Skin + Clear = How?

Something I have been wanting to share with others for quite some time, but never knew how or if I should is skin care and how I, personally, keep my skin clear.

On average during the week I get complimented on my skin about 3-4 times. No joke. It's not something I'm bragging about. It's just the truth. And that isn't including the ones I get from Jakie Poo.

 

Throughout my life I have not always had clear skin. When I was in the 6th, 7th, and part of 8th grade I had to be put on perscription medicine that smelled really bad and was left in the fridge. Part of the reason I was breaking out so bad was because I'm female and that is the time I was becoming a young woman. I had blackheads all over my nose and tiny nasty chin zits with third eye zits as well. Also, when I was in the 5th grade I got Shingles on half my face and was left with scares all over my cheek and lip. I was called "2-face" in my family for a good laugh. Half way through 8th grade I got sick of it and started to try at home remedies like mixing the white yolk of an egg with oatmeal and milk and putting it on my face for 20 minutes every night. It made my skin feel soft, but never got rid of the zits.

I then realized that when all these breakouts were happening was during the time I started to wear make up.

My mom always told me to wash my face night and day, but I didn't always do that.

That was the other part of my breakouts. I needed to be cleansing my face. But how?

 

1. Washing: Have you ever noticed in the morning when you wake up left over mascara on your eyes? No, me niether. Why? Because before I got to sleep I wash my face with HOT water as if it was my religion. Nothing else though. No soaps, no scrubs, nothing. Just hot water. And I make sure I get every last bit of mascara, eyeliner, foundation, everything off my face. Is my face red after? Yep. But it feels good.

 

2. Exfoliate: Did you know Cindy Crawford exfoliates to stay young looking? I saw it on TV and decided that if I wanted to keep my skin young and healthy and soft, I needed to exfoliate. I do it about once a week in the shower. I get the shower really hot, give myself 5-10 minutes with the steam on my face, then exfoliate until my skin is soft, smooth, and amazing. After, I make sure to put a face lotion on (Cetephil is the only brand I will use), this way I don't dry up because my pores have been opened up. I don't break out after because the lotion doesn't have oil in it.

 

3. Tanning: This isn't neccessarily for zits, because I know a lot of people that go tanning to get rid of acne, I'm putting this up here because tanning makes people look older than they are. I still to the day can pull off looking like an 18 year if I want to, maybe even younger. Have I been tanning before? Of course, I am a girl and I did try out for cheerleading in the 8th grade. That was the first time I went. And I didn't even make the team! (Good thing too, Loved high school drill team). I went sporactically throughout highschool, but I can honestly say that I can count on my fingers how many times I've been. After high school I didn't get tan at all from the sun because I worked alot and was indoors. When I got married I got burned severly on my back on my honeymoon and now have a back full of freckles. Happened again a year later (think I would have learned my lesson), and was burned even worse. Now, I love my freckles, but they are a sign that I didn't take care of that part of my body. I'm telling you now, if you tan, if you go in the sun, COVER your face and neck! Your face is not enough. If you have a nice young looking face, but an older looking neck you will not look good. Trust me. COVER UP! Pale skin is beautiful and actually becoming very popular. Don't try to be something you aren't. If you tan amazingly, I'm jealous of you, but still take caution.

 

4. Make Up: Look at your make up and make sure it's not the cause of your problems. A lot of make up that is bought carries a ton of oil in it that can clog up the pores. I wear Clinique foundation, Clinique blush, and Clinique powder. I put a dab on my nose, chin, and middle of my forehead and work my way out that way it blends into my neck, and I'm not using a lot.

 

5. Working Out: This will tend to make you break out if you sweat a lot (like me). Just make sure you are washing your face immediately after you work out.

 

6. Now for my final thing about how I keep my face clear. Once a month I get one zit. You can only guess when in the month this happens. I get it in one of 3 spots. Right by my eyebrow in the middle of my eyes, my chin, or my cheek. When this happens, there is nothing I can do to prevent it. So, for a week out of every month I use Proactiv. I don't use the scrub, or the cleanser. I wash my face with hot water, put the lotion on, let the lotion dry, then I put the mask on and sleep in it.

 

Now this is what I do to keep my face clear, but I also do other things.

For instance:

I drink 100-120 OZ of water per day (I only drink bottled right now too, so we are going through cases like none other right now)

I take a Biotin Vitamin every day to keep my hair, nails, and skin nice and pretty.

I eat veggies (celery and broccoli are my favorite)

I don't eat chocolate

I don't eat sugar on a regular basis

I don't drink soda

 

I must also add that my skin is also partly genetic and I must give credit to my mom. Not only does she have great skin, but she has taught me that I need to take care of my skin. It's the first thing noticed when meeting new people. Second are the eyes.

 

I feel for those who have to be put on heavy duty medications. I know people very close and dear to my heart that had to be put on it. I'm just putting out there how I do it because I get asked so often how I keep my skin clear. Well, now here is my bible on how to do it. If you try it and it works for you then great! But if not, then I suggest consulting with your dermatologist.

 

I just noticed that I never said how I got rid of my scars, well I put Merderma on for about 2 years after I got better, and while they faded, when I cry or get upset they still flare up. You can't see them until I cry, so I don't worry about them anymore because with how happy of a life I have, crying doesn't happen often.

 

There you have it. Message me if you have questions. I love my skin and I want to keep it young and clear looking for as long as possible.

 

P.S. Remember that climate also can change how your skin reacts. For instance: I am more oily in Maryland than I am in Utah for obvious reasons. So, I do not need to worry about drying out while living on the east coast, while in Utah it can be a daily challenge. If you dry out a lot, I suggest exfoliating more.

 

I would post a photo of myself so you could see that I'm not lying about my skin, but Blogger isn't letting me. Maybe another day.