I've only been taking Spiro for 6 months now, but I am loving the results! I started with 50mg, then my doctor bumped me up to 100mg. The side effects were too much for me at 100mg, so I'm now back at 50mg. After about 5 months, I couldn't remember the last time I had a pimple. I love everything it's done for my hormonal acne, oily skin, and oily hair. Unfortunately, I really notice the side effects. Once I started taking it on a full stomach at lunch, most/all the issues went away. I am just now starting to worry about its effects with Alcohol. I decided to go down to 25mg and see if that would help while drinking, but after 4 days I've started to break out again, so back at 50mg!

I always had some acne around my period (sometimes cystic), but in January 2016 (at 25) my acne went crazy. I was breaking out in cycts every other day. Deep painful cysts that were leaving indented scars (which I knew were permanent). A dermatologist prescribed 50 mg of spiro, upped it to 100 a month later, and 3 months later my skin MAYBE looked worse, maybe was exactly the same. Switched to a new dermatologist (if ur in NYC, her last name is mikhail) and she was an absolute angel. She suggested taking 50 in the am, 50 in the pm, exactly 12 hours apart. She told me to throw out the tazorac and start veltin gel (which is so much more gentle). Incredibly, thank you God, my skin cleared up a few weeks later. It was unbelievable. Truly. I haven't broken out at all. My skin has scars (& im considering my option$$$ in that regard) but NO acne, NO cysts and almost no white heads. She says spiro works best when you take 2 doses at the same time everyday. And tazorac was making me peel and burn for months so she did it was clear my skin just couldn't handle it. I'm so happy. It's the end of December, 5 months after starting spiro. The spotting has also gotten so much better. I cried all the time, skipped work/class/dates, bc I felt so awful. Acne shouldn't rule your life but it did rule mine and if anyone reading this is a woman with cystic again who suspects her skin is very sensitive to hormonal changes then please try spironolactone. Good luck

I was on spiro for about a year last year and then a few months again this year. The first time I took it I was soo happy and amazed. I cleared up all of my big pimples on my cheeks and forehead and the only side effect I noticed was that the first few weeks I felt kind of light headed but that went away. However, I also experienced some really bad dry mouth which started to really bug me (still not 100% sure it was from this but I think it was). My other problem was that it did not clear up the tiny forehead bumps I got all over my forehead. Those never went away with this medicine for me. So I stopped taking it due to the dry mouth and forehead bumps and wanting to be "all natural" and not take any medications. My face broke out some more so I took it again for a few months but then stopped taking it again for all the same original reasons. Moral of the story: It works great but if you dont want to have to take a pill forever or deal with any possible side effects then try something else! Also- like other reviewers, i also lost about 5 or so lbs while on it because it makes your body release all of its water so you lose water weight and look a lot less bloated which was a plus

This has been amazing to my skin!!! Hadn't been able to leave my house without makeup for years!! Now I can go to work with a bare face!! Love it! Completely recommend it. Have suffered with acne for over 10 years. It took lots of trial and errors to finally find something that worked. I have oily skin with very acne prone skin. Any little thing would break me out. Now I don't stress about it.

I am a 30 year old female who went on Mirena IUD in August 2015. Before this I would say my skin was normal, mostly blemish free. A few weeks after having Mirena inserted I noticed a change in my skin. It was horrible :( I would get pea sized cystic bumps on my hair line, neck, chin and cheek and they were very painful. I tried doxy, with no luck and also had peels etc... in an attempt to fix this. Like most others when the problem comes from the inside you can't fix it from the outside. After reading reviews I asked my doctor to prescribe me spiro. She was reluctant but I begged. I started the end of Jan on 50mg once daily. I took this at night. At first I did need to go to the bathroom a lot more. But with time my body has become use to this and is retaining more fluids. After two weeks I had a week of blemish free skin. This didn't last long though and came back with a vengeance. Every day I would have a new bump on my cheek or chin. After 4 weeks I upped my dose to 2X50mg a day. The next three weeks my skin was just as bad. I am now at 8 weeks and I haven't had a blemish in 7 days. Fingers and toes crossed the worst is over and my body has adjusted. My advice is to stick it out. Yes it will be hard and it will get worse but for a short term break out for clear skin it is amazing. I will update my review at the three month mark.

I have been on spironolactone for 2 months now. I'm 19. My face was completely clear until last summer. I started breaking out with cystic acne all over my chin, forehead, jawline, and cheeks. It was horrible and I tried everything natural and Otc to get rid of it. Nothing worked. I was so afraid to go to the dermatologist because everyone said it doesn't work. I finally decided I had to go because it was my last hope. I went in and my doctor said it was hormonal and new exactly what to put me on. He gave me spironolactone and started me off on two 25 mg pills a day. 50 mg total. Within 2 weeks I started seeing improvement. After about a month my face looked so much better. Everyone was commenting about how my face was clearing up. I went back and he now upped my dosage to 100 mg a day. Two 50 mg pills a day. My face looks 100% better! I felt bad about myself when my face broke out of no where with like 10 pimples on my chin. I now am lucky if I get 1. I even took before and after pic. Amazing what this did for me. I also have the most sensitive skin ever. My face is continuing to clear the more I'm on it. The only thing that bothers me is sometimes I get headaches and I get dizzy. It comes and goes. It also is making my time of the month fluctuate. Last month I had 2 in one month and now this month I havent had it yet. I'm going to ask him about that when I see him next week. That kind of concerns me. Even though I have side effects it's worth putting up with them to keep my face clear. I highly recommend this product to anyone! It's a miracle! My scars are fading every month.

When should I expect the initial breakout? (anyone not get this?) I'm on 100mg spiro and adapalene, day 7. My face already has greatly improved - I assume from the topical. Like 80% clearer on the jaw and cheeks. But I wait... and dread... this initial breakout everyone talks about. Is it too bad to leave the house? I'd love to hear from some 'survivors'! thanks for sharing everyone.

The biggest cause for Spironolactone not working is a bad diet. You simply cannot go onto this medication without understanding it's used for high blood pressure first and foremost. Unless your doctor also gives you a referral to a dietitian to work on a low potatssium, low sodium diet, you will find that mood swings, bloating and feeling fatigued are because your potassium levels are out of wack. Spironolactone works as an anti-androgen but for those of you who are under the age of 30, I would suggest going with a mono-phasic birth control pill for several months and changing your diet to omit anything dairy related. It is a well known, documented fact, that -all- cow milk, organic or GMO, has hormone inducing ingredients that can wreck havoc on your body. If you find that nothing works and your doctor gives you an RX for anti-androgens it means your diet is crap and you have to change it because as soon as you get off the drug, your hormones will go back to fluctuating and you'll break out again. As for me, I went on a no-dairy, low glycemic diet, cut out coffee, soda, etc. I also use the oil wash method along with honey masks at night instead of chemical cleansers. After six months I only had mild improvement and after only one month of Spironolactone, I had zero breakouts and my skin healed. After that first month I didn't go back onto it and because of my diet and exercise I'm 100% breakout free. Please do a lot of research before you jump into such a harsh drug.

I experienced my first breakout at age 11, saw a dermatologist at age 12, and was prescribed spironolactone at age 15. (This was among all kinds of other topicals, and within the past couple years--I'm 19 now--a couple antibiotic courses). My original dermatologist prescribed spironolactone mainly to combat my extremely oily skin, which no doubt is a major contributing factor to my acne. It is still not "normal" oil-wise, but does not get noticeably oily after cleansing/applying makeup for 3-4ish hours now as compared to 45 min-1 hour before (yeah awful I know...my skin hates me. The oiliness almost made me more self-conscious than my moderate/sometimes severe acne). However, my original dermatologist retired and I started seeing a new one, who told me the main reason spirono is usually prescribed is for hormonal acne. This was never a problem for me before, but since I was about 17 I began getting cysts on my chin around the time of ovulation as well as the start of my period--but the spirono takes them down in just about 2 days!!! When I have been taking spirono religiously (i.e. not missing a pill for a couple months) I might get 1-2 cysts a month if that--which I can deal with. However, if I forget to take it for 2-3 days, sure enough its a guarantee that I will get a cyst or two within the next few days. The only side effects I have ever experienced have been occasional dizziness or light headedness when I stand too quickly. Since I have been taking spirono for so long, I do not remember if there was an initial breakout or not. Because it is potassium sparing and has other potential side effects, you should get blood work done once a year if you are taking it long term. I have never had any problems, although my derm recommends that I avoid eating like multiple bananas in one day--too much potassium on this drug is no good. If you are experiencing more than mild and occasional side effects/are afraid to start spirono due to potential side effects, just make sure you are on the proper dosage for your weight, as it is important to find the balance between effectiveness and how much of the drug your body can tolerate. I am 5'6'' and 120 lbs and take 50mg a day. Bottom line--if you have hormonal acne or very oily skin--try spironolactone!!!!! When used correctly, it is super effective and should have very little side effects.

I'm a 21 year old female with hormonal acne. I began taking Spiro in 100 mg doses daily in July 2013, and was upped to 200 mg daily doses in November 2013. It's definitely a medicine that requires patience and will only show results long-term, but I can say that my acne is much less severe. The acne I do get is much smaller and easier to get rid of, and the rare cystic pimple (once every 3 months approx.) goes away much faster. This medicine IS very dehydrating so it would be best to keep a water bottle available at all times. It can also make mornings a bit more difficult since you NEED to hydrate when you wake up, after sleeping with 8 hours or so with no water. My period also is a little irregular right now, and I am menstruating twice a month. Spiro will mess with your period in some way, so consult your doctor about it first.