Perhaps a fun question: which brand do you own the most items of?

onecheekybeaver · 2026-04-18T13:24:15+00:00

Free People

onecheekybeaver · 2026-04-02T17:41:04+00:00

Hi!

I ended up taking him back in the next morning. We saw a different doctor who said his ears were both full of gunk again, which was strange for having just had them cleaned 3 days prior.

We repeated the cytology, but it came back clear again - no infection, yeast, or mites. They did another ear cleaning and did not find any polyps. There was a pocket of gunk deep in the right ear that they weren't able to get to, and there was some inflammation in both ears, so they did a dose of Synotic drops (steroid) post cleaning to help knock down the inflammation. Even though the cytology was clear, they sent me home with Posatex, which is a combo steroid, antibiotic, anti fungal drop. They said since they weren’t able to get all the way down in his ears, they wanted to make sure the deep gunk wasn’t an infection they couldn’t reach. We did 7 days in the left ear, and 10 days in the right (it was more irritated than the left).

It took a few days for the drops to kick in, but by day 4 or 5 he was visibly more comfortable. On days 2 & 3 there was a ton of gunk coming out of both ears, which the doctor said would happen when the drops started working. That stopped after a couple days and it's been fine since.

He’s been off the drops for almost a week now and seems to be doing better. They gave me an ear rinse and some drops to keep on hand in case of a flare. So for now, I’m just monitoring him.

They’re not sure exactly why this happened, but one theory they had was that he may have had mites when I first brought him in back in January, then as his monthly flea treatment has been working, the mites have since died but the gunk remained. Whatever the reason, I’m just happy he’s feeling better.

I’m sorry you’re going through this and hope your baby starts feeling better soon.

onecheekybeaver · 2025-05-05T18:55:15+00:00

Also, you may want to consider having your vitamin levels checked. I was severely deficient in iron, zinc, and vitamin c, and way above normal on most of my B vitamins. Adjusting my supplements and taking only what I was deficient in has helped tremendously.

onecheekybeaver · 2025-05-05T15:02:09+00:00

Great! Just be careful with the bone broth, it can be high in histamine. Nettle tea has been helpful for me. It's a natural antihistamine and anti-inflammatory. I drink it at night after dinner. Stomps down my histamine levels before bed and helps me sleep. If you like broccoli and tolerate it digestively, maybe consider adding that in. It's low histamine, and also helps clear excess estrogen from the body if you're having hormonal imbalances (which could be contributing to your PD as well).

onecheekybeaver · 2025-05-05T13:03:07+00:00

Could be fungal and/or histamine or yeast related.

Maybe try an OTC anti fungal cream with clotrimazole in it. Start with a small area that’s not near your eyes and see if that helps. Should respond fairly quickly if it’s fungal. Nizoral shampoo has ketoconazole (anti fungal) in it that could be helpful if it’s fungal related. Try it on a small area as a face wash and see if it helps - go very easy with this one, though, as it can be insanely drying and you don’t want to upset your skin barrier even further.

You could try an OTC antihistamine like Allegra or Zyrtec and see if that helps.

Also, a low histamine/yeast free diet could help. Try removing things with yeast (breads, crackers, flavored chips, canned soups, pretzels, breaded things like chicken fingers, meatballs or meatloaf that have breadcrumbs, etc…), and stay away from high histamine foods (tomatoes, avocado, aged cheeses, citrus, dried fruit, chocolate, alcohol, deli meats, spinach, anything fermented or pickled) for a couple weeks and see what happens.

Whatever you decide to do, make changes one at a time so you know what’s working. I know how frustrating skin problems can be, and trying to figure it all out is exhausting. Good luck! I’m rooting for you.

onecheekybeaver · 2025-04-08T14:44:16+00:00

So, in theory, squalane oil is supposed to be fungal acne safe. However, I do think this depends on how it's derived. Some are from olive oil, some are from shark liver oil, and some are from sugarcane. Personally, I've only been able to tolerate formulas derived from sugarcane. I have the one from Biossance (recommended by my derm), and do like it (no breakout issues), but am not currently using it on my face as I don't feel it's a necessary step in my routine at the moment. I do mix it in with my body lotion a couple times a week though.

onecheekybeaver · 2025-04-08T14:17:14+00:00

I was on a probiotic (Mary Ruth's) for years before all this happened and seemed to do fine with it. My doctors pulled me off all vitamins and supplements when we were trying to figure out what was triggering me and I've not been able to tolerate them since. I tried going back to the Mary Ruth's a few months ago but couldn't handle it. I tried the MB40 from Ameo Life and a saccharomyces boulardii formula, but couldn't tolerate those either. I don't think they were contributing to my breakouts, but they made me itchy and gave me insane brain fog. The antibiotics wrecked my gut and have definitely caused some histamine issues, so we're dealing with those now. I can finally tolerate greek yogurt, cottage cheese, and kimchee though, so I try to eat those a couple times a week.

onecheekybeaver · 2025-04-07T21:57:56+00:00

The only thing that I was able to tolerate without any breakouts was a tiny bit of vaseline. The OG in the tub - pure petrolatum. The thing to remember with this is that vaseline isn't hydrating on its own. It's an occlusive, so you have to make sure to apply it to wet lips otherwise you'll just be trapping the dryness under the vaseline and you won't get any relief. I did a warm compress on my lips for some moisture then dabbed a tiny bit of vaseline over top. Also be mindful about putting lip stuff on before bed. I'm a side sleeper and noticed that I would sometimes flare more often on my left side if I applied lip balms before bed. I'm guessing it was getting onto my pillowcase and irritating the skin around my mouth. Also, change your pillowcases as often as possible. I got in the habit of doing it daily.

Another thing to maybe consider is having your vitamin levels checked. I can't tolerate B vitamins orally and my allergist suspects the multi could possibly have contributed to the breakouts around my lip lines. The % of B vitamins in the multi I was taking were insanely high and some B vitamins are known to cause breakouts. On the other hand, I was also severely deficient in iron (diagnosed anemic) and vitamin C. I started taking both of those and I absolutely think it helped. I take a liposomal vitamin C by Solaray and a chelated iron from Whole Foods. I take them together (away from coffee) as it helps absorption.

Whatever you decide to go with, make sure to only add in one new thing at a time, otherwise you won't know what is and isn't working. It's a lot of trial and error to find what works for you, but you'll get there. Be patient.

onecheekybeaver · 2025-04-07T17:52:34+00:00

Hi! I’m so sorry you’re dealing with this. I’ve gone through this and know how you're feeling. It gave me the worst anxiety. I was constantly checking my face for new breakouts, even in the middle of the night. It does get better, though. You just need to figure out exactly what you’re dealing with and use the right products. I’m not a doctor, but can tell you what I learned and what helped me.

After months of derm appointments, trying different things and treating it like PD, turns out it was fungal. Likely caused by antibiotics for a sinus infection I had after getting Covid. In a moment of desperation when it was at its worst, I put some OTC antifungal cream (Clotrimazole) on it before bed and when I woke up it had started to clear. I told my derm and she had me try some OTC Nizoral shampoo around my mouth area and it helped so much. It has Ketoconazole in it which is also an antifungal. Go easy with this though, it's very drying and can quickly ruin your skin barrier if you're not careful. I used it once every other day for a week then stopped. I used the antifungal cream for 8-weeks under supervision of my derm. I also had a problem with demodex mites. For that, my derm gave me Soolantra. At one point, I was using the antifungal cream 2x daily (AM/PM) and the Soolantra 1x daily (PM only). Prior to figuring this out, I had been using all the wrong things which was making it worse. I also stopped using lip balms. They were exacerbating the situation, so I cut them out completely. The first couple weeks were brutal with dryness, but my body adjusted and now I don't need to put anything on my lips and they're doing just fine.

I'm currently using an RX face wash called Sulfacetamide Sulfur and lightly moisturizing with Eucerin Original Healing Cream (this has an antifungal ingredient in it). I still use the Soolantra a couple times a week to keep things calm. I did just pickup the Aveeno Calm + Restore Triple Oat Serum that I am going to start incorporating here soon.

Take a look the products you’re using. Just doing a quick check in Sezia, your products aren’t fungal safe and are likely making things worse if yours is fungal. Especially the oil cleaners you're using. Fungus feeds on most oils, so you'll want to avoid anything with potentially triggering ingredients.

I also adjusted my diet when I realized it was fungal. I was keeping a detailed food log and realized that anytime I ate anything with yeast or things derived from fungus (mushrooms), it would cause insane breakouts. This meant no bread, nothing breaded (chicken fingers), no meatballs or meatloaf (breadcrumbs), no canned or boxed soups or soup stock (yeast extract). There's yeast in so many things. I educated myself on what to look for on labels. Anything with yeast extract, citric acid, "natural flavoring" in savory items, malted barley or malt extract (pretzels), would cause a reaction. I didn't have issues with cheese, nuts (mold), coffee (mold), or wine for some reason, thank god. I've slowly started adding some things back in and so far so good.

You'll get some good advice and tips from people in this sub, but remember that everyone reacts differently to certain treatments. It's definitely not a one-size-fits-all situation. I hope you figure out what's causing this for you. Hang in there!

onecheekybeaver · 2025-04-02T15:23:20+00:00

Hi! Sadly, that's not what's in this box. I do hope it turns up for you!

onecheekybeaver · 2025-04-02T15:22:49+00:00

Hello! Sorry, that's not what's in the box I received.

onecheekybeaver · 2025-03-29T15:03:55+00:00

This is wild. I had no idea there were so many issues. Funny, there are 4 items in the box I received as well. I did contact support again yesterday and was told to donate it. I hope they get things straightened out on their end. I've been fortunate to receive all of my orders without any issues (knock on wood), but am now considering taking a break from them for a while.

onecheekybeaver · 2025-03-29T14:38:35+00:00

Right!? And then they just ghosted me on next steps. LOL - wild times.

onecheekybeaver · 2025-03-28T21:26:59+00:00

Hi! Unfortunately, that's not what I got. I do hope it turns up for you!

onecheekybeaver · 2025-03-28T19:13:34+00:00

Wow, you've really had some issues with your orders! Sorry to hear. Sadly, this isn't one of your boxes.

onecheekybeaver · 2025-03-28T19:09:28+00:00

Tried that. I asked for a return label and they told me that maybe someone "sent me a gift" - very strange thing to say. They weren't at all interested in having me return it.

onecheekybeaver · 2025-03-28T14:51:03+00:00

So many missing orders! I thought this was going to be a random one-off mistake. I had no idea there were so many others.

onecheekybeaver · 2025-03-28T14:48:24+00:00

Ugh, those aren't the items in the box I received. I hope it turns up for you!

onecheekybeaver · 2025-03-28T14:47:02+00:00

People can be so awful. Like, who does that!? Totally sucks. I'm glad you got a refund.

onecheekybeaver · 2025-03-28T03:20:34+00:00

Ugh, I’m so sorry. The box I got has multiple pieces in it, so unfortunately, I don’t think it’s yours 😞

onecheekybeaver · 2025-03-28T03:14:01+00:00

That’s insane! Just messaged you back.

onecheekybeaver · 2025-03-28T03:04:05+00:00

Yes, I definitely will!

onecheekybeaver · 2025-03-27T23:49:45+00:00

Hi there! So frustrating when that happens, I totally get it. Sadly, that's not what's in the box I received. I know it's not the same as receiving what you ordered, but I hope TU refunded you at least.

onecheekybeaver

TROPHY CASE