Acne is decidedly common. And decidedly obnoxious.
Obviously, you don’t care about it on other people. It’s when it decides to grace your face (or anywhere else) that you have the problem. And it can feel like a huge problem when you are getting acne when you are coming off hormonal birth control, or when you are afraid to come off of hormonal birth control because of acne.
I have been getting so many questions lately about how to come off hormonal birth control and not get acne, or how to get rid of the acne that suddenly appeared after quitting hormonal birth control, so I want to give this question some air time.
So let’s clear this up, shall we (har har har)?
Why does acne happen? And, why is it so prevalent when coming off of hormonal birth control?
Hormonal acne pops up when there is some type of imbalance in your hormones (duh), but there are different types of imbalances that can lead to different types of acne.
The most common one has to do with too much estrogen and too little progesterone, which is common in and of itself, but even more common after coming off hormonal birth control.
There are a few reasons it’s so common.
One reason is because hormonal birth control has much much more estrogen than your body normally makes in it. It also has a lot more progesterone, but in general we have an easier time restoring our estrogen levels rather than our progesterone levels. This is partially due to some of the other factors listed below.
Hormonal birth control also depletes your B vitamins. These are both very important for progesterone production and for the health of your liver. Without your liver working well, estrogen can’t be eliminated as quickly as it needs to be which can lead to the higher estrogen levels.
Next, the stresses of coming off hormonal birth control (and stresses of everyday life) can play a part. When you are stressed out the hormone that makes both progesterone and cortisol (which is a stress hormone) favors cortisol production rather than progesterone. Stress is common anyway, which is one of the reasons having a high estrogen to progesterone ratio is common, but stress can come in many forms that might be even more common when discontinuing hormonal birth control. Figuring out what birth control method to use (or worrying about conceiving as quickly as you’d like to), your body adjusting to new hormones levels, pressure from family or your partner, etc.
Those are just a sample of why coming off hormonal birth control can rock your hormone levels into disarray. But are there ways to have an easier transition, or to get rid of the acne that hormonal birth control seemed to give you?
How to get rid of acne after coming off of hormonal birth control
Since you know the cause of the acne, it now follows logically how you can correct those pieces to lessen or rid yourself of the acne.
All basic hormonal balancing tips come into play here. Remember that there may be different layer to what the problem really is and you want to have a good basis for health. That said, but there are a few you should be extra zealous with.
1.) Getting your liver working well.
This is muy importante because your liver is helping to get out excess hormones from the birth control but also balancing out what you actually need versus what you are producing (which can be wonky after hormonal birth control). If your liver is not working well (which is common after use of hormonal birth control), then you are going to have a harder, longer road getting back to balanced hormones.
Here are some simple tips to get your liver going:
- Lemon water in the morning
- Dandelion root tea (or other liver promoting herbs)
- Avoid alcohol
- Eat lots of fresh fruits and veggies and focus on greens, cruciferous veggies, and anti-oxidant heavy fruits and veggies.
2.) Do something to reduce stress.
This is going to vary for each person, but what makes you feel less stressed? Working out? Hanging out with friends? Meditating? Sleeping more or at certain times? Just get a stress-reduction tactic in place and stick to it. It helps if you can also not stress about your skin (I know it’s difficult).
3.) Consider supplementation.
I’m not big on supplements, but sometimes you body needs a little kick start to get back on the right track. After using hormonal birth control you may need to get your vitamin levels back up (remember the B-vitamins) and get some hormone help. Since I don’t think it’s a good idea to take a single nutrient vitamin, consider getting a good quality whole foods multi like this one
The other supplement that seems to be highly beneficial when people are coming off hormones or are just plagued by hormonal acne in general is DIM or Diindolymethane. While I am not super versed in it myself, I have seen good things about this brand
Have you had issues with coming off hormonal birth control and getting acne like never before? Is there anything specific you did that you feel helped tremendously? Let me know in the comments!
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Thank you for this post Hannah!! It is so refreshing to see real, honest, and healthy advice! I have been off hormonal birth control for almost a year now. I was finally able to solve my chronic cystic acne woes by adding in more fat to my diet (I was a serious fat-aphobic, now I eat plant-based sources of fat at every meal) and by using the oil cleansing method.
Thank you for sharing you knowledge and for showing women the way! It takes patience and trust, but it is so worth it.
Great to hear, JJ. I definitely think fat has a big place in helping balance hormones :)
I think mine is starting to heal, but I also struggle with skin picking disorder so it’s harder for it to get better. The things I have done:
– B vitamin
– Magnesium + zinc supplements
– vitex drops morning and night (balance hormones)
– probiotics (help stomach bacterias)
– maca powder (balance hormones)
– plant based diet and like JJ, good fats
– Oil cleansing method – look up, but the basic is that you cleanse your face with castor oil + another type of oil like jojoba, almond, olive ad then put a warm wash cloth over your face. Let it steam for a while, do this a few times and swipe it away.
– Raw Apple cider vinegar toner – 1/4 ACV and 3/4 water, or use witch hazel
– Tea tree with aloe vera for spots
– argan + vitamin e oils for healing and moisturiser
I’m not so good with the stress part, moving and living at other peoples places while waiting for a job to work out is not the best situation. But I think also a type of exercise you like and yoga is good too :)
Ugh, yes, it’s so difficult when you pick. I’ve never had terrible acne (never came off the pill since I never went on it), but struggled with it as a teen for sure and always. wanted. to. pick.
I love that you are giving external recommendations, as well… I totally just know the internal stuff so I love that you are adding in what people can do for external care :)
Yeah, think what has helped is that I tell me self not to get close to mirrors and having something to do with my hands as much as possible.
Really wish I was never on the pill, but live and learn and try the best to heal :)
After reading your blog I also started reading about essential oils and such. I used organic products before but really helped making my own cleansers and moisturisers. And for the dark spots I would recommend some lemon before bed (not good in sun), and carrot seed oil is really good with high spf. Also know that vitamin e and argan are good for scars and ageing :)
Lemon before bed.. cool, I can handle that. I’ll look into the SPF of carrot seed oil. I am hoping to find a local alternative bc I like keeping the products I buy online to a minimum to reduce waste.
I didn’t have acne before I took hormonal birth control (HBC). While I was on HBC, I had painful cystic acne and rashes. I stopped taking HBC after 2 or 3 months and began treating my acne from the inside out.
Taking Vitex supplements (Nature’s Way brand, then Vitacost brand) greatly reduced my hormonal acne. I’ve read a lot about DIM and I’ll try Nature’s Way DIM Plus soon.
I use natural, non-toxic skin care for my oily, acne-prone and hyperpigmentation-prone skin. My current routine includes BabySpa Ultra-Soft Baby Wipes (night; makeup removal), Andalou Naturals Citrus Kombucha Cleansing Gel, Devita Acne Solution Pads, Devita Solar Protective Moisturizer SPF 30+ (day), Mychelle Dermaceuticals Remarkable Retinal Serum (night), Andalou Naturals Acai + White Tea Oil-Free Moisturizer (night) and organic tea tree essential oil (night; acne spot treatment). This “simpler than it looks” skin care routine minimizes breakouts, speeds up healing time and fades hyperpigmentation.
I wear natural, non-toxic make-up. My favorite foundations are Valana Minerals Stardust Luxury Foundation and Eve Organics Beauty Mineral Foundation. They even out my skin tone without causing acne or irritation.
ohhh… I’ve actually been dealing with some darker spots on my face, too. Too much sun, but I also heard in one place it could be partially hormonal. Something I am trying to figure out ( probably need to take my own advice and give my liver a helping hand). For now I try to put on coconut oil when I am out in the sun (which apparently has a natural SPF of about 5.. I’d like to infuse some with some herbs that also have natural SPF), sometimes wear a hat.. annnd that’s it. Lol. I’m obviously not trying very hard. I’d really like to figure out what causes it and deal with that. You can actually see it a bit in my picture on the homepage of the site- above my lip. I told my photographer not to photo shop :)
Very interesting post, thank you. What about hair loss when coming off of the pill? Have you addressed that one yet?