When it comes to skincare and beauty and the first thing that springs to mind at the mention of either; I worry that my chronic condition and the severe pain I go through will make me look older than I am.
I’m 26 and I already feel 86 – I don’t want to look it too!
Pain changes me. Not just physically or emotionally and not just on the inside. My family can see the pain in my body language, hidden in my sentences and my dull replies of “I’m fine.” But pain is also etched in my features, written all over my face and I’d hate it to become a permanent feature.
Women with Endometriosis fight a life-long battle, their bodies warring with its insides every day. It’s difficult and exhausting.
I decided that I wouldn’t battle with the outside of my body, I would protect it, nurture it. And so, I developed a skincare-selfcare routine.
My skincare:
- Cleansing – I use a foam wash which has Tea Tree in it, this help to prevent break outs. I don’t really have a favourite, I’m using one that was on offer in ASDA’s range. I massage this into my skin with a skin buffer that I ordered from WISH for £1! It exfoliates and because it is made of silicone, it’s real easy to keep clean. I also use a Micellar Water from Simple, usually in the morning or pre-workout (this makes sure I get a clean sweat, preventing break outs)
I love The Body Shops’ Camomile Sumptuous Cleansing Butter which is so luxurious and leaves my skin feeling baby-soft and healthy. I’ll use this after a heavy make-up day as it takes every scrap of make-up off. Although, I do tend to do a double cleanse when using this- I’ll wait 5/10 minutes after using the butter to let it soak into my skin slightly and then I’ll go in with Micellar water to remove any excess oil left over.
- Toning – I love love Boots Botanics Rosewater Toning Spritz! It’s in a spray bottle which is super practical and prevents unnecessary wastage. This product is really refreshing, cleanses impurities and smells amazing. *Boots have recently changed the packaging on this*
- Serum – I have fallen for The Body Shops’ Drops of Youth Concentrate serum. This goes beneath my moisturiser. It feels slightly tacky until it dries completely, but don’t worry, it feels smooth and is designed to balance imperfection for a more youthful looking skin.
- Day Moisturiser (make sure this has SPF!) – I switch between The Body Shops’ Aloe Day cream, which is great for sensitive skin, slightly cooling and Simples’ Kind to Skin + Protecting Moisture Cream. I love this during the Summer as it has SPF 30 and is also great because I have sensitive skin. This has vitamins B3 and E too. For night time, I reach for The Body Shops’ Aloe Night Cream feels luxurious and thick and soaks into the skin easily without leaving a greasy residue. It’s gentle enough for sensitive skin and I even use it on my neck and collar bone area.
**Breakouts – I am prone to hormonal breakouts (aren’t we all, ladies?) which I treat with Tea Tree Oil. Just put a drop of this on a cotton bud and apply to spots (don’t use fingers as it can transfer bacteria). I bought mine from Home Bargains for 99p and it works really well!**
Other bits & pieces:
- Lip Scrub – SugarBaby Vita Lip which is a collection including a coconut infused Lip Balm and Lip Scrub. They both come with tube and applicators which is no-mess awesome and have high-performance ingredients including Sweet Almond Oil and Vitamin E.
The scrub is enriched with finely grated granulated sugar and blended with Grape Seed Oil and Organic coconut oil to gently eliminate dry, chapped skin.
The balm has cocoa butter, Shea butter which add softness and shine after exfoliating the lips.
The best thing about these products (not just that they work!) was the price, 49p in the Superdrug sale! This product has no artificial fragrances and is NOT TESTED ON ANIMALS!
- Lip balm – Vaseline Aloe Vera, Nivea ‘A Kiss of Moisture’ or ‘Hydro Care‘ – these 3 are really handy just to stick in your bag.
- Hand cream – I love Vaseline’s Healthy Hands Strong Nails. But I like to splurge on Champneys As Good As New Harmonious Hands. It’s got a lovely, floral fragrance which just smells like luxury and this lasts a while. This hand and nail cream also has SPF 15 which comes in handy if you’re driving and your hands are just right there on the wheel. We don’t need no sun spots
- Face Masks – I use the 7th Heaven face mask sachets. They’re super convenient, especially for travelling! One packet can do 2 (maybe 3) masks – depending how liberal I use it. (These are around £1) I love the “Aloe Vera” Blemish Mud because of how soothing it feels but my skin feels really cleansed afterwards too! If you feel like a splurge, I reach for Lush BB Seaweed which is a little pricier but feels heavenly. (this needs to be stored in the fridge!)
I had an amazing customer service experience whilst shopping at The Body Shop, Doncaster Outlet. I think this was a big part of what made me fall in love with their products. The lovely sales consultant listened to what I wanted out of skincare and handpicked products to suit me. Great!
I feel like I should also say that I fell in love with skincare & beauty after watching a GlamLifeGuru YouTube video. Before, I was very lapse with skincare; some days I’d do all the steps, others I’d just neglect it altogether. But after watching Tati’s video on affordable skincare- she really inspired me to get my shit together! So… Thank you Tati xo
Click the links to watch.
Chronic Writer 