Today's episode, I wanted to come on and chat to you about my journey overcoming perioral dermatitis and hormonal acne. This has been such a long journey for me, and I think if you are a woman in your thirties going into your forties, you probably have also, at some point, struggled with acne of some sort, if not dermatitis or eczema as well. The more I post about this on instagram, the more comments I get with people who are in similar situations, which is why I wanted to come on today and chat to you about my experience with these. If you're struggling with, like, the angry, sore pimples, redness, bumps, or irritation around your mouth, I absolutely feel you. I really, really do, because it is so frustrating and it's embarrassing sometimes. It's really sore, and it's like that drop in your heart when you start seeing one come up because you think, come on, I've already had my babies. I've, like, gone through all these huge hormonal changes. I'm in my thirties. Why am I getting these things? It's so debilitating. So I'm there with you, and I just wanted to share a few things that have worked for me. Obviously, I'm not trained in skincare. I'm not a doctor. I'm studying nutrition. But I just wanted to come here and share my personal experience because I really do feel like I've gone through a journey with this, and I hope that by sharing my story and some of the things that have worked for me, they might just tick off a little idea in your head that might also help you. I have a highlight on Instagram if you'd like to go and see my journey and see how bad my skin really was. Sometimes I actually forget how far I've come, and I love to go back and look at that folder in my photos or that story highlight on Instagram just to remind myself, like, guys, it was awful. It was, like, all over my chin, all over my jawbone. That was the hormonal acne. And then the perioral dermatitis was, like, all around my mouth, all down my neck, and it even started to come around on my eyelids, which is, like, the typical sign of perioral dermatitis. So it is so bad, and I feel you. I wish I could jump through the mic, jump through the screen, and, like, give you a big hug, because I absolutely get it. It's a journey, and unfortunately, it takes a long time. My cat, Luna, has just come in. She can't understand who I'm talking to. So sorry. If you hear, like, this meowing. Let's start by going through a little bit of my story and what I've been through so that you can hopefully relate if you're in the same situation. When I was in my late teens, I actually can't remember if it was in high school, but I do remember my mum taking me to the appointment, so I must have been in high school, I was diagnosed with PCOS, which at the time, all that happened was that I got put on the pill. I didn't talk about it. I was kind of too young to go into any research about it or anything like that, but got diagnosed with PCOS. I remember having the ultrasound and there being, like, cysts all over my ovaries was really obvious. So that was the start. I was put on the pill, and then in my early twenties, I was diagnosed with Hashimoto's. And that came about because if I wasn't on the pill, I would miss periods for, like, I think I went almost two years at one point without having a period. And we just started to look into, obviously, my hormonal and, like, fertility, because I was engaged and I knew that I would want to start having babies. So it was at that point that I was diagnosed with hashimoto's. And then I started on thyroxine straight away. And what happened was as soon as I started on thyroxine, obviously, that helped me immensely, and I ended up falling pregnant with Zara, like, pretty much on my honeymoon, which was unexpected because of the information that I had been told. After Zara was born, I went back on the pill until we were ready to try for Adrian. And most of the time, the reasons why I would go back on the pill was because of acne. So after I had a baby, after I stopped breastfeeding, which, those who know my story, I never breastfeed for, like, more than two weeks because I was unable to get a good milk supply. Yeah, I would go back on the pill because of the acne and the really heavy periods. So that happened. Then I had Adrian went back on the pill, and then had come off the pill, probably thinking that I'd like to try going off the pill, and that's when we decided to have Chloe. That happened after Chloe was born. The heavy periods came, like, back so strong, the hormonal acne started coming back. I went back on the pill when Chloe was about one. I. So if you're up to date, I've had three babies by now, on and off the pill. When she was about one, I had really started looking into, like, nutrition and hormonal health a lot more and decided, that's it. I'm done with the pill. I want to come off the pill. So came off the pill, and it was then that the dermatitis started. Mind you, I was very stressed. Having three children was really difficult for me in those first two years, if I'm honest. I was working as a nail technician, which was hard to manage as well. We'd built a house, moved in. There was a lot of stress. So there was a lot of stress. I'd come off the pill. I started getting these, like, rashes around my lips, around my chin, and that was, like, amongst the hormonal acne as well. I had no idea what it was. I kept changing up my skincare products, going to places, and getting, like, really harsh facials, like, microdermabrasion, I don't know, like, all those things that are probably not great and was just making it flare up even more. I would use, like, exfoliators, and in hindsight, I was probably just completely ruining my skin barrier. And it was also a sign from the inside saying, like, oh, my gosh, what is going on? Your inside, your body is not happy. Your gut is not happy. Like, yeah, you're just doing all the wrong things. So I ended up going to the doctor, and he told me to stop all products and all makeup and referred me to a dermatologist. Guys, when someone tells you when you've got horrible skin, to stop using makeup, it's, like, the hardest thing in the world. Like, even going to a pilates class where you're in front of the mirrors and you can see your skin, and it's so horrible, and everyone else's skin looks beautiful. You just want to be able to put a bit of makeup on it is so, so hard. So that was horrible. And I had to wait six weeks to get into this dermatologist because they're really hard to get into. So in those six weeks, it was hard and nothing was changing. I had a friend who was working at a beautician and I was still working at this time, mind you. So I, I was doing like red light therapy with her machine, and that would help a little bit. That was the only thing in the, like, really deep flare ups where that would kind of calm it down a little bit. So that's a good tip. But, yeah, it was just getting worse. It was getting worse and worse and it was so horrible. Anyways, finally got into the derm and she put me on minocycline, which is an antibiotic that helps perioral dermatitis and also hormonal acne. So she wanted me to go on that for twelve weeks. That was a huge struggle for me to come to terms with because I had started to look into my health so much and I was starting to really value gut health and all of those things. So to go on antibiotics was like a huge kick in the gut, literally, because I knew that it was really going to wreck my gut health. But I did it and actually I loved it. I actually loved being the only antibiotics because my skin started clearing up. I finally felt good in myself again, like, you know, happy to just go out without makeup. And I wasn't wearing any makeup at this point either, because she'd suggested to stop the makeup and go back to basics with skincare. Don't use any active ingredients. I will say that some of the reactions from the antibiotics for me was I would, like, have not diarrhea, but like, I would go to the toilet a lot, which I actually didn't mind because I felt like really constantly cleared out and I felt like my tummy was kind of flat. But that was obviously my gut having a reaction to the antibiotics. And then when I did end up coming off them, it took a long time for my gut to readjust back. So I went the other way, if that makes sense. And the other weird thing was my balance was really off. So doing pilates, I felt like it was really hard to balance, but I got used to that. But that was really the only two things. Otherwise, I was quite happy to be on it when I came off them. I went on a round of prebiotics and I think over time, I have repaired my gut health. However, the first time I came off them, three months later and the dermatitis came back. Can you imagine? Like, I was horrified, it was so awful. Like, I just, my heart sank. I was so upset. I was like, this is gonna be me. For my entire life. Like, it was just, ugh. I was just so upset. Anyways, I thought, I'm gonna see a different derm, because I didn't really love that first derm. She was great, but I felt like it was, you know those doctors where you feel like you're just, like, rushed in and out? They just want to get you out, they want to prescribe you and put you on your way. So I went to a different derm, and who actually had been recommended to me by one of my clients at the time. I was doing nails, and I absolutely loved her. She was so great. She took time. She gave me a whole bunch of different options, but she actually told me to go back on the antibiotics for six weeks. This time, same thing happened. My skin started clearing up. But in that time, I thought, that's it. I'll do this six weeks round of antibiotics. But after that, I do not want to be on them anymore. So I started researching. I was researching gut health. Vitamins and minerals that affect skin liver detoxification, foods that benefit skin health. And I really came up with a plan to try and heal my skin from the inside out. Once I was off the antibiotics, I also had to focus strongly on healing my gut, because you can imagine how much the antibiotics had affected my gut health at this point. So, with all of that in mind, that's my story. If you relate, I hope it makes you feel some comfort that you're not alone. These are my top three tips that I've worked out. Now, it's been a year since I have been off the antibiotics, and I can say that I have had a few times where I've had. Had a little hormonal pimple try and pop up, but it's healed pretty quickly. Every now and then, a tiny little rash starts to develop around my mouth, but it goes away pretty quickly, and that is because of the following things I'm going to tell you. So hopefully you can take these in mind. Tip number one actually has nothing to do with skincare. And I know it's probably going to annoy you because it's time. It takes time, and it's all about gut health. So your skin is literally telling you that something is not right internally. It's like it's having a toxin purge. Like, it's like trying to get rid of all of these things inside you that are affecting you negatively. So I investigated this deeply, and I really came back to the basics. The basics being eat whole foods as much as you can and try not to take supplements. Unless you've been advised by your doctor to take a certain supplement because of a deficiency, I definitely think that we live in a world at the moment where it's like, take this, take that, take this. And I don't think our bodies can handle, like, processing it all. And also keep in mind that when you're taking a certain supplement, it may be throwing off a different vitamin level or changing the absorption of some other mineral that you're having through food. So just be really conscious of only taking supplements that are medically recommended based on diagnostic reports, if that makes sense. So, the biggest change for my gut health has been focusing on whole foods and a much higher protein diet than I was used to. And this also included cutting out all protein powders. So this is huge. And for someone like me, it was huge because I was having a lot of protein powder. I was having at least one protein smoothie a day. And then I got to the point where I was actually mixing protein powder in, like, oats or yogurt or things like that, or in, like, treats that I was making at home. And especially pea protein. Pea protein and vegan protein can be really genetically modified, and the way that it's manufactured can be so bad for you. So you'll actually die at how many products have added protein. So just start noticing. Start looking at the packaging. PE protein, it actually causes acne all around your chin and jawline below your mouth. So if that's something that you're struggling with, I would suggest maybe looking into it a bit more. Like, obviously you're on your own journey. This is what worked for me, but I really think maybe looking into it could help you. I first learned about this from a guy called doctor Ben Johnson, who owns a skincare company called Osmosis. And I was listening to podcasts, and he actually said that it's not the pee itself, it's not the pea protein. If you were to eat those peas, you wouldn't get the reaction. It's actually the enzymes and preservatives that are used in the manufacture of the pea protein that sets off your gut health, creates mucus in your gut, changes your microbiome, and then it starts showing in your skin. So for them to actually extract enough protein to put it in and become a pea protein, that goes through a big extraction process of grinding into a flour, dehydrating everything if they've used water, and there's things added to kind of fasten up the process, if that makes sense. And it's those things that is what is attaching in your gut and causing the reaction. So as soon as I cut out protein supplements completely, I saw the biggest change, and I cut out everything. I was checking every single package to make sure it didn't have pea protein or soy protein isolate in it. And these days, if I add in a little bit of protein, I see it like a pimple, literally comes up a few days later. It is insane. Like, it seriously, obviously, because I was really heightened to it at one point. It's like my gut remembers. So, oh, my gosh, guys, just, like, try it. If you. If you can be bothered and you really want to give it a go, I would say that's the first place to start. So instead, focus on getting your protein from food. And this was really hard for me. If you've been following me for a while, you know that I was plant based for a long time, so getting protein from animal sources is really hard. I also cut out things like edamame beans and tofu and all of those, like, soy related protein sources, because I'd also research that that can affect it. So I really did have to go back to getting protein from animal produce, whole foods. So, for example, I make, like, at night, I'll make chia puddings made with, like, full fat greek yogurt. Or I'll have some boiled eggs in the fridge, and I'll have those with an apple for breakfast. And I'll always make sure at lunch I'm having, like, salmon or chicken or tuna or something like that. And then dinner, we will be having, like, beef or sausages or chicken. One thing I have started taking daily lately is a collagen supplement. And I haven't had any bad reactions from that. So I think that that is okay for me. I don't know, it might be okay for you, might not, but you can give that a go in terms of whole foods. It really comes back to how much **** is added to processed alternatives that can affect your gut health and throw off your hormone balance that will again start showing up in your skin. So I would suggest start by reading labels of the products that you're consuming regularly just to become more aware. So an example of this is, since I've been focusing more on the high protein, I've been adding dairy back in, and I've actually had a fine reaction. I've had no reaction, to be honest. Like, my skin doesn't seem to flare up when I have dairy. So that's been awesome. But one thing I was looking into was greek yogurt. So I wanted to be having a greek yogurt that was organic or just had really minimal ingredients. I didn't want something that had all these additives. And I was in the supermarket and I was looking at the ones that are, like, fit yogurt or, like, high protein or whatever. And they say that they have about 15 grams of protein per serve, but they also have, like, natural flavors, additives, sweeteners, all these things that you really don't need thickeners that would be affecting your gut health. If you just go and look at the plain greek yogurt, it has, like, 14 grams of protein. So why not just get that plain greek yogurt that's literally got just the basic ingredients, and then you can go and add whatever you like. You could add fresh berries, frozen berries, honey, maple syrup. You're much better to do that than to get the ones with the added protein added. And I just, it baffles me. I don't understand how it's, like, got this added pea protein or soy protein isolate, and it makes a difference of, like, 1 gram of protein, yet it would be affecting your gut health so bad. So just start taking notice because I think marketing of labels can be absolutely crazy, and it's just not worth it for the health of your gut. I do want to mention that. Just remember, it's your own journey. My skin is so different to yours, and you really have to do what works for you and your lifestyle. Sometimes all of the information that we hear, we read, it can become really overwhelming. Like, that happens to me. I just get so overwhelmed, and you just have to let it go. Just let it go. Take what works for you and leave the rest. The next two tips are faster. That was my biggest tip. So if you're still here and listening, I promise the next two are a lot faster. Tip number two is to simplify your skincare routine. So, yes, now we're down to skincare. I know that you're very inclined, when you have acne or a rash, to, like, add in all these products to try and get it away. But it really comes back to just, I used to just cleanse with water and like, a makeup, you know, those microfiber makeup removers that you can get in priceline? Pair it back really, really basic. Opt for gentle, fragrance free cleansers, and then avoid any products that have, like, sulfates, parabens, or irritants in them. One of the dermatologists I saw recommended avene products, and the other one recommended La Roche Posay products. I'm loving La Roche posay. They're just in priceline. I used serum, and then I think it's part of the tolerane collection. I've also got this on my instagram if you want to go and check it out. They're just super gentle, and I'm just loving them. Really nourishing as well. So an example of my morning routine would be to just cleanse, and then I'll use the la Roche Posay serum and then the La Roche Posay moisturizer, and then now I'm at a stage where I can put makeup back on, so I'll put sunscreen and then makeup. My nighttime would be using bioderma makeup remover and then the La Roche Posay serum, and then I use the la Roche posay sycoplast balm, which is, like a heavier, more moisturizing like cream every second night. I am now using 0.05 tretinoin, which the dermatologist recommended, but I've had to work up to that, and I was using it, like, only once a week and then once every three nights, and now I'm up to every second night. So I really would recommend going by the guidance of your professional. I also was seeing a friend who is a beautician, and she's amazing. And I was getting regular facials. Oh, this is tip number three, by the way. See a skin specialist who feels right to you, someone who is really gentle and doesn't just want to take your money or just believe in their skincare routine, like, make sure they're knowledgeable and they've had experience in lots of different avenues. So I go every four weeks, and we started off just doing super gentle cleansers and facials with, like, an enzyme mask. And then we worked up to doing a hydra facial and just really, really slowly. So, like, seeing your reaction, seeing that that's okay. And if you are okay, and you can start putting in more products just doing one at a time. So you might just add in a vitamin C serum in the morning, do that for a month, see how you feel. If it's fine, you've had no reactions, then you might start adding in the retinol at night and see how you go with that. But I definitely recommend going by advice of someone who knows. Don't just look it up and do it yourself. It's so much more helpful to have someone give you the exact routine and the exact program that you should be following and just doing it step by step, slowly, slowly, to see what works for you. So I really hope that that has helped you if you are unfortunately going through hormonal acne or perioral dermatitis. I just feel for you because it's really ****, to be honest. So I'm sending you a big hug and I hope you've picked up some tips. Please do let me know if you'd want me to expand on any of this or if there's anything else that you would really love me to talk about. Come on over to Instagram. I'm always there to have a chat. I love getting DM's from you guys. And yeah, until next week, have a wonderful week.