maintaining healthy skin

today I went to the dermatologist with my mother. I have pretty clear skin (with the occasional breakout) and minimal scarring, but I figured I should get myself checked out in case. The doctor agreed that my skin was good overall, but then noticed a beauty mark on my upper arm that turned out to be suspicious. short and gory story short, it was cut off and sent to a lab. yuck. the dermatologist proceeded to give me a lecture on keeping my skin healthy. I thought it would be nice to share it with you.

PRODUCTS TO CONSIDER FOR SKIN:

1. Dove sensitive skin beaty bar moisturizing cream. it smells good, leaves your skin very soft, and maintains the levels of oil/moisture on the surface. very cheap, retails for about 5$

2. Dove Sensitive Skin Nourishing Body Wash nutrium moisture. using this body wash will leave your skin feeling smooth and soft for days, and hydrates dry skin

3. Epiduo (prescription) gel. improves acne over continued use, it both clears existing acne and prevents future breakouts.

since i did have that suspicious beauty mark, i knew i needed to take better care of my skin when i go out into the sun. here are the tips my doctor gave

1. generously apply broad-spectrum water resistant sunscreen. SPF of AT LEAST 15, should be more. reply every two hours. NOTE: even on the days that the sun doesnt come out!

2. wear sunglasses to protect your eyes from ultraviolet rays

3. get your vitamin D through swallowing the actual vitamin, not sun tanning

4. avoid tanning beds. these also cause skin cancer AND wrinkles. ew.

5. make sure to check for changes in any beauty mark (discoloration, shifting, enlargening) and every once in a while go to the doctor just to make double sure.

cheers!

my skincare routine

for most of my life, i was plagued with bad skin. i was acne prone, my skin dried out really quickly and lotions didnt help, and my skin was also uneven and i would even get acne on my back. So through research but mostly through testing out bazillions of products till i found the right ones, i finally developed a routine that made my skin smoother, softer, clearer, and all around more healthy. so now I will share it with you.

1: DONT TOUCH YOUR FACE. seriously, do not bring your fingers to your face, dont scratch or pick or pop anything. it will only make things worse

2: a good facial cleanser. At the moment, I found a wonderful one: L'oreal 360. It comes with a scrub that you apply the cleanser with, and its really soft on your face. it is gel-like but turns into foam on contact with water. I also recommend the aveeno brand if you cant get this one.

3. use a toner daily. I use the l'oreal hydrafresh toner daily. a toner serves to remove dead skin on the surface of your face, as well as smooth the skin. I have seen a noticeable difference since I started using it, and it also will last you a very long time.

4. bare escentuals i.d. bare vitamins skin rev-er upper. this is a cream that my mom bought me when i started out with skincare. it helps with the complexion, smooths the surface of your skin, and adds vitamins to it so it gives you that healthy glow.

5. moisturize: i use cetaphil moisturizer, but there are an array of lotions and potions available from drugstores or bath&body works.

6. REMOVE ALL OF YOUR MAKEUP EVERY SINGLE NIGHT. Leaving makeup caked on is bad for your skin and gives you wrinkles and spots.

7. a specific acne treatment. Every once in a while when i feel i really need it, i use Neutrogenas acne wash. I dont like to do it too much because it dries out my skin, but its good like once a week or so. you can use other acne washes like marc bedescu or clean and clear.

hope this helps!