Folliculitis???

[MTan]

This is another experience I had before I flared up.  So I recently moved into a new home, and started to take more frequent hot baths.  I started to feel these little bumps, almost like sand on my forehead.  I started to scratch them off, and the next day I had these huge swollen bumps. I left them alone, but then they started to turn into whiteheads, and cysts.  These bumps were so painful and also very itchy. I thought the itch was related to my bangs, but when I started to wear my hair without bangs, it still felt like ants under my skin.  

After 3 weeks,  I decided to go to walk in clinic. The doctor prescribed me Minocin an antibiotic.  It reduced the swelling, but turned the pimples into purple scars.  I didn't tell him they were itchy b/c I thought that pimples are generally itchy.  
I got off of it after day 5 b/c apparently it can induce lupus and my GP was very worried of that.  So with that said, the pimples came back full force again b/c the antibiotics wasn't completed. I got a prescription of Retin A from my GP, but they really doesn't work with cysts.    I did a little bit of research on this subject and the only thing for Folliculitis is oral medication such as Minocin or antibiotic creams. Folliculitis-  A hair usually sticks out from it and it is surrounded by pus, and can be red, painful and itchy.

I tried the tea tree oil stuff, and it worked for awhile, but my skin became resistant to it. I wish I had not scratched off those sandy bumps b/c now my forehead looks like a wreck.  I should have gotten to the doctor sooner and gotten Retin-A to get rid of the tiny bumps. I wonder if these pimples were related to Hot Tub Folliculitis. So now, I have changed my cleanser to Clinique with Salicylic Acid to exfoliate and kill the bacteria and Polysporin to relieve the itchiness and get rid of the scars.  Has anyone experienced hot tub folliculitis??? and do you have any recommendations????

  

[kaylaxmarie]

I don't really see how it could be Folliculitis to be honest...  I don't really know anybody who grows hair on their forehead lol.  So I wouldn't say it is that.  And you can't get hot tub Folliculitis.  That doesn't even make sense... lol. =P  

Folliculitis for one... comes from the word follicle... and your follicle's are where your hair grows from.  Folliculitis is simply an infection of the hair follicles.  Often time's what will happen is when you shave your hair it doesnt grow in right it might grow in sideways or curl under the skin which causes an ingrown hair.  And then it starts to get infected and look like a pimple.  Often times when you pop them you will see the imbedded hair inside of it and you can get a pair of tweezers and pluck it out.  Then after that you just have to hope it won't grow back the same way it did before.

When you pop those things on your forehead do you have hairs inbedded in them?  I'd guess you don't... there for it couldn't possibly be Folliculitis.  Did you look anything up about what Folliculitis even is... or just seen a picture of it and figured that's what it was?

So like I said there is no such thing as hot tub Folliculitis... unless there is some kind of bacteria in the water causing some kind of skin infections which could maybe cause your skin to get infected,  but that still has nothing to do with Folliculitis.  

From what it sounds like... your doctor is just throwing you a medicine and isn't even trying to figure out what your skin problem is.  I would recommend you go to a Dermatoligist, somebody who specializes in skin, maybe they could figure something out.  But you have to tell them as much detail as you can so they can figure out what it is.  Make sure that you tell them when you started getting it, like you said.. around the time you used the hot tub.  Tell them that you scratched it b.c it itched and it caused it to get inflamed and worse, and that now nothing seems to make it go away.

Well I hope you figure out what's going on...  good luck.

[nosroma]

I have to disagree with you kaylaxmarie - I have hair on my forehead - very fine, white hair - I have it all over my face, and often you can see a fine white hair coming out from most of my acne breakouts on my face. Oral antibiotics is the only thing that clears this up - so it must be some sort of infection. I don't know about "hot tub folliculitis" - that's a new one to me - but if antibiotics help to clear something up, it means that there is some sort of bacterial infection going on - so acne and folliculitis being related somehow makes sense to me...