5 top tips to change your skin’s story from the inside out!

By Kate “One Take Kate” Taylor

Yip. I didn’t really want to admit it at first, nor accept it. As a teen once my acne had surfaced, it made itself at home and since then, I’ve never been without it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sure there’s been times when my skin was better than others but this seemed down to mere luck than any kind of management on my part! I hated ‘my pimples’. They became the burden I was saddled with, they sapped my confidence, prevented me from doing things, wearing types of clothing which hurt if they got near my face… ‘my pimples’ made me feel less. I always felt that people were talking to my pimples instead of talking to me during conversations, their eyes lingering on some patch of over-stressed, painful pores. Perhaps the worst part of all of this was for a long time, I sorta felt that ‘my pimples’ were my fault, that it was because I wasn’t more this, or had too much of that in my personality. I felt like I had to get rid of ‘my pimples’ before my 30’s because in my mind, ‘successful career women don’t have pimples’. Then I got real and picked up some tips that could help you free your skin too.

1. What you put in is what will come out.
Trust me, it feels like I’ve tried E-V-E-R-Y-T-H-I-N-G; Clean & Clear, Roaccutane, Neutrogena, ProActive and while there was short term relief, the same ol’ skin issues kept popping up. It wasn’t until I looked inside that I started to find some relief. It seems so simple and you’ve probably read it a hundred times; but addressing your diet is my top tip to freeing your poor, overstressed skin. I decided to become vegetarian for other reasons; and as an added bonus started having people tell me how great my skin was looking about two months after becoming ‘veggo’. This intrigued me, so I started noting down what I ate and then when I’d have a big pimple flare up, I’d track it back to what I’d eaten. For me, another key problem area was dairy. Big time! I’m an ice cream fiend and I don’t deny myself, but now that I know what triggers my skin I don’t over indulge. Try it out and see what is troubling your skin; gluten, sugars, dairy, over consumption of alcohol, smoking…you don’t know until you look deeper. Plus, you’ve got to be committed to finding the source and vanquishing it. Stick with it, and by process of elimination, it’ll pay off!

Image via: D Sharon Pruitt
2. Sorry Soda…bye, bye.
Hands down the single thing I’ve found will give me a flare up, within hours, is Soda. Of any kind, Coke, Sprite – any! I’ve now come to think of it as what I see in the glass is what’s going to happen to my face…angry, busy, bubbling! Heck, I may as well just tip the glass out and rub it on my face directly. So, soda had to go! When it’s time for a treat, I’ve replaced it with iced teas, hot herbal teas, juices (careful here too with the sugars though!) and I’ve found just swapping out this major item has been so beneficial.
3. Take your skincare back to square one.
I needed to go right back to basics with my skincare routine. Stripping back to absolutely natural products, no parabens, gel instead of cream based formulas, herbs, organics and natural remedies from the kitchen or incorporated into products where best. After years of problem skin and acne, the overall condition of my skin has become sensitive and needs extra care to keep it at a normal blemish free level. That said, if you’re going all natural with your skincare routine as a sufferer of problem skin you are STILL going to have flare ups, it’s just par for the course. I’ve found adding one powerful yet gentle topical, dermatogically tested product will get you sorted. Targeting blemishes, not treating the whole face is the way to go. Otherwise you’re concentrating on areas that don’t need it…causing more problems with over cleansing and drying down the track. My favourite topical clearing treatment is the Clinique Anti-Blemish Clearing Gel – no fuss, no muss, it’s not over perfumed and really does the job on that specific blemish, fixing it up (more like first aid than skincare)! It’s at a super sweet price now with 15ml at $39.00. Definitely an achievable price for my post-Uni budget. Yus!
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4. Don’t stress it and definitely DON’T Squeeze it!
It’s common knowledge that when you get stressed, you get pimples to a higher degree; this is certainly the case for me. Then for some reason… due to stress and feelings of low self worth, I used to pick, scratch, squeeze and pop my frustrations out on my face. Bad move, as once the skin’s surface is broken your blemishes will spread, making them way worse. Instead, stay cool… resist the urge to worry or pick. Plan some ways to handle the bidness or the situation that’s causing you concern (I’ve got some great tips for that here) and definitely DON’T squeeze your pimples! Try to think about just how long your pimple will be around if you mess with it (weeks!), as opposed to a couple of days by using a topical treatment like the Clinique Anti-Blemish Clearing Gel on it, taking a deep breath and… stepping. Away. From. The. Mirror. You can do it!

 

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5. Accept that the skin you have is NOT a life sentence.

Along the way somewhere between Uni, getting married and working hard on my goals for the future… I just stopped caring about what people thought about ‘my pimples’. I knew that what I had to contribute as an individual and my overall health was more important than my outward appearance. If my skin condition was a problem for someone, it was definitely in the eye of the beholder. They became ‘the pimples’ instead of ‘my pimples’- as in something that I was no longer emotionally attached to in such a negative way. Pimples as an adult? So freaking what?! For some of us ladies, pimples, breakouts, spots – call `em what you will, a facial infection is a facial infection; and for me it’s a fact of life that sometimes, I’m going to have pimples. It’s just me… and there’s nothing wrong with that. So treating them from within is crucial and with a little help on the outside from a high quality, fast working topical treatment; preferably a dermatologically approved product (which Clinique Anti-Blemish Clearing Gel is), I can stop the spots before they become aching, sore cists to help me keep smiling and shining. So believe in yourself a little, take the time to trace back what maybe causing your skin issues and then challenge yourself to change your skin’s story from the inside out!


Have you got a skin story you want to share with me? Need an extra tip or two? Comment below or on Facebook or Twitter with the hashtag #cliniquestorychanger

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