The Thing About Skin…
I write this post with a clay mask on my face still reeling from the fact that my dermatologist told me that..despite my delusions…my skin is very much NOT under control.
I really thought I was doing the best I could but clearly it was not enough. i joke i joke i kid i kid.
She wasn’t wrong though and I definitely needed to hear it or perhaps I would not have made the changes I needed to. This is the part where I launch into a comparison between the journey of life and the journey towards clear skin. Stay with me. It will make sense in the end.
Skincare has always been a passion of mine, as a pre-teen I started using acne treatment products before I even hit puberty and maybe it worked at warding off the pimples because I went through much of my teen years and early adulthood with clear skin. Praises be. It all went downhill however when second puberty hit at about age 25, all of a sudden my skin was breaking out , my eczema flare ups were constant and I felt very out of control. My routine no longer mattered, none of the products I tried worked and I continued to flail around for almost a year until I decided to seek professional help. I suppose that’s lesson 1.
None of us have all the answers, and there are people who went to school for the things we do not know and they are there for us to utilize their services. This applies to many things not just healthcare but business, art, finance. You may feel like you can figure it out on your own and sometimes you can but if you need help to do so there is nothing wrong with seeking it.
In asking for the help however, I had to create space for the changes that were required for it to work. I recall having to rehaul my routine and keeping my routine as simple (read boring) as I could. I will admit that it wasn’t fun initially but I was working towards a goal and I realize that these changes were necessary. I will admit that when things weren’t working as well as I hoped I avoided going back to my checkups. My inner Capricorn felt like I was failing but what I really needed was more help. This taught me about consistency and patience. In skincare, there are rarely any quick fixes, products can take months to start working but you have to stick with them or you will see no results. Many things in life are like that as well, they take time to come together and to bloom and our job is to continue to do the work.
It’s been almost 7 years on and off that I have been working with my dermatologist and truly some years are better than others, there are some years where I only need to see her 3 times and then there are other years where I may need to visit every other month (my bank account doesn’t like those years) .
When it comes to skincare however, there is no one size fits all, what works for me may not work for you and what your skin needs may differ from what mine requires. The more you know yourself, observe yourself and take note of your being is the easier it becomes to identify when something is no longer working, didn’t work at all or is just no longer for you.
Before I get too deep into my skincare/life journey comparisons I will share a few tips and tricks that have helped me through :-
1) Observe yourself. Take note of changes in your skin texture, moisture levels, skin one and any reactions to products. Document it. Take photos. Having the information is a great reference point for diagnosis as well as for progress.
2) Be consistent and patient. Give things time to work and don’t be afraid to try other things if they don’t. There are options at every price point and while you don’t want to get caught up in a loop of constantly purchasing new things, you also want to find things that work for you. I am a huge fan of sample sets and minis, I have found some of my mainstays through sample sets.
3) Everything will not work for you. It’s very easy to get sucked into the new it products and techniques and as someone who buys and is gifted a decent amount of skincare products? You really don’t need so much. You only have one face.
4) Accept your reality even while working towards changing it. I’m not going to pretend and I am trying my best to not be dramatic but there were quite a times when the last thing I wanted to do was be seen during a breakout or a flare up. But life did not stop for my pimples, I had to keep it pushing and dig deep into my inner resource of self esteem. Most of the times we’re making a bigger deal of a situation than it warrants.
I’ll work at sharing some more advice and perhaps some product recommendations in the next post.
Til then, be safe and be good (to you and to others).
Love & Light,
UltraRush