my skin is freaking out. ideas?

[zeebs]

Hi ladies,

My skin is freaking out! Can you help me?

So I always get acne. That's okay - I'm pretty good at treating that by now.

Now, I also get cold sores sometimes. This is tough because I use coconut oil to treat my acne and it makes cold sores worse due to its arginine content.

Now I am also getting spots all over my chin that are not quite acne and not quite cold sores. They seem like they might be really really minor impetigo spots, or atypical cold sores. They are much oilier than acne. They are crusty like cold sores and refuse to dry out. They are worse with application of acne products.

Any ideas what they might be? They are a little itchy but are not painful. They are white spots (pus/oil), small, with a red/pink inflamed area surrounding them. And they are on my chin, on both sides of my mouth. They aren't really noticeable to others but my skin feels really greasy and bumpy there and they are driving me crazy.

Do you know what they are and what I should do?

In the past I've been given steroid cream to treat them and that sort-of works but not completely, and they keep coming back. My doctor wasn't really sure what they were. I have also tried topical garlic oil treatment but it stinks and I'd prefer to find something else. And I still don't know WHAT the spots are.

Possibilities I have thought of:
cold sores
impetigo
pustular psoriasis (but this is exceedingly rare and generally occurs on the hands and feet, not the face)

help??

[karen]

My guess- and I'm not a doctor- is some sort of dermatitis/hive type thing. I agree with you about it not being psoraisis. I don't think it's impetigo- your doctor would have diagnosed that pretty quickly. Impetigo is also caused by an infection so it would spread and get bigger pretty quickly- and it's really really gross.

Have you changed anything in your routine lately- and I mean anything? Shampoo, moisturizer, soap, laundry detergent, new clothes, new sheets, different foods (I get it when I touch mangos), new toothpaste, sometimes wool sweaters can do strange things to skin. Are you doing any holiday craft projects that would expose you to anything new?

Generally if my skin is giving me some sort of issue, and I can't figure it out- I take Tagament, the stomach acid stuff. It works kind of like Benedryl but it doesn't make you sleepy. That tends to take care of it in a few days. Talk to your doctor or pharmacist before you take any meds- but that is the one that works for me personally.

[zeebs]

I hadn't thought about allergies. Here's what I've changed:

New living situation (last few months) - with lots of people and dogs and questionable laundry detergent situation (I AM allergic to fabric softeners)
Went tanning a couple of times for the winter blues (not excessively) - which is why it could be cold sores (UV exposure makes them worse)
Drinking more alcohol
Maybe dehydrated from cold weather

[karen]

The liberal arts major (me) found this- perioral dermatitis- it looks about like what you describe:
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency ... 001455.htm

I think it's something that goes in your mouth that's causing it- like food or toothpaste. Some people are allergic to their own saliva- odd but true. I find I get more reactions in the winter,or if I'm stressed. If it were me I'd try the Tagament, and if it doesn't work in a couple of days go back to the doctor- they can prescribe stuff to help according to the NIH site. I wouldn't do anything topical unless a doctor prescribed it.

[zeebs]

That is totally smart. I think you might be on to something! I will cease the steroid cream. I will eat healthy and see what happens.

[zeebs]

http://www.dermadoctor.com/article_Peri ... is_77.html

Karen, I think you are right.
I realized that I switched face washes (to Clinique's acne treatment line) which I thought would be fine after reading the ingredients, but which may have made this condition flare up.

Here is another site in case others stumble on this thread and need more info. Good call! Thanks for the idea!