Acne.org Products
Antiandrogen
Acne.org’s Real World Take
“Spiro” has been shown to work in a real and noticeable way most of the time. However, messing with hormones is messing with hormones and it’s best to proceed with caution.
Antiandrogen
How to Get It
Have a dermatologist? Make an appointment to get this medication. Don't have a dermatologist? See The American Academy of Dermatology Physician Database to find one.
Used Spironolactone? Rate It:
Choose from 1 to 5 stars
July 6, 2018
Could anyone answer this? Will this help me?
I am a teen and I have had cystic breakouts on my forehead for about three years now, and just recently I experienced one cystic pimple every now and then on my cheeks. A couple years ago I was prescribed with tretinoin cream and that has helped with my marks and hyperpigmentation but not the actual cysts. I just went to my dermatologist today and she prescribed me with Spironolactone 50mg and I will soon check in with her in about 2 weeks so I can go up to 100mg. Before I start taking it, is there anything I should know about it? I am going into high school and play a lot of sports so I do not want to have to experience any joint or muscle pain. Can Spironolactone help with my cystic breakouts on the forehead?
May 17, 2018
Did Not Work
This product did not work for me, and I was on it for roughly 4+ months. I have moderate acne and oily skin.
elizabethsullivan
May 31, 2018
It's for serious, cystic, hormonal acne not moderate so maybe that's why? If you have moderate do you try benzoil p at all?
April 29, 2018
Better than OCP
I have been on 150mg Spironolactone for 6 months. I'm 27 and I have had mild-moderate acne on only my face for my entire adult life, it's very much hormonal and my face/hair has always been oily. Multiple doctors tried to sell me on accutane and I refused for years. I have tried everything you can think of, I'm currently on spironolactone, hormonal birth control pills, and use aczone. . . my skin looks the best it has in years. I also moved from Florida to the PNW and this helped my skin because I spend less time in the sun, sweaty and hot. I mostly am just tired of having elaborate facial routines and ruining my clothes/towels/sheets with acne products/bleaching. I have always drank lots of water, exercise every day, eat pretty good and wear sunscreen every day (I'm incredibly fair skinned). I honestly think this pretty good and I prefer Spironolactone every day to hormonal birth control for helping clear up my skin.
April 18, 2018
Great!
I have been off this site for awhile since my acne went away. However, I thought it was important to let others know my journey. I only had mild to moderate acne since a teenager up to my adult years. There's was constantly always at least one on my face. During the past few years, I was on yaz birth control and that pretty much helped kept everything under control. I decided to not be on it anymore and that's when my face exploded. I started to have tons of bumps everywhere 4 months after stopping bc. I was horrified. I thought it was just stress, but it was more than that. Everything started to creep up in March and by May I had cystic spot everyday. It was so bad that I kept my head down when talking to people. Then by the second month I decided to go back on bc. As bc took long to start kicking in, I went to a dermatologist and she prescribed me spiro two times a day for 100mg a day. It took at least 3 months to see results. Now it has been 7 months and have zero acne. I know how hard it is but please stick with it. Also, be cautious with your diet. I quit eating dairy and sugar all together. I believe this played a huge factor as well. Feel free to ask any questions!
April 9, 2018
week 4 still waiting...
I know that it might be too soon to review but I am so sad. I am 19 and I've always had what I thought was acne prone skin. Looking back my skin used to be perfect and I took it for granted. This all started in December when I decided to stop taking my birth control,about 2 months later all hell broke loose on my face. I went to see my dermatologist as soon as possible and she prescribed me spironolactone 50 mg twice a day.
I started taking Spironolactone almost 4 weeks ago and I have not noticed any changes in my skin. My dermatologist says it will take 8 weeks to start showing signs of improvement, but im feeling so discouraged. However, I know that if I stick with Spiro my skin will get better.
I have been taking progress pictures and noticed that around 2 weeks after starting Spiro my skin began to break out or "purge". Then around 3 weeks my skin started to clear. I thought I was seeing the light at the end of the tunnel and my skin was improving, I was SO happy(I was wrong). Within 2 days after the 3 week mark my skin broke out so bad. I am still in the middle of this breakout.
Wondering if the "purge" stage comes in waves? Has anyone else had this experience???
April 20, 2018
Hi Ava, I am writing this because I experienced exactly what you were experiencing, I was on birth control for 2 and a half years and my skin was beautiful but when i came off it i developed acne all over my chin, horrible big cystic acne it was horrendous so i went to the dermo and they prescribed me spiro 100mg a day with retin a cream to put on in the evening to help with marks on my face .. after the first 2 weeks i broke out so badly then it slowly started to get better, then bam after a month my spots kept at bay, then a few weeks later i was still having breakouts .. not as bad as before but lots of pimpled and then on and off for another month .. but i am offically at the 3 months mark and trust me when i say .. it will get better, my skin is now completely spot free apart from a little spot that came up due to the time of the month but thats it! my face is free of cystic acne, only thing i have left is tiny little lumps that arent dormant from my purging stage that i guess will go with time as they were so bad! so please stick with it because i read a million reviews obsessing over my face taking progress photos but its something you have to stick with and over a period of time itll get better, about a month ago i felt like i was at a standstill with my skin but a whole month later and its kickstarted again and really i can see such a dramatic change! dont be discouraged and stick with it!
April 21, 2018
thank you for responding Lucy, this was so helpful! I am wondering though, did your skin clear before 3 months or at 3 months exactly? I am now at 5 weeks and I feel as though my skin is starting to get worse again. Your message really gave me hope.
May 29, 2018
Hi Ava, at 3 months mark, at the 2 months mark i was still struggling with breakouts and feeling frustrated! but between 2 and a half months and 3 i just started to notice a difference! and i am at the 4 month mark and i have had no spots for exactly 1 month! so stick with it girl trust me it will be worth it! i was getting disheartened at your point, but everyones reviews kept me going and i am so glad i stuck with it!
March 22, 2018
PLS DON'T GIVE UP
I've had chronic cystic acne for the past 5 or 6 years. It started on my forehead, then traveled down to my chin/mouth area and then more recently reached it's very worst, covering my cheeks/sides of face/jaw line. I tried to treat it naturally with diet, etc (but was never perfect or very committed). I did one short course of accutane a year ago. It cleared me up but within 2 months of ending it, I broke out terribly and it's lasted for months. I have hypothyroidism and I know that must have started this spiral of hormone imbalances and subsequent bad skin. As a result, I also had high androgens and very low progesterone. I started taking Spironolactone a little over 3 months ago. It is only in the last 2 weeks that it has started working. So, when they say to wait 3 months... they mean it. I was SO discouraged the first 2 1/2 months. My skin was making NO progress. I felt it was getting worse. But I PROMISE it get's better. I had the SAME breakout for 3 months on my face. The blemishes would not budge. They were huge, red, swollen, and sore. And I kept getting more. In the past 2 weeks or so the breakout has cleared up and I have not gotten a single new blemish, despite being in my ovulatory phase which is always the phase I get a terrible break out in. Please keep at it and don't get discouraged! It takes time but it will work. I also advise you to go see an endocrinologist or other dr that specializes in hormones so you can get tested for imbalances or deficiencies.
March 8, 2018
Spironolactone is the BOMB
I've been struggling with inflammatory and cystic acne for well over 30 years and have tried every conceivable treatment, including all the topicals, retinoids, oral contraceptives and various antibiotics, and 4 (yes, FOUR) 20-week rounds of Accutane. I would regularly get kenalog shots for the really deep, painful ones. My acne was NO JOKE and was leaving deep scars. Nothing kept my skin consistently clear until spiro. I take 100mg/day now. If I do no topicals at all and just the spiro, I'll get a bunch of small (non-scarring) pimples, but nothing too crazy. But when I add the Acne.org topical regimen to the spiro, my skin stays 100% clear indefinitely. So this is the routine I've been doing for almost 2 years now and it's been life changing!
March 7, 2018
Spironolactone - Heart palpitations, panic attacks, chest pain, anxiety
I would give this product 0 stars if I could. I have never written a product review in my entire life. I'm a 22 year old, perfectly healthy female. I exercise regularly, I eat a well balanced diet and have suffered from moderate acne for the majority of my teens/early 20s. I am completely mentally stable, I don't do drugs, have great friends / job / self esteem etc. After coming off the pill and roaccutane my acne started to re appear and so my dermatologist reccommended spiro. It worked alright for the first 3 months until I started getting horrible horrible heart palpitations which lead to 10 panic attacks in 2 weeks. I HAVE NEVER HAD ANXIETY OR A PANIC ATTACK IN MY WHOLE LIFE. The worst was when 4 in a row in 2 hours and had to be taken to the emergency room. Everyday for those 2 weeks I was constantly experiencing chest pain and heart palpitations, constantly fighting off another panic attack with deep breathing etc. I had a million theories why it might be happening, but the doctors assured me it wouldn't have been aldactone! Only after my GP and I did some research (I'm a psych student studying psychiobiology), and I went off spiro, did I return completely back to normal. PLEASE NOTE: this drugs HAS NOT been TESTED systematically for ACNE. It is and OFF LABEL DRUG. Be careful what you take, it may not have the same effects, but be goddam careful.
May 20, 2018
Hi love, what dosage of spiro were you taking?
January 22, 2018
great with doxycycline but really awful side effects
I was originally prescribed 25mg once a day for a month, had a really bad IB a day before my period during that month but has since cleared up. I'm up to 50mg once a day now (second month in) and although i'd say 70% of my acne cleared up, the side effects SUCK. I've gotten my period 3 times already this past month month and a half (every 2 weeks), and the medicine tastes SOO BAD!! It leaves such a bad after taste in your mouth ugh... but it's so worth it. You also need to get bloodwork done every 2-3 months or so which kinda sucks. I'm also on 100mg of doxycycline once a day and that didn't clear up my acne alone but with spiro I feel like this combo truly is amazing for hormonal and cystic acne. Just be prepared to stock up on pads! I also started getting a weird feeling in my lower back down to my knee caps (sort of like a tingling feeling or the pain you get after working out without properly stretching?) and I was wondering if anyone else has similar pains?
January 20, 2018
life changing!!
Before I started taking this medication, I had severe cystic acne for 6 years. I would stay home from school because I felt ugly and I was in constant pain. 3 months after I started taking spironolactone, my entire life changed. My skin has been clear ever since. I've been taking this medicine for 2 years now, and it's helped me tremendously. If you want to take it, get ready to drink lots of water!