“My grandmother only used soap [or olive oil/cold cream/backyard mud/etc.] her whole life, and her skin is amazing.”
*Le sigh.* I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard this from clients as we’re talking about their skin concerns.
Or this one:
Client: Help! I have these bumps [or redness/dryness/oiliness/sensitivity], and I don’t know why! What can you do about it??
Me: Let’s talk about what skin care products you’ve been using…
Client: Oh, I’ve always used Clinique [Aveeno/an MLM line/essential oils/coconut oil], and it works fine. I don’t need new products.
Me:
Me: Ok, let’s talk about some changes we can work into your routine…
Client: Oh, well I’m really a wash and go person; I don’t have time for all these steps.
Me:
Here’s the thing, if you didn’t have actual skin conditions to reckon with, you probably wouldn’t be talking to a skin care specialist. And if soap (or plain water or car oil or whatever) would fix that condition, you wouldn’t be consulting an expert, and the fields of esthetics and dermatology would be moot.
So why can Grandma get away with Dove while you have pimples and flakey skin?
Maybe because your grandma grew up in a time where food wasn’t pumped full of hormones and the air didn’t largely consist of fossil fuels.
Or for the same reason that my friend Kacie can eat pretty much whatever she wants, maaaaybe exercise if she feels like it, and stay rail thin. But as for me, I look at a doughnut and gain five pounds.
Bodies and metabolisms and skins are different. Climates and environments are different. What works for one person in one place and time may not work for another person – or at a different age.
If you can use kitchen oils on your face and feel healthy and glowing till you’re 70 – awesome.
But if you’re coming to me with acne, over production of oil, dryness, wrinkles, sun damage, and so forth, soap and coconut oil just aren’t going to cut it.
That doesn’t mean you need to drop $1,000 and spend three hours by the bathroom sink to live your best life.
But it also doesn’t mean you can have one facial or swap out a cleanser and expect a drastic change in your body’s largest organ.
What it does mean is that you may want to listen to the science out there, learn from someone who deals with all different sorts of skin issues, and invest a little time and a little money into putting your best face forward.
If grandma’s soap isn’t giving you the radiant glow you crave, come see me. I’ve got an apothecary full of goodies and a head full of knowledge, and am ready to help you feel as beautiful as you are.
xxColleen
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