Will I have to Stay on birth control forever to keep acne away?

[jrw01]

I'm 30 yrs old. Have been battling acne since almost immediantly turning 21 (total clear skin until then) All along figured hormonal, but didn't go to female doc until  8 months ago- She put me on Yaz. (never had bc b/f) Xcept for severe chest pain 1st month 1/2 (almost quit taking) I loved it. Cleared face completely & stayed clear. She told me after 6 months it might regulate my body to stop taking and still be acne free. Well, tried doing that cuz not a fan of taking long term. My face almosy instantly started breaking out in huge, painful, what I call boil-like, bumps. Diff. from reg. acne in that there was no dirt inside if cleared out; only lots of clear liquid. So bad, took couple of sick days from work to avoid public. Never had it been that bad b/f taking bc!

Also, my emotions went NUTS. I have since refilled my RX and am dying to start taking again when I can start a new cycle. This greatly concerns me that if I ever do try to stop once more, my face is doomed for sure. Any helpfuls on this? Do I really have no choice anymore?????

[loiloi]

You may have to have repeat courses of medication for as long as you are prone to acne. However, Yaz is not the only option. I recommend Diane35 as a better birth control pill to clear acne. Oral oxytetracycline is also very helpful. If you would prefer a topical treatment, Differin is very effective and well tolerated.
Eloise x

[adolmd]

You may have something called PCOS if you have acne, hairy- ness, weight gain. In which case you may need to be on birth control until menopause, but if you have PCOS then you could also take metformin

For acne, you can certainly take oral antibiotics, and topical tretinoin
or even accutane if you want to clear it up once and for all. though most MDs will not prescribe the latter unless you have really bad acne and have failed other things.

however, many women love being on some form of birth control b/c it allows you to decide when you have your periods... you can skip placebos...

there is no danger of infertility or other things if you take birth control for a long time...

Diane 35 is only available outside the US

though any form of birth control pill should work... so you may want to try other pills if cost is an issue.

and also, hopefully they checked your hormones before they stared all this? like DHEAS, total or free testosterone and 17-hydroxyprogesterone if you have any signs of "maleness" e.g. really bad acne, really bad hair growth, etc.