Adult acne? Whats worked for you?

[holyfishnets]

Just wondering if we could share acne treatments? What worked for you?

I visited a nutritionist who recommend I have various hormone balancing things - Eskimo Skin care (fish oils with vit E) and a general woman's multi vitamin. He also recommended I stay away from yeast, citrus and sugar.

On top of this I've also tried to eat more almonds, avercardos, water and have very little coffee or alcohol. I've swapped goats products with cows products also. Also take evening primrose oil, B vitamins and vitamin C.

Yes I still get the odd rare spot but I am so amazed that after years of adult acne, I have quite clear skin now. U'm not sure exactly which of the above helped with the acne so would be interested to know you thoughts.

In my case it was a combination of factors which caused adult acne, and which clear it up - if I start breaking out again, I go back to these things:

Using a light lamp - I have an older version of this

Clearing the gut - for me, that means cutting out sugar, alcohol and wheat and taking a probiotic. It may be something different for different people, but I realised this after reading an article in the Sunday Times magazine many years. It said said sorting out gut health was the key to solving adult acne.

Trying to minimise stress: Stress makes my hormones start misbehaving and that in turn aggravates the acne. So, regular yoga is important for me.

And Guniot hydradermie facials: uk.guinot.com/ were very helpful when my acne was particularly bad in my 20s - a course of these before my wedding completely cleared my skin (that was before I started the other treatments/solutions I've mentioned).

Hope that helps - it seems that there's no single solution for everyone, you need to find your own through trial and error.

Roaccutaine for me too.

It was grim. But it totally worked. I now have lovely skin with no scarring.

However, five years later and spots are coming back :( not as bad as before, thankfully.

Roaccutane.

The only thing that worked. But sadly not forever. When I came off it my spots returned after about a year, but it did kind of 're-set' them so they took another couple of years to get as bad as they were again.

Sometimes eating copious amounts of pate can make you fat clear-skinned for a special occassion too.

Roaccutane partially worked for me, it cleared my skin from the forehead down but stopped halfway down my cheeks! I very rarely get spots in that area and when I do, they're the type that non-acne sufferers get from time to time. It never cleared my lower cheeks and jawline, unfortunately.

I wouldn't go near Roaccutane now for love nor money. I can't pinpoint the exact moment I started to get mental health problems and I have a family history of anxiety and depressive disorders, but I find it highly suspicious that it started for me during the three months of taking Roaccutane. I wouldn't go as far as to say it wrecked my life, but it certainly contributed to a very difficult late teens/early twenties. I'm on a maintanence dose of antidepressants, which I will be on for life.

Setting that aside, um, this is going to sound odd, but chemotherapy cleared my skin! I started to get acne again about a month after finishing treatment.

I'm now 2 peels in to a 6 week home course of salicylic acid peels. The difference it's made in 2 weeks is amazing. I still have a few spots but I haven't had any cystic ones around my jawline and my pores have shrunk and red marks from old spots have dramatically faded.

Dianette, retin-a cream and staying away from citrus. Drinking orange juice definitely brings me out in spots the next day.

Dianette worked for me but I had to stop taking it because of the risk of clots.

Orange juice also brings out spots in me.

I also find Sudocrem really works, I put some on every night on my chin, chest and back and I rarely get spots now.

No lanolin - and that also means clothes containing wool. Soap is the devil.

Getting pregnant, and Clinique 3 step (oily skin soap, toner 3, and DD gel). Everything else either hurt (it took me ages to work out that I have sensitive skin as well as acne), didn't work (most OTC stuff) or came with side effects (tinnitus probably linked to long term antibiotics).

I also tried acupunture, which worked until I stopped going. I'd do it again - it made my heavy periods lighter too. Despite me not believing in it!

Risotto - like NoGoodNsmes my friend was left with life long depression thanks to Roaccutane. She was a happy, normal girl with no history or family history of mental health issues and riaccutane changed all that. She had her first depressive episode while on treatment and will be on ADs for life. Google it (or just accutane as it is called in the US) and you will see this is a very common problem. Mental health is worth so much more than good skin.

Thanks so much everyone for your contributions. I had no idea about milk and orange juice. It would be incredibly hard to change my diet but definitely something I will consider.

I had heard about Roaccutane but it is so tempting however there are so many suggestions here to try that I won't be trying it anytime soon.

I wouldn't recommend roaccutaine unless you really can't cope with your acne and have tried everything else. It does work, but it really impacts on your life whilst you're on it. And as others have said, there is a proven link between it and depression. When I was on it, I was told by doctor to tell my boss and flatmate to watch out for any changes in my behaviour. But I don't regret taking it, as I was getting very depressed because of my acne, and the side effects were short lived for me.

I hope you find something that works.

My (Parisian) dermatologist is loves treating acne and is very active in France lobbying to change the regulations about the prescription and use of Roaccutane. She believes (based on lots of hospital experience and research) that micro-doses of Roaccutane are just as good at getting rid of acne as the traditional larger doses, without the side effects. She makes patients undergo a treatment with antibiotics (tetracylin) for three months and then she removes all the cysts from the patient in her surgery before beginning the treatment with Roaccutane. She is well-known in France for her skills in treating acne this way. If you can find a dermatologist that uses Roaccutane this way, maybe you could have a go?

Hi all, really useful thread I'm def cutting out citrus. I used to drink juice all the time but now only occasional smoothies but still have a few blocked pores and rare spot.

Dead sea mud mask soap made a huge difference a well as cutting down on products all together. Moisturiser only every few days and a skin oil now and then - otherwise letting skin breathe seems to work. I'm totally sold on using germolene for break outs as I read it here seems to work for me.

I'm struggling with body acne though still. I had a big break out across shoulders earlier in my pregnancy that seemed to resist everything! Found it do stressful as swim with dd every week. I think there is fusidin around though so def trying that
I have the odd sunbed to help with skin and try to be kind to my skin but god it's hard work

Roaccutane made me the opposite of depressed. I became happy and confident when my spots left and had more time as I didn't any longer have the consuming morning routine of 7 layers of foundation application that had to be done on my neck, chest and back if summer.

Diannette, abs, various other things did work, but each for only a few weeks and then my body adjusted and compensated.

I have struggled with acne since the age of 12 - so over 30 years.

currently in between visits with the dermatologist at the hospital (NHS). dianette worked brilliantly for me for years, howevercan't really take it anymore due to age, and a blood clotting disorder. (I have though bought it over the counter in Spain to keep a supply for when I can't bear the spots).

At the moment, it is n't too bad. I am not doing anything in particular, but have overhauled my diet.

I don't much like milk anyway, but have totally ruled out all cows milk products. Any yogurts have been soya. Avoided cheese - but I do love it, so have tried to limit it to just a little goats/sheeps cheese instead.

I have been doing a lot more exercise - and drinking gallons of water.

The last time I came off the dianette properly was about 5 years ago, and my skin was terrible. However at that time my eating was dreadful and I smoked , not a lot but smoked.

So I was wary of quitting it this time - but I am hoping that my skin has now settled down.

I have a few little pimples cropping up. I don't want any. I want non-oily skin too - that would be lovely.

My follow up appointment is tomorrow with the dermatologist. He prescribed Differin to try - which I did, but it just made my skin flake. I don't think it particularly helped the look or condition of the skin. In fact any spots I did get would turn into huge scabs as the skin surrounding it wsa so fragile.

I will post tomorrow after my appointment.

ACne is a true PITA. I do think that modern day living has a lot ot do with it. diet being a major part - but it is nigh on impossible to eat totally cleanly - unless youlive in a desert island. We all like a 'treat' of something sugary, or alcohol.

I have read up on Roaccutane - and can see it has its place. Nothing is without risk.

Bah. I had a really healthy diet, exercised, had some sun exposure and wasn't very stressed, and still i had acne.

I'm sure for some people changing their diet worked, and it is good anyway to have a healthy diet. But it is really upsetting to be told by ignorant folk that a little bit of chocolate is causing acne.

Some people just get it. Even the dermatologist couldn't pinpoint why, beyond genes and hormones. Yes, a good diet and skincare regime can help, but severe acne is not going to be miraculously cured by a change in diet.

sorry for rant, but I used to really struggle with this concept that it was my fault. Medicine has its place for things that can not be cured by lifestyle changes alone.

Sorry for rant! Ignorant folk being people who were nasty to me when I had acne, not you lovely mners!

Sugar definitely makes mine worse. Dianette helped but then I developed side effects and had to come off it. The regime recommended at acne.org helped too - I bought over the counter from local chemists rather than the website. But I still get a lot of acne tbh - it's v. annoying to be torn between the 'teenage skin' area of Boots AND the anti-aging area!

I have recently been to a dermatologist about the recurrence of my acne which I've had since I was 8 and am now 43. It does annoy me when people think that a better skin care regime would help, or eating more veg! As if, after 35 years of this I haven't tried absolutely everything including antibiotics, microdermabrasion, the pill and just about every other acne preparation out there.

I am just about to undergo a course of skin peels under the dermatologist. In preparation she prescribed me some tebiskin cleanser and some other gel moisturiser (sensicure) which are not irritating or clogging my skin as much as other preparations do so so far so good. I will report back on the peels. She was confident that the acne is to do with the skin barrier of sebum not working properly (plenty of it which is sort of good in that it means your skin is not too dry - but it's not allowing dead cells to slough off properly) rather than any excess of bacteria or rather than treating it by drying the skin. We'll see.

sorry, I meant to say she was confident in my case this is what was happening. Not a general explanation for everyone.

I've had moderate acne most of my teenage and adult life (am now 34). I would get the type of deep seated painful cysts that would swell and cause scarring and a lot of pain. I remember once getting on near my mouth that made my lip swell up so much it looked as though I'd been punched. I couldn't stand the pain they would cause and would try to pop them, which caused some scarring and pigmentation.

Over the years I tried everything. Dianette didn't work, in fact most contraceptive pills seem to make it worse. I have PCOS, but don't have any of the other usual symptoms (not overweight, no excessive hair). Oral antibiotics just seemed to prolong the life of the cysts. Various topical creams etc stripped my skin and made it flaky AND spotty. Nice!
For the first time ever I have OK skin at the moment, no spots at all on my face right now. What has helped me has been the Dermologica Medibac range. I use the cleanser twice a day, their day and night creams, and the clay masque once a week. I also use PanOxyl benzl peroxide 5% cream. And as a moisturiser I use pure Aloe vera from a plant in my sitting room! this does work, it stops scarring and helps your skin to heal, and keeps it nice and soft. For the first time in my life, someone complemented me on my complexion the other day. I nearly fell off my chair.

I've stopped wearing foundation completely and only wear a tiny bit of tinted moisturizer or BB cream, no more slap and powder, just a bit of concealer if I do have a spot. That was hard at first, to go out with my spots on show, but as they got better (which they did) it got easier.
When I do get a spot now, even a potentially deep one, it goes away quite quickly, or comes to a head rather than swelling under the skin. I really do rate the Dermologica range, I know it is mega expensive but believe me, it has worked for my skin.

I completely agree with this post and all the others who recommend Dianette!! It is brilliant! I have two little children, Megan and David. After my second child 7 months ago I experienced horrendous facial acne, but I have been taking Dianette for half a year now and the benefits Iv seen have been wonderful. Recommend it to all...my face is almost totally smooth

I've been taking doxycycline, with mild improvement, but found also taking a herbal supplement from boots, HRI Clear Complexion tablets, has really helped. I thought it was the doxycycline that was helping, so didn't buy more of the herbal tablets, and it started gradually coming back.

I posted the other week about the Bravura London 15% Glycolic Acid Night cream- this is really helping with scarring and redness.

I have also found that when I follow a low carb/ low dairy diet, it improves a little too. Hopefully, combining all of these together means I can have decent skin maybe by the end of the year!

runtosea you sound very much like me. I have PCOS and have had acne since age 12. (Never had the deep cystic ones though luckily).

Dianette didn't work
Yasmin didn't work
Roaccutane worked a little but then stopped and I got dreadful cracked lips and nosebleeds
Zineryt didn't work
Laser didn't work

Never tried diet changes - my diet is healthy but I do eat a fair bit of dairy. I'm not willing to give up dairy I love it!

Duac (Benzoyl peroxide 5%) definitely helps. Properly cleaning my skin helps (but not overdrying it - no soap etc). Not touching my face and not bloody picking helps.

I am interested in your Medibac experience and especially your aloe vera use. I think that's a great idea and will steal it!

Please stop wasting money on a nutritionist.

If you want advice about diet, see a dietitian- properly qualified- anyone can call themselves a nutritionist and many have studied it for a very short amount of time. A dietitian has a degree and can /is allowed to work in Public health. Very different.

A dermo told my DD that diet has no effect on adult acne and that it is usually hormonal. It needs aggressive treatment like Roaccutane if anti biotics don't work.