Spironolactone for acne and facial hair?

[tiredpoet]

In the last few weeks I have been breaking out worse than I have in years. All I can think is maybe it's adderall, since I've now been on it about six months and I think maybe it's making me sweat more, and thus more sweat and oil = more acne.

I have a brand new dermatologist appt on Thurs and I'm going to ask if I can get my hormones tested. My fear is that he will refer me instead to an endo or my primary. The last thing I need is to see more doctors. I have been shuffled around for almost two years for other things and finally dxd with fibromyalgia, which I'm not convinced I have.

Anyway, I find I lose a TON of hair in the shower every day, so much so that my tub is always clogged and I might as well buy stock in drano. But I have super thick hair, and it doesn't appear to be thinning or anything. It's almost like for as much that falls out just as much grows back or something.

The hair on my face is getting worse along with the acne. I looked in a magnfiying mirror the other day while tweezing my brows, and I noticed that the soft, blonde hair (of which there is a TON) along my jaw line and on my cheeks now has a lot of darker colored hair intermixed with it, although it's not "black" and it only looks darker in harsh light or in a magnifying mirror. But it's still there. I plucked at least 10 black, black, coarse hairs from my chin (and there were more but I need better tweezers, and anyway I wanted to leave them for the dermatologist to see) and one from just under my jawline that no lie was at least 3/4 of an inch long. I had three super coarse black hairs from my cheek right on my cheekbone as well.

I'm convinced there must be a hormonal factor, so I'm definitely going to discuss spiro with the derm. (I'm afraid he might say no because I'm also on adderall for severe fatigue from fibro, and the diuretic factor of both drugs might be a problem). But I am going to try spearmint tea also so I'll report back.

What is this I keep hearing about saw palmetto? what are its benefits for women for either acne or excess facial hair? I know my husband takes it for prostate health, but I have never heard of it being used for other purposes.

[tiggerbuddy]

Originally Posted by tiredpoet

I have a brand new dermatologist appt on Thurs and I'm going to ask if I can get my hormones tested. My fear is that he will refer me instead to an endo or my primary.

Not sure why you're against an endocrinologist referral....that sounds like exactly who you should be seeing. I was thrilled when I finally got an endo referral. My endo seemed to understand exactly what I was going through (despite my "normal" hormonal lab tests) and recommended spironolactone right away. 12 months later and i have absolutely no acne, and my hirsutism has minimized greatly. gl!

[pnut77]

Originally Posted by tiggerbuddy

Not sure why you're against an endocrinologist referral....that sounds like exactly who you should be seeing. I was thrilled when I finally got an endo referral. My endo seemed to understand exactly what I was going through (despite my "normal" hormonal lab tests) and recommended spironolactone right away. 12 months later and i have absolutely no acne, and my hirsutism has minimized greatly. gl!

Hi tigerbuddy. Are you 100% clear? And was it very gradual from when you started spiro to now being 12 months later? Thanks!

[tiggerbuddy]

Originally Posted by pnut77

Hi tigerbuddy. Are you 100% clear? And was it very gradual from when you started spiro to now being 12 months later? Thanks!

Hi Pnut It was a very gradual change. I should also mention that I'm taking a high dose- 200mg because that's what my endocrinologist says is usually needed to treat hirsutism. During the first month, I noticed a decrease in oil, but not in acne. I finally noticed my acne improving after 2-3 months, and it gradually got better and better from that point on. I was completely clear after about 6-8 months. I get a VERY occasional pimple, but they're always small and go away quickly. No more cysts!

I tried pretty much EVERYTHING except Accutane, and never was able to get longterm consistently good results like I am now. Spiro is my miracle drug, and I definitely recommend it!!

[dawn35]

Originally Posted by tiredpoet

In the last few weeks I have been breaking out worse than I have in years. All I can think is maybe it's adderall, since I've now been on it about six months and I think maybe it's making me sweat more, and thus more sweat and oil = more acne.

I have a brand new dermatologist appt on Thurs and I'm going to ask if I can get my hormones tested. My fear is that he will refer me instead to an endo or my primary. The last thing I need is to see more doctors. I have been shuffled around for almost two years for other things and finally dxd with fibromyalgia, which I'm not convinced I have.

Anyway, I find I lose a TON of hair in the shower every day, so much so that my tub is always clogged and I might as well buy stock in drano. But I have super thick hair, and it doesn't appear to be thinning or anything. It's almost like for as much that falls out just as much grows back or something.

The hair on my face is getting worse along with the acne. I looked in a magnfiying mirror the other day while tweezing my brows, and I noticed that the soft, blonde hair (of which there is a TON) along my jaw line and on my cheeks now has a lot of darker colored hair intermixed with it, although it's not "black" and it only looks darker in harsh light or in a magnifying mirror. But it's still there. I plucked at least 10 black, black, coarse hairs from my chin (and there were more but I need better tweezers, and anyway I wanted to leave them for the dermatologist to see) and one from just under my jawline that no lie was at least 3/4 of an inch long. I had three super coarse black hairs from my cheek right on my cheekbone as well.

I'm convinced there must be a hormonal factor, so I'm definitely going to discuss spiro with the derm. (I'm afraid he might say no because I'm also on adderall for severe fatigue from fibro, and the diuretic factor of both drugs might be a problem). But I am going to try spearmint tea also so I'll report back.

What is this I keep hearing about saw palmetto? what are its benefits for women for either acne or excess facial hair? I know my husband takes it for prostate health, but I have never heard of it being used for other purposes.

________________________________________ ___________________

I'm not quite sure how to answer you as I'm new here. I do have something to share with you about Adderall and what it did to me. First of all be very careful about magnifying, analyzing your skin and hair too much. I clearly believe that this medicine in fact caused me to pick at my skin ( using tweezers to pull out the blonde fuzz on my face) until I had scarred myself. I definately had paranoid and obsessive thoughts after being on the Adderall. Another thing was I developed cystic acne during this same time. I had the occasional blemish during puberty and one with menstruation,, but this was horrific to me and a year after stopping the Adderall it still persists. I know some things work for some and not others but if I could go back I would have never taken Adderall ( poison).