Is your face on fire after using that serum you wanted for so long?
Do you notice redness or itchiness pretty much most of the time regardless of how careful you are?
I will explain the difference between those two situations and what to do in those cases.
Allow me to be your skin fairy godmother.
What is sensitive skin?
Sensitive skin is a skin type - a group of multiple characteristics that will define your skin status.
If you have this skin type you often battle to find products that leave your skin happy. Your skin feels uncomfortable, itchy, burning, stinging, red and flaky at times.
Have a look at this post to understand more about skin types and sensitive skin. The way I categorise sensitive skin can be controversial. See it for yourself and let me know your thoughts.
9 tips on how to take care of sensitive skin?
#1 – Know your skin. Be aware of how your skin behaves to specific ingredients. Understanding the level of your skin sensitivity can be really helpful to avoid hitting irritation land.
#2 - Take it easy! Minimise the number of products and actives you are using. Keep it simple: A gentle cleanser, moisturiser and sunscreen.
#3 – Opt for gentle products with a “skin-friendly” pH. Your skin pH is around 5.5, therefore avoid using extremely acid or alkaline products as they would increase the chance of irritation.
#4 – Patch test. If you are using a new goodie make sure you patch test it on your forearm for 24h so you have an idea how your skin will react to it.
#5 – Keep your skin barrier happy! Unhappy skin barrier which manifests by burning, itching, redness, and at times even bleeding. More susceptible to developing fines lines/wrinkles, hyperpigmentation and acne. Oh, of course, basal cell carcinoma aka skin cancer.
#6 – Be sure to include soothing ingredients in your routine such as centella asiatica, bisabolol, allantoin, aloe vera, ceramides, green tea, and niacinamide.
#7 – Touch your skin gently. Avoid too much rubbing and tugging.
# 8 – Avoid going blaze with actives %. Start low and go slow. Remember, too much of the good thing doesn’t necessarily mean will be more effective.
#9 – Pay especially attention to ingredients that may cause irritation. Fragrance, essential oils and certain preservatives are known to cause reactions. Alright, I am not the parfum police…just saying for you to be more attentive and be prepared to take action in a timely manner in case you need. You can thank me later!
What is sensitised skin?
I still remember the first time I applied the 2% BHA exfoliant toner that the world was raving about. I think you all know which one I am talking about, don’t you?
It is a very well formulated toner, where you can find a good combination of an active ingredient – salicylic acid – with calming ingredients to reduce potential irritation, like green tea extract (btw, I love this brand!).
I was heartbroken that it did not work for me. My skin became sensitised. But what does that mean? This means my skin became red, itchy and purging temporarily as a result of me using that specific product.
So, there you go. If your skin flared up temporarily because you reacted to a product you used or as a result of any other external factors (i.e. windy environment or burnt after sun exposure) then you can say your skin is sensitised.
But how can you prevent this? Keep reading and I will explain step by step how to take of it.
6 tips on how to take care of sensitised skin?
#1 – A little repetitive but there you go... Patch test!
#2 - Read the ingredient list. If your skin is on fire at the moment then go for gentle products that will help to restore your skin barrier (i.e. soothing ingredients and effective humectants) and avoid strong actives (i.e. retinoids and exfoliants).
#3 – Keep note of what caused your reaction. Was it a specific product or any other external factor? Do anything you can to avoid this happening in the future. Journaling can become quite a helpful way to keep track of your skincare journey. Hint hint.
#4 – Be vigilant. Once you experiment irritation with a specific product doesn’t mean you will always react every time you expose your skin to it. Take this case as an example: Imagine you reacted to a new retinol serum you started using two days ago from brand X. The way this serum formulation is unique and the way you are going to react to it at this precise moment in time is going to be very individual. Stress, hormones, external temperature, etc can all affect the way you react to a product. Just because you have reacted to something in particular, doesn’t mean you will react to that specific ingredient every time you try a product with it.
#5 – Have I mentioned skin barrier?! (Yes, I mean it!) Use products with ceramides, fatty acids, hyaluronic acid, cholesterol, niacinamide, and glycerin. I am happy to repeat it as many times as needed – a happy skin barrier is everything!
#6 - Take a break. Do you know your 10-step night routine? Forget about it! Go for a minimalistic routine until your skin has recovered.
Let’s sum it up!
Sensitive skin is a skin type. It is characterised by being prone to skin flare-ups such as stinging, burning, redness and flaky skin. This is something that unfortunately you can’t change although you can learn to manage it well.
Sensitised skin is a temporary reaction to a product or external factor. Again, learning how to recognise this and what to do when this happens can really help to get back to your healthy beautiful skin.
These two terms are dissimilar, however the steps to manage both are not too different.
What advice would you give to someone who has their face on fire?