I knew that Testosterone would make my face oily and give me acne, but it's worse than I thought. I've never had very oily skin.
I would use those oil removing wipes and would hardly do anything to them after patting my entire face. Now I need five of them to remove the oil and two hours later, it's bad again. I've had acne before but only a few pimples at a time. Now I'm getting random white heads all over. I woke up this morning and saw nothing, but ten minutes ago I had six new pimples on my face. That's about ten hours for six pimples to appear.
I wash my face every day, twice on my worst days. I know wasting your face too much can make the problem worse so I try to stick to once a day unless I go to the gym or do other things that make me need to wash my face a second time. The face was I use is the same stuff I always used.it's Biore charcoal cleanser. I also use lush face masks, in fact I'm going to get my free one today since I have five empty containers.
A few years back I used Xout but it didn't do anything for me so I stopped. Other than that, I've never used anything else. Is there any products you would recommend to help this? I know not every product will work with everyone but I am willing to try a few until I find one that works with me. Also, any home remedies you may have are welcome too. Anything to control the break outs and oil even a little bit will help me. Thank you. :)
Also, I've only been on Testosterone for a month now. Acne and oily skin are the only problem so far minus the occasional roid rage I get. I'm also not trying to see a dermatologist right now because I have a ton of medical bills already so preferably otc products or home remedies.
You don't necessarily need wipes. Just blot your face with paper towels throughout the day to remove the excess oil. Find a skin care regimen that works for you and do it in the morning and before bed. Make sure you are washing your pillow cases and towels regularly.
I typically exfoliate with a sea salt scrub, use Neutrogena face wash, pat dry, and then put on an oil-free moisturizer.
If you want to get really basic - epsom salt to exfoliate, hydrogen peroxide (the low % one) to wash, and olive oil to moisturize.
This by far was the most annoying part of starting T. I've never had oily skin before but as soon as I started T I did. Plus the acne was awful (7 months later and it's finally simmering down). I wash my face morning and night with Lush Coalface soap which helps. It even makes your acne scars look a little less red. I've never heard of it being bad to wash your face twice a day. My thinking is that if you don't the oil will build up clogging your pores making your acne worse; especially if you exercise.
I use the wipes, partially because I found these neat ones with peppermint oil ones that make my face feel cooler for a while after.
My acne got a lot worse and then improved a great deal, and I think the main contributing factor to it getting really, really awful at first was that I was eating a lot of crap food. Like, greasy/fried takeout two times a week or more, that sort of thing, but I was also using a lot of fatty condiments and whatnot. I'm vegan, so it wasn't like I was eating eggs and bacon with buttered toast and pizza and whatnot, but the General Tso's tofu I was noshing on v. frequently was, I think, the main culprit in terms of dietary contribution.
Not that I have silky smooth skin now, so I don't want you to get the wrong idea. I have a lot of issue with dry skin and with a bit of eczema, actually, which is new, but it likely has nothing to do with T. I gather it's a stress thing and that it runs in my family. The point is, you might never have perfect skin, so I don't want to mislead you.
I use Alba Botanica wipes, which I find for $3 at the grocery store. They make a Hawaiian one that smells amazing and works well for me, and then there's Acnedote by the same brand, which is the one with the peppermint. I live in Florida, so this time of year, anything that can cool me off a little is a plus. Testosterone has also had the added effect of making it much easier for me to get hotter, quicker, which seems to make my skin troubles flare up if I don't stay on top of it. I've accepted that I'll always get zits around my hairline. Always have, always will.
As far as home remedies, look up how to make a basic oatmeal scrub. I've done this a few times. Basically you make a paste out of oatmeal and water and let it sit on your face or wherever for a while. My skin definitely feels better after I do this. You can also add things like essential oils to the paste or even some vanilla or cinnamon from your kitchen, if you have it.
I use the wipes because I find it interesting to see how bad the oil gets. By using the wipes I was able to tell exactly how much worse the oil has gotten and I think it's crazy.
I will typically use napkins, paper towels, or even my shirt when it's bad. But wiping it away doesn't control it (sadly) and therefore I'd be wiping it every 15 or so minutes to keep it at a decent enough level to where it doesn't get gross.
I went into lush since I had five of the containers and found two products. One is the Dark Angel scrub. So far I've fell in love with the soft feeling it gives me but it hasn't been long enough to judge the effect on oils and acne. The second is tea tree water. It's a toner that's supposed to prevent the skin from becoming too oily. Again, too soon to tell how it's working, but it at least seems to stop the oil from getting bad as fast, but it still gets extremely bad within 30 minutes. I've never had a problem feeling gross without working out or in the yard. But I can just feel gross at times and I can't even touch my face without wanting to wash it.
I grew up in Florida so I know all about the heat and humidity there. It was never a problem for me but I just hated the heat. Everyone else complained about it for other reasons (hair, oil, makeup). I moved to Texas a couple of years ago and it's hot here. Very hot. And little wind too. Again, never was a problem until the past two weeks. What I love about the tea tree water is that you can spray it whenever and it feels refreshing. Its like spraying your face with water but it will control the oil for a bit. So two in one.
I will try the cheaper options next if this doesn't work.
If anyone else has suggestions, please mention them. The more the merrier. I'm sure there are other FTMs new on T that are looking for cheap options for acne/oil control. :)
I noticed that my skin tends to breakout a few days after I take my shot. It's not too bad, thankfully. I usually have really oily skin and a lot of acne as a teen so I was expecting it to be much worse than it is. Now I hardly ever get breakouts.
You may be overdoing it with wiping your face and washing it so often. A lot of times that'll cause your skin to produce even more oils because you're constantly stripping them away or the harsh chemicals in the face wash or cleansing pads are staying on your skin and irritating it.
I use Sea Breeze astringent then rinse my face with cool water in the morning and also before I go to sleep. You can actually see how much oil and dirt the stuff removes from your skin too. When I shower I wash my face with AcneDote "deep pore wash". I think I discovered this particular face wash from a on a thread here. It works great. Then when I feel like I need it I use Creamo face moisturizer. I like Creamo because it's unscented and isn't greasy feeling like other face moisturizers are.
Quote from: LJfusion on June 17, 2016, 01:41:52 AM
I use the wipes because I find it interesting to see how bad the oil gets. By using the wipes I was able to tell exactly how much worse the oil has gotten and I think it's crazy.
I will typically use napkins, paper towels, or even my shirt when it's bad. But wiping it away doesn't control it (sadly) and therefore I'd be wiping it every 15 or so minutes to keep it at a decent enough level to where it doesn't get gross.
I went into lush since I had five of the containers and found two products. One is the Dark Angel scrub. So far I've fell in love with the soft feeling it gives me but it hasn't been long enough to judge the effect on oils and acne. The second is tea tree water. It's a toner that's supposed to prevent the skin from becoming too oily. Again, too soon to tell how it's working, but it at least seems to stop the oil from getting bad as fast, but it still gets extremely bad within 30 minutes. I've never had a problem feeling gross without working out or in the yard. But I can just feel gross at times and I can't even touch my face without wanting to wash it.
I grew up in Florida so I know all about the heat and humidity there. It was never a problem for me but I just hated the heat. Everyone else complained about it for other reasons (hair, oil, makeup). I moved to Texas a couple of years ago and it's hot here. Very hot. And little wind too. Again, never was a problem until the past two weeks. What I love about the tea tree water is that you can spray it whenever and it feels refreshing. Its like spraying your face with water but it will control the oil for a bit. So two in one.
I will try the cheaper options next if this doesn't work.
If anyone else has suggestions, please mention them. The more the merrier. I'm sure there are other FTMs new on T that are looking for cheap options for acne/oil control. :)
I can't be sure, but it's possible that your acne will get better over time on its own, as your body gets used to being on testosterone. I've been on T for six months as of today, and my diet has changed pretty drastically over the last three, so it's hard for me to say if that's part of what happened to me.
I forgot to mention it before, but it seems like my skin seems to behave somewhat better if I do cardio, something that really gets my heart rate up and makes me sweat. A cold shower after the fact is nice, too, just because of the heat. I have one window unit AC for the whole house, so you can imagine. Anyone would need cooling off with 105 degree heat index. (And we're just getting started. Ugh.)
You do obviously want to be careful with that when you're in a hot climate, and T can raise your blood pressure, so it's important to be on top of these things. I can tell you, as well, that I haven't had roid rage since about six weeks in, and that was prior to my dietary changes, so I would attribute to my body just getting used to the T. So, I don't know if that's something you were worried about, but that's been my experience.
I also do 0.5 mL weekly rather than 1 mL every two weeks, which is what I was doing when I started. I seem to have fewer problems toward the end of a cycle that way. I also switched from injecting in the thigh to the butt, which seems to work much better.
I wipe my face with Stridex pads once in the morning and once at night, I use a proactive cleanser when necessary, and I always carry those little travel sized tissue packs around with me just in case.
I would recommend sleeping with a clean towel on your pillow, as that has helped me a lot. I also started eating a lot cleaner and that has helped tremendously.
Make sure to wash your bedding every 1-2 weeks. My face acne was kind of bad but it has settled down. Unfortunately I'm dealing with horrible backne and I've been trying a lot of different things but it just isn't working.
I've had some very bad skin recently and after exhausting all other options with the GP I tried Ivermectin.
Ivermectin is known to control demodex (if you're not sure what this is, Google it, preferably a video so you can see); all humans except newborn babies typically have some demodex living on their faces. Demodex is known to contribute to acne and rosacea - the fact it lives in pores, eats sebum, and then dies in the pores releasing its feces and bacteria into the pore is one of the potential reasons for deep bacterial infection of pores. An increase in oily skin is perfect for demodex to thrive. If you don't have oily skin they will move to the T zone where your face is oiliest to try to survive. Ivermectin followed by an application of something anti-bacterial like Savlon to counteract infection from the killed demodex may control their numbers and improve your skin.
I've been using Ivermectin for 1 week and I've noticed a massive improvement in skin quality and reduction of spots.
I'm not sure if demodex was indeed my problem, but my skin had improved rapidly, so I have to suspect it. Ivermectin is a kind of insecticide and targets demodex and other parasites, and is recommended for use on humans and pets with an infestation.
Demodex can brush off on clothes and bedding so changing these frequently is good. It also likes to migrate and breed at night, so application of Ivermectin or even just face washing is important to do at night, if these are responsible for your skin problems.
I warn those of a squeamish disposition, demodex are not pretty creatures if you go looking for images. Most people are not even aware of these things living on almost all people's skin; it may be a rather nasty surprise, but if you have skin problems do look into checking if demodex control helps your skin.
One thing that sometimes helps a bad breakout is a warn moist washcloth placed on the face. Wet the cloth, ring the extra water out of it and give it a few seconds in the microwave. You want it hot but not hot enough to burn your skin. When it cools, give it a little more time in the microwave and repeat. It will get the oil off your face without drying and help soften the material that causes black heads. It will also soften pimples so they will burst easer.
My face also got VERY oily after starting T. It would even get in my eyes!
Blotting, commercial wipes, etc. did no good.
Baking soda and water scrubbed on my face and rinsed off, then blotted dry with a towel seems to do the trick for me... sometimes I have to do it twice a day ...
But it keeps my skin clear as long as I'm constant with it.
Hope this helps! :)
I swear by green clay. It's super cheap at the health food store. You do a mask and then take it off. It helps exfoliate and reduce the oil, and the effects are felt for several days.
If you have sensitive skin, too many products can actually irritate your skin and cause worse acne than before. If you have dry or oily skin, you may want to follow up exfoliating (and toning and stuff like that) with moisturizer so that you don't end up with fresh peeling skin in your pores and your pores don't go into oil production overdrive. There are non oily moisturizers out there, even in the men's aisle if you think the women's aisle has cooties. I like neutrogena. It has sunscreen in it too.
I just started using Tea Tree soap on my backne. Only used it about 3-4 times now so hopefully it helps my problem. I'll update if I notice any changes since it might help anyone else struggling with it.
I've always had oily skin but T made it worse. Lots of acne everywhere. It was easier to manage in Japan, as lots of guys there have really oily skin. I used Seabreeze body wash and gatsby face wash for oily skin (it comes in a blue bottle). They both smell like mint and have the added bonus of being quite gentle. Once in the morning and once at night for my face. My face is still really clear and it typically only get a few pimples here and there. I really can't recommend gatsby face wash more. It's great stuff.
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Quote from: Ayden on July 03, 2016, 01:23:48 PM
I've always had oily skin but T made it worse. Lots of acne everywhere. It was easier to manage in Japan, as lots of guys there have really oily skin. I used Seabreeze body wash and gatsby face wash for oily skin (it comes in a blue bottle). They both smell like mint and have the added bonus of being quite gentle. Once in the morning and once at night for my face. My face is still really clear and it typically only get a few pimples here and there. I really can't recommend gatsby face wash more. It's great stuff.
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I'm going to give these a shot. They sell them at the Asian grocery store near my house :)
Hi Ayden, I am also interested in the Gatsby face wash you mentioned as I am a fan of their hair products. Could you tell me what it's exactly called because I saw a couple with the blue bottles?
Quote from: FreakOfNature on July 04, 2016, 03:06:18 PM
Hi Ayden, I am also interested in the Gatsby face wash you mentioned as I am a fan of their hair products. Could you tell me what it's exactly called because I saw a couple with the blue bottles?
The one that says perfect wash scrub is very gentle and quite nice, and has a darker blue label. It smells pretty good too. If you prefer a harder wash, the nano million scrub is the best one and has the light blue label. The foaming ones are so-so and did little to help my face.
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Quote from: FTMax on July 04, 2016, 06:43:28 AM
I'm going to give these a shot. They sell them at the Asian grocery store near my house :)
I really can't say enough about them. I have horrible skin but they help. They are also safe to use on your body if you have trouble areas. I use it on my shoulders occasionally.
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