I am glad that today’s youth are so knowledgeable about skincare in general. This is due to the Internet and also the availability of so many products in the market. When I was in my 20s, good skincare meant spending good money. Some of the issues I noticed in my 20s were tanning and rough skin texture. As a teenager, I never faced any issues of acne or significant skin concerns and had no idea what my skin type was. I got myself some skincare products and started using those. But then I noticed it was doing no good to my skin, so I went to a famous skin clinic that had started that time very recently. That was the first time I learned about getting skin treatments done. However, here are the 5 things I realized I had known back then for my skincare to get the maximum benefits from the treatments.
Credit: Pixdeluxe1. Understanding my skin type: Until my mid-20s, I could never understand my skin type. I used to get a shiny nose and had issues with blackheads then. I thought my skin was oily and purchased some fancy products that were meant for oily skin. At that time, I was working and had to be in an air-conditioned environment. So, what was happening was that my skin was getting dehydrated, and I was taking almost 8-10 cups of coffee during my office hours. That also counted. But I never realised that my skin required more hydration and proper UV protection. I was using products meant for oily skin and sunscreen that were only SPF 20. My skin deteriorated. So, I went to that newly opened clinic.
2. Taking maximum out of expensive skin treatments: I was offered a few sessions of Glycolic peels at the clinic. I was given products to go with the treatment for daily use. One of the products was a sunscreen with SPF 15. I started using that sunscreen from then, but little did I know that an SPF 15 sunscreen would do no good along with a thorough treatment of Glycolic peels. I needed a stronger option at that time. So the treatment backfired, and I hardly noticed any improvement in my skin.
3. Taking care of my health: This is perhaps the most critical factor that caused my skin to get damaged. I worked the night shift, and my sleep was getting majorly disrupted. All I did was go to the office, travel for at least 3 hrs to and fro in a company-assigned car, come home, sleep, get up, eat, and go to the office again. I had food from the office canteen mostly. At home, I often ordered food from outside because I was too hungry and tired to cook. I wish I had taken time out for some physical workout and a bit more to prepare meals at home then.
4. Not Trying out popular DIY skin remedies blindly: This is something I despise so much these days. Even recently, my impulsive self forced me to try out a homemade rice face mask that, despite giving glow as f skin for the first 3 days, caused irritation, redness and patchiness from the 4th day. I understood I had started to ruin my skin barrier and stopped it ASAP. During my 20s, too, I used to make some stupid face masks out of ingredients from my kitchen, which I had no idea what was meant to do. I did because someone else did.
5. Not listening to others’ opinions about my skin: The first skincare item I purchased from the counter was listening to the opinion of the SA there. Even for my glycolic peel sessions, I just sought the advice of the dermatologist there and bought the SPF 15 sunscreen. They suggested it as they had to sell it, and spf 15 was the only sunscreen they had at that time. (Not blaming them at all, they were just doing their jobs) I had to be diligent enough to understand glycolic peeling by researching it.
After a long time, I realised these mistakes, started researching skincare, and realised that my skin was an oily combination. Then after, when I started using products from a particular French Pharmacy brand, I could see visible results. Nobody suggested these products. I found out myself, and thank God I did.
