Self Care Skin Routine

I have been acne prone from a young age. Infact I remember being the only one with a face full of pimples in elementary school, and I'd go home crying to my mom about it!
Obviously at that age, hormones were a major component. But I have still struggled with break outs, and finding the right products for over 15 years! I've tried Proactive, Clinique, Mary Kay, lots of other top brand skin care lines out there and even dermatologist prescribed cleansers and ointments.
But the biggest thing I've learned through trying them all, is that my routine and how I take care of myself and my health is by far the most effective thing I can do to control breakouts.

In my home, we are constantly eating fruits and vegetables. 
We eat balanced diets for our meals, and only occasionally indulge in a sugar filled treat.
But it's that balance part I'm talking about... if I eat a candy bar and drink a soda once a day, I can clearly see the effects in my skin. My pores are larger, and I get more pimples and blackheads because I've ingested more sugar than I should or than I normally do.
Do I see these negative effects if I eat one candy bar and drink one soda per week? Not really.
If it was really important for me to have flawless and glowing natural skin, then I probably should cut those sugars out totally.
But my intentions are never to be perfect, but rather to simply be happy.
And what makes me happy, is knowing I'm putting my efforts into the things I want, but not giving myself unrealistic goals. Therefor, I will indulge in my occasional sugar filled treat and do what I know works.
What works for me, is having those proper nutrients in my diet, and sticking to a routine.
I am a red head with sensitive skin. And that means things like foods I eat, makeup, stress and hormones all play a big part on how my skin appears.
What I've learned is, I can really only control 2 of those 4 things.
Food, and makeup.
I can eat the right foods and fill my body with the proper nutrients to avoid breakouts.
Plus I can use good quality make up, and wash my face twice daily to clean out my pores and remove dead skin.
I've found that if I fall asleep even one night without washing off my makeup, I will almost always have a bad breakout within a couple days.

By keeping these 2 things in check and part of my routine, I have found the effects of stress and hormones to have less of an influence on my skin.

So it's best to learn from your own experiences and find out what seems to effect your skin the most. But I guarantee, adding in these regiments to your daily life will get you closer to that naturally beautiful skin you've always hoped for.

I currently use Neutrogena products. They're easy to find, affordable, and with a balanced diet and cleansing twice daily, these products have given me exactly what I needed.
I use the gentle foam cleanser at night to remove make up, and apply the spot treatment to any breakouts.
In the morning I use the grape fruit scrub to give me a fresh start to my day. Then follow it up with the grapefruit moisturizer.
They all leave my skin feeling soft afterwards, and the ointment and moisturizer are light and not irritating.
With my sensitive skin, I'd recommend these products to anyone!


. .