Getting clear skin!!

You do have plenty of time! I went to a derm for a long time (2 years?) before I moved and it was the best thing I ever did for myself. I went every 4 weeks and had a glycolic acid peel and I was on Aldactone (which is technically for PCOS, but they use it for acne... AND IT WORKS!) I was afraid of Accutane and I was prescribed Aldactone instead. Plus I had Differin lotion to apply at night. At first your skin will be dry and you will have to use a lot of moisturizer but it acclimates itself and you'll be fine after a few weeks. I have not been to the derm since October 2012 when I moved and my skin has held it's own since then. I used to get the large painful cystic acne and I don't anymore

Sarah- I have pcos as well! I was only put on the pill to help regulate things. I will def look into that! It's very frustrating to get that hormonal cystic acne that seems to stay for weeks!! My biggest insecurity is my skin and I know it's just one day but I would really like to be able to feel confident and not worry about having acne on my wedding day

My only regret is how long I waiting to go to the derm. I have some minor scarring now that I know could have been prevented had I gone sooner I guess there's always laser scar removal...

This is probably not what you want to hear but I'm going to tell you anyway because it may help...I'm 25 I've had really bad acne for as long as I can remember. I went on the pill when I was 14 not because I was sexually active but to help with my acne. I have tried everything from Proactive, Differin gel, all kinds of topical creams and treatments and last year I started going to the derm and they prescribed an oral antibiotic. It made me sick. I would go to work and vomit almost every other day because of it.

I wiped everything out. I am now on a very low hormonal IUD for birth control (Mirena). My morning routine is a tea tree cleanser, a matte botanical toner (from the Boots line at Target) and a morning refreshing cream. At night remove all of my makeup with a makeup remover, then I use the St Ive's apricot scrub and straight tea tree oil. My skin is the best it has ever been. I have not gotten a cystic pimple in probably 10 months and all the little bumps that I've always had are going away. My acne scarring is evening out and my skin tone is almost perfect.

It might not work for everyone but I think our bodies react more to all the chemicals and medications that we put in them.

I had a doctor that wanted to put me on a topical AND oral antibiotic for my acne back in the day... I found a new doctor.

As a teen with bad acne, what helped me was getting weekly facials that inclused extractions. It took over a year but my skin looked so much better. My mom was amazing and paid for it.

Later (still not with great skin but much better!) I started eating better and that also made a big difference. Very small amounts of alcohol, especially. Now my skin won't win any awards, but I'm not embarassed by it and a little makeup on my wedding day will be all it needs

I have been on Sprinolactone for over a year now. I started on a very small dosage with a topical cream (that i hated...dried me out) so i quit that and just did the oral medication. My skin has never felt better. I never had acne up till about 2 years ago and it was a shock to me! I use Cetaphil cleanser twice daily and Clinque moisturizer. Both are incredible. I have since been on a higher dosage and go every 3 months for check ups. Definitely make an appointment soon.

Spironalactone is the generic Aldactone

I'm going to the derm next week and am going to ask to be put on Spironolactone. My derm wanted to put me on it years ago and I was afraid to try it, but here three months out from my wedding I really want to give it a shot. I don't want to have tons of cystic acne on the big day. I hear it gives you a terrible breakout in the first month, but I'm *hoping* everything is clear for the big day. I've read really good reviews on acne.org about it, and a lot of people say it takes 2-3 months to really kick in. Nothing like waiting until last minute...

@Cristi - I don't feel like it took that long for me and I didn't have a bad initial breakout- maybe it's because I had Differin too? I'm sure 3 months is plenty of time to get it figured out

My skin used to be awful, until I started seeing my dermatologist on a regular basis. I did acne facials twice a month for 6 months which REALLY helped me get back on track. Keep your skin routine at home as simple as possible, I use cataphyll cleanser and moisturizer and I also have a topical gel which I only use as spot treatment these days (In the beginning, I had to use It literally everywhere). Also, routine is key and sticking with it for months, wash your face in the morning at night and make sure to use a gentle makeup remover wipe to get rid of all makeup. Missing just one time of washing your face could make you back track so you really have to stick with it. Don't get discouraged if it gets worse before it gets better because your skin needs time to adjust. Don't forget to drink LOTS of water and cut out dairy and greasy foods if you can. Hope this helps

Acne is so frustrating but starting now is perfect. Getting on meds is a good start sometimes you need some help getting over the hump. A topical prescription to think about is called aczone. Aczone works well as a preventative and can help reduce the amount of hormonal acne.

I work in medical aesthetics and with consistency my PCOS girls do so well. I also love to use a treatment called silk peel to help clear some congestion. During the treatment I do some extractions as well and having a good exfoliation is a great way to get you products to work better.

Good luck with everything and please let me know if you have any questions. I would love to help you in anyway that I can

@ Sarah, thank you! You've just made me feel so much better. I've been nervous about it.

I use Acanya and an oral antibiotic. It was the only thing that cleared up my skin. Wish I had gone sooner, because I have some small scars now. She told me they will eventually fade, but it will take a few years.

I went through a really bad cystic acne phase in college. While my acne cysts used to last for MONTHS this brought it to a head so I could extract the clog in days. It also reduced redness and pain. Now, not everyones skin is the same, and this stuff is expensive, but I will never go without some in my cabinet again. It is especially effective if you use it right when the cyst starts forming.

http://www.amazon.com/Enessa-Clove-Acne-Control-0-5/dp/B001J78QNG

you are supposed to apply it several times throughout the day, which is hard with makeup.

Thank you everyone for your advice. I really appreciate it

HI Kate! I just wanted to share a little bit of my story and hopefully it will help you! I never had any breakouts until I went on BC when I was 21. Ironically I was going to school for skin care at the time, lol. These breakouts became chronic acne, leaving terrible scarring and hyperpigmentation. I literally tried everything from drug store to professional skin care. I finally decided last winter, age 24, to try Retin-A. With my insurance it was only $7 which was amazing, and it's the only clinically proven product to produce collagen! It really worked wonders after about a week of consistently using every night! I had ZERO breakouts. But I've read a lot about long term effects and blah blah. I then decided to try a vegan diet for health reasons and I slowly stopped using Retin-A. My skin was completely clear for months being on a vegan whole foods diet, I couldn't believe it! I then went back to eating normal, (meat's, dairy) and breakouts started coming back. I learned that even though I do not have an allergy to dairy, if I over consume it will cause me to have terrible cystic acne. This was just my experience and I am not saying to go vegan, lol but maybe try monitoring dairy intake and see how it goes. Our skin is a reflection of how our bodies feel inside. I hope this helps!

P.S. Try using an enzyme exfoliate 2x a week, something natural with pumpkin or bromelain (enzyme in pineapple) don't use a scrub, and ALWAYS use a mask after you exfoliate

Do some research on an alkaline diet. ph balance in the skin and controlling that from the inside out with a less acidic diet can help. Probiotics can also help to regulate the gut and reduce bad bacteria and aid in digestion and clear up the skin. Cooling fruits such as canteloupe, watermelon etc have anti inflammatory properties and veggies such as green leafy veggies and asparagus are also alkaline. There's much more to the list but limiting foods high in acids i.e. white grains, dairy and too much animal proteins is a start to a better complexion and overall health. Here's a good link I found showing alkakine vs acidic foods:

http://www.rense.com/1.mpicons/acidalka.htm

I had posted my home remedy recipe for an anti-inflammatory cinnamon/honey exfoliating face mask the other day. This is great for reducing redness and inflammation and clearing up acne. Some of the girls were going to try it:

http://www.womensblogtalk.com/cinnamon-face-mask-recipe

That's a great point Rachel! Thank you! And I love your blog

Definitely see a dermatologist. There are plenty of other things you can try before taking those prescription oral medications. I've used Retin-A gel with good results. It can cause redness and flaking especially when you're just getting used to it, but you have plenty of time before your wedding. Also, when I feel an acne cyst coming on, I apply a cotton ball soaked in glycolic acid to it for about a minute. It has really helped keep cysts from totally swelling up and developing. I've been buying 20% glycolic acid solutions on ebay. It's so much cheaper than buying it from stores like Sephora or a dermatologist's office.