| Please take the following notes as in the spirit it is intended. I am not a Qualified Dermatologist or Doctor. I can only speak from my own personal sensitive skin experience. If you have not yet consulted with your own Doctor about a skin condition that is currently affecting you, I would strongly advise that you seek his or her advice before trying other avenues.  If the world were perfect, we would all have perfect bodies and skin types. If there were no money, family and work worries, there would be no need for healing lotions and potions. We would have perfect diets, as we wouldn’t be craving comfort foods for our distressed states. We would be in a finely tuned and balanced state. Our systems would not be eliminating large doses of toxins from the continual emotional stressful states by constantly feeling pressured and anxious. This continual behaviour can result in overused adrenals and can take its toll on the rest of your hormonal system, your nervous system and finally your brain. This constant fight or flight response results in bad skin, bad hair and numerous body odours to contend with on a daily basis. Mind worries can overwhelm the best of us. We’ve just got to get on with life, through the highs and the lows and our skin and hair are always the first to pay the price for our hectic and stressful lifestyles.
I used to suffer years and years with a dodgy predominant skin type; ‘problem spotty/oily type skin’ was the label I would more than readily apply to myself. I could experience the whole spectrum of different skin types in a space of just a few weeks, depending on what stresses were encountered. Unfortunately, for some, the need to remove all trace of oil from the skin whilst showering and bathing is the only way one feels clean; this was what I would continuously do on a twice-daily basis (sometimes more!).  The following snippet is from "Information about skin"
"We all want normal, healthy, glowing, beautiful and resilient skin. As you may know our skin is comprised of many layers, the outer layer of healthy skin has a balanced pH level and so is exceedingly rich in polyunsaturated and saturated fatty acids. When skin appears dry it is critically deficient in these very vital nutritional essential fatty acids and so results in crucial moisture loss. Those with oilier complexions, it is exactly the same predicament! Over oiliness is a sure sign that the skin is deficient in vital nutrients, and so over produces oil as a protective measure. To rebalance this very fine pH level, natural and organic skincare offers the very best vitamin, mineral and essential fatty acid nutritionally loaded plant based skin food available! However, we do exclude products which use Hydrogenated fats and oils, as these have no nutritional qualities whatsoever.
By eliminating unnecessary harsh synthetic chemicals, detergents and petroleum based moisturisers which are all void of all the much needed nutritious vitamins, minerals and essential fatty acids and switching to natural plant based skincare will allow the skin to function so much better. Allowing this amazing and very much underestimated major organ of ours to breathe and function far more beautifully and efficiently. Reducing breakouts/spots, uneven skin tone, rashes, allergies and general skin dullness.
Unfortunately, most if not all commercial hair & baby skincare products use harsh synthetic chemical detergents such as Sodium Lauryl Sulphates and suffocating petrochemical derived moisturisers (such as petrolatum/mineral oil). Using harsh detergents and relating to my own personal experience, results in stripping the skin’s natural protective pH balance (the skin’s acid mantle). By leaving the skin vulnerable without this much needed and resilient waterproof protection layer, the more sensitive among us are prone to our skin becoming dry, cracked and open to microbe invasions, thus leading to many skin disorders, such as eczema. To add insult to injury, uncomfortable skin conditions can be exacerbated by using suffocating petrolatum/mineral oil based moisturisers causing further irritation." Notes Created May 2009
 By looking after your skin using natural and organic skincare products you can be sure that you are using the much needed plant based nutritious essential fatty acid skincare. Incorporating skin friendly, refreshing, nutritious and naturally caring ingredients which all help the skin maintain equilibrium and results in natural healthy beauty. The skin over produces oil to compensate from an attack, that is, an attack from harsh detergents that strip the skin of it's natural oil, for example Sodium Lauryl Sulphates & harsh medicated skin washes. The skin goes into overdrive, producing more and more oil (sebum) as a form of protection; hence pores can become clogged with sebum and debris which can then become infected, resulting in spots and possibly eczema patches on the drier parts for the more sensitive. For some of us, skin can appear dry and oily in different parts, the T zone, resulting in a combination skin type. Skin needs to retain a nice natural water resistant base to defend itself from microbes, etc. The sebum and sweat combine nicely to form this healthy acid mantle (which is also a mild anti-bactericide too). Unfortunately the Sodium Lauryl Sulphate (SLS) and other harsh washing detergents strip your skin of this nice natural pH balance, hence more sensitive skins (even though oily) will be prone to the chance of experiencing skin disorders/problems. You also double your chances if you suffer from stress too. If you’ve read the Eczema tips on the other page, you may notice significant similarities between these two pages. Because although Eczema seems to arise from a dry and sensitive skin condition, the assaults the skin has had to endure only creates more of a vicious circle, and the habits are hard to break out of, or to even recognise what you are doing. The main similarity to pin point is the use of Sodium Lauryl Sulphate (SLS) based products; this main ingredient is in most if not all commercial mainstream products. It will strip your natural skin oils. The more of an oily problem I thought I had, the more products I would wash and coat myself with. The more harsh products used, the more sensitivities I created for myself. Hence, skin became far more oilier and I was then unable to use most high street skincare items due to increasing sensitivities. I couldn’t see the wood for the trees and the balance was continuously being tipped until I recognised what I was actually doing... I commenced a year's training for Anatomy & Physiology (the beginnings of becoming a Holistic Therapist). The main topics studied in-depth was the skin’s structure, and it’s purely balanced ideal state. I then received a EUREKA moment! I realised I had to stop what I was doing and finally find a state of balance for my skin, somehow. I needed to trust that my skin ultimately knew what it should be doing (if there are no underlying illnesses/diseases). It was me who was constantly interfering with my skin’s balance, through stress, diet and harsh washing detergents. I can remember when I first commenced upon that 'bad skin' path and noticed a few blemishes when I was 21, I never had spots before, not even in my teens, where have they come from? In hindsight, I started using a commercial high street moisturiser in my late teens. I never thought to use it before, because my skin didn't need it - I actually believed the adverts saying that skin required moisturisation, when in fact, my skin was already in a perfect state of balance! It was a gradual slippery slope from then on... weekly visits to the high street to find the latest miracle cure for spots. I just didn't recognise the fact, that it was the content of mineral oil in the moisturiser that had started to create problems for me...! My skin, before, was perfect!  Your skin requires a lot of respect for all the work it does, protecting you from all sorts of microbe invasions. The many functions it is able to perform deserves our utmost admiration! You don't need to fight spots/oily and sensitive skin problems. Try and understand why your skin is the way it is... I used to become angry at my skin for not always looking it’s best, this behaviour certainly made my skin worse. The ideal is to work with your skin, what are your stress triggers, is there anything you can change that could reduce the stress? Could you improve your diet, eat more soluble & insoluble fibre, so that your digestive tract functions more efficiently? Could you drink more water to flush out your natural bodily toxins more efficiently? How can you increase your intake of Essential Fatty Acids for ultimate skin health? Becoming worked up about your skin is another stress factor to contend with, and this behaviour takes time and a lot of patience to overcome and to then finally break the cycle.
For me, since breaking out of this vicious circle by using natural and organic skincare I finally discovered my ‘true’ skin type. It was after all, combination and now highly sensitive. The mass production of oil that covered my face everyday was purely a protective defence measure. Highly sensitive now because of all the medicated and harsh detergents I was using over long periods of time. Although I now have to live with sensitive skin, which can lead to Rosacea/Eczema, my skin is now so much healthier than it ever has been. For me natural & organic skincare (along with a healthy & disciplined diet) was the miracle I was looking and hoping for. These natural products will allow you to find your ‘true’ skin type. By using natural base oils full of nourishing essential fatty acids will do so much more for your skin and you will notice a difference in just a matter of days. A word of warning, if you’ve not used natural before, and you have always used petro-chemical derived products, you may find that your skin may undergo a healing process, you may notice a couple of new spots, this can be expected. After stripping the skin's natural oils by using harsh detergents and then suffocating your skin’s natural ability to breathe and heal itself by using petroleum-based emollients, it will suddenly feel like your skin is free. This turmoil is short-lived only and does not happen for everyone. Most people will notice significant improvement straight away. Of course, do check that the skincare you are using is suitable for your skin type. You may also find that your skin will change altogether, so what you first thought your skin type was, is now altogether totally different. Of course, when choosing natural organic skincare, you need to be aware that all base oils have differing characteristics; some are more suited to mature/dry skins whereas other base oils are more suited to more sensitive/oily/combination type skins. So, using a base oil that is created for a dry skin type will not be suitable for a sensitive/oily/combination skin type. The effect of using heavier oils for oily skin types can result in the same old problems, clogged blocked pores. Choosing natural does not always mean you get it right first time. Our skincare and sensitive skincare items are created with vegetable/fruit and nut oils. These beautiful natural oils, or more precisely termed 'fixed oils' are composed of molecules that make the cream/lotion/butter easier to smooth onto the skin, although they consist of large molecules (similarities to that of petro-chemical derived oils!) these fixed oils are far more healthier in that the vitamins, minerals and essential fatty acids are absorbed more readily into the skin cells. For example: It is thought that Avocado Oil is the only oil that can penetrate the upper layers of the skin, and so would be ideal to be considered for the drier/mature skin types. These natural basic oils are so much healthier and more biologically aligned to our anatomy than petroleum based emollients.  If your skin suffers with excess oil and is a problem at the moment, it may need time to calm down, so perhaps either using the Problem Skincare range or the Essential Oil Free Skincare range might be beneficial? First check - if you also suffer inflamed red rashes/spots with itching, and/or your face burns when you smooth a cream or lotion on your skin, I would suggest you have sensitive tendencies. You will need to treat the sensitive skin condition as a priority before you even attempt to treat the oiliness, you may in fact find that by treating your skin with Essential Oil Free/Unscented products
you will no longer have those unbearable oily episodes any more. Using less ingredients will help calm your skin’s defence mechanism and may just stop producing all that extra protective sebum. Perhaps after a couple of months using this simple regime for sensitive skin, you could start to be a bit more adventurous with the more luxuriously loaded herbal and essential oil based products? Again, listen to what your skin truly desires. Perhaps introduce one new product at a time, and go from there? However, if your skin problem is purely excess oil and you have no tendency to itch, scratch and your skin doesn’t burn when you use lotions and creams, no rashes or excessive dry patches, it is purely a Problem Skin type. Still not sure which skin type you are? Please see this link for more clarification Facial Skin Analysis >>> Please consult with your doctor if your skin problem persists. |
