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New Questions about Pregnancy ACNE that havent been asked

3K views 11 replies 10 participants last post by  etsdtm99 
#1 ·
So Ive read through a few very interesting and informative threads on this site about other moms dealing with their own battles with the Preggo Acne. So glad (not glad for our faces!) to know Im not alone. But, after reading all of your posts I have a few more questions;

For those moms who are further along in the journeys, or even finished, how long did your preggo Acne last? Am I to fear that this will continue for the entire 9 months? Leaving my poor once pretty skin riddled with battle wounds? What was your experience?

What about those of you who tried the Raw Honey method? How did that work for you? What was your acne level before pregnancy? Mild? Severe? How long did it take for it to show a difference in your skin? If you used the Raw Honey method, had you tried anything ELSE before this trick, or was this the first option for you?

How many of you moms have tried ProActive? Did this work or not?

What about those of you who had changed their diets? What did you change and how did that help you?
 
#3 ·
I spent the first 6 months of this pregnancy holed up in my house because of the acne! I have always had mild to moderate acne that I had pretty well under control but this pregnancy changed everything! Finally at 8 months my skin has returned to about what it was pre pregnancy. I do have lots of discoloration, mostly red spots, which I'm hoping will fade over the next year. I'm very fortunate that this is the first time I've dealt with acne this bad since it runs in my family and I'm so thankful not to have any scars that will last!

I use African Black soap (all natural and made in Ghana), tea tree oil and a good moisturizer. I've never tried the honey method, but I've heard great things about it! My advice with any natural acne cure is to view it just like a good diet: it may take a little while longer to see the results, but those results will be lasting and are better in the long run than some crash diet (or acne regimen like proactive)

Good luck and remember this too shall pass
smile.gif
 
#4 ·
my skin reacted really well to cutting out all products. no face wash, no moisturizer, just a gentle scrub in the shower once a day with a clean wet washcloth. I've still got some whiteheads, but they seem to be shrinking and drying up. using my regular routine (Cetaphil wash at night, ponds cold cream before bed, neutrogena daily defense spf 50 in the morning) was freaking my skin out. Acne, blotches, flakiness, all sorts of horrible stuff.
 
#5 ·
I am pregnant with #3 and suffer with HORRIBLE acne every time. Pre/post pregnancy my skin is flawless, but as soon as we conceive my skin acts like a teenager again. I have huge zits on my cheeks and usually a very oily 1st trimester.

*Nothing* has helped me except delivering my baby :)
 
#6 ·
I get these random large, painful pimples that take forever to form a popable head and take forever to go away. I carpet bomb them with spot treatement and then follow up with polysporine (well, generic anyway) to help them heal. I use neutrogena's fight and fade gel to help minimize discoloration and so far it seems to be working.

Like others I am finding that the less I put on the better it is. My normal nightly routine before was to cleanse with a baby wipe (cheaper than special face ones and gentler), toner, eye cream, anti acne lotion, then regular lotion. Now I usually just cleanse, spot treat, and use my eye cream. It seems to help even though I hate not moisturizing at night.
 
#7 ·
So far, I have stopped using Proactive. Im very angry at it. (horrrmonesss) I feel like I have tried it all.

My current method (trying the less is more thing too) (and by less I mean less chemicals and more naturals)

A gentle Cetaphil Antibacterial bar soap to remove makeup (ughhhhhh I hate makeup passionately!!!!!)

A raw honey soak

Brown Sugar scrub 2x a week (yum)

Witch Hazel/Apple Cider Vinegar toner (burns)

Tea Tree oil (burns, not sure if this is good for me)

and Im trying something new, something I havent seen anyone else mention;

Pau D'Arco tea. I wish I could explain its properties and benefits, but google will do you one better. My boss, a health nut guru and Health Food Store owner suggested I take the tea, soak it, and place it on said evil bumps for an hour a night. I suppose....why not eh?

I, once a vivascious, beautiful, flirtatious, fun loving, out going, adventurous, makeup rebel!, clean skin'd girl, now sit inside my home, locked away, with shades drawn. Begging to the sun gods nobody comes over. Dreading any trips into town, or heaven forbid, a store. I havent seen friends in months. I do NOT go to social get togethers. The only thing I am willing to do outside is hike, and bike, and kayak. These activities are loner activities (for me anyway) and my self esteem is shrinking by the minute. My ****ing face HURTS!

A sickening gut feeling (no not MS) is creeping up, pulling at my heart, saying "child, give up, its not going to get better".

HAS ANYONE, ANYONE!! HAD ANY LUCK??
 
#8 ·
I'm now 6 w pp (nursing) and still have acne. It got a lot better in the 3rd trimester, almost gone and I'm actually convinced that what I have now on my face is directly because of skin sensitivity to makeup, less than actual hormonal acne. Specifically, I had chest/back breakouts at the beginning of pregnancy too and now that skin is totally clear (cleared 3rd tri). I was clearing up on my face, and had been using only Jane Iredale pure pressed base when I needed makeup, but we had a maternity photo shoot and I wore liquid base (hd) and my skin went nuts after that. I found very little safe products for pregnancy and the natural remedies (acv, honey, clay) did nothing or made it worse. I just ended up trying to avoid makeup except when necessary, since that really is the worst and using the safe cleansers/meds that were least irritating/toxic: a small amount of clindamycin gel mixed with finacea and to wash Paula Begoun's Earth Sourced Perfectly Natural Cleansing Gel.

Best wishes with the pregnancy (and the acne battle).
 
#10 ·
Starting at 11 weeks on the dot with my 1st pregnancy, my skin freaked out and never got better...and, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but it didn't start clearing up until DS started nursing a little less (around 1.5 years postpartum). During pregnancy, I got deep, painful cystic acne on my chin, forehead and back (ugh!), and pretty much every single pore on my face was clogged in some way. BUT, I've always had acne-prone skin. Compared to the general acne-prone population, in reality it is pretty mild and mineral makeup has been a good friend of mine, but I can relate to your feelings of wanting to hide and it affecting your general lust for life nonetheless!

Now that I'm pregnant with #2, so far things are looking much better (knock on wood...I'm only 15 weeks) I've wondered about this because I fully expected another acne-filled pregnancy. What I've found that has worked for me thus far is 1) to really just accept that I will never have flawless, I-can-live-without-makeup skin all of the time. Easier said than done, but the more I've always messed with it, the worse it has gotten. 2) I wash with a hemp oil cleanser and moisturizer (the Wonder Seed brand), and occasionally I will use a sulfur mask (I think the brand is Dermify). All products are 100% natural if not organic. And that is IT. The less I use, the better things seem to be.

Also, so far this pregnancy, I haven't eaten nearly as much dairy as I did the first time around. To get enough protein, I was eating skyr yogurt every day, making whey protein shakes, etc. This time I'll have an occasional yogurt and am focusing more on quinoa, lentils, etc. and making hemp protein shakes...so I wonder if there's a connection there. I also wonder if my issues are related to my body's way of detoxing to have a healthy babe...and maybe I detoxed so much the 1st time around through pregnancy and nursing that there's less to rid this time around...just a little theory of mine.

HTH!
 
#11 ·
I have back-ne this pregnancy (ugh! like I haven't since I was a teenager!) and use glycolic acid, which helps significantly but not completely, and is pregnancy-friendly. That's most of what I'm doing, as salicylic acid and benzoyl peroxide are sketchier. I DO only VERY rarely use the tiniest bit of benzoyl peroxide directly on a really, really angry and painful zit if it's in a prominent place, but only for one or two days. I've probably done this twice in 20 weeks.

I would avoid using tea tree oil regularly, as it has been linked to some sex-specific issues in baby boys (I am not finding out the sex of the baby, so just covering my bases). Hormonal disruption or something... I'm sorry I don't have the links, but Google should be helpful.
 
#12 ·
with my first 3 pregnancies i had horrible pregnancy acne - the entire 9 months, the first 2 pregnancies it spread to my neck/back in the late 3rd trimester .. but it cleared up quickly after birth and i had clearer than normal skin while BFing full time..

however, with some serious diet changes, this pregnancy (#4) I have ZERO acne.. none. i'm 22 weeks and still nothing.. i've cut out caffeine completely (months before i got pg), all HFCS and refined sugar .. and most dairy and gluten.. i can't help but think one of those things caused my acne .. or something.. cause seriously, the difference is night and day. I also use less stuff on my face now than i did in previous pregnancies .. i use dr. bronners tea tree soap twice a day and a 'natural' witch hazel based toner .. i do not wear any foundation I used some powder for a wedding in august and that led to my only breakout this pregnancy..

i really hope it gets better for you.. i know you probably hate me now but i have totally been there and it sucks :(
 
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