Five Common Skin Care Mistakes
Skin care mistakes that are easily made There’s so much information out there telling us what we should and shouldn’t be doing, it can become
Hyperpigmentation treatments are fantastic for helping you improve sun damage, age spots and some can also help with melasma. These are common ageing skin concerns, and hyperpigmentation treatments and products can really help to improve the existing pigmentation that you have, and help to protect your skin against further damage.
Do you have darker patches of pigment that you’d like to get rid of? Perhaps you have sun damage, freckles or age spots that you’d like to improve the appearance of, to achieve a more flawless complexion. Hyperpigmentation can affect any area of your skin, but is more common on the face, chest and hands.
Another common cause of hyperpigmentation is melasma, which is a hormone related skin condition, and is usually triggered as a result of pregnancy or hormone medications, such as the pill or coil. This type of pigmentation isn’t suitable for a lot of hyperpigmentation treatments, but there are ways to improve and manage melasma.
Your best friend, over all hyperpigmentation treatments, is sunscreen! Protecting your skin against UV rays, 365 days a year, will help to minimise further pigmentation coming through.
Hyperpigmentation is caused by an increase in melanin. Melanin is the natural pigment that is present in our skin that is responsible for our giving our skin, hair and eyes their colour. There are a number of factors that can trigger an increase in melanin production. The main ones are sun exposure, hormonal influences, age and skin injuries or inflammation.
Your skin is the largest organ in your body and it is influenced by both internal and external factors. You may have found that as you mature, you notice areas of pigmentation developing. This is often as a result of long term sun exposure and changes to your hormones. If you have an olive or darker skin tone, you may also notice that you develop areas of pigmentation around the wound site as you are healing.
You may also have experienced hyperpigmentation after trauma to your skin. This is where darker patches form around the injury site and is very common with acne scarring, but can also happen after surgery or injury. This is called post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation and is something that we need to be careful with, with hyperpigmentation treatments.
Hyperpigmentation treatments are pretty pointless, if you’re not using the right products to strengthen and protect your skin. I’m always really honest about this. If you invest in an expensive course of treatment, but don’t have a good skin care routine in place, your pigmentation will likely just return with your next UV exposure.
There are some fantastic targeted serums that help to lighten existing pigmentation and sun damage, and prevent over stimulation of melanin in the future. Your sunscreen, worn daily, 365 days a year – is your ultimate protection.
Targeted skin care is also the best option for those of you with melasma, as this condition is a contraindication for most advanced treatments, as it can make it worse.
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Microneedling and radiofrequency microneedling treatments are fantastic hyperpigmentation treatments, if you have low level sun damage and uneven skin tone. Both of these treatments help to stimulate fresh, healthy collagen and cell turnover, which improve the appearance of sun damage.
You also get the added benefits of anti ageing, as these treatments improve lines & wrinkles too. And, for the ultimate treatment, radiofrequency microneedling has a tightening and lifting effect too.
If you have melasma, then standard microneedling may be suitable for you, but unfortunately, radiofrequency microneedling wouldn’t be, as the heat can trigger melasma.
When it comes to severe sun damage, broken capillaries and large areas of hyperpigmentation, then IPL is really your gold standard treatment. Think of this as an air brush effect on your skin, as the light targets the pigmentation and triggers your body’s natural ability to break it down.
Fractional laser is a resurfacing treatment, which essentially burns away the surface layers of your skin, to reveal fresher, healthier skin underneath.
You’ll need a course of treatment, usually 4-6 treatments. These hyperpigmentation treatments are best in the winter months, as you can’t have it done on tanned skin, and need to be very careful with sun exposure.
Both of these treatment require careful use of skin care products, and that essential ingredient- sunscreen.
I no longer offer these treatments, as I found that medical grade skincare and microneedling combinations gave an equal result, with the exception of extreme sun damage. I am able to recommend local practitioners though, so please get in touch if you’re considering having these treatments.
I have been passionate about skin (read ‘obsessed’) for the best part of a decade. Whilst I love products & treatments, I know that there is a lot more to beautiful skin than these alone.
As a qualified Nutritional Therapist, I know that what you put into your body is equally as powerful and effective as what you put onto your skin.
I have also personally experienced many skin challenges during my stressful corporate career and in more recent years, hormone related skin issues. So I have experienced first hand the effects of stress, insomnia, poor nutrition and hormone imbalances – and it’s not fun is it!
My goal is to help you to manage your skin, improve your well-being and energy levels, plus learn how to look after your skin for the long term, in a simple, sustainable way – with that little bit of luxury that we all deserve!
I know that sometimes the thought of making changes to our routines and lifestyle can be daunting, but I promise you there’s nothing radical here, it’s about helping you to create small, incremental changes for the long term. I have nearly 15 years experience as a coach, helping individuals to achieve their goals, so rest assured I will be there to help you through your transformation.
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