I will be the first to say, I have not been kind to my skin over the years. I spent a lot of time in the tanning bed, days at the beach and pool without sunscreen, and no solid skincare routine. As I have aged and with each pregnancy, I have noticed damage to my skin in the form of dark spots and wrinkles. I tried tackling these issues on my own using recommendations from several sources and a hodgepodge of skincare products. I finally decided it was time to tackle these issues and made an appointment for a skincare consultation.
When I arrived for my first appointment, my skin was sensitive with red patches, flaking skin, and irritation. Over the past several months, I’ve had the chance to sit down with LeAnn DePriest, DNP, NP-C and Asta Ragmanauskiene, Aesthetician, from Sweetgrass Plastic Surgery to develop a new skincare routine and I will share that with you next.
Disclaimer: I am an ambassador for Sweetgrass Plastic Surgery. All of my thoughts and statements in this post are my own and unbiased. Skincare is not “one size fits all” and I firmly believe that you should seek the advice of a medical professional before developing any sort of routine. I started this process in February 2020 and have slowly made progress with adaptations to my regimen. Any statements made in this post are not medical advice and I am not a medical professional. You should always seek the help of a medical professional and discuss any changes to your regimen with a professional.
My Previous Skincare Routine: What I Was Doing Wrong
What was I doing and why was it all wrong? While a lot of the products that I used are amazing products, they were not the best for my skin. I followed several influencers and medical professionals on Instagram and took little pieces of advice from their pages to develop my own routine. In the end, I was drying out my skin by using a retinol product that was too strong and not using the best moisturizer for my skin.
The following is my previous “routine” which I performed every other day or sporadically throughout the week. Some weeks I religiously used my products every single day and other weeks I was lucky enough to wash my face before bed a few nights a week.
- MORNING – Epionce Lytic Gel Cleanser, Obagi Vitamin C Serum, Obagi Hydrate Moisturizer, Skinceuticals Sunscreen
- EVENING – Epionce Lytic Gel Cleanser, Micellar water, Skinceuticals Retinol 1.0, Obagi Hydrate
I could only tolerate the retinol 2 days a week and my skin was constantly dry and flaking off. I attempted dermaplaning myself and while that helped, I could not find a great solution for moisturizing my skin. Ion the end, the combination that I used was drying out my skin and I was not hydrating my skin well enough to tolerate such an aggressive agent.
My New Daily Skincare Routine & Favorite Products
Morning Skincare Routine
- SkinMedica Sensitive Skin Cleanser – This light cleanser is gentle for my skin and feels great in the morning.
- Obagi Vitamin C Serum 15% – I have used this product for years and I love it. I don’t go a day without it!
- Skinceuticals A.G.E. Eye Complex – I have tried several eye creams and this is currently my favorite. I love skinceuticals and their products!
- SkinMedica Dermal Repair Cream – This is my favorite moisturizer to date. It feels like butter going on my skin and it is super hydrating.
- SkinMedica Essential Defense Mineral Shield Broad Spectrum SPF 32 Tinted – Another product that I use religiously every single day. I do not leave the house without it. It feels light and is perfect with or without makeup. It does not make my skin feel greasy after applying makeup.
Evening Skincare Routine
- Bioderma Sensibio H2O Micellar Water – I use this to gently remove my makeup.
- SkinMedica Sensitive Skin Cleanser or alternating SkinMedica AHA/BHA Exfoliating Cleanser – Depending on how sensitive or dry my skin is at the moment determines which cleanser I use at night.
- Skinceuticals A.G.E. Eye Complex – I have tried several eye creams and this is currently my favorite. I love Skinceuticals and their products!
- Obagi Retivance – I could not tolerate retinol two to three times a week and this cream has antioxidants and chamomile that help to diminish the appearance of fine lines, wrinkles and hyperpigmentation. It contains Retinaldehyde which is a vitamin A precursor of retinoic acid. I have tolerated this cream every night.
- Epionce Renewal Facial Cream or SkinMedica Dermal Repair Cream – Again, depending on the condition and needs of my skin determines which cream I will use at night.
- Latisse – Can I just say… WOW! Latisse has been such an amazing addition for my eyelashes. It took months to start working but once it did, the results have been amazing!
Additional Skin Care Recommendations
Botox Treatments
I have started getting botox treatments every three to four months and I am blown away by the results. I cannot imagine going without botox now. For my appearance, it has provided drastic results, erasing years of wrinkles. On average, I receive 56 units to my forehead, glabellar, crows feet, and playtismal bands. I do metabolize it quickly and it starts to wear off after three months.
Routine Diamond Glow Facials
Facialsmassage appointments
Morpheus 8 Procedure
Morpheus8 is a deep fractional, radiofrequency treatment that delivers exceptional skin, tissue and collagen remodeling to improve skin appearance and reduce irregularities. This fractional skin treatment stimulates the production of collagen in the underlying layers of the dermis. remodels skin and tissue with minimal risk of post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation.
I have completed a series of three treatments to my neck and face, with four weeks between each treatment. My face feels and appears tighter, with a decrease in the appearance of wrinkles on my neck. Our goal is to stimulate collagen and avoid the need for any invasive procedures when I am older.
How does the procedure work? One hour prior to the procedure, I applied a prescription numbing cream. I applied more of the numbing cream thirty minutes prior to the appointment. My entire face was nice and numb for the procedure and I did not feel most of the treatment. It is not painful, but it occasionally triggers a nerve and is “uncomfortable.” I felt no pain following the procedure and just had a sunburned appearance.
I was advised to avoid my regular skincare routine for 5 days and only use the provided skincare recovery kit. In addition, I was able to wear makeup 3 days following the treatment. Now, I will follow up with one treatment once a year.
As summer comes to an end, we will discuss laser treatments for my dark spots. I’m also considering laser hair removal as well. Their office offers a new laser and I’m excited to learn more about it and share my results with you all! I will work on a before and after botox post soon. Also, stay tuned for updates to the blog with new posts as my regimen changes!
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