Doxycycline and Acne: What Users Say

• Gri...
• October 2, 2020

For Acne "I have been taking doxycycline for about a month and a half now and finally see improvement in my acne. I have been taking pictures every week, and the first month was horrific. My acne got way worse, and I started to get a little depressed. I still have acne and whiteheads, but I can see a difference in my skin, although I have acne scars all over my cheeks. I will update next month."

• Gri...
• October 2, 2020

For Acne "I have been taking doxycycline for about a month and a half now and finally see improvement in my acne. I have been taking pictures every week, and the first month was horrific. My acne got way worse, and I started to get a little depressed. I still have acne and whiteheads, but I can see a difference in my skin, although I have acne scars all over my cheeks. I will update next month."

• zom...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• February 24, 2020

For Acne "I used doxycycline off and on for about 2 years. Each time it would help my skin, but when I stopped taking it, my face would break out in horrible, cystic acne. I stopped taking it about a week ago once again. Broke out all around my nose, chin, forehead, and cheek area with painful acne. Not going to use this drug anymore."

• zom...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• February 24, 2020

For Acne "I used doxycycline off and on for about 2 years. Each time it would help my skin, but when I stopped taking it, my face would break out in horrible, cystic acne. I stopped taking it about a week ago once again. Broke out all around my nose, chin, forehead, and cheek area with painful acne. Not going to use this drug anymore."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• April 28, 2015

For Acne "This is my 3rd month on doxycycline, and my face has shown great improvements! I'm 19 with oily skin, and before, I had moderately severe acne with cysts, papules, and pustules. At one point, it hurt and annoyed me so much, plus it lowered my self-esteem that I decided to meet a dermatologist. She prescribed 100 mg of doxycycline along with 5% benzoyl peroxide to be taken daily. During the first month, it was horrible. My face broke out terribly, but I guess that was a part of it, clearing out the disgusting stuff inside our face. In the second month, my skin started to clear up, and now I can say that I'm 95% acne-free with occasional small zits during my period, but nothing hurt as much as before. The point is, don't give up :)"

• mod...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• June 23, 2014

For Acne "I would always get painful, under-the-skin acne around my time of the month. Two or three would be on my face and last for weeks. When I first went on doxycycline, my skin actually got worse at first. However, after the first month, my skin has never looked better. Your skin will get worse at first, but stick with it! I'm now on my second month and really happy I tried it out."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• November 7, 2014

For Acne "I've been taking this for a while, and it's worked the best out of everything I've tried. I still do get the occasional breakout and pimple around my period, but it has drastically reduced my acne overall."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• November 7, 2014

For Acne "I've been taking this for a while, and it's worked the best out of everything I've tried. I still do get the occasional breakout and pimple around my period, but it has drastically reduced my acne overall."

• gue...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• March 7, 2015

For Acne "Let me say I am 20, started off with tiny blackheads all over my head and a couple big pimples on my chin. I used this combined with tretinoin 0.1% cream. THIS TAKES TIME. I read up on this website while using it. First 3-4 weeks of using this and the cream, I've had the WORST acne I have ever had in my life, almost like cysts all over my forehead and chin. It gets better, as everyone says. I almost quit, but now 2 months in, my face is clear, but now I have scarring which I never had before. I am going back to the derm in a week and we will see how it goes. PATIENCE IS KEY!! Don't give up! I almost did."

• lp0...
• March 10, 2012

Doxycycline for Acne "I have had problems with acne all my life. I tried everything from creams, gels, pills, and even Accutane. Accutane was extremely harsh, and my acne was back within 3 months. I finally was prescribed Doryx along with Acanya in the morning and Epiduo at night. Please be patient, as this will make you break out really bad at first, but I promise you after 2 months, you will see the results. What's great too is you can adjust the dosage once your face clears up, so you don't have to take 150 mg all the time. My face is all cleared up now, and I only take it the week of my period to prevent breakouts."

• pin...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• January 19, 2020

For Acne "So basically, while on the medication, my acne cleared up and my face looked fine. It's been a week since I stopped taking it, and my face has broken out around my mouth worse than it has ever before, and some of it is cystic. So I have decided to start using Accutane to get rid of my acne once and for all. Also, weirdly, while on the drug, my face acne cleared up, but it, for some reason, gave me back acne, which I had never had before."

• pin...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• January 19, 2020

For Acne "So basically, while on the medication, my acne cleared up and my face looked fine. It's been a week since I stopped taking it, and my face has broken out around my mouth worse than it has ever before, and some of it is cystic. So I have decided to start using Accutane to get rid of my acne once and for all. Also, weirdly, while on the drug, my face acne cleared up, but it, for some reason, gave me back acne, which I had never had before."

• Kri...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• October 20, 2013

For Acne "So I've just turned 33, I have been battling with acne since puberty. I have tried every medication, topical and oral, over the years, and I can safely say this stuff actually works. I'm wondering why the doctor has only prescribed this to me six weeks ago. It is, for me, a lifesaver, or should I say a self-esteem saver? When we have clear skin, we are confident. I hate wearing caked-on makeup at my age, and thanks to Doxycycline, a little foundation is all I need now till my scars completely disappear. My skin has changed so much in six weeks, no more breakouts. Well, one pimple at period time is not bad at all. I'm so grateful to have found this medication, and just in time for the Australian summer. I highly recommend it to anyone :)"

• Esm...
• May 22, 2014

Doxycycline for Acne "I have had bad acne since the 4th grade. During my senior year in high school, I was put on Accutane, which worked for the duration of time that I was on it (moderately, mild breakouts, but the redness went away, a huge step up from my ridiculous acne!), but returned in moderation when I went to college in the fall. I waited until the spring to visit my dermatologist, and she put me on two facial creams and Monodox. I tried the facial creams alone, they didn't work. Then I tried Monodox, and within a week, I saw a huge difference. Not only did my acne almost disappear, but my breakouts were 1-2 mild, small pimples that went away, leaving no scars in 2 days. I have been on it about 3 months, and I couldn't be happier. My face is clear! Highly recommend."

• ItG...
• November 19, 2014

For Acne "Generally, my acne went away with the use of clindamycin cream for a 7-month period. But I got two giant pustules, and I was prescribed doxycycline 100 mg once a day to treat these issues. The third week, my acne got awful, but by week 4, it cleared up. I still get zits, but no major acne. Overall, it's been good, but I have only been on it a month, so I think by month 2 or 3, it will be gone. Stick with it and don't give up."

• ItG...
• November 19, 2014

For Acne "Generally, my acne went away with the use of clindamycin cream for a 7-month period. But I got two giant pustules, and I was prescribed doxycycline 100 mg once a day to treat these issues. The third week, my acne got awful, but by week 4, it cleared up. I still get zits, but no major acne. Overall, it's been good, but I have only been on it a month, so I think by month 2 or 3, it will be gone. Stick with it and don't give up."

• ano...
• July 23, 2017

For Acne "I have been on doxycycline 100 mg, 2 a day for just over 1 month now. My acne (which was moderate cystic acne) cleared slightly within the first two weeks. Although after about 3 weeks of being on the antibiotic, my skin broke out into the worst state it had ever been in. I had many huge pimples all over my cheeks, which took a few weeks to fade away. Although I feel the antibiotic must bring out everything under your skin first before it becomes effective, as a few days ago my skin was almost clear. I am starting to break out again slightly, but nowhere near as bad as the previous breakout. If you are starting doxycycline, you must give it time to see good results and be consistent for it to work, as I have seen great results so far."

• tut...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• October 7, 2019

For Bacterial Infection "I was prescribed this for 1 month to clear up a bacterial infection around my nose, and for the first two weeks, it seemed like it was slowly working. But then on the third week, I developed acne all along my jawline and cheeks, and I've never had acne there before, so that kinda sucked, but I thought I'll continue, it will probably go away. So as I continued this and I am two days away from finishing, the bacterial infection around my nose comes back. So now, a week after finishing my prescribed course, the nose infection, or whatever it is, is as bad as it has ever been, and I have new acne that I didn't have before. So yeah, I kinda don't want to leave the house."

• MJS...
• February 17, 2013

For Acne "I've been taking this for about four months now, and I only really have good things to say about it. I take this every day along with a birth control pill, and the results are wonderful. I used to have moderate acne, and NOTHING I did helped. This is the first time something really worked, and my skin is 99% clear now. Seeing even a small zit on my face is very rare. A few tips though: it took about three weeks before I saw results, and they weren't that impressive at first, but over time, I gradually got better skin. Just be patient. Also, I tended to still get bad breakouts around that time of the month, BUT in combination with a birth control pill, that went away. So, if you have hormonal acne, I strongly suggest this! I had great results."

• Den...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• December 11, 2018

For Acne "I’ve suffered from acne for a long, long time. I lost faith I could have clear skin. The doctor prescribed me doxycycline, Onexton, and Tazorac in October. I didn’t have faith my skin would stay clear. This is the first time since I was 16 that I’ve received compliments on my skin. I’m 31 now. It’s not 100 percent clear because I have light scarring, but I will take what my skin looks like. Try it. I did break out worse for about two weeks. Just really bad cystic acne, which I never had. It stayed in one spot. And then it started to clear in week 3. Currently in week 10. Was on Differin before this. Did nothing but make my acne worse for 14 weeks. I’m African American, and it worked well for my skin. I just refilled another prescription. I never want to run out."

• Ano...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• November 1, 2015

For Acne "Most of my teenage life, my skin was OK, not perfect, but I knew I would grow out of it. About 8 to 12 months ago, however, in my second year at university, I began to get aggressive, rashy-looking acne all over my cheeks and jaws - very unusual for me. When it started to mess with my self-confidence, I finally went to the doctor who prescribed me Doxycycline 100 mg, 1 tab every day for 3 months. After about 3 days on this pill, I experienced about 10 days of the worst acne I have ever had. I persevered though, and in the past 2 days (I am now halfway into my 3rd week), I have seen a MASSIVE difference. I'm only left with a few little red marks which will disappear over time. Do try this medication, and don't lose hope if your acne gets worse for a while!"

• Pam...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• June 19, 2015

For Acne "This helped my moderate hormonal acne so much. At first, I was scared to use it because of all the reviews I read saying how it causes you to purge before it gets better. Luckily for me, I did not have to go through that. It worked immediately! I was taking 50 mg doxy bid with tretinoin 0.05% gel applied topically at night. My face was smooth as butter. Eventually, I stopped using the gel and just the doxy, and it cleared my skin right up. Now I get a few pimples here and there around the time of my period."

• Typ...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• January 13, 2020

For Acne "I used doxycycline for a total of 6 months. I gave it 3 stars because in that period, from the 2nd month on to the 6th, my face acne literally disappeared. I must've gotten a total of only 4 pimples in that entire time. However, I did begin to get a pimple or 2 on my back or upper arms sometimes during the treatment, but the doctor assured me that doxycycline would cure those too. (Before starting the treatment, my entire body was flawless; only my face had pimples.) Now I'm writing this review about 4 weeks after finishing the 'final' treatment, and I have about 9 extremely painful pimples. Most are around the corner of my lips (something that never happened before); others are on the sides of my nose, my chin, and my forehead. In addition to these, there is an entire full-blown outbreak of pimples on my back and my upper arms. I cannot say that doxycycline has helped me at all. It was bad enough that the face pimples came back even worse, but to destroy the rest of my skin on my back and arms?"

• Sam...
• October 18, 2016

For Acne "I've been on it for about 6 weeks, and it has been making my acne much worse. I initially went on it for cystic acne that was on my face in a select few spots, but now I am having more cystic acne and spots all over my face. There is redness underneath my skin where there was never a problem, and there is a lot of scarring. I am having the worst breakout of my life and am worried I will look hideous or have a full face of makeup on my 21st birthday in a couple of weeks. I keep seeing people around my college with beautiful skin, and it makes me feel even worse about myself. I actually just emailed my doctor to see if I can stop taking it because it is killing my self-confidence and is making my issue much, much worse."

• Moj...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• February 23, 2014

For Acne "I started a cycle of doxycycline last June because of my horrible summer breakouts. I experienced dramatic results after about 6 weeks; my skin had never been clearer. I stopped taking it after 8 weeks and experienced a few pimples here and there. It is now February, and I'm pretty much back to square one with my acne. I started back on doxycycline last week. Best advice I can give: be patient, it takes a while, but you'll eventually see great results."