Hello everyone...im kind of embarrassed to say but ever since i can remember, I have had this "dirt ring" on my neck..I also have dark under arms..sometimes its darker than other days..I tried looking it up online and I came up with "acanthosis nigricans" I have never heard of this..but it fits the description. I am pre-diabetic and have been on metformin for a few months. I was just wondering if anyone else has suffered with this?? Its horrible I just wonder if it will be gone once i loose more weight. It really is embarrassing to put my hair up and wearing tops with no sleeves just the thought of someone noticing or looking at it makes me shiver...

I've had this since I hit puberty, so since around age 11. It's always made me self conscious. I don't wear my hair up in public and never wear sleeveless tops. I also have it on my inner thighs. I remember when I was about 12, my mom saw my neck and thought I hadn't been washing it, and rubbed and rubbed and rubbed it with a wash cloth, trying to clean it. It makes me feel like I look dirty. Hate it! I have it, apparently, because I have PCOS and insulin resistance. I've only ever been put on birth control, but I am going to a new doctor in the next few weeks hopefully to try to get on Metformin. I've read that once your blood sugars are more controlled and you lose weight, the darkness can fade. Fingers crossed for that!

fingers crossed indeed! I am very hopeful...i also have PCOS it sucks that we have to go thru this but i guess the only way i will find out is to actually lose the weight! I also had it at a very young age..kids would asl/ talk about it and sometimes make fun of..I always felt ashamed and embarrassed but I never actually did anything about it. Now I feel determined to do something about it and hopeful that everything (my body and health) will get to being normal.

I used to have that; it actually went away with weight loss.

Diabetes runs on both sides of my family, so I wouldn't be surprised if I was pre-diabetic when I was heavier.

My mom thought that I wasn't washing my neck either, but no amount of scrubbing would get rid of it..