A Month Of: I've Ditched My Exfoliating Products, FINAL update
So for those who are just tuning in, here is a quick recap… This year, I noticed my skin was becoming red and splotchy in hue — which is uncharacteristic because I’ve grown up with olive skin my whole life (no red/peach/pink/flushed hue to be found). The one thing that I know changed was the daily use of chemical exfoliators in my skincare routine. After some research, I realized I was over-doing this exfoliating trend.
So what next? I ditched all exfoliators for a month (28 days), treated my skin as sensitive skin and crossed my fingers that things would get back on track. You can read each weeks “diary” entries here, here, here and the final week below.
Last weeks results?
Start of the week (day 23)
I’m seeing some positives and negatives at the moment. Let’s end on a high, so negatives first, sadly I feel like the herbivore oil OR my hormones were breaking me out. So many congested pores. What the hell?! I used my Arcona Tea Tree mask and that seemed to help calm my acne a bit. I also noticed that the redness was starting to creep back in! What is going on?! Positives: I did notice my pores are actually starting to look smaller, so that’s an interesting and unexpected turn of events.
Halfway through week (Day 25)
Due to my issues earlier in the week, it was time to take on some drastic measures, I used Ren’s Evercalm overnight recover balm to help calm my skin. This overnight mask is a game changer. Next morning I woke up rebalanced, and no need for concealer or foundation yet again. Order has been restored. I’m going to keep things pretty basic re:routine the rest of the week.
End of the week (day 28)
OK this is the end of my experiment and I feel full of mixed emotions. There were very low lows and very high highs. Today we end on a high, my skin honestly looks amazing. I decided to finish the week off pretty pure with the products, routine outlined below. My skin isn’t perfect, and it’s not where I would like it to be, but it’s heading in the right direction.
Last weeks skincare routine:
Updated routine to include an overnight mask that I did twice this week.
AM/PM Routine
Cleanser - Belief, Aqua Bomb Jelly Cleanser
Toner - Tayers, Wich Hazel Original Toner with Aloe Vera
Face Mist - Vertly, CBD Infused Soothing Face Mist
Moisturizer - Pai, Chamomile and Rosehip Calming Day Cream
Eye Cream- Avya, Eye Bright Cream
Reminder: What products am I trying to avoid?
Ditching anything that helps me with acne (pray for me!) and fine lines. So no products that contain:
Vitamin C (really any citric acids)
Lactic Acid
Retinol
Glycolic Acid
Salicylic Acid
Physical exfoliators (scrubs, polishing powders or peeling gels)
In conclusion
My skin, and heart, went through a rollercoaster ride. Week 1: I saw no difference in my skin. Week 2: my skin exploded with break outs. I’m assuming it was either purging or having withdraw. Week 3: my face started to see some results but continued to break out. Week 4: Finally got into a groove but it was a careful balance.
Now that i’m at the end of the 28 days I’ve realized I can’t be a skincare guinea pig all the time. The take-aways are:
Moving forward I need to be careful with what products i’m putting on my face. Ingredient truly is important — not all products are formulated the same, ingredients can be synthetic, pH balance can be a bit off.
Be careful of how much exfoliating I do (will probably phase it out completely).
Start the transition into all natural/organic skincare. This goes back to ingredient. Using products that contain quality ingredient really does make a huge difference. I saw this right away even by testing two different CBD serums during this experiment. I’m not going to get sucked into trend products anymore. I want to be more purposeful into what products I try and what makes the most sense for my skin.
Use more hydrating and calming ingredients than I thought I needed.
I’m excited to continue on this journey to healthier, more neutralized skin. Hope this was helpful for you!
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