My Skincare Journey: Ask Me Anything [Part 5!]

Alright, alright! This is the last + final post of my skincare journey… answering all of the questions you’ve asked me on instagram! But first, if you haven’t read the previous posts in this series…

• Part 1: Acne, Peels, Microneedling, The Works
• Part 2: How I Finally Stopped Picking My Face
• Part 3: My Skincare Routine [+ What I Do When I Get A Pimple]
• Part 4: All The Treatments ++ Q+A With My Esthetician

#1] Where do you recommend starting? It depends on what your goals are. Using a medical grade cleanser, exfoliate [exfoliate every other day!], + acne serum [I’m obsessed with Blemish + Age] is a great place to start. I also recommend retinoid at night, although it is pricey. Use those products every day for a month + see if your skin improves. If you are interested in treatments, book a consultation with an esthetician [it’s typically free!]. I also think hydration + cleaning up your diet can be a gamechanger for skin health.

#2] How long did it take you to determine the cause of your skin issues? My skin is natural oily, so clogged pores will be something that I will always have to deal with. I didn’t take care of my skin because I didn’t know better. Also, stress from a year ago flared up my skin like crazy.

#1] What products do you swear by now? LOTS! Here’s a list of all the products I use.

#2] What fash wash + moisturizer do you prefer? Currently, I use Glytone Acne Self Foaming Cleanser as my face wash. ++ PCA ReBalance as my moisturizer!

#3] What is your routine now? Same peels as before, etc? I’m at a really good place with my skin. I’m going to do microneedling/peel series this winter + then get more “for fun” facials [think: facial massage]. ++ of course, stay consistent on skin routine!

#1] When did you start to get acne? As an adult… sigh ; (

#2] How do you stop picking? Omg. Read how I finally stopped picking here.

#3] How do you get rid of acne scars? Using retinol/retinoid + TREATMENTS.

#1] Do you consistently get treatment done on your face? Now I do! I like to get a treatment every 1–1.5 months, but it depends on the treatment + how much time is needed in between treatments [your esthetician will talk to you about that!]

#2] How long did it take you to notice results from microneedling? One month!

#3] How did you find your esthetician? Through having Kate on the podcast! Thank yew, Kate!

#4] How long was the process? It’s still a process ; ) However, I will say… after 6 months of consistent medical grade products + treatments, I finally noticed a massive difference. Make sure to take progress pictures of your skin, so that you can remember what your skin used to look like throughout your skincare journey! It will be crazy to see the change!

#1] What’s one thing that helped majorly or was it a combination of things? A combination of things for sure.

#2] What are your thoughts on taking oral medication/accutane? I considered accutane, but before I tried oral medication, I wanted to work with medical grade products + treatments to see if that would clear up my skin. + it did!

#3] How much have you invested in your skincare journey? A LOT. lol. I talk about my skincare routine investment in this post — it comes to about $17–34 per week. Treatments can be anywhere from $100–350 per session… + I’ve done ~10 sessions, so you can do the math… eeek. There’s no doubt that it is an INVESTMENT! However, it’s an investment that I happily made [+ will continue to make]. I’m 29 years old… it’s about time that I have clear skin! ALSO, SpaDerma in Chicago constantly has discounts on packages, so I typically only purchase when I can get a package [although it doesn’t always work out that way ; )].

#4] Did you change anything about your diet to fix your skin? I didn’t consciously change anything, however — I will say that I drink a lot more water now than I did 15 months ago, ++ I barely eat dairy anymore!

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Any questions that I missed, or that you want me to do a deeper dive on in my skincare journey? Let me know! I hope this series was entertaining + informative for you! I love you guys so much!

Rooting for you,