How to Handle Hormonal Acne

By Ava Rognlien 

I’ve tried every trick in the book. Hormonal acne has been a huge struggle for me, and I know the pain that it can cause. First of all, I’d like to say something that someone said to me when my acne was the worst, “There is absolutely nothing wrong with acne and you are so normal, because so many people experience it. It’s more strange when someone has never had it!” 

As a society, we are so embarrassed of blemishes on our skin, and my biggest challenge was mentally accepting that I had acne. Once I began to remove myself from the power it had over me, I began to heal both emotionally and physically. 

Hormonal acne is typically around your chin, mouth, and t-zone. It is caused by fluctuating or imbalanced hormones, shocker!

My journey with hormonal acne has been far from easy or linear. I had always had blemishes in my chin area here and there, but my acne severely increased when I changed birth control last year. If your body is sensitive to hormonal changes like me, then you know how these shifts can completely change your body. 

When my acne was at my worst, I was prescribed Clindamycin and a low dosage of Spironolactone. After about 4 months, I saw little to no improvement, and decided that I wanted to try to heal it naturally. I was hesitant to try prescribed medication for my acne, and I found that it didn’t work as well as when I used natural remedies. Everybody is different, so take my experience with a grain of salt. 

Naturally derived vitamin A

I used RetinA at first, but got turned away by the uptick of breakouts (I know you are supposed to stick with it,) but I found that using a lower concentration and naturally derived vitamin A helped with skin cell turnover, and I didn’t get the retinol uglies!

Salicylic acid 

Helps to prevent further outbreaks by killing the acne bacteria on your skin. This ingredient worked wonders on stopping my skin from more breakouts. It helps to keep pores clean and soothes irritated skin. 

Tea tree oil 

Tea tree oil is a wonderful natural remedy to help fight acne. Known for its antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties, this oil can reduce inflammation and redness. It’s also known to help heal acne scars!  It’s important to dilute tea tree oil and not apply it directly to your skin, so use another oil such as  coconut oil or olive oil.

Chlorophyll 

Okay, so I originally saw this on Tiktok but I found that using this and eating fruits and vegetables helped with my skin a lot! Food and nutrition matters. This doesn’t mean that you have to do everything perfectly, but it is important to eat nutrient rich foods. 

Here are a few foods that have shown to help with acne: 

• whole grains
• legumes
• unprocessed fruits and vegetables
• yellow and orange fruits and vegetables such as carrots, apricots, and sweet potatoes
• spinach and other dark green and leafy vegetables
• tomatoes
• blueberries
• whole-wheat bread
• brown rice
• quinoa
• turkey
• pumpkin seeds
• beans, peas, and lentils
• salmon, mackerel, and other kinds of fatty fish
• nuts

List from Healthline Magazine. Read more here. 

After a few months of using these products my acne has significantly reduced, and I am now starting to use natural acne scar reduction products. 

• Honey
• Tea tree oil 
• Aloe Vera 
• Coconut oil
• Lemon 

Find more natural remedies here. 

Things to remind yourself

Healing takes time, nothing is going to change overnight.  

Having acne doesn’t make you any less worthy of love. 

The most important thing that you can do is to give yourself love even when you don’t feel like it. Your beauty is more than skin deep, and there is nothing wrong with acne!