Cystic and Hormonal Acne: Putting Your Best Face Forward
Tonight I would like to discuss a very seriously annoying topic that has been affecting me for a little over five years. I'm about to get real, raw and personal so bear with me ;)
At the young, brisk age of 25 my body threw me a curve ball. I suddenly developed adult acne. YIKES!!! Like this wasn't embarrassing enough for those who had the pleasure of experiencing it as a teenager but as an adult to try and put your best face forward while adulating is sometimes too much! I never experienced acne as a teenager and actually had the smoothest, most even complexion with no blemishes prior to that dreadful day that I even got compared to a lamp shade once for it's smooth flawless surface but once it decided to rear its ugly head, there has been no going back. I have been one of those cases that Dermatologists either love or hate, depending on the perception because mine is "severe acne" and is not easily treated. I will spare you the pictures (until it finally clears then I'll be happy to do a blog about my before, during and after progress and share it with all of you, but for now I won't embarrass myself or scare you!). Instead, I would like to share what I have tried and the research I have conducted into keeping my struggle at bay.
A year or so after this all began, and after trying many different 'over the counter' acne treatment systems with no success, I ran to my family physician for help. I was so embarrassed and it was starting to affect my quality of life as a twenty-something year old single lady in the sense that I could not go a day without wearing full coverage foundation to cover the new blemishes and old scarring and was too embarrassed to participate in any water events that would risk washing off my makeup and exposing the 'ugliness' going on underneath. It took its toll on my self-esteem that's for sure and I am still struggling to this very day with it. My family physician prescribed me a topical antibiotic cream, an oral antibiotic and gave me a referral to a dermatologist. By the time I got in to the dermatologist that first time, I was SO excited to get some answers and left sadly disappointed as they spend less than ten minutes with me and said they could not do anything at the moment because I had no active lesions erupting that they could assess and instead was covered with ones that were in the healing fazes. So on I carried with trying the 'over the counter' remedies such as Proactive, which burned my face to the point I returned it and could not use it. Using a fresh, clean towel on my pillow each night to absorb any excess oil. Using a fresh face clothe or face cleansing tool each time I washed my face with a cleanser morning and night. Cutting out high allergenic foods from my diet such as dairy, gluten and soy. Using facial products that were PH correct and balanced to re-alkalanize my skin. You name it, I've tried it with little to no success.
I must take a minute to differentiate between hormonal and cystic acne. When I say I have a combination it's because I experience both symptoms. Hormonal acne presents itself with pimples during your menstrual cycle when your period is about to begin, most common in puberty and adolescents. Cystic acne are painful, infected pimples that typically erupt on a women's jawline but can be anywhere on the face, neck, back, or arms. These infected pimples, when touched, picked or squeezed can cause the infection to move deeper into the skin or spread, making it even more difficult to treat and this type of acne can last for years.
Fastforward a few years and I finally returned to a dermatologist, a new one for a second opinion and she recommended I try Accutane. Well, I know based on my research how harsh Accutane can be on your organs and I was petrified to resort to that. However, if it meant taking one or two pills a day for approximately five months to never have to deal with this acne problem again, I was in! To my surprise, upon doing a pregnancy test (because this medication is a teratogenic and causes severe birth defects they have you complete a pregnancy test prior to prescribing it) I found out we were expecting our sweet little Emma and could not go through with it. With this change in hormones brought a continued cycle of my acne flair-ups. Now, almost two years after having Emma I am still fighting with my acne and seriously contemplating trying the Accutane again. I have decided to try a few other things first before making the call to schedule an appointment with the dermatologist such as applying tea tree oil to my lesions morning and night to kill of the bacteria causing the infections and dry up the skin. I sneak this step into my skin care routine after I cleanse my face and before I moisturize allowing time for the tea tree oil to soak into my skin in between steps. This seems to have been clearing it up nicely so far so fingers crossed! Speaking of which, it is time for my nightly routine and to meditate myself into the zone for a great night's sleep!
Goodnight!
Amanda
xoxo
At the young, brisk age of 25 my body threw me a curve ball. I suddenly developed adult acne. YIKES!!! Like this wasn't embarrassing enough for those who had the pleasure of experiencing it as a teenager but as an adult to try and put your best face forward while adulating is sometimes too much! I never experienced acne as a teenager and actually had the smoothest, most even complexion with no blemishes prior to that dreadful day that I even got compared to a lamp shade once for it's smooth flawless surface but once it decided to rear its ugly head, there has been no going back. I have been one of those cases that Dermatologists either love or hate, depending on the perception because mine is "severe acne" and is not easily treated. I will spare you the pictures (until it finally clears then I'll be happy to do a blog about my before, during and after progress and share it with all of you, but for now I won't embarrass myself or scare you!). Instead, I would like to share what I have tried and the research I have conducted into keeping my struggle at bay.
A year or so after this all began, and after trying many different 'over the counter' acne treatment systems with no success, I ran to my family physician for help. I was so embarrassed and it was starting to affect my quality of life as a twenty-something year old single lady in the sense that I could not go a day without wearing full coverage foundation to cover the new blemishes and old scarring and was too embarrassed to participate in any water events that would risk washing off my makeup and exposing the 'ugliness' going on underneath. It took its toll on my self-esteem that's for sure and I am still struggling to this very day with it. My family physician prescribed me a topical antibiotic cream, an oral antibiotic and gave me a referral to a dermatologist. By the time I got in to the dermatologist that first time, I was SO excited to get some answers and left sadly disappointed as they spend less than ten minutes with me and said they could not do anything at the moment because I had no active lesions erupting that they could assess and instead was covered with ones that were in the healing fazes. So on I carried with trying the 'over the counter' remedies such as Proactive, which burned my face to the point I returned it and could not use it. Using a fresh, clean towel on my pillow each night to absorb any excess oil. Using a fresh face clothe or face cleansing tool each time I washed my face with a cleanser morning and night. Cutting out high allergenic foods from my diet such as dairy, gluten and soy. Using facial products that were PH correct and balanced to re-alkalanize my skin. You name it, I've tried it with little to no success.
I must take a minute to differentiate between hormonal and cystic acne. When I say I have a combination it's because I experience both symptoms. Hormonal acne presents itself with pimples during your menstrual cycle when your period is about to begin, most common in puberty and adolescents. Cystic acne are painful, infected pimples that typically erupt on a women's jawline but can be anywhere on the face, neck, back, or arms. These infected pimples, when touched, picked or squeezed can cause the infection to move deeper into the skin or spread, making it even more difficult to treat and this type of acne can last for years.
Fastforward a few years and I finally returned to a dermatologist, a new one for a second opinion and she recommended I try Accutane. Well, I know based on my research how harsh Accutane can be on your organs and I was petrified to resort to that. However, if it meant taking one or two pills a day for approximately five months to never have to deal with this acne problem again, I was in! To my surprise, upon doing a pregnancy test (because this medication is a teratogenic and causes severe birth defects they have you complete a pregnancy test prior to prescribing it) I found out we were expecting our sweet little Emma and could not go through with it. With this change in hormones brought a continued cycle of my acne flair-ups. Now, almost two years after having Emma I am still fighting with my acne and seriously contemplating trying the Accutane again. I have decided to try a few other things first before making the call to schedule an appointment with the dermatologist such as applying tea tree oil to my lesions morning and night to kill of the bacteria causing the infections and dry up the skin. I sneak this step into my skin care routine after I cleanse my face and before I moisturize allowing time for the tea tree oil to soak into my skin in between steps. This seems to have been clearing it up nicely so far so fingers crossed! Speaking of which, it is time for my nightly routine and to meditate myself into the zone for a great night's sleep!
Goodnight!
Amanda
xoxo
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