It has taken all of my life to learn about having healthy skin. Here is what I have learned. I get no financial or other benefit for sharing this.
- Moisturizers are your friend. I didn’t think I needed moisturizers in the past because, for a long time, my skin was oily. As I have gotten older it has become less oily so they have been increasingly important. In fact, for the first time, I cut my lip and used DHC lip cream and it healed overnight. I had waited several days previously and I hadn’t seen healing on it. I use two moisturizers. A Clinique moisturizing gel and Lancome Toner. The toner goes first after the shower, and then when it is dry the Clinique is applied. With this combo, my head feels moisturized all day. If you need extra moisturizing DHC has a silver deep moisturizer which is applied during the day.
- Toners are your friend. I shared above that I used a Lancome Toner. I avoided Toners for years because I had an experience with one 15 years ago that left my skin very dry and taunt. It wasn’t all I needed so it hurt more than helped me. The Lancome has caused my skin to heal and is required to help the skin maintain its integrity.
- Gentle scrubbers are your friend. If you lightly use a gentle scrubber it can exfoliate the dead skin. You have to find the right scrubber and for me, it is called Buf Puff. It is really gentle and so far it is working great.
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skin products comic Lots of water is your friend. I tend to only drink water and when I don’t drink enough water I see that my skin suffers. I think part of the reason that I cut my lip is that I didn’t drink enough water. That is also supported in the medical literature of why this occurs.
- For me removing meat and dairy made the biggest difference. When I was a toddler a doctor thought I was allergic to milk and had me on a milk-free diet. I went to a doctor as a teen who diagnosed me with milk and other allergies with a painful test. By avoiding these things my skin has been healthier than ever. I also don’t feel stomachaches when I eat anymore and feel more alert and less tired.
- Changing the sheets/towels is important. I have become convinced that changing the sheets/towels more frequently has helped. Now I switch shower towels every few days instead of a week and I am experimenting with how often to change the bed sheets as well.
- Processed food seems to irritate my skin more. The more I eat processed food the more irritated my skin gets. I am slowly weaning myself off of the foods that I am used to (Sorry Fig Newmans) and onto more healthy things like fruits and vegetables. It is not easy to give up those long experienced tastes, but ultimately I feel physically and emotionally better for it. It is really neat to not feel the compulsion to eat certain foods.
- Showering more often. I shared earlier that I started to shower twice a day and that seemed to help my skin. It helped it in some ways but since Winter arrived it seemed to dry me out more. I am experimenting with occasionally taking a second shower and so far my skin seems to be making progress.
- Use vegetables for your skin. It is amazing what cucumber sliced on your skin can do. It always makes my skin feel and look better.
- Relax and let go of stress. The more anxiety I feel the worse my skin is. Even when the world is imploding around us, we have to have peace inside. Otherwise what point is there to living?
I hope some of these experiences can be useful to you. You probably already know this, but just a reminder of what has helped me. Good luck.