Breaking out! Why? Any treatment ideas?

[Goddess]

Ugh, I get painful, painful cystic-acne-like breakouts on the side of my face and along my jawline. They eventually weep tons of clear fluid, take forever to crust over, and then turn into peeling dry skin. I have never had good skin, but this takes the cake!

Went to 2 dermatologists who gave me antibiotics, plus antiseptic face wash, no help. I asked my GI if it could be Pentasa. He said very unlikely...probably it is the Crohn's itself. He did change me to Fivasa...another poster had suggested that even though the active ingredient is the same, that might help. That was about a week ago. Yesterday started again.

Any other ideas? I can't stay in the house forever.

 

[sickofcrohns]

Sounds nasty. I hope it clears up soon.

I've found that tea tree oil helps. It's antiseptic and, because it's oil, it doesn't dry the skin out. But it might be too harsh for you -- you can try it in a small area over a few days and see if it helps. (It should be relatively easy to find online. The Body Shop also carries a diluted version, which is what I have been using so far).

What kind of antiseptic face wash have you been prescribed? (Tricoslan?)

 

[seaofdreams]

It's quite dangerous to use tea tree oil at a ratio of anything stronger than 2 drops to 100 drops of a carrier oil as it contains 1,8–cineole, a skin irritant. It also will only be effective if the cause of your breakouts are a result of an infection - if they are a result of inflammation then applying tea tree will only cause more issues. My thoughts are that it's likely to be inflammation rather than infection since an antiseptic facewash failed to clear it up.

This is going to sound a bit mental but check out the oil cleansing method http://www.crunchybetty.com/nitty-gritty-on-the-oil-cleansing-method. I have always had skin issues related to Crohn's inflammation and the oil cleansing method seriously saved me. I use pure jojoba oil since my skin is really sensitive and dry. If you really can't stomach the idea of using pure oil on your face, send me a message and I can give you some product recommendations

If you need any more info, please send me a message. I'm a qualified and licenced skin-care therapist and I really love helping people out with their skin issues - particularly when it relates to IBD

 

[Goddess]

Sickofcrohns, thanks for replying! I actually did try tea tree oil (should have mentioned that, sorry!), used up one of those small bottles, but I quit then because if anything it made it worse.

Seaofdreams, that's very helpful, and I'm headed to Japan the day after tomorrow and I'll get me some DHC Deep Cleansing Oil. They have the "Olive Virgin Oil" moisturizer, too...do you think that'd be OK to use? I quit with the moisturizer I was using, because it would sting.

"Oil cleansing" for acne does sound totally counterintuitive, but in Japan people use it for dry skin, oily skin, sensitive skin, whatever. My friend had atopic dermatitis and eczema, and said it helped her. I'll give it a shot! It sounds like a better idea than antibiotics that haven't worked. And it can't hurt.

Nice of you to offer your professional expertise. I love this forum! Everyone helps everyone else.

 

[seaofdreams]

I personally found olive oil a little bit too heavy and made my skin feel a bit yuck - and I'm fairly dry with almost no breakouts normally so if you've got a heavier oil flow, it might not feel very nice. I just had a quick look at the DHC Oil product and it looks like olive oil might be the base. It also looks to quite expensive too considering it's just regular oil.

Jojoba is perfect for acne-prone skin because it's beautifully light and makes your face feel moisturised yet still clean without any gross oily feeling. If you're having issues finding it, there's a site called iHerb that sells it for super cheap and they have great customer service too. Also, most health food shops sell it (but it's a bit more expensive) It totally worth the price though, I bought a bottle last year and use it daily and still have 3/4 of a bottle left. Plus it's nice to just use something natural for a while instead of a buttload of chemicals

No problems at all, I love helping

 

[Goddess]

Thanks! I ordered something from iherb before, and they were really nice.

 

[Goddess]

Just reporting back: turns out seaofdreams was totally right: what I had going on was apparently inflammation, not an infection. And this brilliant insight came after I'd spent over €1000 on doctors and medication, trying to clear up what everyone was sure was an intractable staph infection.

Well, it might be staph, who knows? But if it is, I have enough products to combat it for the next decade.

All on hold now, because I got me an $8 bottle of jojoba oil, and I am very, very pleased. My complexion is not flawless...how could it be? It's only been 3 weeks, and my skin was HORRIBLE, intolerably horrible, the worst ever, I seriously couldn't sleep without the pillowcase hurting my raw bumpy face.

But now? My face is hardly discolored at all, no new huge painful cystic bumps on the horizon, and my skin is smooth-feeling, neither dry nor oily. All from oil cleansing in the morning, while I shower, and at night, when I take off my make-up.

Seriously, this is the best that my skin has looked in years. I can't guarantee that the good effects will last, but now at last I have hope.

I was in Japan for 10 days, and didn't want to have to carry liquids on the plane, so I used some DHC-knockoff ¥450 "Olive Oil Cleansing" stuff for the first 5 days I was there, and even that did help. But I do think that the jojoba oil is better, and I only have to use a small amount. I rinse it off with warm water.

The only other things I've done that might make a shred of difference is changing from Pentasa to Fivasa, but they both have the same active ingredient, Mesalazine, and actually that change resulted in a 50 mg higher dose of it. And I started putting a towel over my pillow, to protect it from the oil. I was anyway changing my pillowcase every day or 2, but my skin is better since I've been using the towel. Oil? Change in formulation of meds? Towel? Coincidence? You decide.

All I know is that MY FACE DOESN'T HURT ANYMORE. And I can go outdoors without fearing that someone will call the cops to report that the Bog Monster is terrorizing the neighborhood. We now have a seemingly nomaL spot, downstairs I'm finunroom I'll figriung any,

Yeah, right he was ready to

Thanks, seaofdreams, so far so good, your advice had made my life a lot better!

 

[Goddess]

:ghug:, best

Just reporting back: turns out seaofdreams was totally right: what I had going on was apparently inflammation, not an infection. And this brilliant insight came after I'd spent over €1000 on doctors and medication, trying to clear up what everyone was sure was an intractable staph infection.

Well, it might be staph, who knows? But if it is, I have enough products to uncobgtuin. As3

.:eek2:combat it for the next decade.

All on hold now, because I got me an $8 bottle of jojoba oil, and I am very, very pleased. My complexion is not flawless...how could it be? It's only been 3 weeks, and my skin was HORRIBLE, intolerably horrible, the worst ever, I seriously couldn't sleep without the pillowcase hurting my raw bumpy face.

But now? My face is hardly discolored at all, no new huge painful cystic bumps on the horizon, and my skin is smooth-feeling, neither dry nor oily. All from oil cleansing in the morning, while I shower, and at night, when I take off my make-up.

Seriously, this is the best that my skin has looked in years. I can't guarantee that the good effects will last, but now at last I have hope.

I was in Japan for 10 days, and didn't want to have to carry liquids on the plane, so I used some DHC-knockoff ¥450 "Olive Oil Cleansing" stuff for the first 5 days I was there, and even that did help. But I do think that the jojoba oil is better, and I only have to use a small amount. I rinse it off with warm water.

The only other things I've done that might make a shred of difference is changing from Pentasa to Fivasa, but they both have the same active ingredient, Mesalazine, and actually that change resulted in a 50 mg higher dose of it. And I started putting a towel over my pillow, to protect it from the oil. I was anyway changing my pillowcase every day or 2, but my skin is better since I've been using the towel. Oil? Change in formulation of meds? Towel? Coincidence? You decide.

All I know is that MY FACE DOESN'T HURT ANYMORE. And I can go outdoors without fearing that someone will call the cops to report that the Bog Monster is terrorizing the neighborhood.

Thanks, seaofdreams, so far so good, your advice had made my life a lot better!

 

[seaofdreams]

Just reporting back: turns out seaofdreams was totally right: what I had going on was apparently inflammation, not an infection. And this brilliant insight came after I'd spent over €1000 on doctors and medication, trying to clear up what everyone was sure was an intractable staph infection.

Well, it might be staph, who knows? But if it is, I have enough products to combat it for the next decade.

All on hold now, because I got me an $8 bottle of jojoba oil, and I am very, very pleased. My complexion is not flawless...how could it be? It's only been 3 weeks, and my skin was HORRIBLE, intolerably horrible, the worst ever, I seriously couldn't sleep without the pillowcase hurting my raw bumpy face.

But now? My face is hardly discolored at all, no new huge painful cystic bumps on the horizon, and my skin is smooth-feeling, neither dry nor oily. All from oil cleansing in the morning, while I shower, and at night, when I take off my make-up.

Seriously, this is the best that my skin has looked in years. I can't guarantee that the good effects will last, but now at last I have hope.

I was in Japan for 10 days, and didn't want to have to carry liquids on the plane, so I used some DHC-knockoff ¥450 "Olive Oil Cleansing" stuff for the first 5 days I was there, and even that did help. But I do think that the jojoba oil is better, and I only have to use a small amount. I rinse it off with warm water.

The only other things I've done that might make a shred of difference is changing from Pentasa to Fivasa, but they both have the same active ingredient, Mesalazine, and actually that change resulted in a 50 mg higher dose of it. And I started putting a towel over my pillow, to protect it from the oil. I was anyway changing my pillowcase every day or 2, but my skin is better since I've been using the towel. Oil? Change in formulation of meds? Towel? Coincidence? You decide.

All I know is that MY FACE DOESN'T HURT ANYMORE. And I can go outdoors without fearing that someone will call the cops to report that the Bog Monster is terrorizing the neighborhood. We now have a seemingly nomaL spot, downstairs I'm finunroom I'll figriung any,

Yeah, right he was ready to

Thanks, seaofdreams, so far so good, your advice had made my life a lot better!

Yay! I'm so glad for you

 

[Goddess]

Update a week later: I did have one more cystic bump, but smaller than before and healed faster. My face is still healing, of course, but smoother.