I often think back to my time in the Dermatology unit at the Sophia Children’s Hospital in Rotterdam. It was heart breaking to see the children covered from top to toe in ointment and bandages. They were in a lot of discomfort from the itching and had to wear special gloves to stop them from scratching their skin and damaging it even further. How awful! Eczema is a rotten illness and sadly more and more people are suffering from it: 10-20% of children and around 6% of adults suffer. Fortunately, not always as serious as the children that I saw but it is still awful. I am going to talk about eczema today and what you can do to soothe your skin.
What is more important than knowing what to apply, is knowing what not to apply! I receive e-mails daily from people who make skincare mistakes. And belief me, this can lead to big problems. To be honest with you, I have made errors myself… So, in order to save you from any more problems, I have made a list of the biggest skincare mistakes below.
Isn’t it just awful when you are running late, you take one last look in the mirror and you notice lots of tiny bits of peel on those beautifully glossed lips! And if your lipstick is red then there is no escaping the drama… I am now going to tell you how dry lips happen but, far more importantly, how you can resolve the issue.
No other subject within skincare causes so much confusion as the application of sun cream. Inaccurate reports on the internet and in the papers, false product claims and unfounded regulations have led to us all going about it in the wrong way! And as a result of this; lying on our beach towel in the sun probably causes more damage than if we’d put on no sun cream at all. To put it simply, we spend too much time in the sun because we think we are protected, which we are not. Therefore giving us a false sense of security!
After my medical training, when I became absorbed in skincare and cosmetic products, I had just come out of my acne stage. I was so pleased with that even, smooth skin! A few years later I become pregnant and the enjoyment was over. The changing hormone levels didn’t help my skin at all and I had problems with Rosacea and pigmentation spots. So, I clearly didn’t belong to the group of women whose skin glows during pregnancy. My youngest son is now seven, my oldest will be going to the Secondary school this year and when I look in the mirror I see once again, a fine calm skin. I hope that I am able to enjoy it before the menopause throws a spanner in the works. Because the menopause will definitely leave its mark on your skin…
I cannot help but write again about the cleansing of your face. Good cleansing is an essential step in your skincare regime and, sadly, I see countless problems in people who either cleanse too often or use the wrong products. A properly cleansed skin glows, is well hydrated with minimal risk of blocked pores and spots. Skin which isn’t well cleansed (or over cleansed) will look dull, dry or just very greasy and irritated. Over- zealous cleansing not only disrupts the skin’s barrier function, but it also wipes out all sorts of bacteria which maintain your skins healthy condition. The balance between too much and too little cleansing is very fine and, to complicate things further, differs from person to person.
In the far and distant past, while I was still working in the Plastic Surgery Department, I always looked forward to Tuesdays: that was my research day. While my colleagues were highly enthusiastic about the thought of spending the whole day and night in A and E or the Operating Theatre, my blood was pumping faster because I could sit at my computer and analyse my first data results. It’s not that I didn’t like operations and all the activities surrounding them, it’s just that my DNA is embedded with a research gene.
As I feel an explanation is required, this time it’s a peep behind the scenes at Uncover! And following that more specifically about the arduous delivery of the foundation.
When speaking about skin problems in my blog, I’m afraid I can also draw from my own experiences. Wrinkles, pigmentation spots, rosacea or pimples; I have got to know all of these very well. Fortunately, I now know how to treat these or how to prevent them from getting worse.