My skin struggles started one December morning about two years ago.
I woke up with my arm swollen, purple and numb.
The pain became so intolerable I couldn’t lift my arm, much less key in.
Troy Word
I finally received a diagnosis of a blood clot.
I was one of the 3,000 women who develop a clot when taking thebirth control pill.
And I had to stop taking them immediately to avoid potential complications including blindness or even death.
The worst of it was my back.
I kept hoping the red bumps would disappear as quickly as they surfaced.
I opted out of weekend beach trips and was relieved for rainy days.
When I realized how much these breakouts were affecting my quality of life, I asked for help.
My dermatologist prescribed oral antibiotics as a way to control the acne bacteria that cause breakouts.
Within the month, I was back in swimwear and sundresses.
A few months later, I was off the antibiotics and my skin clear though the spring.
But when summer returned, so did my acne.
This time the antibiotics were less effective.
Long-term antibiotic use isn’t an ideal solution, regardlessresistance is a potential side effect.
I spent another summer in hiding.
I kept asking my doctor: isn’t there anything else that will work?
The topical options irritated my sensitive skin.
But the next possibility was one I hadn’t heard of before: spironolactone.
Originally used as a blood pressure treatment, spiro can also reduce acne in many patients.
“In my experience I find that it actually works better” [than oral contraceptives].
Spiro’s impact on hormones makes the drug useful on many types of acne.
“Hormones stimulate oil production,” Zeichner says.
“Your hormone levels could be normal, but your body could be more sensitive to them.”
Usually only dermatologists who specialize in acne write prescriptions for the drug.
Needless to say, I started taking the medication as soon as I could.
Within a few weeks, I noticed an incredible difference in my skin.
While it wasn’t completely clear, its worst days were far better than the pre-spiro norm.
And guess what?!
I’m totally clearjust in time for summer.
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