Meet Gulsah
This patient came to me in desperate help for her skin. She had been experiencing cystic and inflammatory acne for over a year, and had been prescribed antibiotics to treat it. After finishing the three month script, the acne had returned.
She had mentioned to me that at its peak, her acne would be throbbing, painful and would erupt without applying any pressure. It was at this point that she had gone back on doxycycline, due to the pain, and found me.
Her life at the time was quite stressful. Her job as a nurse is demanding, and she also had a hobby business on the side which chewed up a lot of time. She wasn’t eating regularly and was relying on energy drinks to pick her up in the afternoon so she could continue her jam-packed life. Her sleep was irregular, which she knows dramatically affects her skin.
My suspicions after our initial consultation was that there would be hormone imbalance and poor nutrient status driving the acne.
Her initial pathology results revealed:
low zinc status
hormonal imbalance (high testosterone and androstenedione)
elevated liver enzymes
So… my initial instincts were accurate!
Just as a side note… I’d like to note here that this patient had seen a doctor several times in regards to her acne, and each time was given an antibiotic script. The above results are typical of an acne patient, and it is not difficult to investigate these drivers. This sort of scenario makes me so much more passionate about the work that we do here at The Acne & Eczema Clinic, because the answers are there… it just takes a little groundwork to find them. And we are committed to doing that… because you deserve results that last!
Following The Clear Skin Formula™, our initial 3 months of treatment involved gut healing and nutrient supplementation to improve zinc status.
Our aims for treatment were to:
reduce testosterone and androstenedione, both of which are androgens that drive acne
heal the gut lining to help improve nutrient absorption and restore the microbiome which had been damaged due to long-term antibiotic use
reduce exposure to xenoestrogens (hormone disrupters) which would be furthering hormone imbalance
support the liver and detoxification pathways
One month into treatment this patient started seeing results.
She improved her diet and started eating according to her body-type. This improved her energy so she could cut out the energy drinks. She removed all plastics from her life (the main source of xenoestrogens). Her bowel motions improved, sleep became regulated and her stress levels dropped as she shut down her hobby business during the pandemic, which gave her more me-time.
We are now six months into treatment and the improvements have maintained, whilst progressively getting better. She now experiences one to two pimples on her chin one to two days a month, which are tied back to the hormonal drivers that we are still rectifying.
She says that she is most grateful for the change in her mood. When she first started taking her herbal remedy she felt a dramatic reduction in irritability, and says that her co-workers and husband commented on how calm she was. This irritability would have been due to the high testosterone, which increases aggression in people. The high androstenedione is reflective of increased adrenal output due to high stress, which would have been contributing to an increased stress response, resulting in poor stress tolerance and heightened emotional reactivity.
I am so happy with the progress of this patient, and look forward to seeing what additional improvements will happen now that she has introduced personalised skincare to help support and heal the skin.
Sharing the love on Instagram (Verve Natural Health was Emily’s previous multi-modality practice)
Remember…
You don’t have acne because you aren’t using that-one-skincare-product-that-claims-it-heals-everything.
You don’t have acne because of a lack of antibiotics or hormone replacement therapy.
You have acne because of very individual drivers.
And, it is in your uniqueness that you will find your answers.
Love, Emily
