Have you ever noticed phone-related breakouts? Or, wait, let me rephrase the question: Do you breakout on your cheek or jawline, but mysteriously only on one side?
I can say that this isn’t currently a problem for me, but it’s certainly something I’d heard could happen. But Well+GoodNYC, smart cookies that they are, wanted to find out if, in fact, this happens all that commonly. Here’s what they found…
Texting may be less personal, but it could save you from a 21st-century skin-care problem: cell-phone breakouts.
While lots of people are concerned about bacteria on their phone (especially after Sanjay Gupta discovered fecal strep on Anderson Cooper’s last fall), jawline acne may have more to do with phone-face contact than grime, say dermatologists.
“Some people hold cell phones to their faces and talk for a long period of time, perspiring onto the phone and blocking the pores,” explains Mitchell Kline, MD, a dermatologist and professor at New York-Presbyterian Medical Center’s Weill Cornell Medical College.
Holding your phone against your cheek traps oil in the pores, which can lead to those deep-forming acne cysts, agrees Neil Sadick, MD, a renowned dermatologist and researcher. (Ever notice it also melts your makeup to your phone and down your face?)
But don’t flush your iPhone just yet.
“Your skin has its own immune system, and it can handle a lot. Most of the stuff on a cell phone won’t cause break outs,” says Doris Day, MD.
Dr. Day cautions that if you’re prone to eczema or have a nickel allergy (some phones, but not iPhones, contain nickel), you may have more of a problem. (That problem is called contact dermatitis, which looks like tiny little clusters of pimples, but isn’t acne.)
She also says to watch out for the office phone. Since it ends up pressed against the faces of all of your coworkers, too, it may be dirtier. (Ew.)
Uh yeah, that’s gross. But help is here! They’ve sourced some tips from experts on how to deal with this very modern problem. Read their tips here.
How do you deal with this? Have you ever noticed a connection?
My first love Zack Morris via
The other day, I was reminded of something Alexandra and I discovered when we were writing the book: That basically every beauty biff under the sun could be ameliorated with a little aloe. As we started studying ingredient lists on our old products, we noticed that so many products we’d known and loved for years had aloe listed first on the ingredient list, which, remember, means there’s more of it in there than any other ingredient.
So if aloe was doing much of the heavy lifting (or taming, as the case may be) in so many of our products, couldn’t we use it on its own, too?
But of course. One of the great things about familiarizing yourself with ingredients—and not just finished products—is that you start to figure out what works well for you and why. If you’re buying aloe, some things to remember: Go organic; get 100% pure aloe; and make sure there are no green dyes or fragrance in there. You can get it at any health food store in gel form—which is the consistency of what comes out of the plant when you rip open a leaf, kind of like a slippery, thinner version of hair gel.
Now, without further ado: Here are the 10 (sort of) science-backed uses for aloe vera:
1. To tame frizz before drying or for air-drying. Pretty obvious one. Aloe is the primary ingredient in many conditioners and most defrizzers that aren’t silicone-based (which is most of them) because its consistency makes it easy to apply and coat the hair with. Plus, the pH is slightly acidic, but just slightly, which can help seal the cuticle of the hair, making it more likely to behave. This works amazingly well on my wavy thick hair for air drying, but I like it blown out, too. If you want to buy something instead of using pure aloe, I like this.
2. As a shaving gel for legs or face. We’ve told you many times that we do not use shaving cream, and if you’re still using the traditional stuff please stop immediately! We use whatever is lying around and is kind of silky feeling. Because aloe is also antiinflammatory, thanks to the enzymes, and hydrating, thanks to the very high water content, this stuff works like a charm on legs (or whevever) for a very close shave.
3. As a topical treatment for razor burn or makeout burn. If you’re like me, you’ve probably at some point thought dry shaving your legs with a not-especially-new razor was a great idea. It’s not, but if you end up with razor burn—or if you’ve been making out with someone scruffy who makes your face a little red—aloe is a godsend. Slather it on after you shower, then again before bed.
4. Instead of an oil-free moisturizer, especially if you’re acne-prone: Studies show that aloe can be an effective humectant, increasing water retention in the skin. It also contains antioxidants in the form of vitamins A, C and E, and enzymes that can help calm inflammation and irritation—which is probably why it’s in so many moisturizers for acne-prone skin. I think it just feels nice, especially in the summer. Keep it in the fridge during heatwaves for an amazing way to wake up your skin, post shower.
5. As a personal lubricant: TMI Alert! My favorite lube is from Aloecadabra, and it’s aloe-based. I don’t care for the flavored ones so much, but the plain aloe lubricant has been my go-to for some time. I’ve also given bottles of it to two of my friends! Plus, it’s condom-safe and pH balanced, which is important for girls.
6. On dry hair or your eyebrows. If you’re lucky enough to have brows like Alexandra, maybe you want to use a little on them with some powder to darken or define them, and keep strays in place. This works on blondes too, with powdered eye shadow in a taupe or very, very light brown. It can similarly be used on dry hair as a way to prevent flyaways, if those bother you.
7. On seborrheic dermatitis or psoriasis. Ugh. If you have or have ever suffered from either of these you know how bad it can get. I have not personally, but I’ve seen friends suffer through both, and boy does it suck. Enter: your favorite succulent. The data is limited, but studies have shown it to be effective in the treatment of both.
8. To help infections heal. There’s some evidence that the antibacterial qualities that make it a great lotion for acne-prone skin may also help with wound healing in humans, and in rats. I have tried this (I’ve also done it with honey), and I think it works. Can’t be sure, but it can’t hurt.
9. On cooking burns. Hopefully you had a cool mom who taught you this when you were a kid (hi, mom!). If not, you can be that cool mom or dad now or later. Oh, except wait… Despite the fact it seems like it would be a good idea, NIH says it doesn’t work on sunburns. [Ed's Note: Alexandra used it on the backs of her legs, after she burned them during a surf lesson while on vacation. She's convinced the cooling aloe eased some of her pain.]
10. Make a face mask out of it. We know some of you out there love your DIY. For you, combine aloe with oats and your favorite face oil in whatever proportions feel nice to you and slap the stuff on your face. Let it sit for about 15 minutes and you’ll be left with a nice, slightly taught face (in a good way, weird as it sounds).
What’d I miss?
Image (cc) via Flickr user Erik Mallinson
Quick disclaimer and then we’re going to get right into it and talk about the birth control pill (Happy Monday!): Nothing I say in this post constitutes medical advice, and you should never stop or start taking prescription drugs without talking with your doctor. (Especially the starting part; pretty sure that would be illegal, right?) Also:
There’s no judgment—implicit or explicit—on anyone who is on or has been on birth control pills. Some people love them, some people have to take them for medical reasons, some people abhor them. Here, we want to talk candidly about what happens when you go off them. Because, whoa. That can be hectic.
Feeling like an overshare, so here, I’ll start: I got on the pill for the first time pretty late, comparatively speaking. I was 22 or 23, I got on Ortho, and almost instantly became the girl who cries at commercials (OK, still am, always have been, but this was extreme!) and one time I even broke a plate when my loving boyfriend at the time did basically nothing. This was not normal for me! I was being nuts! I quickly got off it, quickly went back to normal, and then didn’t start it again for another several years.
I was 26 or so when I went back on the pill, Mircette this time, thinking it would add convenience to my personal life, and clear up my skin—after all, that’s what my dermatologist told me would happen. I stayed on it for two years. During that time I didn’t cry a lot or break stuff. My skin was OK but not perfect. My libido was OK—which seems better than most, according to this new research, but “OK” does not equal amazing. I didn’t have major mood swings or anything. But something never felt quite right. The best way I can put it is, I sort of felt like a prisoner in my own body. I’m not sure why, and no, I can’t elaborate, but something never felt quite right. It was FINE. But FINE has never been all that appealing to me, and so I talked it over with my GYN and we decided it was time to stop. It wanted to let nature run its course. And by nature I mean, like, ovulation and stuff.
After I went off the pill, my skin freaked out. It was erratic for a few months, throughout which I tried everything: Products, lasers, facials…products. Not clean ones, either. (This was pre- everything I now know.)
My take, in retrospect, is that you shouldn’t try a million things at once, nor should you spazz out. If I were doing it all over again, here’s what I would do: Coach my body, with the help of a doctor or acupuncturist or both, to get my hormones in balance. I would stay away from, or at least limit, eating hormone-pumped meat and dairy, take folic acid and omegas daily, get plenty of sleep and keep a routine, and use a gentle, organic skincare regimen.
I emphasize hormone balancing because what’s happening in your skin is a reflection of what’s happening inside your body—not on the surface of your skin. Also, because the other thing that happened when I went off the pill: my period went away for the better part of a year. I have many explanations for this, both medical and completely esoteric, but suffice to say it was really disconcerting. To be in your late 20s and have it…missing, for months at a time, feels indescribably bad. On the PLUS side (there’s always a plus side, you guys): Now that I’m regular again, I’m so very thankful every single month when my period comes. And no, I will never, ever go on the pill again.
Anyway, because we understand the challenges that come with such a major decision, we were moved by a recent reader letter from Paris. She’s gone off the pill and, yes, ugh, skin woes. She really wants NMDL readers to help! In her words:
“I accept that my body is going to go on a roller coaster ride. I’m ready for the acne this time. Last time I thought I could just stop taking the pill and my skin wouldn’t talk to me. How oily my scalp got and the abundance of acne caught me by surprise. I froze up and caved in and took the pill again. This time, I will be ready for them, and hope to have better ways to deal with them or even prevent them.
Are you guys all in love with her now, too? We thought so. Now let’s help a girl out. Who’s tried what? And even if you don’t have advice for Paris Girl, have you gone off the pill ever? What happened? Share, yes? Please and thank you.
Disclaimer: This post is based purely on my anecdotal experience, and is written by a person who does really dumb things sometimes. Follow any advice herein at your own risk.
The preeminent rule of skincare is this: When you have a cyst—i.e. an owie under-the-skinner—you do not touch it. Hell, you don’t even look at it the wrong way, let alone rub your grubby fingers on it.
A few days ago I was following this rule. I had a hormonal guy growing deep beneath the surface of my chin, and for the first few days I dutifully ignored it. But then, who knows when—I was probably watching TV or being otherwise distracted—I somehow got to poking and prodding it a bit. And lo and behold, the next morning I woke up to a painful, red and pulsey protrusion.
Sorry guys, if you’re easily grossed out it’s earmuffs time.
At some point later that day I decided that what had really happened was that the cyst was coming to the surface (how nice of it!) and I would totally be able to lance it and be done with the thing. Lance, by the by, is the fancy word for pop with a needle.
For no good reason (it never works) I did this, and—surprise!—made matters so much worse. My friend was now infected: I could feel it spreading under the skin—swollen, painful, and soon to be a likely candidate for antibiotics. I’m not exaggerating: I have taken antibiotics more than once for infected cysts. Clearly I have a propensity for the things, and for rubbing them the wrong way.
Ok the gross ends there. In a preemptive attack to avoid the antibiotics here is what I did yesterday.
1. Topical Advil: Again, to be very clear, I don’t know if any skincare specialist would recommend this but when I have a swollen thing on my face I will sometimes turn to the anti-inflammatory properties of Ibuprofen (a.k.a. Advil). Here’s what I do: I cut the pill in half with a very sharp knife, run it under some water, and then scrape out some of the inside powder and apply it directly to the spot, letting it dry there for 20 minutes or so. If something is really infected (like yesterday), this isn’t going to make it much better—but it does reduce a bit of the pain and swelling and generally makes me feel less aware of the beast. Which is nice.
2. Clay: I was working from home, so after the Advil, I put on the Evan Healy Green Tea Clay, still a big favorite of ours. Both Evan and my father (who is a doctor and has helped treat these awful bumps of mine before) recommend clay for cysts. Clay helps bring to the surface all the bad stuff, which once you’ve done what I did is kind of your only choice. I spent most of yesterday with a big green spot on my chin.
3. Propolis: Last night, I took the cyst to Whole Foods and we bought some propolis together. We’ve talked about propolis over at GOOD: It’s the antimicrobial resin that bees use to sterilize their hives, and it’s been shown to do some pretty amazing things for humans too—like help kill cold sores. So, as my final act before bed, I drowned my spot in propolis (which dries in a weird sticky way, like apple juice would) and tried to get a good night’s rest.
The verdict?
It ain’t pretty—because now it looks scabby and dry—but I most definitely managed to kill the infection! The pain is gone and so is the swelling, which makes me feel like me and my friend are on our way to recovery. Now I will use much kinder tactics to heal the damage I’ve done—argan oil, Egyptian Magic, and some honey.
Here’s hoping that some of you will reveal equally weird (but maybe sometimes effective) things you do in your bathroom. The floor is yours!
This post comes via our friends over at Well+Good. Tell us what you think about this research in the comments! Have you seen a link between dairy, sugar and your skin?
Turns out, if you’re following the USDA nutrition guidelines of MyPlate and getting your 3 servings of dairy a day, you’re inviting a face full of pimples.
Confirming the long-suspected link between dairy products and acne is a systematic review of 21 observational studies and six clinical trials conducted over 2009 and 2010.
While the link between dairy and acne isn’t news to the holistic community—or most facialists—it is to the medical one, which has come up with drug after zit-fighting drug to treat something that’s not about the skin at all.
OK that was a trick. You can’t really make a spot do anything it doesn’t want to do, as anyone who’s ever had one knows. (And if you haven’t, you are missing out on one of life’s more humbling and exasperating experiences, which is why I chose a picture of a unicorn for this post—cheer up, everyone!) Since neither of us is a stranger to bad skin days (or like, years), and there are some things we have tried that seem to work, we wanted to share. Here, 10 road-tested ways to make acne cysts go away faster.
1. For the love of god, do NOT try to pop it. You know this, but you do it anyway. Please stop?
2. Don’t try to dry out a deep cyst. The problem is too deep for drying topicals. What you want to do instead is contain it (which means no popping), stop it from spreading (ditto), calm inflammation, and as it gets closer to the surface, THEN you want to dry (or draw) out the sucker. More on that below. If you are still using benzoyl peroxide you need to a) read our book; b) stop; and c) stop. It’s toxic, and it doesn’t work on cysts. If it did, none of us would get them or they’d be gone in a day. Since we know none of this is true, just trust us and ditch your BP. And yes, even your tea tree oil will likely fail you when you have an undergrounder, resulting in flakiness, which is hard to hide with makeup and produces a whole other problem that needs to be fixed.
3. Load up on omegas. Omegas are your best friend. They help with hormonal balance and beat out inflammation like nobody’s business. We know this because we’ve read the scientific studies proving it, and because we credit these fatty acids as being the single best thing we’ve ever done for our skin. If you are good about taking them every day, awesome. You still should double your dose during a breakout. If you do not take them every day, you should, and then you should also double your dose for a day or two. In a pinch, take some Advil, but omegas are the healthier choice.
4. Eat cooling foods. According to the Indian tradition ayurveda, which we talk a lot about in the book, red, inflamed spots are often caused by aggravated pitta. If you’re like me, you already have a lot of pitta (well, and vata), which is characterized by hating the heat, being of medium build, and being a bit of a firecracker. This sounds a little out-there, but consider this:
Would you throw gasoline on a fire to put it out? If you have inflammation and irritation in your skin, you don’t want to eat foods that cause you to flush and get really hot. Hot plus hot equals more hot. Instead, eat cooling foods, like the ones listed here.
5. Sleep with green tea clay on your spot(s). We’ve mentioned it before: we are devotees of Evan Healy’s green tea clay. It comes dry and powdery and a jar will last you many months if not a whole half-year. You can use this as an all-over mask, or put a small amount in your hand, add water to make a paste and put it on the sucker. The green tea is calming and cooling without drying out your skin, and the clay helps gently detoxify your pores.
I swear up and down that this stuff heals things MUCH faster than normal and that it has stopped cysts dead in their tracks. Not kidding!
6. Ice, ice, baby. This is a temporary solution because it only really works while you’re icing and right after, but it’s a good mood booster, which is important when you have a bad skin day: Apply ice; see zit shrink; leave house with the feeling that it’s gone! (Just don’t look in the mirror, because it’s probably still there.)
7. Use compresses. One time, Elique Organics made me a hydrosol for my skin and it was amazing. It had all kinds of anti-inflammatory goodness in it. Since I ran out, I use anything with chamomile or calendula—calming herbs, basically. Saturate a cotton ball or pad with the water essence, hold it with moderate pressure and calm the little guy into submission. Some people like witch hazel for this but I find that on its own, it’s too drying. Pro tip: You can also make a tea, chill the tea, and then use that as a toner/compress.
8. If a head develops (ew, ugh, ahhh), use a needle. Sterilized, naturally. Poke the center and not too deep. Drain with your fingers wrapped in tissues. Apply an antibacterial topical, and then leave it alone and never speak of it again.
9. Drink a lot of water. Always a good idea, but especially now. You want to keep your body working in tiptop shape. Remember that your skin is hydrated two ways: From the moisture drawn in from the air (and applied topically), and from the inside out. Keep your skin supple, happy, and avoid getting parched.
10. Lay off the hard stuff. Doesn’t mean you can’t drink, but keep it under control. Simple reason: Alcohol in excess dehydrates you and increases inflammation in the body, which can aggravate your skin—especially cysts. Also, drinking a lot tends to go with other things that are bad for your skin, such as eating poutine at 3 in the morning, not sleeping enough, sleeping with makeup on and, woops, sleeping with the wrong person.
There was no way I was going to post a picture of a zit, via
Let’s be honest: Our Friday Deals are always special. But today is a little extra so because Kahina Giving Beauty—one of our favorite brands to begin with—is offering up one of our absolute favorite new products. Have you guessed yet? Here’s a hint: It’s pictured above, and it looks familiar because Siobhan rave-reviewed it last month and still won’t leave the house without it. Since trying this delicious product we’ve both been spraying it on our faces in a borderline-compulsive way because it’s hydrating without making you greasy, and imparts a glow even on our less-than-glowy days. So without further ado…
Here’s the deal: Kahina is giving you a FREE Toning Mist with any purchase over $75. The mist itself is valued at $36, so once again we’re talking about a brain-meltingly (expression of the week!) good deal. Just enter promocode FREEMIST and it will be included in your shipment. Note: It will not show up anywhere in your cart, but don’t panic, you’ll totally get it. The deal lasts until midnight next Thursday.
If you’re wondering what to get from Kahina, you just cannot go wrong with the pure argan oil, and while it may feel pricey, we should remind you a bottle lasts forever and it goes very nicely with the mist. But we also love the eye cream, the mask, and pretty much everything else they make. So enjoy!
Happy Friday, girls.
Because I do, apparently, and I have a new find I’m obsessed with. Let’s call Tatcha the gold standard for blotting papers. Why? Because there are gold flakes in the papers, and I love a good pun. Also? They are a favorite among beauty editors and makeup artists, for reasons that are, to me, very clear.
Some things to know about blotting paper: They’ve been used for hundreds of years by Japanese women to keep their skin looking fresh instead of slick, and to keep makeup in place. Nowadays, most blotting papers, which you can find on the counter by the cash at beauty stores, are made of rice paper or pulp or a combination thereof, and some powder—all of which can be irritating, or take away way too much oil (thus drying out the skin).
Traditionally, though, good blotting papers were made of abaca leaf, which is what Tatcha uses.
Last week, we were in San Francisco meeting our friends at Beautylish, who gifted these to us over cocktails. I shoved mine in my bag thinking they’d probably come in handy once I was back in New York, where the weather is ever so slowly heating up but also constantly rainy and—ugh—humid.
I love a dewy complexion as much as the next girl, but there’s a fine line between looking fresh and hydrated and looking like a hot mess. That’s where these papers come in. My experience so far has been that these don’t remove or smudge makeup, they don’t dry out my face by robbing me of my good oils, and one paper does the trick for my whole face. (If you’ve ever used rice paper blotters and gone through five in one sitting, you know that last bit is huge.)
To get an idea why these papers feel so different, I rang them up and asked some questions. As with all natural cosmetics, the performance of the product comes down to the quality of the ingredients. These do not use rice or pulp, or an abaca-leaf blend. This is 100% albaca. Also, I’m told, there are 10 grades of the leaf, and Tatcha uses the highest grade. One pack costs $12 (and it’s cheaper if you get a multi-pack).
They also pointed out that makeup artists use this by the boxload—because it sets makeup beautifully. “Most makeup is made up of pigment and a carrier oil,” says Tatcha’s Vicky Tsai. “All you want is the pigment—but it’s the oil that gets it onto your skin evenly.” So one trick you can try? Apply your makeup with a sponge, and 10 seconds after you apply, blot with their papers. That will remove the excess oil but not the pigment, making it last longer on your face! Makes sense to us. I will try this later and report back in the comments.
I couldn’t be happier with these. I’ve been using Tammy Fender’s luxurious, brain-melting cream, but since it’s gross in New York, this is just what I need to feel—and look—hydrated, but not like a greaseball. I’d also recommend these for people with oily or active skin, and for use on eyelids, which can get slick no matter what your skin type.
So what about you. Do you use blotting papers?
You know when you meet a new person and you’re so wild about them that even their snoring is adorable? You think about them when they’re not around and find ways to work them into conversations no matter how much of a stretch it is? That’s basically how I feel about the Kahina Giving Beauty Toning Mist, which I’ve been using religiously for exactly a month now mainly because…
It’s not every day one of your favorite brands puts out a new product, and it’s not every day you find a product that is loaded with actives, feels and smells good, and—gasp—works.
A word about the word “works.” This is obviously to a certain extent subjective, but seeing is believing when it comes to skincare and based on what I see in the mirror (even in the super-unflattering lighting in my bathroom) and on the ingredient list (posted below), I’m a believer. I feel almost certain that my skin has been more hydrated, calmer/clearer, plumped and glowy since I started using it—which I credit to the sodium hyaluronate, argan leaf extract, willow bark and rose water. There are also a lot of antioxidants in there.
Here’s how I use it: After my morning shower, where I typically wipe my face with a muslin cloth from Pai (with no cleanser), I spray my face with Kahina’s Toning Mist, wait a couple of minutes, and then apply moisturizer and sunscreen. And at night before bed, after washing, I spray, wait a few, then apply my night oils and an eye cream. It’s also nice over makeup (it sets minerals very nicely) and as a refresher after a long flight. So far, so great.
Plus, 25 percent of the profits are set aside for the Berber women in Morocco who harvest and produce Kahina’s argan oil.
You can get it from their site, for $36. I’m not sure how long it will last but with a month of twice-daily use I have a long way to go before it runs out.
Ingredients: aloe barbadensis (aloe vera) leaf juice*, aqua, rosa damascena (rose) flower water*, salix nigra (willow bark) extract, populus tremuloides (aspen bark) extract, medicago sativa (alfalfa) extract*, sodium hyaluronate, argania spinosa (argan) leaf extract, oryza sativa (rice) seed extract*, camellia sinensis (white tea) leaf extract*, sodium PCA, glycerin, sodium levulinate, sodium anisate, maltodextrin, sodium benzoate.
Have you tried this mist? Do you have a toner you like?
Breakouts suck.
There’s no two ways about it. If you get pimples, you’ve probably at some point felt ugly, shy, embarrassed, dirty, or like you want to put a paper bag over your head and cry. So you read acne advice from “experts” and it makes you want to scream because it’s always the same, none of it works, the products are expensive, and they’re loaded with toxic chemicals. But this list isn’t about how to banish breakouts. (You can read that one here.) Instead, it’s about acne psychology, which is way, way worse than pimples—trust. Here are my 10 tips for getting over a bad skin day. I can’t wait to read yours, in the comments.
Know that the good ones don’t notice. And if they notice, they don’t care. If you’ve ever had a very nice boyfriend or girlfriend, you know this one is true: Literally no one cares about your pimples except you…and really mean people. One time, I was writing a profile of a famous musician who looks in person, and without makeup, like an airbrushed photograph. We were driving around in her car and she saw a friend of hers on the street so she pulled over and rolled down the window. Her friend, smiling, said, “Hi! Welcome back. It’s so nice to see you!” or something to that effect. So what did the famous lady say? Did she say “Thanks, hon, it’s great to see you too! Wanna get a slice of pizza and catch up?”? No. The famous person said “Your face is a mess! What have you been doing?!” Her friend’s face fell. And so did mine. You maybe think I’m making this up because no one would ever speak to another person like that, right? Especially not a rich and famous and genetically blessed person, right? Right! Except I didn’t make it up. Moral of the story: That person is really mean and the reason it sounds implausible is that most people are not like this. Most people, and you’ll just have to take my word for it, do not notice your pimples, and if they do notice them, they don’t care.
Wear red lipstick. You know when someone says “Look over there!” and then steals one of your fries? This is like that, but on your face. By drawing attention to your mouth with a bright color, you are drawing attention away from whatever it is you wish wasn’t there. Also, red lipstick is a mood booster and it makes you feel bold—which is a great way to counter the “I want to cancel my dinner plans and hide” feeling.
Do your hair. This morning I woke up with an unfortunately placed spot and even though it’s raining—I usually skip doing my ‘do on rainy days—I made sure to get my hair extra smooth. The logic? When you’re broken out, it’s hard to feel pulled together even though, remember: you still probably LOOK pulled together because no one can tell by looking at you that inside you feel like a teenager. But when your hair is done nicely, you all of a sudden don’t care about the constellation on your chin. This is a time-tested coping strategy. Work it.
Smile at strangers. A friend once said that when her skin is spotty, she finds herself staring at her feet in public because doing so makes her feel invisible. It’s such a sad sentiment and I’ve totally been there: The psychological toll of breakouts is literally 95% of it, and it’s awful. To counter this feeling, try doing the opposite and then some: Hold your head up and smile. Seriously. Don’t be the crazy person on the train about it, but a gentle smile is disarming, pretty, and it makes you feel better, too.
Don’t wear a scarf. I used to do this a lot: Pashmina doublewrapped around my neck, even in the summer. Except here’s the thing: Scarfs may make you feel protected because you’re essentially swaddling yourself, but they do not hide what is on your face. And in fact, by wrapping the area around your face, you are more likely drawing attention to it as opposed to away from it. Also, maybe it’s dirty and giving you pimples.
Point it out to a friend. Don’t do this with the mean chick I told you about, but pointing out your zits actually erases the terror that the pimple-afflicted feel which is: DO THEY SEE IT? ARE THEY STARING AT IT? Again, no, they’re not. But by pointing it out, you’re taking out the paranoid guesswork, and probably your friend will say something nice like “Aww, I hadn’t noticed,” or “I’ve been trying this green tea clay and I feel like it might work—do you want some?” or simply “You look so pretty, don’t be silly.”
Cover the damn thing. People say pimples heal faster when you leave them alone and don’t wear makeup, and people say that covering zits only makes them look worse, and that all may very well be true, but if a little makeup, even terribly applied (but with a clean brush), will make you feel better mentally, then do it. Just be sure you aren’t compounding the problem with something irritating.
Pronounce vulnerable with a W. OK this one is weird but hear me out: Breakouts make us feel vulnerable. To counter this, try this thing that my yoga teacher Matt said once in class: When you’re vulnerable—awful feeling, am I right? But such a rich one, too!—your feelings are the most serious, enormous, important things in the whole wide world. Take away their power by pronouncing that word, out loud, with a W. Seriously. Next time you look in the mirror and feel bashful, say it. I promise it works.
Visualize it shrinking. Another weird one. I can’t promise this will make your swelling subside, but it sure feels good: Before bed or in the bathroom at work, close your eyes and literally imagine the zit disappearing. You’ll feel like you’re doing something healing for yourself, and that’s a good feeling to have, zits or not.
Touch your face. Just kidding, but hold on: how-to-get-rid-of-breakout stories are always telling you not to touch your face and not to pick and not to do this, that and the third. Here’s the truth: If you have a zit on your face, you’re going to do anything you think will work to make it go away. For some of you that means picking, and it sometimes means touching. Yes, it might make it worse, and yes you might scar, but it also might make you feel better, because it seems somehow more proactive than doing nothing. So go ahead and touch your face (just be sure to put some kind of natural antibacterial on it before bed, please).
Now it’s your turn. Do you have bad skin days? Have you tried any of these things? What are your tips?
Image via
