Skin Problemas

My skin is pretty bad. It wasn't always like this. In high school, I had a good complexion. No the surface of my skin is blighted with acne scars and red marks that won't go away even after the pimples have dried up. I've tried everything. Has anyone had this problem and found a good solution to it?

I know some people swear by pro-activ, but I don't know personally if it works or not. Have you changed diet recently, or noticed any other possible hormone changes that would account for skin issues? Do you have actual scarring, or just redness after the blemish is gone?

When you say 'you've tried everything' - what does that encompass?

but that's what I'm probably going to have to do. I've been using Pro-Activ and its cleared some of it up but the redness still remains. I have some scarring but its mostly redness that won't go away. In terms of what I've tried, I've tried lots of products in order to clear up my skin. I guess Pro-Activ has been the best but I'm still frustrated. I think my skin has gone crazy because I've been under a lot of stress the past year. That probably has something to do with it. It's a vicious cycle because I stress out even more about the acne.

but I think the best thing to do is go see a dermatologist - esp. to prevent any more scarring or redness. You might need antibiotics for a while; you could be in a cycle of bacterial infection/re-infection if you've been having trouble for a while. And you need something to not only clear up the acne, but prevent your skin from getting too dry, which can also lead to increased redness, etc.

If you haven't been to a doctor, go. You really have no idea what it going on; self-medicating is not the best thing to do for a prolonged problem if you do actually have the option to see a physician. I needed to see one when I was in jr. high, and really, it helped a lot. The over-the-counter stuff is not strong enough, and can alternately be too harsh.

I might as well do it now that I'm able to. I'm going to make an appointment tomorrow. Thanks for the advice!

and it left some scarring. I found some stuff called Copper Peptide Serum online. She applied it daily and the scars are barely visible now. Also, if you are a woman that bare minerals powder foundation is awesome.

You can have food intolerances. It took me a long time to figure out what I have a sensitivity to eggs and a few other things. Eggs, rye and a few other things make me break out.
Can you try an elimination diet? If you don't know what an elimination diet is, google it.

Maybe I just developed an intolerance?

Or it can start showing up in other ways, like headaches, stomach aches.
The other poster is right -- see a dermatologist and get the problem under control. You want to avoid scarring. But after the acne is cleared up, try working on your diet. You don't want to be on drugs of any kind longer than necessary. Antibiotics can hurt the good bacteria you have in your gut.

bad skin is not caused by "stress" in the sense many people use the word "stress," but if you have rosacea it is not necessarily helped by winter stressors like windburn, dry air, etc.

you may have to cut back on spicy food/alcohol but with proper treatment shouldn't have to abstain entirely

seriously see a derm, skin disease is not in your head

Nothing else will work.

for her acne. Worked wonders. And you can get it right here at this Web site without a prescription. I always keep some on hand because of tooth problems, which it clears up.

www.thatpetplace.com/pet/group/10991/product.web

the OP should see a real doctor and get an RX, he probably does have rosacea and the doctor can best confirm this, not some internet huckster who relies on you not knowing that the older antibiotics are actually cheaper if you get them in real life from walmart

i was on tetracycline for 2 years and there may be side effects, most commonly a rebound effect where the rosacea or acne actually becomes worse, this happened to me after a surprisingly short period of time but it does not have happen to everyone, still -- best to have a doctor monitoring your use of any antibiotic -- the drug itself is so cheap that you don't have to feel pressured to pinch pennies so much as with other chronic conditions

rosacea is a disease and if the poster has health insurance, the dermatologist's office can send in for reimbursement from the insurer, if the poster doesn't have insurance, some derms are really good at letting you know price and scheduling pretty fast appointments, this ain't a rare disease that requires hand holding, the derm will see you and pretty much know what's going on and what to tell you

users of tetracycline and its relative doxycycline need to wear protection from sunscreen and there are some other rules the OP will want to discuss with a doctor too, such as what to do if you have nausea and whether or not you are OK to drink milk while using the drug

i was not allowed to drink milk whilst on tetracycline and only advised to take doxycycline with milk/dairy if i wasn't able to tolerate it without

don't get me wrong, tetracycline is a safe drug used properly and an old drug, but there is enough "technical information" that comes with using it that a first time user needs to talk to the doctor and/or pharmacist in person, not some invisible guy on the internet

i have bought drugs that worked perfectly well on the internet before BUT in this case we're talking an inexpensive drug PLUS the poster does need to get a diagnosis from a dermatologist, we are not clear on whether this is classic acne or rosacea but to me it's suggestive that it's rosacea and it's good to just get more information about it from a medical person since the redness is often something that has to be managed for many years or a lifetime, might as well get some medical help and reassurance at the outset

feck, this is so long and rambling, i hope it doesn't sound scary -- tetracycline has proved very helpful for many people with this condition, definitely you and i agree on the main thing, which is that it is well worth trying

....I still get zits. Better than wrinkles and/or crow's feet, I guess. Glass 1/2 FULL! ;)

if you have rosacea (and still having zits at 37 is suggestive, but you don't say if you have redness) but having "zits" at 37 is not related to whether or not you will have wrinkles/crow's feet at 47

you can have dry skin and oily skin at the same time, the zits (assuming they are just oily skin/air pollution type clogs) are caused by over-production of oil/hormones (one of the reasons birth control works to control that type of "zit") but dry skin is related to the inability to your skin to retain enough water

:shrug:

pro-activ is not a medical grade antibiotic which i strongly suspect will be part of the OP's treatment plan after consulting a derm

Untreated, Rosacea can lead to serious problems with scarring, occular problems, etc.

I started getting BIG acne sores a few years ago, I was so fucking mad, it was like my last chance to try to look young & cute but sometimes my sores were so bad I didn't even want to leave the house. So I went to a dermatologist and got prescribed Accutane for 3 or 4 months.. during which I had to go in every month for a pregnancy test.. to which I had to be driven by my baby-craving mother-in-law since I can't drive. But at the end of treatment the doctor stopped my prescription too soon and a few months later my sores were back so I said FUCK riding with that lady to a pregnancy test every month, I figured out how to order Accutane from England (the name of the drug is Isotretinoin) and I put my fucking SELF on it for 5 or 6 months (like my idiot doctor should have) and now, like 4 fucking years later my skin is clear.
I've been so mad about this, feeling helpless, needing her to take me to the doctor, who didn't even help me, just wasted a lot of time and money x(

But anyway ProActive makes a difference too, if you use it every day. I'm gonna keep using it since acne really can't be cured 100% I don't think.

I should add that Isotretinoin could make you KILL YOURSELF and have babies with webbed feet or something. Honestly I never had so much as a mood swing the whole time I took it, which was almost a year thanks to my FAILURE of a doctor. I was about to kill myself if those sores didn't stop, that's all x(