Beauty Tips For Body Care
Why do you always wear a hat, people ask me?I never used to wear hats. I just wore a lot of makeup. A. Lot. of. Makeup. Recently, people began commenting on how I now wear a hat almost every day -- and they're usually curious about the sudden change.So Leah, why do you always wear that hat?Why? Because my skin is so messed up and I needed to make a change. It's frustrating because people will tell me that I had nice skin or 'didn't need makeup!' I eventually got good at putting on makeup and covering up my face, because if I didn't wear makeup, I would have been repulsive -- at least to myself. My skin, especially my face, has been my enemy for a long time.My acne was so bad in my eyes it made me miserable every single time I looked in a mirror. Every time. "Maybe I look nice today?" I'd say to myself sometimes, then immediately think, "Well, not under that makeup." I would always be picking at my skin too. It was disgusting. This whole paragraph is awful. But it's true. I'd rip and scrape scars of old blemishes off with my nails, digging super deep into my skin to extract things -- knowing it was bad, but I felt like I needed to. I'd poke at my face for what felt like hours almost every night, trying to just make some of it go away before the next day. The first thing I'd do when I'd wake up was touch my face and glumly felt around for what I had to deal with that day. Because there was never just one thing popping up. It was always my whole face. And it sucked... For almost 15 years.I've always been looking for new ways to try and fix my skin. Tried Proactive and over the counter stuff, but that never worked. I went to a salon to get a facial skin treatment twice a month, thinking that would help. It hurt so bad. Pinch your arm then twist. It hurts! Think about an old Chinese woman squeezing every blemish on your face out (took her up to 40 minutes sometimes) and it hurting more than that. And while it helped a tiny bit, it no where near solved my problems. The woman who always worked with me said my skin was some of the worst she'd ever seen in 30 years.She said to try some deep cleansers, and I remembered when I went to Korea how amazing their skin care products are. So I got a ton of stuff. Oil, Exfoliater, Cleanser, Toner, Essence, Ampoules, Serums, Masks, Emulisfier, and a day lotion and a night lotion.It made it worse!!!It was way too much stuff at once all shocking my system! Crap!!!! I didn't know which thing wasn't working and which was, because I got so many things. UGHHH. I reached out to a makeup artist who I work with for some advice. She said to cut back on things and to only use the Cleanser, Toner, and Lotions. She even showed me a different type of Cleanser to try (I did and it didn't work).Things were okay for a while thanks to her advice. But then I went to Europe for a month, and whenever my skin travels to another area, oh boy. Imagine the kid screaming bloody murder in the grocery store because he just got told he can't have the Lucky Charms. It made such a fuss anytime I went anywhere. So going to Paris, London, Brussels, and Berlin each negatively affected my skin in different ways -- and I could tell that it was getting even worse.When I got back from Europe, my skin was the worst I've ever seen it. I didn't want to go outside, I didn't want to do anything or see anyone. My mom came to visit from Maryland after I got back and could immediately tell how upset my skin made me. (Mom if you're ever reading this, I love you! Thank you!) She made an appointment at the Dermatologist and we went later that week. I'd never done it before this because there was //always// an //excuse// not to go. My skin made me so miserable for so long but I was too scared/lazy/embarrassed enough to call a doctor for some reason. Even now I'm furious at myself for thinking that way. It was so stupid. Anyway, at the time, I was so excited to be going!We got there and the doctor looked at my skin. He said a lot of patients have what I have, and it's called cystic acne / hormonal acne. I had a severe case of it but he told me he could help get it under control. I told the doctor I wanted Accutane, but he refused. I was furious with him and sat there feeling utterly helpless. I felt like I needed Accutane because it was the only thing that I -knew- would work. My mom was more reasonable and asked the doctor if there was anything else he could do, and he said yes. He explained that Accutane is generally for teenagers and there's something else for older women now called Aldactone.The doctor ended up prescribing me both antibiotics and Aldactone for my skin. On top of that I had to start a completely new skin care regime using a lot of products from the doctor's office. There was special acne clearing cleanser, toner, daily pads, and moisturizer. I also had to go to see the doctor every two weeks and get different treatments each time. First I'd get a Chemical Peel then two weeks later I'd go in for a Microdermabrasion treatment, two weeks later another Chemical Peel, etc. I also was not allowed to be out in the sun without a hat. And guess what?IT WORKED!!!!! Let me show you...BEFORE and AFTER pics:http://i.imgur.com/VcuhGIa.jpgThat was on November 5, 2015. To those rolling your eyes or thinking "yeah well mine can never get better..." I'd urge you to PLEASE see a doctor sooner rather than later. It took months to see any progress. My skin peeled away, and I often felt awful. I was miserable in my social life and oftentimes at work, thinking about people looking at me with my skin peeling off. Looking back now I realize no one actually ever said anything rude about it, and I appreciate that. At the time, it certainly didn't look like it was working. It was making things worse. But according to the doctor, it was going to get worse before it got better. So, I kept doing exactly what the doctor said, and after about three months, I started seeing real results!I still go to my doctor every other week and will never be able to thank him and his team enough for helping fix what I thought was unfixable. My skin is completely different now and I never thought this would ever be possible for me. It's literally a dream come true because I had absolutely convinced myself it could never get better.It's pretty terrifying sharing such a personal story (and pictures of me without makeup on, AHH!!), but I want to show other people who think there's no hope for their skin that it CAN GET BETTER. But I had to do exactly what the doctor said, including wear the hat.Now, I enjoy my natural skin and only use a tiny bit each day. And, I still always wear a hat when I go outside, and just about everywhere else. It's a little reminder, it's cute, and hey, doctor's orders.
Girls Blog 2015
Submitted by Lbj1212
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