Long story short - I have had normal skin all my life. Even when I had terrible acne as a teen, I never had issues with my skin being too oily or dry. Suddenly, at age 23 I went through some weird hormonal change and developed super oily skin & hair along with cystic acne along my jawline. Went on the birth control pill (Ortho Tri-Cyclen) which completely cleared my acne in 3-4 months. However I was still struggling with this abnormal oiliness & it was being to take over my life. So, I added in Spiro to the mix. My hair would get so greasy that I could barely go 2 days without washing. My skin would get SO shiny that I looked like I was sweaty and gross all the time. I could never relax - I was always worried about blotting my skin & my makeup never looked normal. Because my skin was so oily I developed a red rash along my cheeks & a skin condition called Seborrheic Dermatitis. I also had a nose full of blackheads and little red bumps/clogged pores that would appear in my t-zone. As an adult working a professional job, it was seriously taking a toll on my confidence and my work. Trying to talk to clients with a face that makes me look like a 14 Year old going through puberty was almost impossible. Even though I had conquered the acne, I felt like I hadn't really made any progress because having such oily skin felt just horrible. Spironolactone has finally relieved me of this issue. I started on 100 mg, which actually ended up making my skin too dry (NO complaints there). So, I bumped it down to 50 mg and things have been great. I no longer have to worry about my skin constantly, I no longer even need blotting papers, and I feel normal again. It has been about 4 months, and for me it started working within the first month. I personally have not experienced any weird side effects. It made me have to pee more frequently when I first started, but once my body got used to it I didn't have an issue. I take it with food, because if I don't I sometimes wake up with a stomach ache (I take mine at night). Otherwise, everything has been good!

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

Spiro changed my life. It has changed my skin and confidence in ways I never thought possible. I can actually go somewhere without foundation now if I need to. I do still prefer wearing foundation when I can because of some scarring and uneven coloration, but knowing that I don't absolutely HAVE to is so liberating. I used to not even enter a grocery store without makeup on. A GROCERY STORE. That's how dibilitating it was. I would put makeup on immediately after a shower or right before bed so that my own boyfriend wouldn't see my skin. :/ My skin controlled my life, but now I am free. My skin is not perfect, but it is a million times better...and there are days when it looks downright amazing. I still have mild scarring, some redness (that I've always had), and blackheads, but it is overall so much CLEARER! I will occasionally get isolated pimples here and there, but NO MORE BREAKOUTS!!! And no more deep, painful, monstrous cysts!!! For a year and a half now I've had wonderfully low-maintance skin. One spiro a day and a good moisturizer (Clinique Redness Relief for me) after showering and I'm set. When I shower I use Cerave Foaming Facial Cleanser, but to be honest, I don't even wash my face aside from when I'm showering anymore. I can get away with falling asleep in my makeup and my skin is still clear!! I don't do this intentionally, and maybe if I didn't at all my blackheads would be even less noticeable (lol), but I'm just saying the fact that I CAN is incredible. My skin is clearer, my routine is little to no maintainance, and my confidence is through the roof. It's amazing going to sit down at a restaurant and not even think about my face. I am so happy and so fearful of the day I have to stop this medication. **note: Spiro DID make my skin absolutely god awful at first. I thought it was bad before, but after starting this drug it was horrendous. I read these reviews beforehand though so I knew that this was a possibility and I think being prepared helped me push through it. It took a good 3-4 months before I started to feel clear and confident. I know that sounds like an eternity to wait but believe me, the end product makes that crappy waiting period look like a microscopic smudge in the grand scheme of it all. You can do it!! It is so worth it!!!!

I had high free testosterone, which was the culprit in causing cystic acne. It is a miracle drug for women. I have been taking 100 mg daily for the past 3+ years and have seldom, if ever, had breakouts. It does cause dry skin and hair but that is to be expected as it cuts down oil production significantly. It has a long half-life which means it takes a few weeks to work but is worth it. BE SURE to quit taking it asap if you are planning a pregnancy as it causes feminization of the fetus. The drug gives me hives but that's an easy fix with antihistamines (half hour prior to taking Spironolactone). As another reviewer put it, I too dread the day when I have to quit taking it.

I knew I had a serious problem when I started staring at myself in the mirror trying not to cry. I hated what I saw, 27 year old with the face of a pubescent teenager. I never struggled with acne, so when the painfully large cysts started lining my jaw I was confused. These stay for months, always there, and then start migrating their way to my cheeks. I've had the occasional blemish on my forehead, nose, and chin.. but never my cheek; also those blemishes actually had an expiration date. Like I said before, I knew I had problem when my own reflection was painful to see. I'm not a vain person, but I didn't like who I was becoming, obsessive. Everything revolved around it; what I ate, where I went, who I let see me, and how many hour wasted searching for cures.. and how much money spent on them. Aright, so, on with my review.. I started with birth control, Zovia 1/35E. I lot of people haven't heard of it, but maybe they should. That time of the month- pshh.. it's a breeze now. No weight or mood changes. It helped with smaller blemishes, but not the results I was hoping for. Finally, I decided to seek out a professional. Not sure why I didn't run to find a dermatologist first.. maybe because I was ashamed of how much control it had on my self-confidence? I was prescribed Spironolactone 50mg to help with the cystic acne taking over the lower half of my face.. and also to help another problem caused by increased levels of androgens- dark thick hair on my chin that arrived with the acne, which I was too embarrassed to even bring up. My doctor brought up that subject. I was also prescribed a topical cream, Onexton. I was scared of the topical, after waking up after using it the first night, my cheeks were red and hurt like a they had been burned. I spread out my use of it and slowly made my way to being able to use it nightly (PEA size amout for the entire face!). Over three months have gone by and I'm amazed. No, my face is not 100% clear, but the months old cysts are finally disappearing, no new surprise cyst party lining up long my jaw and no more self loathing. I know I just shared a lengthy and unnecessary story, but it feels good being able to discuss it, and hopefully give hope to people suffering the emotional and physical pain accompanied with acne.

This drug is finally what worked for me! I have had acne since I was 10 and in the past 4 years I was getting big, painful cystic pimples around my mouth and jaw that would never seem to go away. They were always worse right before my period, therefore hormonal, and didn't react to any treatments. I had tried EVERYTHING, including BCP, and spiro was my last hope before taking accutane (which freaked me out due to side effects - also, I was skeptical about accutane working for hormonal acne). Anyways - the first 3 months I started taking 100mg a day of spiro and i became very dehydrated - my period started coming every two weeks. My skin did not seem better but I knew it would take time. I then reduced my dose to 75mg and made sure to drink A LOT of water (because it does make you dehydrated). My period still seemed to be coming more often than usual (once every 2/3 weeks) but my acne final started to be getting better. My pimples would disappear a lot faster and didn't seem as deep and painful. As annoying as it was to be getting my period so often, I felt it was worth it to (hopefully) get rid of my acne. Now, I continue to take 75mg/day and my period has regulated to once a month. My acne is 99% improved - I get 2 pimples before my period and am clear the rest of the month. My self confidence is so much better and my skin looks great! I would definitely recommend - but it does take a bit of time - around 4 months I started seeing results.

I started on Spiro at 50 mg a day 3 months ago. After 2 months we upped the dose to 100mg/day and added Yaz. After 6 years of relentless, scarring, hideous, cystic acne I have been totally cyst free for nearly 3 weeks. The increase in dose and addition of Yaz was the breakthrough I needed to finally cure my acne! I have had a total of 3 tiny pimples, gone in under 48 hours since upping the dose and I cannot be happier!

Background: I had struggled with mild acne throughout my teen years. However, when I turned 18, my acne became severely cystic. It was getting to the point where I was getting pitted scarring. I was also struggling immensely with my self-esteem. I was terrified of going outside, meeting people, working with others and so forth. I was depressed and had a negative outlook on my future. Anybody who believes your feelings are in vain have no idea what struggling with severe acne is like. Treatment: I, like many with acne, became consumed by looking for a cure (diets, ointments, peroxides etc.). Hoping to stumble upon something that would give me some glimmer of hope. I was too scared to take Accutane, but also fed up with having acne. After struggling for so long and silently, I decided enough was enough. I came across these great reviews and thought what the heck! Currently: I started on 50 mg of sprio and noticed improvement within a few weeks. After 6-months though, I can say my skin has healed so much. I could cry. I still do get SMALL red blemishes every now and then, but it's heaven compared to what I had before. I notice on 75 mg my skin gets clearer (but I've had some side effects on 75 mg like getting my period every 2 weeks, peeing like crazy which is why I stuck to 50 mg). I wasn't expecting perfection, just improvement and I'm much happier now.

Hi everyone, I never thought I'd be writing on one of these but I understand the emotional and physical anxiety that comes with hormonal acne. I am about to turn 20 but have been on Spiro since I was 17. I've never had cystic acne, but I've had relentless hormonal acne that has taken a tole on my confidence. I started on 50 mg (17 years old) and it took 6 months to be clear. Yes, you initially break out and I broke out around my first prom (lots and lots of years). But it is worth it - I had amazing skin all my senior year. Last December (19 years old) I was incredibly stressed out with a new college and all the stresses that come with that and started to have mini break outs on my chin. I upped my dosage to 100 mg which immediately cleared me up in a month. My skin had never been better. This June, my pharmacy changed manufacturers without telling me (Amneal to some generic drug) and I broke out once again around my chin. I was devastated. I didn't know why or how this had happened so I upped my dosage once again to 150 mg. I have been on this new dosage for about a month and a week ago, I switched pharmacies so I'm back on the old manufacturer (Amneal). I'm incredibly impatient and dramatic so I know my problem is no where near as severe as people with cystic acne. However, I have been completely clear and there is nothing quite like it. The only issues I've noticed from the increased dosage is dry skin. I take 50 mg in the morning and 100 mg at night so I'm not tired during the day. The dry skin is a bitch but I'm trying to figure out a moisturizing routine and I'm sure it will fade in a couple months. So far, I have discoloration and maybe 1 - 2 whiteheads. I will keep everyone updated. To those who are starting out or struggling: I love you all and know that you are not alone. Love yourself with or without the acne, and I know that is so easy to say - but nothing is worth getting depressed over. Sending my love and good vibes to you all!

I've had mild/severe acne ever since I hit puberty. I've tried EVERYTHING other than accutane and really didn't want to go down that road. The pill Brenda helped clear me somewhat but I had to stop taking it because it was aggravating my depression. As soon as I stopped taking it my depression went away and my acne came back in full force. I came across Spironolactone and really wanted to try it. Within a month of taking it my skin was already starting to clear. I've been taking it for over 4 months now and my skin has never looked so good. My skin is also visibly less oily. The best thing about this pill is that I haven't had ANY side effects... i'm taking 50mg. I do need to go to the toilet a little bit more than usual but for clear skin it's a small price to pay!