To ask doc for the pill for my daughter's period pain and acne?

[HelpIcantfindaname]

DD12 has terrible acne, she's had various creams from the doctor but often wipes them straight off as they sting her skin. I'm thinking the pill may help.

In the last few months her period cramps have become much worse, so bad she has taken time off school. Would being on the pill help period pain?

WIBU to ask the doctor to put her on the pill for her acne & period pain? I have a phone appointment with the doctor on Tuesday.

I went on the pill at 15 due to my skin, I don’t know if it would help with period pain but she could double up and not have a withdrawal bleed every month so at least they would be less frequent?

I wouldn't just jump to the pill. There are a variety of medications she could try. You really need to speak to the GP about it. You could ask for a referral to a dermatologist for her. Don't ask for her to be put on the pill...listen to what the doctor or specialist recommends.

Dianette (combined pill) was game changer for me after no other pill worked and years of antibiotics.

As for skin lotions the only type that worked for me were antibiotic ones without any nasty stinging ingredients. Dalacin T topical lotion (clindamycin). Doesnt dry skin out or have any peroxide/acids in it. I still use it.

12 is quite young so might be worth exhausting other options first. But... I also had the worst periods as a teenager, cramps, vomiting, school absences etc. Was prescribed the pill at 15... changed everything for the better!!!

I'd certainly talk to the GP about those issues and see what they recommend - there may be other options as well.

I went on the pill at 14 as my period pains were so awful and I got sent home from school repeatedly for going deathly pale and faint from it.
Tried a few things first - other medications - but they didn't work.

Talk to the GP with an open mind.

My mum put me on the pill at 12. When I came off it at 30 I was shocked to find that they (or at least the type I had been on) are not supposed to be used for that long. I ended up with a benign liver tumour which is 100% related to having been on the pill for so long.

I don’t mean to scaremonger with that, but make sure your daughter is involved in the decision and remember to also review it with her when she is older.

How long since DD started her periods and are they regular? My reluctance with going on the pill so young is it could cover up something like PCOS.

I went on the pill at 12 or 13 for these exact reasons, helped my period pain enormously (although not as much as the implant did!) and cleared my skin up too. I had exhausted other options, GP was happy to prescribe after a very lengthy appointment with me and my mum present.

Obviously I’d say do plenty of research, discuss with GP, look at long term implications etc, but for me personally it worked wonderfully without issue.

Dd is 14 and went on the pill 2 months ago. She had really heavy painful periods, acne and the most horrendous mood swings. We had a telephone consultation with a doctor who told her to sleep more and it more vegetables.
I took her to see the nurse with me and her take on it was being 14 was difficult enough without all the health problems that come with puberty.
Her skins now clearer, she isn't leaking at school and at night, no longer in pain. She also said its like someone has lifted a heavy blanket off her.
Don't thing veg would have cut it.

@user143677433 what pill were you on?

Thank you for all of your replies. DD started her periods at 10 (very first day of year 6), she was 11 at the end of the October.
Her periods are pretty regular now.
I have looked at her diet, she is extremely fussy & doesn't like foods reccomended to help when I googled period pain. She had Ibuprofen but that didn't help. A hot bath & hot water bottle ease it, but she cant take those to school.
I will keep an open mind when I speak to the doctor.
Thank you.

I don't have any advice about the pill, but you can buy these stick on heat pads that are amazing and last for hours.
www.wilko.com/en-uk/wilko-direct-to-skin-feminine-heat-pads-2-pack/p/0462565

I was put on the pill whilst still at school for my terrible period pains and the amount of blood I was losing. I had to take a few days off school each month because it was so bad. I’d soak through the thickest sanitary towel in an hour.

Result? Blood clot in my brain stem at 22 that almost killed me.

So I would urge you not to do this.

I was going to suggest the stick on heat pads. The dr might want to try antibiotics for the acne first but see what they say

I wouldn't, no. I took the pill myself for 7 years (started at 21!). I wouldn't take the pill so lightheartedly, it messes up your hormones and at 12 it can conceal serious issues.

@TheTeenageYears

How long since DD started her periods and are they regular? My reluctance with going on the pill so young is it could cover up something like PCOS.

It did with me. I went on the pill for erratic periods because I was bleeding heavily for 21 days with a week off in between. My periods when I first started were spot on to the day each month. Only went on the pill for maybe 6 months but once I'd stopped taking it my period never returned for 3 years. Drs fobbed me off and told me it was totally normal after coming off the pill. Thankfully one Dr decided to run blood tests and that's when I was diagnosed with PCOS the pill for me was also the start of my depression

Probably ought to get an investigation if there's any particular underlying cause first.

I had very painful periods and acne. I went on the pill as a student and it suited me well. When I started TTC in my 30s it transpired I have PCOS. However, it seems to me that the pills I was on (estrogen type) may have been beneficial for that - I didn't gain a lot of weight or have insulin resistance type problems. The one time I tried a different 'combined type' pill it really didn't suit me. And Dianette made me depressed.
So.... it's not simple and we're all different.

The worry I would have with the pill is I believe that ones used to specifically treat acne are generally a bit stronger. I didn't think (until reading this) that they were prescribed at 12, I thought it was usually at least 13/14 before they would consider it.

For the period pain, I completely sympathise, mine started when I was 9 and were regular from the very first one, the Pain was awful especially being so young. There's no guarantee the pill will sort that, for some people they make periods lighter and less painful. However, for a lot of people (like myself) they made them last longer and were actually more painful. Mine used to be heavy but only last 3 days, after starting the pill at 15/16 they started lasting a week and were still just as heavy and really painful. When I came off the pill a few years ago to try for a baby they went back to being 3 days and not as bad so it was definitely the pill that did it for me

Went on dianette at 15 for same reasons. It gave me great skin. Also extreme ups and downs of moods, suicidal tenancies, such a change of personality in depressive terms that my mum wrote to the gp.
I stayed on it for 10 years. It ruined my relationships. They don't prescribe it for more than a year now.
If you go that route be careful op. Don't put the moods down to teenage hormones. And be prepared for her to not want to come off it because clear skin seems more important at that age than being happy.
Yes, I'm biased. No, I would never in a million years let my daughter go on the pill in her teens.

Incidentally, when I was reading the finer points of the Amber Heard and Johnny Depp case, her behaviour sounded a lot like mine back then. She was also on acne medication, among other prescription (and non) drugs.

Im so laid back now, that old me seems incomprehensible. My skin's not perfect though light therapy helps and keeping it moisturised to maintain the natural barrier.

www.restlessnetwork.com/the-pill-your-skin-and-hormonal-acne/