Spironolactone and Acne - HELP!!!

Star_light · 05-17-2003, 05:43 AM

For the last couple of weeks, I've been on 100mg (taken in the morning) of Spironolactone. For just over a week now, I've developed terrible acne around my mouth and a few spots on my forehead!!
I was initially on 50mg of Aldactone for 8 weeks but since I had no problems on it, I asked for my dose to be upped. I was given Spironolactone 100mg!

My question is... is the sudden outbreak of acne got anything to do with the Spiro?? Is it meant to be a side effect?? The whole point of me taking these medications was to help control my skin troubles. Now I have more spots than I started out with. For the last year, my skin improved dramatically (I hardly ever got a spot)!!

I'm hoping someone can reply quickly, as I want to stop taking the Spiro if it is likely to be the cause! Pleeeaaasee help

Star_light
xxx

stephy · 05-18-2003, 02:49 PM

I'm not sure if this will help or not but I wanted to reply.
When I started on Mircette and Aldactone 3 months ago my
skin became much much worse!! I was taking 100mg of
Aldactone. At first I thought it was the Mircette so I went off of
that after 1 month and stuck on the Aldactone another month
of really horrible skin. I can't be sure of the cause because I
was on both but I went from getting 2 zits a day to 20 all on my
chin. Unfortunately I am still breaking out really bad.
I am now trying the Smoothbeam laser but so far I have not had much luck with that either and also Saw Palmetto.
I really feel that I've ruined my skin because it just hasn't slowed
down at all.
I don't know why some people do better than others on these
things.
Good Luck I hope it stops for you.
Stephy

pleasantlyblew · 05-18-2003, 03:30 PM

I found the opposite - my skin has been far better on Spiro but I only take 50mg. I used to take 100mg and it was really good on that too. I have been on Spiro for three years and reduced the dose about a year ago, as I was getting up too often in the night for the toilet (which turned out to be caused by IR and not Spiro, so I may go back up to 100mg again.)

I did notice though, that my skin was not so good on Saw Palmetto - it went really greasy. Could this be the cause? Everyone reacts differently to different treatments, so I suspect it will be a case of trial and error for you.

Hope you figure it out. Meanwhile, I find that pure essential tea tree oil applied directly onto spots with a cotton bud does wonders.

Nikki x

indiana_troll · 05-19-2003, 12:34 AM

I've been taking 100mg spiro since January. I take 50mg 2x a day. For the first month or so my acne got really bad. It seemed worse than what it was before the spiro. But now, my skin is really soft and smooth and I have no acne. Well, I get the occassional one every once in awhile, but nothing like I had when I first started spiro. It gets better. It's just your hormones starting to normalize again. Stick with it and you will start seeing the results soon.

Patty

Maureen77 · 05-19-2003, 01:17 AM

Dr. Redmond of www.hormonehelpny.com says that the brand name Aldactone is much better absorbed than the generic Spironolactone and only proscribes that.

stephy · 05-19-2003, 05:31 PM

Nikki,
Do you think the Saw Palmetto could be making things worse?
I have been trying SP for 4 months. The 1st 2 months it didn't
seem to help so then I switched brands but I also went on the
Aldactone and Mircette so it was hard to know what the SP
was doing. Then I went off it for awhile and I noticed my
hairloss and dandruff got worse so that was another reason
I went back on it. Then I tried a really high dose and that
didn't seem to work either and now I am back to the normal
dose. But I've never seen an improvement in my skin and
since my body is so out of wack from the meds I'm not really
sure what the problem is. I have been thinking of going back off
it to really see how my skin reacts but I am worried about my dandruff and hairloss. However right now my skin is definately the biggest problem I was just hoping to kill all birds with one stone hoping that the SP would help my skin! I'm so confused I don't know what to do! How long did you use SP before you noticed your skin getting worse?
Thanks!
Stephy

pleasantlyblew · 05-19-2003, 09:55 PM

Poor Stephy {{{hugs}}} I know exactly how you feel. It is awful when you don't know what is causing your problems. It's like trying to find a needle in a haystack, isn't it?

I really don't know if the SP caused my hairloss for sure. I suspected it did and I think it definitely seemed to make my skin more greasy but like you, it's hard to know for sure because it could have all been caused by a big hormone fluctuation from stopping the Spiro so suddenly after 3 years, or it could have been my body reacting to low-carbing until I got used to it.

All I know is that I never suffered hair loss while on Spiro or before I ever went on it. Since being back on it for a couple of months now, I noticed this last week that I have some new growth in the areas where it has gone very thin, so I am convinced that for me the Spiro increases scalp hair but not everyone has had the same experience as me.

It's hard to know what you should do really, as stopping and starting lots of different things at the same time may make things worse. I only took SP for about 6 weeks and at first I thought my skin might be clearing up but then it would erupt a few days later but after a few weeks, whilst I thought I had a few less spots, my skin was definitely greasier. My make up wouldn't sit right and my skin was coarser too. I wasn't imagining it, as my bf could see and feel the difference but who knows what really caused it? I guess I will never really know for sure but I thought I would share my experience with you in case it is the SP, as so many others report great results, which may mislead you if it turns out to be the SP!

If you want any other advice or info I will try to help as best I can

Take care,

Nikki x