Light treatment for acne?

aliasojo

I could well be making this up, but I'm sure I read something about some sort of light treatment for acne ( a bit like a SAD lamp I think ).

It was a while ago but I cant find anything about it. Anyone any idea what I might be on about?

Also, anyone heard of laser treatment for acne?

Been down the creams/lotions/doctor's pills routes for years etc...need to try the big guns now, lol.

red

This sounds vaguely familiar to me too...I think it has something to do with the light boosting circulation and so allowing the area to clear?

i have suffered from acne and tried loads of things...have you worked out the cause of your acne? If it is hormonal, I would really recommend maca powder which I have just started using along with a small dose of aloe vera...

frivolous_fay

Saw something on embarrassing bodies - think you go for sessions in a light cubicle jobbie. They also had a thing on laser treatment.

Try here:

http://www.channel4embarrassingillnesses.com/conditions/acne/

aliasojo

Thanks guys, it's actually my 20 yr old son who's having a seriously hard time right now. He's had problems for years but he's getting worryingly depressed about it all at the moment.

Thanks for the link, will go check it out.

sec79

Has he tried roaccutane? It was the only thing which cleared ny acne - I tried everything under the sun through the doctors first. I had the stubborn red spots which just wouldn't go away.

The dry skin is a pain with roaccutane, but no pain no gain! You do need to have blood tests a couple of time throughout the treatment and keep out of the sun so no sunbathing whilst on the medication! I wish I had gone on it sooner. I was on it for 6 months, and been off it for 9 months now. No acne has come back.

aliasojo

Tbh I feel that the possible side effects are worrying with roaccutane which is why I haven't suggested it to him and luckily he doesn't seem to have heard about it himself (yet). I have no doubt he's be back at the Doc asking for this if he knew about it but there's enough written about it for me to hope there are other things he could try that might bring success.

Loopy_Girl

Ooooh I second the Roaccutane as well. I had horrific skin for years (I won't go into the details suffuce to say it was sore, red and didn't look very pretty ). I was on it for 7 months almost 2 years ago and it was the best thing ever for me. I have not had a single spot and my skin is now nice and dry.

Yes the side effects aren't pleasant but it's a means to an end. There are some scare stories out there but I think you need to (or your son does) make an informed decision. You are constantly under the care of the hospital prescribing them and you get checks and a chat with a derm nurse every month and they keep a check on your mental health as well.

Ay the end of the day, if the problem is internal and not external, then all the potions and lotions aren't going to make a difference.

The way I got it explained to me was that my oil production in my body was out of sync which was causing the skin problems. The Roaccutane was going to 'reprogramme' my production to how it should have been when I was born - and it worked a treat!

Don't let your son be like I was and I suffered from bad skin from 12 to 32....my biggest regret is that I wasn't taken seriously by GP's and that it took till my early 30's to get my skin sorted when I so wish I had had the treatment in my teens and could have saved years of embarrassment and cancelling nights out etc all down to my skin and the self esteem issues it brought.

CrazyCat

A few years ago I bought one of these light treatment thingys:
http://www.beautyskinuk.co.uk/

It was pretty expensive but definitely made a difference to my spots, and fairly quickly too. I just had a quick look on ebay and there were some cheaper ones on there (used) - searched "acne lamp"

PinkPeach

Aliasojo - I was about to start a thread to ask anyone if they'd ever tried using a Dr Kern Beauty Skin acne treatment cure lamp, http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B000UA9Z4W/ref=s9_sima_gw_s0_p79_i1?pf_rd_m=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&pf_rd_s=center-5&pf_rd_r=1WA8KZZCWERTM23HMYN2&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=467128293&pf_rd_i=468294
I'm thinking about buying one but wondered if anyone had used this successfully?

not_tonight_josephine_2

Please do look into roaccutane again before completely dismissing it - I know exactly what your son is suffering and I feel so sorry for him, bad acne can totally destroy you.

People worry so much about the side effects of accutane, and yes - there are some pretty much certain side effects which are a hassle (the dry lips, awful!), but for me they are 100% worth it when you see the effect on your skin. The really terrible side effects which I know worry parents like depression, link to suicidal thoughts etc really are so incredibly rare, and are not a proven link anyway (eg people who have bad acne are very prone to depression anyway so it's very hard to say that accutane is the cause).

It totally changed my life, I suffered for almost 20 years with terrible skin and was in and out of counselling for a decade. I'm now happy for the first time I can remember! My only regret is that I didn't take it sooner; I feel like I missed out on a huge part of my life because of my skin.

Sorry, I am rambling now and I know I've gone completely off topic! But please do think about it again

Edited to add - Sorry, just realised this is actually a really old thread which has been revived! Aliasojo - let us know how your son got on