hi there! Im new in the forum so please forgive me if this is not the right place to post this. I mainly made an account to meet people going through the same problem Im facing, and maybe finding a bit of hope for when the acne demon brings me down.
Im 27 yo andIve been struggling with cystic acne since I was 16.Back then my dermatologistprescribed me Accutane after every topical and antibiotic treatment failed, and I took it for 1 year. I was also indicated to take Diane for birth control, but since I was not sexually active and the bcp caused me a lot of awful side effects, I dropped it after a few months. My skin finally cleared up, leaving me awful boxcar scarsthat have haunted me ever since and never went away even after trying withcreams,peels and many intense pulsed light sessions.
However,3 years later the acne came back, and before it made a disaster like the first time, I immediately visited my dermatologist who once again prescribed me Accutane but this time in a lower dose, and along with it I started Yasmin and regular peelings for the damage. The problem was under control, with occasional pimples coming outbut nothing to worry about.
After I finished this second round of Accutane, I continued with Yasmin for another 7 years, until I made the big mistake of leaving them.
After4 months free of bcp, my acne came back with big painful cysts. The last 5 months that passed Ivevisited 3 different dermatologists and went through many different topical treatments and a round of tetraciclines with no success, if anything my acne got worst.I was determined not to take Accutane again, so I started reading a lot online and found out that my problem could be hormonal, so I visited another dermatologist with the purpose of asking for an hormonal blood test, which I made and the resultsconfirmed what I was suspecting: the damn hormones were the root cause of my big acne problem. So she prescribed me Spironolactone, starting with 25 mg, increased to 50 mg after one month and finally 100 mg which I started 3 weeks ago. Since I was not seeing any results with spiro alone, and since I am very impatient, I asked my gynecologist to prescribe me bcp again. So I started taking Yaz 3 weeks ago along with the spiro. I was told by many physicians that spiro was safe to take for young healthy women, so I only take the precaution of drinking plenty of water, reducing potassium intake, and will have my blood tested in a few months. So far the side effects of it are nearly to none, other than occasional tiredness.
I was vegetarian already, but I decided to quit dairy (almost completely), reduced significantly my sugar and carbohidrates intake, and started eating more atioxidant vegetables.
So far I have not seen any results. Nothing seemed to have helped.I have currently 5 cysts, 2 in my cheeks and 3 in my neck/jawline, and manyred pimples.
I read all about skin care routine, so I recently started cleansing my skin twice daily with jojoba oil, effaclar gel, a bha/aha toner, tea tree oil, non comedogenic moisturizer for my dry skin, and at night I alternate Salycilic acid 6% with Benzoyl Peroxide. This last one caused flaking and much dryness in my skin so I barely use it.
I confess that I am obsessed with my acne. I dont want to go through the nightmare I lived when I was a teenager again,I am 27 yo and never imagined I would have to go through this again. I am mostly worried about the scarring, because the first time I hadcystic acne it ruined my skin. I know I have to be patient, that spiro and Yaz take at least 3 months to show results, but I cant avoid to feel anxious and get mad everytime I see my face in the mirror.
So... has anyone gone through something similar? Do you have any advice?
My dermatologist recommended me 2 sessions of IPL for the red marks and then starting a treatment with glycolic acid + hydroquinone for the scars, does anyone know if it works? Thanks for reading xx
Well I'm on an antibiotic called trimethroprim like u I tried alot of things spriloactone - side effects we're not good for me.i use salosylic acid currently. Tryed benzyol peroxide, clindamycin, eththyromyin, Azealic acid, dianette. Why don't you try trimethroprim? Like me also very severe acne and scars underneath. Did you try changing your diet. Don't forget things like cleaning make up brushes and pillowcases. X
Hello. . .In my late 20s I had severe cystic acne and my endo put me on 200 mg of spiro right off the bat. Some doctors are more cautious about using the higher doses. You may want to find a doctor who will let you up your dose. At that age 100 would not have done a thing for me. I'm 62 now and on 100.
Of course you are obsessed with your acne -- it can be very socially alienating. You have enough to contend with without feeling bad about being worried about your acne. How you are feeling is normal. I wish you the best.
4 hours ago, ashley1364 said:hi sophie!! i am using yaz and spiro and i™ve been using yaz for a month and spiro for a week and no change so far if anything its only got worse
let me know how it™s gone for you i would love to connect!
You won't see changes for months. I am in month 3 of both spironolactone and beyaz birth control and ha e just recently started seeing some good changes. It's gone from 1 step forward to 2 steps back --to 2 steps forward and 2 step back. Small baby steps .