Losing Hope... Some...
 
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Losing Hope... Someone Please Answer Me

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(@ecrudance)

Posted : 11/11/2017 1:39 pm

I've been desperate to get help on this forum for the past two months and no one has answered me. I have moderate-severe acne that I believe is hormonal but I honestly have no idea what is going on with my skin or my body, I am losing faith in all of these methods and attempts to figure my skin out and it is worsening my depression. I can't leave the house without makeup and am severely self conscious.

My situation: I had been using tretinoin 0.025 and benzo-clin (some sort of benzoyl peroxide clindamycin gel compound) gel for most of my early 20s, and had perfectly clear skin. Now 25, I never thought acne would be an issue for me until the beginning of 2017 -- I had to switch gynocologists, and she put me on Lo Estrin 1/20 when I had been taking "Generess Fe" the past few years and it made my hormones wonky. I wasn't noticing much acne other than the occasional one on my chin near my period, but what really set my acne in motion was in June, I had to quit my topical meds cold turkey because I lost my job and could not afford the dermatologist copays and meds anymore. This has sent me down a pretty dark spiral -- in hindsight I've probably spent more money on products than if I would've been at the derm. I've tried black soap, witch hazel, numerous mario badescu and neutrogena products, cetaphyl (the worst!), etc. I was able to obtain 0.025 Tretinoin from a friend and have been on it for 8 weeks. Right now my skin is really red, mostly from PIH, and I have about 10 active pimples on my face. I use neogen green tea cleanser and thayers witch hazel morning and night, mario badescu spf 30 sunscreen in the morning and the AHA ceramide lotion at night, and the tretinoin at night.I have been on ortho tri-cyclen since June and to be honest I don't really think there has been much improvement.

Iam at a complete loss and have no idea what to do. I am hoping once I get back on my feet I can start going back to the derm -- but I dont want to have to keep doing this forever, paying all these copays and paying for all of these drugs. What should I do? I need tips, or just some consolation to be honest, because I am really down and depressed over this. I am not used to seeing my face this way and I have lost all hope.

Thanks.

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(@jabberwocky80)

Posted : 01/08/2018 3:05 am

I am sorry you are dealing with all this. I showed symptoms of PCOS and am on a 100 mg daily pill of spironolactone. I'm on Tri-Sprintec, which I've had no problems with, and I take a 500 mg pill of metformin when I eat really sugary foods or drink sugary drinks or a lot of alcohol. I have ADD and discovered higher doses of the meds caused me to break out. I stay away from ALL forms of dairy. Like you, I use Retin-A. Also like you, I've spent a lot of money on otc products.

Some simple at home steps that have helped me include slathering Greek yogurt on my face (I can't eat dairy but the yogurt worked for my skin...go figure!) and making a mixture of Epsom salt and filtered water and applying it to my face with cotton balls (slept with it on...super salty face lol). With the yogurt face mask you can mix in turmeric to act as an anti-inflammatory, but beware turmeric will stain clothing and towels and give your hands and face a yellowish tint. The Epsom salt thing works the best for me...it draws out the little plugged follicles before they turn into zits or cysts, dries out the nastiness out faster, and helps control oil.

When you are able you may want to think about going to an endocrinologist and explain your situation. When I finally had insurance again I broke down and went because I was tired of feeling like my body was against me. I had a complete blood panel done and discovered I was deficient in zinc and borderline low in magnesium. My hormones showed normal but that could be masked because of the spiro and birth control. If you are unable to go to a doc or specialist at this point in time I would also focus on your diet as I've mentioned dairy and sugar are breakout triggers for me.

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