A thirty-year-old physician came into to see me regarding her chronic skin care issues. Her skin was never bad, she had a couple pock marks when she was in high school and when she would pick pimple. Her doctor said they could do a photo facial and it would get rid of it. Her acne condition was always of concern for her, and her past treatment was facial laser. I always wanted to take care of myself and look young, so I felt that facial laser was the answer. I keep having it done but it just not getting better. Stop right there, I said, did you hear yourself? Why would you do something that doesn’t work? Not only is this facial laser not working it is making you age more. What you need to do is get your skin back to normal. Also, another issue I went to see my Dermatologist about was my arms, they are rashy and red. Can you take a look? What did your Dermatologist say. He couldn’t figure it out. Well did he ask you how many showers you were taking? No, but I take two daily. I asked her, “when you shower do you scrub?” She said, “I use a loofa!” Stop the excessive shower, and no more scrubbing, that’s the problem. The problem is you are to clean. I told her there is no MD next to my name, I’m only Vivian, from Riverside California, the Facial Girl. She kept on saying I don’t get it. I told her you don’t get it because you’re an MD and have a medical degree. She responded, “Okay, I’ll have to think about that.”
The younger you are, the quicker the time for you to correct your skin. Getting your skin to work, or to function properly is getting your skin on the proper road to healthy skin. In doing so we must think of what we are doing to our skin. Sometimes what we do, is not always the best thing for our skin. What was the answer? How does skin really work?
FIRST, I THOUGHT, IT’S BY LISTENING TO YOUR SKIN, IT IN FACT TALKS TO YOU. IT TALKS TO YOU VISUALLY. IT TALKS TO YOU BY THE SENSATION YOU FEEL AND PERCEIVE DAILY. WAS THAT HOW SKIN REALLY WORKS, I THOUGHT? OF COURSE, IT IS.
In our fast-paced life, we have simply become detached with who we are and about the body that we live in. We our constantly reacting to challenges from the outside world and in turn truly forgetting about ourselves.
In the case of the loofa and over bathing, the skin is in fact talking to you. It is telling you that it is over processed, depleted of moisture and stripped of its protective barrier.
For example, I receive many clients whose primary skin issue is dryness. After I treat them and their skin is actually sustaining moisture and has plenty of it, their skin can actually begin to work from the inside and do what it needs to do to get to it healthy level of working properly and maintain moisture naturally. My whole approach to skin care is that I will treat my client’s skin to the level whereby their skin can actually begin to work from the inside to kick start the machinery necessary so that it can properly respond to the environment. If it’s working properly, you won’t even need moisturizer! Your skin has been genetically designed to be self-sufficient.
It’s all about being in tune with your client’s skin, allowing all your senses of vision, smell and feel receive information. Look at my client’s skin what is the story it is telling me, is there an unusual scent about it and most important, what is the information your hands are receiving when you feel your client’s skin. Unbalanced skin has a feel above the surface and below the surface, so does Acne type skin and aging skin. They all have a story to tell, and each condition will be uniquely different.
If your skin is thirsty give it water, if it is hungry give it food, if it is damaged by imbalance or by behavior such as over scrubbing and over bathing, stop the behavior and protect it.
Vivian Moreno, Esthetician