That's the craziest thing about acne. Just when you think you have it all figured out, you break out. Makes me crazy.
20170420_173846.jpg
That's the craziest thing about acne. Just when you think you have it all figured out, you break out. Makes me crazy.
20170420_173846.jpg
^^^ holy shit yes. this whole thread is me = charlie trying to figure out how its all connected.....
Do your future self a favor and work hard now.
I struggled with cystic acne. I was prescribed sulfur sulfacetamide (10%/5%), aczone, epiduo, and ziana. Needless to say this was expensive combo, $300 For 90 day supply. It worked flawlessly! To save $ I stopped taking it.
I am on a quest to heal it naturally and frugally. My skin is not perfect but I rarely get cysts just pimples now. I started taking evening primrose oil, biotin, and zinc to heal from within. I use asepxia sulfur wash which I found at Wal-Mart. I also love Aztec Indian healing clay with acv with the mother in it. I started supplements a week ago and notice a huge change. Now I'm just waiting for red marks to heal. At the end if the month if my skin isn't clear then I will go back to prescriptions.





So my cureology has been working well for me. I did not start the spiro yet as I read it messes with your period and wanted to get mine first but the topical is good mine is Azelaic acid 8%, Clindamycin 1% and Zinc Pyrithione 0.25. you just apply it at night. I t has cleared my face up. Also I been taking vitamin A caps 25,000 , zinc 50mg and borage oil 1300 mg. It has been 2 or 3 weeks now and the big red spots I used to get have stopped forming, I just have a few small under skin bumps and marks from old big spots. Before I had a few big red spots every week.
xoxo
After 10+ years of acne, I finally have clear skin. And clear, nice looking healthy skin. I'm sure it would be better with changes to my diet, but I just can't give up dairy.
What worked for me: 2.5% benzoyl peroxide and AHA. I get them both from acne.org because they are cheap and good products.
I cleared my skin by using the "method" they have on that website, but now that it's clear I just use AHA every day and the BP at the first twinge that I'm gettting a big cystic zit (like really pile it on there, multiple times)
BP can definitely dry your skin like a MF, and I react badly to all moisturizers, so I just learned when to back off.
I have better skin now than I ever have in my life, save a few wrinkles, and all I use are those two products.
I think everyone's skin is different and it takes some experimentation to find what works for you.
I hate it when I change ten different things in my skincare routine, my skin gets noticeably better, and then I don't know which of my new habits is actually making a difference. Oh well, probably healthiest to just keep all of the new habits around...
Zinc + skin. Research! Especially if you eat very little meat. ♡




I'm a vegetarian. For now my derm has prescribed a Zinc based product called Zineryt. I'm also taking a multivitamin with zinc but have to leave as 4 hr window around taking my antibiotic (doxycycline) as it interacts, which is only a minor annoyance.
We pretty much ran out of stuff to try. I take so many other meds that everything seems to interact and accutane is a huge no no cos of my mental health history.
I asked to get Zineryt as it always worked for me when I was younger albeit when my skin wasn't as bad. I think it was the first thing I tried when I was 15 (literally lived with acne for half of my life#pityparty)
It seems to be holding things back well. She said my skin is the clearest it has been in a long time. Still getting time-of-the-month breakouts though.
I wish they would take some magic blood test and say "aha! your X level is imbalanced, simply take these pills..."
^Yes!
I started supplementing with zinc this week, and it seems to be calming my skin. Morning lemon water has, too (whole lemon juiced into cup of warm water before breakfast).
I was getting minor acne on my chest and face despite having a phenomenal diet, exercise routine, skincare regimen, low stress, etc. I'd forgotten that low zinc can cause many problems over time, and that the body can't store it, and that it's especially important for skin health..

@ spoon bender (forgot to quote sorry) Perhaps taking sulphur internally will help. Take a look for a liquid mineral supplement with sulphur in it. I know you can also find sulphur as the form of tissue salts. I am going to order tissue salts for acne (combo d) soon. They are just minerals but a combination of them that help acne sufferers. Many people have never heard of them.

I cut out dairy, gluten, comfort carbs except white rice, excess sugars and bad oils. I have been eating the caveman diet in combination with foadmap diet. I still eat potatoes and white rice (I need the padding lol)
3 weeks later, I still get zits but way less. I have them along my jawbone (especially when ovulating) but they heal much more quickly and cannot form into big cysts. The diet I am eating is also great for inflammation and balancing hormones. Therefore, my hormonal and inflammation induced acne is getting much better.
My back was about 70% covered in shoulder area and I could count upwards of 10 cystic pimples as well as blackheads, white heads, etc . This along with my wonderful hyperpigmentation (excess inflammation). I found that the shoulder area is linked to excess androgens so my diet that balances hormones and reduces inflammation is helping. My back feels basically smooth, all cysts have healed. What is killing me is these daggum left over dark spots. The skin is so smooth but still looks awful. I am going to begin using potato to lighten the dark spots. Lemon is too powerful even diluted, it irritates any existing breakouts.
I have used the caveman diet for years but never fully cut out gluten and dairy. Now that I have I really do notice a difference! For me obviously my acne is related to hormones and inflammation, gut health. For some this is not the case. I am keeping track of this on a calendar and taking photos to see my progress. On the daily, it doesnt seem there is much of a difference...but if I keep this up a few months and take pics once in a while I will have a solid comparison. Being strict with diet, can be stressful but luckily I enjoy eating this way!

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