Will anything help my pregnancy related acne?

[hellokitty]

I have to admit, I have been lucky that I usually have a very clear complexion, even when I was a teenager, I'd only get a pimple or two around the time of my month and that was it. I do however, tend to get very zitty while pregnant. The pregnancy, "glow" for me = zits. This time however, it is really bad. I would say that the situation has escalated to acne this time with my current pregnancy. It is mostly around my forehead area and my chin, YET I have dry patches around my cheeks. Is there anything I can use (safe for pregnancy) or since this is something hormone related, I will just have to accept it and hope that it goes away after I have the baby?

[maestramommy]

Ugh, I've been getting them around my chin, where I always break out at my time of the month. I use 5% benzoyl peroxide. There was a thread last week and consensus on this product was mixed. But I really don't know of other options.

Another thing I do which always helps is microdermabrasian cleanser. Basically very fine grain scrub. I use Mary Kay. I don't think it has many chemicals in it because you have to wash your face before using it. I use it 3-4 times a week, and it really helps keep it under control.

Of course, in this NE weather he rest of my face is dry as a bone. Why it doesn't extend to my chin is a mystery.

[pinkmomagain]

Just wanted to hop on and say sorry....my forehead fell victim too when I was pregnant. I just used OTC stuff to try to control it. But it did go away eventually! I don't remember when, but I want to say that it eased up later on in the pregnancy or shortly after baby was born.

[AnnieW625]

Me too. I have these awful zits underneath my chin, where thankfully no one can really tell, but they are painful. It's not nearly as bad as last time though where I got them all along my chin. BP is safe for pregnancy skincare, but truthfully I don't think anything will really help it much. All of a sudden at the end of my first trimester the zits went away. I am hoping this happens soon too!

I also highly recommend Kiehl's Blue Herbal Cleanser; it does have BPA (salicylic acid) in it but my OB said because it's not injested it's okay to use. I started using this a couple of years ago before I was even pregnant and it was a miracle product for me.

[ahrimie]

Just wanted to hop on and say sorry....my forehead fell victim too when I was pregnant. I just used OTC stuff to try to control it. But it did go away eventually! I don't remember when, but I want to say that it eased up later on in the pregnancy or shortly after baby was born.

Yes, mine went away towards the end of my pregnancy too. I, too, usually have a clear complexion and got a few unsightly pimples here and there but by mid-2nd trimester, I think they were gone again. I think that's when my "glow" came too :)

I just used OTC stuff too.. but I don't think anything really helped. :(

[lizajane]

i really like burt's bees scrub and cleanser. they don't make you skin dry but you feel very soft and clean. they help my acne prone skin.

and i use clearasil (or generic) for specific spots as soon as i notice one coming.

[hellokitty]

Thanks ladies! I have been avoiding SA with pregnancy b/c I thought it wasn't safe. I didn't realize that it was only unsafe if injected. SA in the past has helped me, so I may try some of to see if it will help me with my lovely forehead situation. I'm in my 13th wk of pregnancy and I went from having big ugly zits in the first trimester to the wonderful acne over forehead and chin situation, so I am thinking it's not planning to go away anytime soon. I think my body is weird. It doesn't do what it's, "supposed" to do. For example, most ppl's m/s goes away by the time they reach their 2nd tri. I have been, "lucky" to have all day nausea and vomiting for all three of my pregnancies for the entire pregnancy. UGH.

[Davids-Coco]

The SA stuff is slightly controversal. My doctor is of the belief that the OTC stuff isn't strong enough to do any damage. I avoided it with my first DS and tried anything else I could... and I was still covered in acne. I didn't want to leave the house, makeup took 20-30 minutes to cover and looked horrid, and I felt even worse about my body. This time, I couldn't take it and have been using an acne wash only. It has made it generally manageable. Its still worse than some peoples "bad" pregnancy acne, but it is under control for me.

[willow33]

I only use cleanser with SA, not moisturizer/treatment products.

It seems like it can go either way for women when pregnant...skin gets better until after delivery and then WHAM...bad skin!! Or it gets worse during pregnancy :(