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Hi everyone, I just wanted to share what has worked for me in case I can help someone struggling with hormonal acne. It's nothing really new or original - I have to give a lot of credit to "The Big Hormone Post," which if you have not read, I highly recommend!
In November I started taking 480mg saw palmetto every day, and then in December I added 250mg of stinging nettle root extract, but I didn't start seeing any real difference in my skin until I starting taking the stinging nettle twice a day (so, 500mg) in January. Since then, I have not had a single new pimple, and my skin has been completely clear for over 2 months now. I have some red marks and scarring (some of them are slightly indented), so the results don't look too impressive at this time, but if my clear skin continues (which I hope it does) and I manage to fade some of the scarring I will happily post some photos.
I do feel it's worth mentioning that I still have very oily skin, which the supplements have not changed, but I've always had oily skin and it doesn't bother me much.
I was a bit skeptical at first, since (like many of you) nothing else I've tried seemed to work, and furthermore, Spiro, which most likely would have helped me, I'm not able to take because of other medications I'm on, and I wasn't ready for the risks associated with Accutane. Of course, experimenting on yourself with herbs is not necessarily the wisest thing to do either, and I am certainly not recommending that anyone try this without talking to a doctor, especially if you're unsure of the cause of your acne. However, if you have considerable evidence that your acne is because of androgens, this may be another option out there for you. I still can't believe that I've had clear skin for this long after years of struggle, and achieved it in less time than an Accutane course and with NO side effects! In fact, I'm a little afraid that I'm jinxing something by writing this post at all.
If you want to see what the process I went through was like and the exact brands/dosages of the herbs I'm taking, I have a thread in the personal logs forum right here:
It's been almost 6 months since I made this postand I would like to share with you all an update on how my skin has been doing, because, admittedly, there have been some ups and downs. This may be very long but please bear with me, especially if you're interested in going the herbal route for your hormonal acne, because I think there's a lot of potentially useful info here.
My current supplement routine is slightly different now for a couple of reasons (I will list everything I'm taking at the end of the post), and I'm still experimenting. My face did remain clear for another two months after I made this thread, but I've been struggling with some breakouts on and off since then. Still no cysts, but several have been bad enough to leave me with more PIH.
When the weather got warmer, it became difficult to get the stinging nettle extract that had been working so well for me because I have to order it online and the pills would actually melt in the heat by the time they made it to me (even with fast shipping). I found a different brand that I could buy in-store, but at a lower dose. I also switched to another brand of saw palmetto (also at a lower dose) because I found out some things about the brand that made me no longer want to support them. I was worried that this change might affect my acne, but I didn't notice much difference at first. I feel it's important to note that I noticed my skin going downhill before this point. I switched brands mid-May, but breakouts had started happening at the beginning of May (after being clear since the beginning of January)
So I began to get a couple of breakouts starting in May (possibly stress-related), was clear again for a few weeks afterwards so I didn't worry too much about it. Then, I started breaking out more often in June and July, which at first I also attributed to stress and then the hot weather, but I wasn't sure the supplements were really doing their job. Even so far in August I have had several breakouts (oddly, all on my forehead, which has not been a problem area for a long time).
Because the brands I switched to are lower doses, I have also added in pygeum extract, which I've been taking for about a month. I also took the liberty of ordering the stinging nettle by the brand I was previously using when it was a bit cooler outside, so I'm back to taking that one. My total dosage at this point is still lower than my previous combination of supplements (920mg vs. 980mg), but I think it's possible that combining three different plant types vs. only two might make a difference, as well as all the dosages being split up into twice per day (all speculation here, however). My skin is clear right now, but time will tell how well the updatedregimen really works. If I'm not staying clear after another month or so, I suspect this might be the best herbs can do for me, unless I can find higher doses somewhere (I'm not willing to experiment with taking more than the bottle recommends), or a pumpkin seed oil/beta sitosterol/etc supplement that I like. I may look into switching my birth control pill to Yasmin or something similar since I cannot take Spiro.
TL;DR: I started breaking out again (albeit less severely) after almost 4 months of clear skin on my saw palmetto and stinging nettle regimen. I have changed my supplement regimen to the following and it seems to be working well for me so far:
I take all of these twice a day (once in the morning, once in the evening)
250mg stinging nettle extract (Now Foods)
50mg pygeum africanum extract (Solaray)
160mg saw palmetto extract (Nature's Way)
Total dosage = 920mg
Feel free to PM me questions and I will reply to this thread as well!
12 hours ago, FiercePenguin said:Sorry you didn't have a good experience.. I'm an anxious person, so I can understand how bad that would be
Yeah it was a bummer! Spironolactone did the same. Had horrible breakots until 100mg but depression, exhaustion, crying spells, sleeping all the time. Pain in the butt
On 3/21/2016 at 6:29 AM, FiercePenguin said:Hi everyone, I just wanted to share what has worked for me in case I can help someone struggling with hormonal acne. It's nothing really new or original - I have to give a lot of credit to "The Big Hormone Post," which if you have not read, I highly recommend!
In November I started taking 480mg saw palmetto every day, and then in December I added 250mg of stinging nettle root extract, but I didn't start seeing any real difference in my skin until I starting taking the stinging nettle twice a day (so, 500mg) in January. Since then, I have not had a single new pimple, and my skin has been completely clear for over 2 months now. I have some red marks and scarring (some of them are slightly indented), so the results don't look too impressive at this time, but if my clear skin continues (which I hope it does) and I manage to fade some of the scarring I will happily post some photos.
I do feel it's worth mentioning that I still have very oily skin, which the supplements have not changed, but I've always had oily skin and it doesn't bother me much.I was a bit skeptical at first, since (like many of you) nothing else I've tried seemed to work, and furthermore, Spiro, which most likely would have helped me, I'm not able to take because of other medications I'm on, and I wasn't ready for the risks associated with Accutane. Of course, experimenting on yourself with herbs is not necessarily the wisest thing to do either, and I am certainly not recommending that anyone try this without talking to a doctor, especially if you're unsure of the cause of your acne. However, if you have considerable evidence that your acne is because of androgens, this may be another option out there for you. I still can't believe that I've had clear skin for this long after years of struggle, and achieved it in less time than an Accutane course and with NO side effects! In fact, I'm a little afraid that I'm jinxing something by writing this post at all.
If you want to see what the process I went through was like and the exact brands/dosages of the herbs I'm taking, I have a thread in the personal logs forum right here:
/topic/354133-saw-palmetto-experiment-now-saw-palmetto-stinging-nettle-pictures-added/?do=embed">
Did you notice any weird side effects of Saw Palmetto like weight gain?
On September 8, 2016 at 9:17 PM, FiercePenguin said:I haven't noticed any side effects at all since I've been using it
Thanks! Also, how soon did you see results when using both stinging nettle and saw palmetto together? I'm starting tomorrow!
On September 8, 2016 at 9:17 PM, FiercePenguin said:I haven't noticed any side effects at all since I've been using it
And ant initial purging?
10 hours ago, Jenjen77 said:Thanks! Also, how soon did you see results when using both stinging nettle and saw palmetto together? I'm starting tomorrow!
And ant initial purging?
Good luck! Please keep us updated and I hope it works out for you 
This is just my experience, but I didn't notice any initial breakout or purge. I was still breaking out about as much as I normally would while taking just saw palmetto alone (like it didn't really have any effect), and while I was taking saw palmetto and just 250mg of stinging nettle. It was only when I increased the dose of stinging nettle to 500mg (which is what it recommends on the bottle I have) that I stopped breaking out, and I seemed to notice a change almost immediately. The total time that it took me to increase the dose and get to that point though was about 2-3 months.
Hi there, I've not really heard of using stinging nettle until reading your posts and now I'm very intrigued! I was wondering if you know anything about the mechanism by which it works or about whether root or leaf extract is better? I've just started taking 320mg a day of saw palmetto in divided doses. My skin is going cystic again after coming off my birth control 3 months ago which had done a wonderful job of getting me clear (and I am now starting to severely regret coming off but I was worried about the health risks). Really hoping saw palmetto will help but wondering about adding stinging nettle to it like you did.
On another note, the Big Hormone Post seems to have disappeared! I remember reading it a while ago and thinking how useful it was but I can't seem to access it anymore, it keeps coming up with an error message, not sure if it's just me? Anyway, I wanted to know what other natural anti-androgens were recommended to combine with saw palmetto as I know it suggested two different herbs were more effective than one but I can't remember what the other suggestions were, or the types or doses or anything. Do you have any idea what's happened to it or remember what other alternatives were listed?
Sorry for all the questions and thanks in advance Really pleased you've managed to get clear the natural way as it gives me hope!
4 hours ago, MoonlitRiver said:Hi there, I've not really heard of using stinging nettle until reading your posts and now I'm very intrigued! I was wondering if you know anything about the mechanism by which it works or about whether root or leaf extract is better? I've just started taking 320mg a day of saw palmetto in divided doses. My skin is going cystic again after coming off my birth control 3 months ago which had done a wonderful job of getting me clear (and I am now starting to severely regret coming off but I was worried about the health risks). Really hoping saw palmetto will help but wondering about adding stinging nettle to it like you did.
On another note, the Big Hormone Post seems to have disappeared! I remember reading it a while ago and thinking how useful it was but I can't seem to access it anymore, it keeps coming up with an error message, not sure if it's just me? Anyway, I wanted to know what other natural anti-androgens were recommended to combine with saw palmetto as I know it suggested two different herbs were more effective than one but I can't remember what the other suggestions were, or the types or doses or anything. Do you have any idea what's happened to it or remember what other alternatives were listed?
Sorry for all the questions and thanks in advance
Certain threads sometimes disappear for me too. It seems like I can find them again if I log out, which is strange, but maybe that will fix the problem for you? If you can't find it though, I believe the list of herbs was this:
Saw palmetto
Stinging nettle
Pygeum
Pumpkin seed oil
Beta sitosterol
I take root extract, not leaf, but I'm not sure if there is a difference between root or leaf extract (as long as it is the extract and not the whole root or leaf). I also don't really understand the mechanism of action very well, but from what I do understand, it inhibits the conversion of testosterone to DHT (which is a more potent form of testosterone). It's difficult to find peer-reviewed articles about the effectiveness of herbs other than saw palmetto or in combination with saw palmetto, especially for females/acne, so most of this information I just find on Google. I wonder if there are any researchers out there reading this who would like to take on a new project? 
Unfortunately I haven't been as satisfied with my skin lately. I'm not getting horrible breakouts like I used to (and I am very thankful), but it doesn't seem like the herbs have been able to keep my skin clear all the time. I am continuing to take them though, along with birth control. I hope you have really great results with it! Would love to hear about your experience if you can update us. I truly believe that there is something really important here with anti-DHT herbs/supplements and maybe a more standardized, mainstream supplement/drug can be developed in the future to help people like us!
16 minutes ago, FiercePenguin said:Certain threads sometimes disappear for me too. It seems like I can find them again if I log out, which is strange, but maybe that will fix the problem for you? If you can't find it though, I believe the list of herbs was this:
Saw palmetto
Stinging nettle
Pygeum
Pumpkin seed oil
Beta sitosterol
I take root extract, not leaf, but I'm not sure if there is a difference between root or leaf extract (as long as it is the extract and not the whole root or leaf). I also don't really understand the mechanism of action very well, but from what I do understand, it inhibits the conversion of testosterone to DHT (which is a more potent form of testosterone). It's difficult to find peer-reviewed articles about the effectiveness of herbs other than saw palmetto or in combination with saw palmetto, especially for females/acne, so most of this information I just find on Google. I wonder if there are any researchers out there reading this who would like to take on a new project?
Unfortunately I haven't been as satisfied with my skin lately. I'm not getting horrible breakouts like I used to (and I am very thankful), but it doesn't seem like the herbs have been able to keep my skin clear all the time. I am continuing to take them though, along with birth control. I hope you have really great results with it! Would love to hear about your experience if you can update us. I truly believe that there is something really important here with anti-DHT herbs/supplements and maybe a more standardized, mainstream supplement/drug can be developed in the future to help people like us!
Hey, thanks for the detailed reply! I tried logging out and back in again and it didn't work for me but I posted about it in the feedback section and the mods are onto it now. Thanks for copying the list over for me though, that's really helpful.
That's what I found when googling it.... lots and lots on saw palmetto but nothing much on any of the others and nobody else saying they'd used a combination of different ones. Sorry to hear the herbs aren't keeping you clear anymore, that's a little discouraging. 
What birth control have you gone on? Dianette was really good for me but I came off it because the blood clot risk scared me. But if I can't clear up these cysts with herbs then going back on it is looking like my only option, it's the only thing that's ever cleared me up in 11 long years. Will certainly keep you updated, I think it is helping so far but not as much as I'd like but I've only been on it 3 days so far too early to judge yet.
As an addition, I just found this research on stinging nettle in women with high androgen levels which is an interesting read:
4 hours ago, MoonlitRiver said:That's what I found when googling it.... lots and lots on saw palmetto but nothing much on any of the others and nobody else saying they'd used a combination of different ones. Sorry to hear the herbs aren't keeping you clear anymore, that's a little discouraging.
Yeah, I have no idea what changed other than I now take a slightly lower dose of them altogether (but like I said in an earlier post I had a few small breakouts before that too). My only explanation at this point is that hormones do weird things sometimes, haha. I have no way of knowing if it would get worse if I stopped taking them, but I'd rather not find out.
I definitely understand your concerns about birth control. I have taken Minastrin (which I think is the same as Loestrin, which more people seem familiar with) and Enskyce/Reclipsen (generics for Desogen). Neither made my skin any better or worse. I'm on Yasmin now, which I was also afraid to take because of the blood clot risk, but decided to bite the bullet and switch after I read some articles that compared the risk across different pills and I found out that Desogen has about the same level of risk as Yasmin, and I had been taking it for a year. I don't have regular periods without bc and I have breakthrough bleeding on low dose pills (Minastrin/Loestrin), so unless I start getting side effects I figured I might as well take something that helps me in those aspects and is also good for acne, rather than be on one with the same risk that's doing nothing for my skin.