Skincare Blues: Dealing with Psoriasis

Photo from my trip to Bora Bora when my skin was clear and my metabolism was fast ;)

It’s been such a long time since I’ve made a post, and I figured I should start the new year with something that’s been top of mind for the past few months: SKIN!

As some of you know, I’ve had psoriasis since I was 8 years old and I feel as though I’ve been on a roller coaster ride with my skin for a majority of my life, especially the past few years. For those of you who don’t know what psoriasis is, it’s a persistent autoimmune disease where your skin cells multiply 10x faster and causes new cell growth that produces raised scales on your skin.

Sexy right?

I know, it’s a real buzzkill when crop tops are in style but the only thing you can wear is a turtle neck..
With this most recent outbreak, my typical routine of oatmeal soap, Clobetasol, Cetaphil and  phototherapy wasn’t working. This HAD to happen during the winter time so my skin was already dry from the weather. To prep you, this blog is about healing and MOISTURIZING! There will be a ton of steps listed below, and they've all worked for me. So basically yes, I baste myself in creams and oils to the point where I look like a glazed donut before I go to bed. #Moisture  

So now onto the blog, below I’ve listed a few of the steps I made to help heal and calm my skin from the inside out.

Meditation:
For me, a lot of my psoriasis stems from an accumulation of stress so meditating has helped me to block out the drama and pressure from my everyday life. Because I know stress is a trigger, I have to do the work within myself and my mind first before any of the below steps can take an effect on my skin.  

Diet:
90% Plant based diet – Avoiding carbs and sugars is good for your (body, mind and) skin, so incorporating more greens into your diet will help to decrease inflammation.
*As an advocate for burgers and lemon pepper wings, this was the hardest change I had to make. 

Fish oil pills/Coconut oil Pills – Fish oils contain Omega 3 Fatty Acids that help reduce inflammation, anxiety and stress. Coconut oils provide moisture to your hair, skin and nails, which is really good as dry skin irritates psoriasis.

Cleansers/Soaps:
African Black Bar Soap (Major Key) 
Important Ingredients:
Aloe Vera - moisturizes and calms dry sensitive skin
Lemon Balm - cleanses skin while preventing moisture loss. (And is a good source of antioxidants)
Sea Wrack - a mineral-rich soothing ingredient. Improves skin conditions like psoriasis.
Gotu Kola - helps promotes skin repair and renewal

*I purchased the black bar soap from the local beauty store for $3.99. But for more convenience I purchased the Shea Moisture liquid body wash, and while I don’t think it’s as strong as the bar of soap, it still provides healing and soothing to my skin.

Because I underwent a month and a half of phototherapy, I have a significant amount of dead skin from all the burning. So to help heal and refresh my skin, I purchased the Shea Moisture Hand and Body Scrub with Coconut Oil and Hibiscus. Below are ingredients that help the skin's surface:

Coconut Oil - Nourishes and helps firm skin with Vitamins E and K, iron and fatty acids
Hibiscus Flower - This natural emollient treats dry, rough skin and helps improve skin tone
Vitamin E - A powerful antioxidant highly effective in protecting skin from free radical damage

Moisturizer:
Cetaphil Moisturizing Cream – When you have sensitive skin, you have to avoid moisturizers that contain perfumes, fragrances, alcohol & lanolin. The Cetaphil cream is ideal for the dry patches of skin or psoriasis spots to keep the moisture in.

Medicine:
So yes, I do take a pill to supplement my daily routine. I am currently on a low dose of Methotrexate and while it is a very strong medicine-- it HAS to be prescribed to you by a dermatologist who has diagnosed you with severe psoriasis. And I can tell you first hand, that It SUCKS. You're nauseous, you're tired and you crave meat and carbs (See: Diet portion). but I know it's beneficial for my skin-- so until I find a better alternative, I will continue to crave tacos while scarfing down carrots. 

So to summarize: moisture, Moisture, Meditation & MOISTURE! Everyone's skin is different, so everyone's trigger for this disease is different, but to better your skin you have to make a lifestyle change. You can adjust the routine based on the severity, but this routine has helped me cope in a world filled with backless bodysuits and crop tops.                        

Glow So Hard - Elcie Glow Enhancer Product Review

Many women (like me) love the look of a good highlight, and many women (like me) love the look of radiant skin. Elcie Cosmetics, owned by the glamour goddess Lilit Caradanian created the Glow Enhancer dry oil right on the heels of their best selling Micro Silque Foundation (which I'm waiting for my new bottle to arrive). To satisfy the needs of women (like me) obsessed with glowing skin.

The Glow Enhancer is a lightweight dry face oil with a mixture of meadow foam, Jojoba and Rose Hip oils to lock in moisture, control excess oils from producing onto your skin and helps to reduce the appearance of lines and wrinkles. To help with the glow, there's finely milled mica particles mixed into the oil to help provide a light reflecting base for your foundation.

I tried my best to capture the amount of shimmer that the oil leaves on your skin, you can literally see all the glitter specs in one drop. The oil is lightweight and while the mica particles are finely milled, when spreading the product onto your skin, you can somewhat feel the glitter specs. Nothing rough, but just enough so you know that it's present in the product. 

Here I am trying to look casual and #deep while staring at a wall. Thank God for my colleague Anny whom i lured outside the building and forced to snap my photo in exchange for pack of gummy bears. Well worth it I'm sure :)
I personally saw a difference in my skin's appearance after applying the Glow Enhancer. My skin looked softer, my pores looked smaller and I exuded a glow so hard MF's want to fine me. Now onto the rest of my review.

Color
The oil has a champagne shimmer that is so hypnotizing I started at the bottle for a good 5 minutes before even trying it on. When you apply the drops of oil to your skin, the shimmer distributes onto your skin evenly and doesn't feel chunky. 

Longevity
I wore the oil under my Giorgio Armani Maestro foundation for 10 hours. This is an enhancing product, so it helped to make my skin look radiant and smooth. I do have an oily t-zone, so by the end of the day my skin looked a little bit more shiny than usual, but my cheeks (which are usually dry) continued to look radiant and filled with glow.  

Cons
I wore the glow oil with a tinted moisturizer the day before and for some reason I could see the glitter particles on my skin. I'm not sure if this was because I used more than two drops, or if it was because I did not use a medium to full coverage foundation. The shimmer was present through my tinted moisturizer and it did look a bit odd, but using a foundation with better coverage helped to really bring out the radiance.

Overall
If you love glowing skin, and want to exude radiance, this product is right for you. I think it's a great skin care product on its own for hair and body. I wouldn't necessarily leave it on my face without applying foundation, but I would leave it on my neck, shoulders or arms if I wanted a little bit more 'body glow'. I suggest using a medium to buildable coverage foundation to help the oils illuminate your skin.   

Release Date
The Glow Enhancer launches on April 19th at 12:00pm on www.ElcieCosmectics.com for $48.00 per bottle. 

Don't sleep on it.

Sephora Friends & Family Haul

Once a year women of all walks of life reach out to that one friend that knows someone at Sephora for their Friends and Family discount. Luckily for me one of my best friends is a Manager at Sephora and offered me the discount willingly without having to harass her (God bless you Maria!). 

The week prior to the sale, I went to my local Sephora (Powell SF) and requested for a few dozen samples of products I was interested in purchasing. I recommend that all patrons of Sephora ask for samples, as it is the best way to test out products and determining if the product is worth purchasing. So I came into the sale already knowing what I wanted :)

Below are the pictures of my purchases, please don’t mind my bed sheets lol.

Cover FX Infusion Drops
These drops transform your everyday beauty products into powerful skincare treatments that are customized to fit your skin’s needs. Custom Infusion Drops can be mixed with anything liquid: moisturizers, serums, oils, primers, foundations, and tinted moisturizers

Fresh Sugar Advanced Lip Therapy
This  lip treatment corrects and conditions lips for a smooth, youthful-looking finish. It is fortified with a high concentration of ultra-nourishing, age-delaying ingredients to nourish your lips.

Becca Backlight Priming Filter
A makeup primer to help blur imperfections and impart a radiant glow. Blended together, they impart a one-of-a-kind, lightweight, whipped fluid that creates a smooth canvas and acts as an instant filter, while the vitamin E-enriched formula minimizes the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. 

Ole Henriksen Three Little Wonders
A three-step daily regimen developed for an effective, easy, and healthy skincare routine to treat all major skin concerns.  These three little wonders with indulgent textures and aromas make treating your skin a daily pleasure. 

May Coop Raw Sauce
A hydrating, nourishing essence featuring a silky formula that's highly concentrated in maple tree sap to create a stronger skin environment, helping prep the skin to better absorb products to follow and boosting their effectiveness. 

As you can tell, almost everything I bought was a skincare product since most skin care is 1) EXPENSIVE and 2) Rarely on sale. So the F&F sale is the perfect opportunity to stock up on hydrating goodness and a 24oz Purity Cleanser :)

Relief for Sensitive Skin

Ok.. Confession. I have sensitive skin, I’ve had sensitive skin since I was 8 years old and I’m obsessed with finding new skin care products to try. I have psoriasis and had to care and treat my skin using a variety of different treatments for almost 20 years. I leaned how to control and treat my psoriasis using topical medications and establishing a skincare regimen that works best to reduce my flares. Unfortunately there is no cure for psoriasis, but there are a ton of all natural treatments to ease the pain.

Most recently I’ve discovered an all natural Sappo Hill's oatmeal soap from Whole Foods. I've told anyone that will listen to me about it, and it's glorious. Colloidal Oatmeal (finely grained oatmeal) promotes wound healing, collagen and stimulates the production of immune cells in the skin, this makes your skin stronger. The oats can absorb the excess oil in the skin, removes bacteria and has ultraviolet absorbing properties. Basically the colloidal oatmeal clean's, protect's and calm's your skin.

Photo Courtesy of SappoHill.com  

Since I was on this "all natural remedy" kick, I stepped into my neighborhood LUSH and bought the holy grail of body lotions: Dream Cream. This body lotion has oat milk, rose water, organic cocoa butter, chamomile, tea tree oil and lavender oil. Basically all the best ingredients for sensitive skin thrown in a jar, cracked with magic and sold with a smile. Anyone who's ever researched skin care, knows that oatmeal, rose water, tea tree oil and lavender are all MAJOR remedies for sensitive skin. All of these properties offer antibacterial, healing and soothing effects. Again.. it's organic/fair trade magic.

Don't believe me? Just watch... Slap some oatmeal soap and Dream Cream on your skin and watch the magic happen. After 2 days of use I began to see results! My skin calmed down and the uncomfortable feeling of having psoriasis subsided. If you have sensitive skin like excema, acne or rosacia, oatmeal soap works like a charm. 

Now go on and get your life!