformin but since then, my nose seems more oily. I've been considering saw palmetto, but I'm wondering if it just does the same thing as spiro? Quote me, so I know to reply.

I think saw palmetto does the same thing spiro does but is just less potent? I'm probably not the best person to ask though, I've only ever tried one natural supplement when I went off birth control (3 macca capsules) and it gave me the worst cysts of my life, I wanted to plummet the bottle into the deepest regions of hell.

Yeah, maca boosts testosterone. I had it in a smoothie once and broke out.

I'm not sure about SP either, but there are some very good reviews of it on this site.

 

 

 

^ Thanks! The pill cutter seems like a great idea. Really thought 31 is still super young and plenty of women can still be acne prone at that age. You're putting good things into your body and things will improve. Do you think you maybe no longer need the Spiro? Have you tried getting your hormones checked? Maybe that could tell you what direction to go in. I got mine checked the other week at a health clinic I go to. It's all based on how much money you make so I think I only paid $20. I haven't gone over my results with my dr yet but I'm gonna make sure I get a copy of it.

 

Thats one thing I haven't done yet, is to actually get my hormones checked. I discussed it briefly with my naturopath and she said insurance doesnt usually cover it and costs around $150. But anyway I think its worth looking into if done right. Let me know how it goes

Oh yeah I think if I had gone to a regular clinic it was something outrageous like $800! I don't know your financial situation but I'm a student and go to a clinic now that is all based on what you earn. There may be a similar type of place in your area if you decide to look around.

Getting my hormones checked is also not an option. I have been weaning off of spiro, but that hasn't resolved my acne. I'm on DIM, which isn't working that great. I just increased my metformin but since then, my nose seems more oily. I've been considering saw palmetto, but I'm wondering if it just does the same thing as spiro? Quote me, so I know to reply.

I think saw palmetto does the same thing spiro does but is just less potent? I'm probably not the best person to ask though, I've only ever tried one natural supplement when I went off birth control (3 macca capsules) and it gave me the worst cysts of my life, I wanted to plummet the bottle into the deepest regions of hell.

^ I hope you get it figured out, Bren. I wish Green Gables was still around, she was so knowledgable about all this stuff (sorry I didn't quote you this time, I was getting an error on the site :S )

So I THINK the initial break out from going back on it is slowly dying down. But I did just start the week before my period and typically this was the danger zone for me when I was on this pill before. I'd still break out before my period. Maybe things have changed and it won't be too bad. Fingers crossed.

Thanks. Good luck!

GOD the brain fog and fatigue I'm experiencing is BAD. I never had this feeling for the 4 years I was on OTC before. I had trouble even filling out a job application yesterday, it's almost a drunk or dumb feeling. I hate this so much. I guess it's just a shock to my hormonal system but I've had it like every day since I've started taking the pills again. I pray it wears off. I also wonder if my body just doesn't like Ortho anymore? It seems like I started getting headaches with this birth control last year around the time that I started getting more cystic breakouts before my period. Idk maybe a change up in pills is needed. I read about women having breakouts and headaches on OTC and then they switched to Yaz and everything was fine. I just don't know hormones are confusing.