How Bad Can AAS Make Pre Existing Acne

[A-man02]

Hi. I'm looking for advice on the effects of AAS on acne. I'm about to do my first cycle and my previous post was asking for advice about the cycle and I got all positive feedback so thanks to everyone who posted. My next question is:

I currently have severe acne and I'm wondering how bad will AAS make it? Are we talking about a bit worse or much much worse?

A bit about my past so you understand where I'm coming from. As a teen I had moderate acne, nothing too bad. I went to the dermatologist and he put me on accutane 20mg for 6 months, well my acne got horrendously severe. I'm talking big cystic welts where multiple spots would join up and spread all over my upper chest, entire back and all over my face. I'm talking 100's of spots. After the course it cleared up almost completely but left severe scarring which I'm not too concerned about. I'll get it sorted at some point.

About a year ago it started to come back but not too badly, tanning kept most of it at bay but then I decided for some reason to get an upper body wax before my holiday and bacteria got into the pores and I ended up with no joke about 50 whiteheads on my chest and got god knows how much on my shoulders. Once on holiday they dried up but when I came back home I got a massive breakout and ended up with red spots all over my upper back and some new cysts on my lower back.

Since then I've started a new regime. I've been on 100g of minocyline a day for 2 months, I take 50g of zinc per day, 400iu of vitamin E, fish oils and it wash it salicylic acid after my workouts, I change my tshirt 2/3 times a day and bed sheets once a week. And I plan on taking 8g of B5 daily once my cycle starts.

The acne is clearing up nicely, except the cystic acne which is obviously taking a bit longer. The cycle I'm doing is as follows

Cycle:
Week1-12: 250mg test E x2 pw
Week 1-12: 0.5 mg adex E3D
Week 3-12: 250iu Hcg x 2 pw

PCT:
Week 14-18: Clomid 50/50/50/50
Week 14-18: Nolva 40/40/20/20/10 (10 mg optional)
Week 16 onwards: Activate Xtreme Test Booster

So all I'm really wondering is how bad can I expect my acne to get? Will it get a bit more severe or will all hell break loose? Will I get it on my face? Funnily enough my face doesn't get bad acne, only the odd spot here and there. Has anyone else been in the same situation as me or know anyone who has? All suggestions and advice is greatly appreciated.

 

[Enthusiast]

Simply put, acne is caused by overactive sebaceous glands. This causes them to produce large quantities of oil resulting in acne.

Taking testosterone will cause your sebaceous glands to be more active, if you have bad acne already then chances are it will get worse. How much worse is impossible to say as it is based on the phone individual.

For instance I don't normally have any acne, while on I rarely have acne either but I also shower at least once a day, sometimes twice and especially always after working out. So I count myself lucky but I also take measures to prevent it.

Tanning regularly 2 or 3 times a week can also help prevent this.
In extreme cases people use Accutane but it is known to 've very drying on your skin and also most run it 6+ months.

My best guess would be that since you have severe acne as a preexisting condition that was will only exacerbate the problem.

 

[juced_porkchop]

how old are you?

 

[A-man02]

Simply put, acne is caused by overactive sebaceous glands. This causes them to produce large quantities of oil resulting in acne.

Taking testosterone will cause your sebaceous glands to be more active, if you have bad acne already then chances are it will get worse. How much worse is impossible to say as it is based on the phone individual.

For instance I don't normally have any acne, while on I rarely have acne either but I also shower at least once a day, sometimes twice and especially always after working out. So I count myself lucky but I also take measures to prevent it.

Tanning regularly 2 or 3 times a week can also help prevent this.
In extreme cases people use Accutane but it is known to 've very drying on your skin and also most run it 6+ months.

My best guess would be that since you have severe acne as a preexisting condition that was will only exacerbate the problem.

Thanks for the reply. Yea I'm expecting it to get worse that's inevitable. I'm just trying to find out how much worse but then again I know it depends on the individual. I would take accutane again but my first experience was so bad (due to the purging) that I'm afraid to try it again. Although I might not have a choice

 

[A-man02]

how old are you?

I'm 24

 

[Harnold]

Thanks for the reply. Yea I'm expecting it to get worse that's inevitable. I'm just trying to find out how much worse but then again I know it depends on the individual. I would take accutane again but my first experience was so bad (due to the purging) that I'm afraid to try it again. Although I might not have a choice

I've seen some serious bacne from cycling, and no I'm not talking about lance Armstrong cycling.

 

[Mrrippedzilla]

It will get worse, no one can say by what degree.

IMO, you should avoid cycling if the acne is a serious concern - especially now you know that you dont respond well to accutane.
You also need to consider what happens after pct - I have seen cases of guys with a history of acne cycle when their skin has cleared up, get acne on cycle, then once they come off the acne doesnt dissappear.

Again, imo if its a big deal then dont cycle.

 

[A-man02]

It will get worse, no one can say by what degree.

IMO, you should avoid cycling if the acne is a serious concern - especially now you know that you dont respond well to accutane.
You also need to consider what happens after pct - I have seen cases of guys with a history of acne cycle when their skin has cleared up, get acne on cycle, then once they come off the acne doesnt dissappear.

Again, imo if its a big deal then dont cycle.

Cheers for the reply and the insight. To be honest I'm not too concerned with it getting a bit worse, I mean if I get 30 new pimples id be happy out. I'm just wondering if it's possible that it's going to ruin me. What I'm really wondering is how bad can it get? I probably sound like I'm whining but I'm not. I know the risks. I just want to know if it's going to make a huge difference or not. The stuff I'm taking now to reduce it is working and I'll continue to do it well past my pct too. Thanks again for your input.

 

[Mrrippedzilla]

The big worry would be with cystic acne rather than white/blackheads because even with the appropriate cleansing routine, tanning, etc cystic acne just isnt as responsive to these methods.
In terms of how bad? If you had severe acne in the past, chances are it will be severe again so your acne history is a good indication of how bad it can be.
I have seen some horror shows (google acne steroids images to get an idea) but its difficult to relate those to you.

Again, IMO if you have active cystic acne you shouldnt cycle because not only are you at risk of it getting worse, but you'll also have an increase in scarring that is very difficult, if not impossible, to get rid of.

 

[Havasu]

Acne can also be caused by high e2 levels which "shouldn't" be happening if you have never cycled, but it's possible. In my early 20's after having clear skin since about age 17, I all of a sudden started breaking out BAD, ALL the time. I tried everything under the son. Every line of everything. Come to find out what had happened, was my skin "changed", matured a bit, and what I had traditionally used to control acne was actually irritating my skin and the irritation was causing break-outs. Took me a good 5-6 years to figure that out.

I would suggest trying to find something that works with your skin that helps you clear up. I also suggest at 24 that you don't cycle yet. Give your body a little more time. Unless you genetically had low test to begin with your body is in full on production right now, and you should be able to make good gains with proper diet and training.

 

[A-man02]

The big worry would be with cystic acne rather than white/blackheads because even with the appropriate cleansing routine, tanning, etc cystic acne just isnt as responsive to these methods.
In terms of how bad? If you had severe acne in the past, chances are it will be severe again so your acne history is a good indication of how bad it can be.
I have seen some horror shows (google acne steroids images to get an idea) but its difficult to relate those to you.

Again, IMO if you have active cystic acne you shouldnt cycle because not only are you at risk of it getting worse, but you'll also have an increase in scarring that is very difficult, if not impossible, to get rid of.

Yea that's what I'm worried about, although I've been clear of severe acne for many years, it only started coming back 2 months ago after I got waxed. Bacteria obviously got into the open pores after the hair was pulled out. It's starting to clear up now though.

I've seen some of the images on google and most seem to be from rare forms of acne although I wouldn't want to risk it. I would consider taking accutane if it wasn't going to purge as bad as before. I was told the purging was worse then normal so I wonder if it's a once off thing or not. I'll consult a dermatologist before I continue any further.

You said you've seen some horror shows, how bad are we talking? Thanks

 

[A-man02]

Acne can also be caused by high e2 levels which "shouldn't" be happening if you have never cycled, but it's possible. In my early 20's after having clear skin since about age 17, I all of a sudden started breaking out BAD, ALL the time. I tried everything under the son. Every line of everything. Come to find out what had happened, was my skin "changed", matured a bit, and what I had traditionally used to control acne was actually irritating my skin and the irritation was causing break-outs. Took me a good 5-6 years to figure that out.

I would suggest trying to find something that works with your skin that helps you clear up. I also suggest at 24 that you don't cycle yet. Give your body a little more time. Unless you genetically had low test to begin with your body is in full on production right now, and you should be able to make good gains with proper diet and training.

Interesting, I've read that a good AI should keep E2 levels under control but might be worth getting it checked out anyway. How do you go about getting it tested?

I've heard some stories of steroids clearing up acne, that would be unreal although extremely unlikely. Hopefully a dermatologist can give me a better insight. Cheers

 

[Mrrippedzilla]

Yea that's what I'm worried about, although I've been clear of severe acne for many years, it only started coming back 2 months ago after I got waxed. Bacteria obviously got into the open pores after the hair was pulled out. It's starting to clear up now though.

I've seen some of the images on google and most seem to be from rare forms of acne although I wouldn't want to risk it. I would consider taking accutane if it wasn't going to purge as bad as before. I was told the purging was worse then normal so I wonder if it's a once off thing or not. I'll consult a dermatologist before I continue any further.

You said you've seen some horror shows, how bad are we talking? Thanks

Think about the most severe acne you've had & be prepared for it to be equal to that - no point lookong at what others had to go through because of the genetic differences.