To encourage dd15 to go on the pill for her acne?

[Gretol]

dd15 has pretty bad acne and has tried antibiotics for years which haven't helped much. Older dd took roaccutane a couple of years ago which worked brilliantly BUT after a year the spots started to come back, so she went on the pill (yasmin). Her skin is now absolutely perfect.

dd15 doesn't want to take roaccutane as its such a hard drug on the system and although older dd didn't have too many side effects, because it didn't work long term she doesnt think its worth it. She is also very nervous about taking the pill. But she is very, very low about her skin . She has a gp appointment in a couple of weeks to discuss options. AIBU to push her to try Yasmin? I think she's worried she will put on weight and also she's quite a young 15 (16 later this year) and I think the sexual connotations worry her a bit!

The pill is also hard on the system IMO.

It gave me spider nevi too so it can also have side effects on the skin.

I've been on Yasmin for PCOS and it helped a lot, I also went on the pill at 15 for it (undiagnosed at that time more about periods and skin) it didn't even come into decisions I made about sexual activity etc and your daughter needn't tell anyone if she's worried what peers will say. It's just medicine for her skin.

I used Dianette when I was younger and it worked brilliantly for me. No weight gain etc. I took it until my early 30s and my skin has been pretty good ever since! Definitely encourage her to explore the pill route.

Oh and I actually lost weight on Yasmin, but I think that's because I'm insulin resistant and being on Yasmin balanced my hormones out and made that less of an issue than it had been before.

I can't believe that the pill is harder than roaccutane. Someone once told me that isotretonoin is like chemo and I can see the comparison.

I took Dianette for 15 years with no effects afaik

Shmithecat yes it worked really well for me too, years and years ago now.

Surely if it worked for me AND dd1 then it will work for dd2?!

I used to be on dianette, for five or six years and loved it but they won't prescribe it anymore for more than a few months as a last resort because it was linked to deaths in France.

yes that's annoying it was such a good pill, no side effects whatsoever.

The temporary doc we mentioned it to a while ago said all pills were the same and had the same effect on the skin so hopefully we won't get him again

I went on the pill at 15 for my acne, but it didn't really make a lot difference. I had a later course of Roaccutane which did help a lot, but I was left with a lot of scarring and my acne returned.

It had a massive effect on my self esteem and confidence.

My acne didn't get properly under control until my 20s and carried on into my 30s. The thing that made the biggest difference was regular overnight facemasks of rosehip oil and sudocream. Wish I'd tried this as a teen as I might have less scarring now.

Hope your daughter finds a treatment that works for her. I really I feel for her.

Roaccutane is often given at far too high doses.

All COCP have similar efficacy for acne control, doesn't have to be Yasmin.

user1499173618

dd1s friend had roaccutane through a private derm and took much lower doses for a longer period of time, so very few side effects. Her acne came back just as bad as before, she's now on her third course

according to the nhs derm, the higher dose you can tolerate the better and more long term the effect - although I think you take a certain amount depending on your weight whether thats over 5 months or 12 months doesnt matter apparently

One of our DCs had low dose roaccutane from a private dermatologist for his terrible acne and it is completely cured. It took a few years.

Our dermatologist is absolutely fantastic and an advisor to major international health bodies - I realise not everyone gets that sort of treatment, unfortunately. The NHS is very bad at dermatology.

interesting user, did he suffer with side effects? dd has a friend who is doing similar and she was shocked at how red his face was at the weekend. She's also a very anxious person and I think she's really worried that accutane can effect your mental health.

YANBU. The sooner you can get her acne under control, then the better it will be in the long term in terms of scarring.

Also seconding Sudocrem. I didn't find it stopped spots appearing in the first place- but it's easily the best thing at drying them up and healing the skin once they're there.

sudocrem leaves that white cast doesn't it? How did you remove it in the am?

@lancaster

All COCP have similar efficacy for acne control, doesn't have to be Yasmin.

This isn't true mine was linked to high testosterone and androgen levels, as acne often is, some COCPs increase androgens and make things worse, things like Yasmin and Lucette contain drosperinone which works on the pituitary gland to reduce the production of excessive LH and estrogen. They are anti androgenic.

His skin was quite dry - his lips noticeably so - but the whole point of the “micro doses” was to reduce side effects and, tbh, he was fine. Very importantly, the dermatologist manually emptied all the cysts before starting the treatment. She believes that not doing this is a disaster and creates a lot of failed treatments.

Led face mask

If she doesn’t want medication would try this mask? I have one and it’s done wonders for my skin.

I had dianette too but it gave me migraines so they took it off me. I have pcos too.

My dd is 12 and had to go on Co-cyprindiol for her terrible skin and absolutely awful periods. She is like a different girl. She is so confident now and she hasn't gained any weight from being on it (since October). She thinks it is the best thing ever, it has made no difference to her mood (she is just as stroppy and teenagerish as before ). She used to say to me that she was the ugliest girl in school because her skin is so bad.

Her skin was so bad from the age of 10 that they were suggesting Roaccutane for her at this young age, saying she could take it at 12. She also took antibiotics and all the skin creams etc for a year before she started her periods. None of it made any difference at all.

I had terrible skin from age 15 and have practically been on the pill ever since (two breaks for DC and breastfeeding). I am now 46 and last year came off for 3 months to take medication which did not mix with the pill and my skin was terrible within a month! Also both times I was pregnant and breastfeeding it was awful.

I have read on many forums for roaccutane that people whose spots were really bad acne spots (mostly women), that it works for a short time but always comes back and most people end up taking the pill again to clear it.

I was put on Yasmin at her age and while it sorted my skin and my periods, the side effects were awful and I ended up coming off it after about nine months. I struggled with a permanent low mood. I was constantly on the verge of tears and cried over the littlest things. I decided I'd rather have painful periods once a month than feel like crying all the time.

She's right to be worried - the pill isn't a cure-all for skin/period problems and can have side effects.

Fluffycloudland77 she has a mask like that which doesn't seem to make any difference.

She uses Paulas Choice products, again no difference.

She has it all over her back, shoulders, chest and tops of arms

FASH84 yes it is the Anti Androgens you need if you have cystic acne, I tried many different pills, years ago before the GP gave me Dianette, each one made it worse. Dianette (now co-cyprindiol same pill, different brand), is the only one which made a difference.

can they still prescribe dianette or equivalent then?

I will defintiely push for that then although my doctors are absolutely awful at prescribing anything , can't wait to change gps but have to wait for this appointment first