Dealing With Your Skin When It Freaks Out & You Don't Know Why
When you come from a history of problematic skin and it's been in a good patch for years. When it starts to freak out...you panic. And call it shallow but having red, raw and painful blemishes is something that really knocks your confidence. Since August my skin has been changing and whilst it's cleared up from my initial severe breakout there is something still not quite right about it and here are some of the things that I've been doing and using to give it a helping hand.
DON'T PANIC
When breakouts start to erupt out of nowhere and you're not sure why it's really easy to panic. I know I've done it so many times in the past where I've struggled with breakouts, freaked out and applied everything I own hoping that something would work out. And it never works, all it does it make whatever the situation is a lot worse [in my experience] and then you feel even worse than you did before.
GOOD SKIN GOES FURTHER THAN SKINCARE
Having good clear skin is something that's so complex. It goes so much further than skincare and things like diet, general health, medication, lifestyle, hormones, stress and so much more are all things to take into consideration and have to be thought about when things start to go awry.
SKIN CHANGES
Even though it's something that I've researched time and time again I have no clue whether it's actually true that your skin changes every 7 years. But skin definitely changes and having to learn to deal with a completely new skin type certainly isn't it easy but it's just part of life. My skin used to be so oily, then it became more combination and I started to struggle with dehydration and right now my skin is returning back to an oily state. Some might say paying close attention to your complexion is ridiculous but to me it's really important for understanding my skin so that I can use the right products and not waste money on something that isn't for my skin type.
CLEANSE AM & PM - NO MATTER WHAT
The skincare junkie and beauty blogger part of me doesn't want to admit that sometimes I just don't make it into the bathroom with my flannel and give my face a proper wash. Even though I always make sure that I take my makeup off. There is a big difference between taking your makeup off and giving your face a thorough cleanse. I know whenever I start slack with my cleansing routine my skin starts to freak out. My problem is that when I'm not leaving the house or wearing makeup I tend to forget and I'm sure it's something we all do. Washing your face properly is probably one of the easiest skincare steps but it makes all the difference in the world to the overall state of your complexion.
WHAT YOUR SKIN NEEDS
Whenever my skin goes through a rough time I try and keep my routine as simple as possible and ditch anything that might be a little overpowering as my skin loves simplicity and structure. Even though my product choice wasn't the cause of my skin issues. When I got to the end of everything in my current routine [I don't really like switching half way through something]. I decided to go back to the products that I know no matter what work and incorporate something that might help with the issues I was facing.
A CREAM CLEANSER
LIZ EARLE CLEANSER & POLISH*: It was a toss up between this and the Antipodes Grace cleanser which also a beautiful cream cleanser but C&P needed to be used up first so I went with this. I feel like I always mention this product but it's because it's something that I firmly believe in. It works so well with my skin no matter what condition it's in and because it's so soft and creamy it feels lovely to apply when your complexion might feel a little tender and sore. Although I would class this as a high-end product in the general scale of skincare it's a mid-range item at £14 and well worth the investment as I find a tube lasts a good few months with daily AM & PM use.
TREATMENT
ORIGINS ORIGINAL SKIN SERUM: Something that might be a surprise to long-term readers of mine is that I'm no longer using La Roche Posay Effalcar Duo [+]. I know, quite the shock but I wanted to know if that's what was keeping my skin clear or if my skin was generally a lot better on its own. I was a little scared to cut it out of my routine in case my skin went to complete garbage but it didn't [I stopped using it in March]. However, I've learnt that my skin does do better when I have some of treatment in my routine. The Origins Original Skin Serum is something that was passed onto me and I've been meaning to try for a while. It promises to help with pores and give the skin more of an even finish and for me, it's done just that. It makes my complexion feel beautifully smooth and helped keep the more oil-prone areas at bay. It's not to be compared to LRP ED as the two aren't at all similar but this has been helping my skin texture even whilst dealing with breakouts.
