Check these problems out to see if you need to read on:
1. Do you have super sensitive and irritated acne that hurts when you touch them
2. You're afraid of deep cleansing and exfoliating because you don't want to hurt/pop/irritate/spread the acne
3. You have tried everything possible out there! A mad mask.. Benzyl Peroxide, Salicylic Acid, Willowbark...
4. You've even tried to NOT put anything on your skin.. but you just feel it get oily or super dry
Yupp, your skin is exactly like mine, and you don't know why! For me.. it definitely was a combination of stress, sleepless nights and unhealthy eating. But by the time I knew I had to do something about it, it kind of was too late, it just got worst and worst. Right now I am living a much more healthy lifestyle, doing pilates training 5 days a week, and not eating junk food, high sodium, processed foods, pop, and all the stuff that will scrape off the health from your body.
Not to mention at my job, it is mandatory that I wear a full face of makeup.. so that didn't exactly help too.
Alright, so enough about me, lets talk about what I can do to help improve your skin from little baby steps.
1. Look for products that are ALCOHOL FREE
Products nowadays contain nothing but gross chemicals that will irritate your skin, even the most natural products can only claim that they are 90% natural. But, I have to admit, that brands are becoming more conscious about what they put in, and clients are becoming more aware of wanting natural and paraben free. But alcohol is not a paraben, so it is contained in so many of your skincare products, it gets difficult to find ones that don't contain any, especially in your cleansers, toners and exfoliaters.
Alcohol is terrible for your skin, because it is stripping and it dehydrates, exactly how consuming alcoholic beverages would do for your skin inside out. Obviously if you are putting it in direct contact with your skin.. it really isn't going to help. So next time you go skincare shopping, even if you look for "natural" skincare, you should still read the ingredients to make sure they don't contain alcohol.
2. Don't use products that use Salicylic acid, Glycolic Acid or Benzyl Peroxide.
I know.. I know that these are the main ingredients that help with acne, but if you are super sensitive, trust me, this isn't the way! For our skin types, it will only irritate it. It is almost like doing chemotherapy for those who are not super sensitive. It heals you, but it drys out your skin so badly, you end up having a bunch of band affects afterwards and you gotta start hydrating your skin. Not to mention, some people start having acne again once they stop using these products. And you have to stop, because it is too damaging for your skin to have either or of these two ingredients permanently in your skincare routine.
3. Do not use a physical exfoliater
When you have skin that has very fragile acne, that would hurt and get irritated from touching it, doing a physical exfoliator (one with beads that you need to scrub into your skin) is really not the best solution. I know you'll ask me how you get rid of all that dead skin cells on your skin surface? My solution for you is not a chemical exfoliator too.. because those are usually super high in alcohol content, and really don't make anything better too... my solution for you is a gentle exfoliator like the clarisonic. Ok.. I know it may sound like a huge investment, but it works soooo well. If you think about it, you spending on a brand new skincare routine may cost just as much, if not more.
The reason why a clarisonic, or any of those gentle exfoliators that only does a gentle vibrating cleansing on the surface of your skin that is so gentle that you can use it both day and night without irritating the most sensitive skin types. It does the job, and does the deep cleansing, and it doesn't hurt. That is exactly what you need during this time. I cannot emphasize how important it is to give your skin a deep cleanse, and it is the most difficult when your skin is in pain, and you are out of solutions.
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1. Use a cleanser that is gentle, and for me I am currently using Ren's Clarifying Clay Cleanser. It is sulfate free, and you can tell because it doesn't foam up, which means it won't strip the natural oils off your skin, but at the same time it'll give your skin a feel of deep cleanse. It honestly is soooo gentle, but the clay that is in it will help to absorb all the impurities from your skin, all that dirt and oil, and help with those darn acne.
This is by far, the best cleanser that has helped with my acne problems. Try it.
2. Use a toner/hydrater that is either mineral water/grape water, or something that is simple and that you can literally only see a few ingredients. When it comes to skincare.. simple is always good, because if we can avoid chemicals, we always should. So I am currently using two, I like to alternate between Caudalie's grape water and Evion's mineral water. These two work amazing.. because they are super gentle, and so gentle that you can use on a baby's skin.
So why do we want to tone? I often hear a lot of people ask this question. Toners are super important, because it is what will help bring your crazy skin's Ph back to balance. What does that mean? Well, if your skin is breaking out, a lot of people I would automatically assume that you have either really dehydrated skin or super oily skin. So when your skin's Ph is out of balance, that is what will happen, your skin will either be super dry, or it will be super oily. When you use a toner, it will bring it balance. So this definitely is not a step you sensitive acne proned skin people should be skipping.
3. Find a moisturizer that is calming. I am currently using Caudalie's moisturizing sorbet. Just like all of their other products, it has got grape seed oil in it, and for this particular sorbet, it also has chamomile. Chamomille as you know it.. if you are a tea drinking, is super calming and relaxing, and it will do the exact thing for your skin. It is going to help calm and tone down the irritations that you are getting on your skin. It will help to relax all the painful acne and help sooth it completely. If you get the chance to try it, it feels so good and makes your skin feels so smooth, and is absolutely fast absorbing. You can use this whether you are extremely oily, combination or dry.
4. Lastly, protect your skin using sunscreen. Your skin has already gotten enough irritations with your stressful life, now keep it protected from the sun. The sun as you know it is one of the most damaging thing that could ever happen to your skin. It breaks down collagen, causes dark spots, and causes the fastest aging to your skin. A good sunscreen I like to recommend is the Clarins SPF 40. It is oil free, and fast absorbing so that your skin doesn't have that white and sticky feeling you always get when you apply sunscreen.
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So give those four products a try, and I hope I can help heal your skin, or at least improve it, like how mine has durastically in the last week that I have just completely changed my skincare routine to this.
One of the biggest tip also, is to be consistent with this, which means you must wash your face every day, moisturize it every day. It might sound stupid.. but people do get lazy, and they think if they didn't put on makeup that day, they don't need to cleanse. WRONG, wash your face EVERY DAY! You have no idea how much gross stuff and bacteria is in the air that we even breathe. Even if you live in Fiji, or places that have a low pollution rate, cleanse your face!
I hope I was able to educate you guys with some new tips and trips. Any questions? Feel free to leave comments below.. If you are shy to ask, feel free to email me:
carol.yuu92@gmail.com, and just have the heading as "responding to your blog" and I'll happily respond to you guys.
Have a fantabulous weekend!
-Carol
#nowplaying: Clarity - Zedd ft. Foxes
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