I've always had a bit of a phobia about the idea of using birth control to help my acne. From what I have researched... It'sonly helpful forsome women andthe initial break out is usually worse than their previous acne with some people even claiming that it caused a lot of scarring. And then you're faced with the post pill acne which is reported by a lot of women to be, again, worsethan what it was before BC. And even when you go through this very stressful ordeal you'rehardly guaranteed to get any results whilst on the birth control.
Not only all this but the birth control for acne i.e. Yaz, Dian 35 and Yasmin are all the highest risk for serious, sometimes fatal, side effects... (oh the joys of having to take nasty prescription drugs for acne)
I am absolutely terrified of trying BC but I have already exhausted all of my other options. All topicals incl. antibiotics, retinoids, bp, salicylic acid... Oral Isotretinoine X2 rounds,Oral antibiotics, I also have an acne friendly diet which is low GI and dairy free and I also take acne fighting supplements inc vit, a, b's, d, e, zinc, omega 3 etc. Skincare routine incl wash face twice daily - la roche posey,spf, oil free bb cream.
So I am really running out of options. Dermatologist wants me to start contraceptive even though i was more keen to start spironolactone but she says she rarely describes it and only prescribes that to women that are at least in their 30's (I am 26).
Should I bite the bullet and just go on birth control? I have basically 0 quality of life with myacne so does that make it worth the risk? What have over peoples experiences been with using birth control and is there anyless scary, non drospirenone (the artificial hormone in most effectiveacne BC), birth control pills that have given people good long term success?
You should do medical tests if you have not had one.Maybe you could have pcos, maybe not. It is often underdiagnosed. It is hard to say... so get your hormonelevels checked. I have never been put on oral contraceptivebutI can understand your reluctance about it. What i can say is that i initially have slightly high testosterone levelwhich caused be to have very very very oily skin. And again, people often say that when it is hormonal then you HAVE to go through the pill... but i did not want to so i searched natural alternatives. I have been drinking spearmint tea every day for nearly a year now( now i take spearmint pills, more potent) and my oilyness has decreased from 70% if not more. I started to see results after only a week. Spearmint tea is a natural anti androgen and it has no side effects UNLESS youuse it in combination withsome other medications( the pill, med for hypo or hypertension...). Unlike other natural anti androgen plants, it is relatively safe but always check with a doctor.No placebo: same skincare, i blot my face or i don't/ my foundation at the end of the day is an objective indicator.
When you know your hormonal imbalance, everything from your diet can be taken into consideration and that can have a huge impact in the long run. Some food on the other hand have strong oesteogen like properties so they are worth to know.
Natural alternatives are sometimes not as potent as medication and theycertainly don't have the same immediate results but in my opinion medications shoud be taken at the very last resort.
Hope this can help you. I wish you good luck.