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Hormonal Acne – How to Treat It?

If you’ve been tracking your breakouts and notice that they occur at the beginning of week 3 of your cycle (about 2 weeks before your period begins), then congratulations, you’re looking at a case of hormonal acne. During this week in your cycle, the hormones estrogen and progesterone drop dramatically if no egg has been fertilized, while you will also experience a slight increase in testosterone.

While testosterone is thought of as the ‘male’ sex hormone, it exists in slightly differing amounts in everyone. Amongst other things, this androgen triggers oil production (sebum) in skin and hair follicles – meaning you might see oilier hair during this week too. This oil provides the perfect breeding ground for bacteria, and thus causes clogged pores, pimples and cystic acne (those somewhat painful bumps just under the skin) – usually around the chin and jawline.

And unfortunately, while this bump in testosterone during your 3rd week is likely to start your trouble skin, the effects can continue through your cycle, sometimes right through your period.

How do you know if you have hormonal acne?

There are several signs that your pimples are related to hormones. According to dermatologists, it’s probably hormonal acne if…

1. You’re no longer in your teen years.

While we’d love to leave acne behind (along with our braces and boy band posters) once we enter our 20s, the reality is flare-ups are possible at any time. Hormonal acne is the type that’s most likely to attack in your 20-something years. That because those are the years when women are most hormonally active. On 20s is often peak childbearing age, making women more prone to the intense hormonal fluctuations of pregnancy, childbirth, and lactation (breastfeeding).

But age alone won't determine whether or not you'll break out. Genetics can dictate when hormonal breakouts start and stop.

2. Your pimples pop up around your chin and jawline.

One of the telltale signs of a hormonal breakout is its location on the face. If you’re noticing inflamed cysts around your lower face—especially your chin and jawline area—you can bet your bottom dollar that it’s probably hormonal acne. Derms don’t exactly know why this beard of acne is so common, especially in women, but it comes down to too much oil production clogging up your pores.

3. Your breakouts occur once a month.

Hormonal acne often manifests in a cyclical pattern, much like women’s menstrual cycles. This is true even in postmenopausal women, because these women still experience monthly fluctuations in their estrogen and progesterone levels, albeit lower than pre-menopausal women.

Hormonal breakouts tend to pop up in the same place each month as well. This is usually the result of a particular pore being enlarged in size by a previous pimple.

4. You’re seriously stressed.

Cortisol, the stress hormone, can affect all of your other hormones, too, causing them to be all out of whack. Women who are prone to monthly hormonal fluctuations, which are quite steep, and have periods of acute stress, are preparing their minds for themselves to get a hormonal acne flare.

5. You’re dealing with painful cysts (versus blackheads and whiteheads).

Those surface-level brownish spots that typically yield more gunk than you expected (aka blackheads) and those tiny white dots of bacteria stuck in your pores (aka, whiteheads) are not in the same category as hormonal acne, which can come in the form of painful cysts. These bumps are usually tender to the touch because they’ve accumulated oil over a period of days or weeks that then causes an inflammatory reaction.

They tend to pop up in the same place over and over again, becoming subacute or chronic. Because they have an inflammatory component, they require a more clinical approach to treatment that starts from the inside out rather than treating them topically.

Another natural alternative to treating hormonal acne involves watching your diet. Anecdotally, many women say they have experienced less breakouts since cutting out processed foods—especially those containing dairy and high amounts of sugar.

These diet tweaks are said to be effective in treating acne because they may help regulate blood sugar (which can cause inflammation, and hormonal fluctuations when unstable).

Like stress-management, diet modifications may not be enough to stop breakouts entirely—but they can definitely help!

People also love to read this: Deep Purify Facial Treatment – Your Skin Would Love It!

Here’s how to get rid of hormonal acne by some procedures at Lumina Aesthetics Clinic Bali

Acne can affect people of all races and ages but most commonly occurs during puberty when the sebaceous glands come to life due to stimulation from the hormones produced by the adrenal glands. If acne is left untreated, it may lead to textural changes and scarring–this is where Lumina’s Ultimate Acne treatment package comes in.

Offering a unique solution mixing our signature deep cleansing ritual with chemical peeling and LED light facial, your skin will get the help it needs to rid your acne problems.

Cleansing Facial Massage

The facial massage aims at particular points of your face to help promote better blood circulation around your skin and to relax your facial muscles while clearing it of excess sebum and dead skin cells all at the same time.

Chemical Peeling

Lumina Chemical peels are used for deep exfoliation of the skin’s surface layers. The acid breaks the bonds that hold the skin’s cells together, causing them to shed away or peel. As the skin regenerates, it is also being rejuvenated. Compared to other types of chemical peels, It gives a gentle exfoliating action.

LED Light Facial

Aim to give your face a boost in collagen production to help make your skin smoother and even out the complexion, the LED light facial uses clinically-proven wavelengths of UV-free LED lights. Another added benefits of this treatment are that it doesn’t cause burns and may be safe for all skin colors and types as well as able to treat acne and reduce inflammation.

At Lumina Aesthetics, we are passionate about helping you treat your skin the right way. If you have serious seasonal acne breakouts, and you aren’t sure what the best method is of getting rid of it, you can contact Lumina’s Patient Care Coordinator to schedule a consultation right away. Hormonal Acne can be an irritating and painful condition that leaves blemishes on the skin and a look that is less than desirable. To get your skincare treatments started as quickly as possible, feel free to contact us online or give us a call at +6281228888837 to speak with your Patient Care Coordinator!

See you soon at Lumina 😊

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