OBJECTIONS + CONCERNS - Skin Wellness Product Series - Part 1 of 9

Want healthy Skin?

Tired of the vicious buying cycle!?!

Learn how to choose the best skincare for your skin.
The ins and outs of a non-toxic, effective, healthy, skincare regimen.

9 Part Series

Lately, I have been getting a lot of questions and concerns about skincare products.

Questions & Concerns like…

▸ How do I know what to choose when there are so many options? (keep reading)

▸ I’m tired of the vicious buying cycle and still am not happy with my skin.

▸ Do I really need to use so many products each day to see results?
(SPOILERT ALERT! The answer is NO!)

▸ Why would I Oil Cleanse over using a traditional cleanser? (next weeks email)

▸ I’m too tired... (keep reading to the end for this one!)

▸ Most recently (this week actually) I was talking with a new client who had never used a toner before. "Why, she asked, why would I even use a toner?" (Answered in a couple weeks)

So... in light of all of the questions that have been coming up lately,
I thought, why not create a series to speak in detail on these topics?

Enter…

… The Skin Wellness Product Series - (Based on a holistic and minimalistic approach.)

To begin, let’s talk about BARRIER FUNCTION:

Human skin itself serves as a barrier between your body & the outside world. The barrier function is the actual way that the surface of your skin works to physiologically do this job. Our skin is made up of two layers: the epidermis and the deeper dermis.

While we tend to think about what we can apply, massage in, or soak into our skin, the reality is our skin is meant to keep things out protecting us from pollutants, dirt and debris and harmful UV rays.

But the most outer, ultra thin (think strand of hair) top layer of the epidermis, called the stratnum corneum, is also meant to keep things in, specifically, moisture.

Part of the outermost layer of skin, your stratum corneum, is made up of a “lipid matrix” which is basically a grid of naturally occurring oily substances (cholesterol, free fatty acids, and ceramides to be exact, so many terms to define!). This matrix functions to prevent excess water loss from your skin and to protect your skin from unwanted invaders.

You want this barrier function to, well… function! This is essential for healthy skin.

One of the most common mistakes in skincare is accidentally stripping away this barrier in hopes of “drying out breakouts” or “smoothing your skin”. This is often done by over-exfoliation, super foamy cleansers, harsh products, and unprotected sun exposure. Signs of this could be chronic dryness, dullness, redness, inflammation, itchiness, bumps, flakiness, breakouts, and slow healing of wounds. Your “sensitive skin” may be symptoms of barrier damage.

The great news is that our bodies are so resilient when we allow them to be! Feeding your skin what it wants (moisture and hydration!) can go a long way in repairing your barrier function.

Think about working with your skin instead of against it.

One thing I really like educating women on, is learning how to read those skincare labels. I think it is so incredibly important and empowering to learn to do so.

Stop trusting the marketing and those beautiful front of the bottle or box labels and start trusting your knowledge of knowing what’s in it!

For more information on learning how to read those ingredient labels, please check out this FREE Resource Anatomy of an Ingredient Label.

This will help you to recognize what is in the products you are using, and also assist you in making the best possible choices for your skin.

OK, so, if you think you have a compromised barrier function or just prefer to keep it healthy here’s a few tips:

👉 Keep it simple. Use creamy or oil-based cleansers like NH's Oil Cleansers.

👉 Ditch harsh acids, alcohols, witch hazel, and cleansing brushes, etc. Opt for gentle enzyme exfoliation 0-1 per week. Try NH's Hibiscus Honey Enzyme Mask.

👉 Hydrate your skin with water-based products such as gentle toner, rosewater, fresh tea or a toner, like NH's Facial Mists.

👉 Moisturize with high-quality beauty oils (don’t be afraid of oils, your skin loves them!). Try these NH's Oil Serums OR NH's Calm Balm.

All of the products at Nourished Holistic are gentle and supportive of the barrier function.
More on these (AND MORE!) in the following 7 blog posts in this series:)

My friend Salmah Harharah of Empowered Skincare has this to say.

“If this cycle happens to you on a daily basis, would you classify it as abuse?

What happens to our epidermis at the cellular level every time we use mainstream skincare which contains stratum corneum and skin microbiome, sacrificing ingredients.

Ingredients such as surfactants, emulsifiers, film formers, harsh actives, and strong preservatives anti-microbials wreak havoc on the epidermis and its microbiome when used on a daily basis.

Though the formulations contain other "skin-loving" ingredients that minimize or initiate repair, what's the point if harm (no matter how small) is inflicted on a daily basis for years on end?

It’s time we bring mindfulness and consciousness to our skincare routines, practices, and rituals. For the sake of our skin.”

Alright, so we touched base on the skin’s barrier. Hopefully you aren’t cross-eyed by now from all the science speak. But I assure you, it’s important stuff to know!

Another concern that comes up frequently with clients is…

I’m too tired…

I don’t have the time…

I get lazy…

Any of these sound like you? It’s OK if it does. And even if you are adamant about your skincare, these tips will still be helpful.

I have an answer😉

Solution:

Wash right when you get home!

OR Wash right after dinner!

If I know I’m not going anywhere for the rest of the night, I start my night routine early.

Honestly… this can be a game changer. In the least, you are washing the day off.

To be more specific, even if you are someone who does not wear makeup, any number of these can be on your skin and in your pores at night. Sweat, dead skin, our own oils, dirt, make-up, sunscreen, environmental aggressors. And what happens is that these create almost a glue-like substance that should be cleansed (gently) away.

With that said, I typically recommend an Oil Cleanser for a number of reasons. First and foremost, oil acts like a magnet. Our skin is made primarily of oils and the term like-dissolves-like comes to mind.)

More on Oil Cleansing and all Cleansers in the next blog post in this series!!! So stay tuned.

The other benefit of cleansing early is that when I finally sit down to relax after putting the kiddo to bed, my skin is clean already and I get some time to do my facial gua sha and reflexology. I have found that once I put him to bed, I do not feel like washing my face, so this way it’s already clean. But you will find what works best for you. For some, it may even work best to do it right after getting the kiddos to bed.

Will you try this early cleansing method?

ANGIE'S PRO TIP

If you are wearing a lot of makeup or sunscreen, double cleanse in the PM, preferably with an oil cleanser or a non-foaming cleanser. One to remove the day & makeup, then again to really cleanse. Makeup wipes don’t count and TO BE BLUNT are terrible for your skin (more on these in EXTRAS! Part 7 of this series).

The last thing I want to say this week before moving into product choices is that modern skincare regimens have extreme costs of keeping up with a regimen.

So I ask you, what is the price our skin pays for this expectation of perfection, every single day?

In my opinion, what makes it an empowered versus a disempowered choice is knowing that we have options and alternatives, so we can mindfully choose what is best for us at any and every given point in time.

So, if anyone here is tired, exhausted, and close to tears when it comes to your skin or skincare routine, I'm here to offer an alternative.

I leave you with this...

Be gentle and give your skin time to heal.

Less is more here...really!!!

So… your eyes peeled for the next blog posts in this series. They are FILLED with great info, if I do say so myself;)