Should I go see Dr. Zizmor, the most heavily advertised dermatologist in NYC?
I second rocfob on the 2.5% BP gel. Otherwise, you can talk to your general practictioner – clindamycin cream can also be effective but more expensive than the 2.5% BP from acne.org. I’m turning 29 shortly (male) and still have breakouts (which is much less severe, less frequent, and lasts less long after going on the 2.5% BP morning and night). My coworkers (female) in their 30s still get breakouts every so often. My mother had breakouts into her 40s. Staying hydrated, avoiding stress, and getting enough sleep go long ways in preventing breakouts. When I drink heavily, I’m more prone to breakouts. When I stopped smoking for 3 months my breakouts were much less frequent. Air quality may make a difference, too. If you start taking zinc supplements, it may increase your horniness libido and in males, may increase the volume of your ejaculations.
I second rxrfrx, I’ve tried a variety of acne medicines and none were even even close to as good as the plan that is at acne.org, which is essentially 2.5% benzoyl peroxide and then moisturizing (I’d suggest something with alpha hydroxy), after using it for a year, my acne is almost entirely gone and now I just use the moisturizer everyday and use the benzoyl peroxide when I start to break out. I would give it a shot for a month before going to a dr.
Just to toss in my 2cents re: acne treatment, rather than Dr. Ziz: I, too, had really bad acne all throughout my teens and early 20s, and I also went on Accutane (twice!). It worked at the time, but the results only lasted for about 6 months after I was on it (sooooo not worth the pain of the previous 5 months taking the drug!). I tried pretty much everything a dermatologist would recommend and still ended up without results. Finally, two years ago, I caved and went to my ob-gyn to get put on the pill – and *bam* – acne gone. The moral of the story: dermatologists treat the surface of your skin. Every dermatologist I saw was trying to fix my skin, without ever considering that the problems in my skin were originating in another part of my body. Acne has many causes – hormonal, in my case, sometimes it’s bacteria, sometimes improper amounts of sebum, etc etc. If it’s truly your skin that is causing the problem, then a dermatologist will be able to help you – but if your acne is actually
Here is my biased opinion: I think going to Dr. Zizmor is a bad idea. I find doctors who advertise on the subway questionable. Even if they’re competent, they can often be bigtime insurance frauds, finding ways to bill for all manner of unnecessary things. Here is my slightly less biased opinion: Sometimes, going to the dermatologist for a strictly cosmetic reason–which includes acne–isn’t even covered by insurance (though I’m sure Dr. Z has long ago figured out a way around that). If you’re going to have to pay for it out of pocket, why not try to find a doctor whose office isn’t an assembly line? I really love my dermatologist. Love. Email me if you want.
