As you probably already know, I have struggled
with dry, sensitive skin and rosacea for years. Ever since my twin boys (who
are five now) were born, my skin has struggled to retain any moisture. As a
result I've been experiencing signs of early aging and irritation on the skin
on my face. In fact, my nickname for the rosacea on my cheeks has been my
"angry skin".
For the past four months I've been on an intense
search to hone and specialize my skin care routine to suit and treat the unique
array of problems I have with my skin.
For the past month, I've felt like I have really
dialed into a routine that works for me. Including products like pure avocado
oil as a night cream, an AHA gel under my moisturizer at night and a solid
daily anti-aging serum and moisturizer.
My skin has been steadily improving for weeks and
it's felt calm and happy during all of that time. Then over the past week or so
I've noticed something strange - my skin has swung the pendulum to the other
side of the spectrum and is feeling oily.
My cheeks, which were always the driest angry
part of my skin have "normalized" and there are no more dry flakey
patches. My rosacea has calmed to subtle rose patches on the apples of my
cheeks. And my T-zone has grown oily. I'm not breaking out, thank God. But
there's quite a bit more sebum on those parts of my face than there has been
before. I'll reiterate - I haven't changed my routine in a month or so. This is
just sort of happening out of the blue for me.
So I thought I'd do some research on transitioning
skin and decide if I need to worry or not.
Apparently skin can
change all of the time. Research says it can be due to hormones, my age, the
products I'm using, and even environmental factors.
Just my luck. After
working so hard to perfect a skin regimen, my skin suddenly goes and changes on
me!
I wondered if the change has something to do with the new
season and our colder, drier weather. But research tells us that in the fall
and winter skin needs more TLC because the transition from humid to cold
weather can be extremely drying. Drying.
Not oily-inducing. So…
I'm going to assume that my
skin-care regimen is actually benefiting my skin. I have managed to repair my
skin's acid mantle and it is better able to retain its hydration. Yay! So now
I'm left with a vanity full of products for dry skin. Does that mean I'll have
to relearn everything (and repurchase different beauty products) with an eye
toward normal/oily skin? At least with oily skin I can relax knowing signs of
aging will be delayed.
So, with contented
resignation at my skins new designations …some simple rules of thumb for
working with combo skin:
- Use liquid/cream
makeup for dry skin and powder for oily skin.
- Apply moisturizer
sparingly to your oily areas (try half the normal amount, apply while skin is
damp/almost dry to help spread the moisturizer), then dust some sheer/translucent
finishing powder (most of them are mattifying) to just those areas.
- Dry zones, which are usually located on the
cheeks and around the eyes, should be treated with rich creams and moisturizers.
- Oily areas, usually on the forehead and nose,
will benefit from frequent and thorough cleaning.
I'll look at this new occurrence with my skin as
a good sign, and try not to freak out. It's just another chapter in my journey.
And look! Through my research and skin regime I have learned enough to be able
to heal some long-term skin damage. I'll keep this post and subsequent posts
updated as my skin (I'm sure) continues to change. Hopefully for the better.
If your own skin is keeping you guessing, don't
allow yourself to stay stuck in a skin-care rut. There are so many products on
the market and so much information available that you can easily embark on your
own journey to nurture, heal and enhance your own beautiful skin.
Thank you for your time, and stay beautiful!
xoxox
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