Facials: Aestheticians the New Dermatologists?

winerose.com

In my last post, I mentioned that I won a facial at the Summerize Your Skin seminar. This was VERY exciting to me, since I’m obviously interested in skin health and who doesn’t love to win things?!

The facial starts with a consultation, since you can’t really get a quality facial without a consultation first. Kerian asked me a lot of questions, like:

• What do you like/dislike about your skin? I like how soft my skin is, but don’t like that it’s often dry and sensitive. She confirmed that it is dry, but explained that it’s not an internal issue (meaning drinking more water won’t help it), and is instead a topical issue (meaning I’m putting something on it that dries it out).

• Do you regularly have break outs? I break out right around my period. Just from looking at my blemishes, she could tell that about half of them were hormonal, and the other half were caused by dirt and oils. (I asked her for more information about how she could tell, but she just shrugged and said, “Experience.”)

• How often do you wash your face? Once a day, at night. She wanted to get me started on twice a day, but if you’re only going to wash once, nighttime is the right time.

• What do you use to wash your face? Clean & Clear for sensitive skin. “Well there’s your problem,” she said. “Have you ever seen a commercial for Clean & Clear?”

“Yes.”

“And who do they market to?”

“Teenagers.”

“And how old are you?”

“26.”

“Need I say more?”

She’s right. I started using Clean & Clear while I was in high school. At the time, it was the only thing that worked for me. And it kept working for me (or so I thought), so I kept using it. But because teenagers’ skin is naturally oilier than adults’, even the stuff for sensitive skin was drying me out.

• What kind of moisturizer do you use? Neutrogena at night, Eucerin Everyday Protection with SPF during the day. (I got major points for those.)

• Do you exfoliate? No, not really. Turns out I should. And I knew that, but I could also tell that my skin– since it was damaged from my teen skincare regimen– couldn’t handle it.

• How often do you shampoo your hair? Every other day. Even though I cut back from every day to every other day (at the time), it’s still too much cleansing for a part of your body that needs a more natural oil production schedule (otherwise the oil production goes into overdrive). Kerian suggested twice a week, which sounded a little gross to me, but I gave it a shot (future post alert!).

For the actual facial, I got a customized Phytomer treatment using seaweed from the Brittany coast. It included cleansing, exfoliation, steaming, extractions, massage (neck, shoulders, face), mask, and sunscreen, since I did it in the middle of the day and went out into the sun after.

At the end, she writes up a little prescription-type note that suggests products and usage. And if you don’t need something, she’ll tell you. She skipped the toner for me and got me on a new cleanser (for grown-ups!) and a weekly exfoliant. She also told me when she wants to see me again; she said I should get facials twice a year: before winter and before summer (and I imagine this is true for a lot of people).

I was so amazed at the clinical nature of the whole experience (while still feeling pampered), that I was kicking myself for not doing it sooner.

Coming soon: reviews of my new grown-up products and what happened with my hair washing experiment.

Summerize Your Skin

be prepared!

After concentrating on caring for skin in the winter on this blog, I’m excited to announce that I will be attending a seminar on how to get my skin ready for summer this week! It will be held at a spa I went to about a year ago for an amazing massage (I haven’t been back because massages just aren’t in the budget), so I’m excited to find out what they have to offer.

I’m also a little concerned that it’s just going to be a sales pitch for some line of products that “real people” can’t afford. But, if that’s the case, at least they’ll have light refreshments (I’m imaging slices of cucumber– ha!), goodie bags, and opportunities to win things.

So. If you have summertime skin questions for a REAL expert, let me know and I’ll ask them on your behalf!

Outgrow Ingrown Hairs

So is it a mole or isn't it?? from goinglikesixty.com

I went to the dermatologist the other day to get this, uh, growth checked out. It looks like a raised, colorless (well, the color of my skin) mole on my thigh near my knee. It doesn’t change shape, size or color, but I was concerned because it seemed to appear out of nowhere and then never went away.

 At first I thought it was a pimple, but it wouldn’t pop. And then I thought it was an ingrown hair, but that didn’t seem right, either, because I never noticed the beginnings of it. But, as it turns out, it’s scar tissue that probably started as an ingrown hair. These bumps are common on women’s legs (you know, because of shaving).

While I’m not planning to get my bump removed, I would like to prevent another one from forming, so here are some tips to avoid ingrown hairs:

1. Don’t shave so much!
2. OR shave more often, but do so very gently each time
3. Shave in the same direction as hair growth
4. Make sure your skin is warm and soft prior to starting
5. Use a sharp, fresh razor (more on these later)

Does anyone have any other–perhaps non-shaving related tips on how to avoid ingrown hairs? How about what to do when you spot (or feel– ouch!) one?

Hot Showers vs. Cold Showers

I have eczema…or something like it. Dermatitis of some sort. Luckily, I know a few of the things that make it flare up and can work to avoid or protect myself against them:

• Stress.
• Extreme cold (and especially cold wind).
  
• Hot water.
• Scented lotions, body washes, etc.

It might come as a surprise, but hot water is the biggest struggle for me avoid. Well, I don’t really have a choice with cold weather, and limiting contact with hot water involves some SERIOUS self-discipline. The winter makes it especially hard because who doesn’t love a hot shower or bubble bath on a cold day? Stripping down and getting into a lukewarm shower isn’t very comforting.

But I have to do it. If the water is too hot, I’ll emerge with huge, red splotches all over my body, and my hands will have raised, bright red patches of irritated skin. I always apply lotion after showers, but on days when I choose the short term gratification of a hot shower over the long term pleasure of happy skin, I have to use a topical cream that my doctor prescribed. I can’t use it too often, though, because it thins out the skin and makes it photosensitive. (Gross.)

I really do have to pay for a steamy shower. Despite this, it’s hard to maintain the practice of lukewarm showers. Maybe I need to spell out the pros of a cold shower (besides not getting red and splotchy) instead of just the cons of taking a hot one:

• Increases circulation.
• Shinier, healthier hair.
• Wakes you up.
• Strengthens the immune system.
• Keeps more of your natural oils on your skin and hair. (This is related to the Golden Rule I mentioned in my last post about your skin overcompensating for lost oil.)
• Saves electricity.
• Saves water. Because it’s likely not going to be as long as a hot shower.

Of course, these are benefits of a cold shower and not necessarily a lukewarm one, but you get the idea. It’s also my understanding that you can get some of these benefits (especially the first three) from a cold blast for a minute or two at the very end of your shower (even if the rest of it was hot), but that won’t make my splotches disappear!
What are some of your skin’s known enemies and how do you combat them?