Dry Flaky Skin and Breakouts Part 1: My Tell-tale Sign of Winter Skin

So I have a love/hate relationship with Winter.  The older I get, I suppose it becomes more hate than love because I find that there is just more I need to do to myself in the colder months to make myself look presentable.

For me, the onset of Winter usually means that my face becomes dry and flaky.  So much so that my regular exfoliator just won't do the trick anymore.  However, because I'm more bundled up (hats, scarf, hoods, etc.)  I find my face to be much more congested I get breakouts.

This vicious tag team of skin maladies is one of the reasons I hate when the temperature drops.  I also get dandruff and sometime break out into hives if there's a cold snap so that doesn't help my fondness for the weather either.

So how do I deal?

Well, just like clothing, I change up my skincare routine to one that is more weather appropriate.

Hopefully these tips will give you some respite if you suffer some similar conditions.  I will break this up into a few posts so that it doesn't get too long.

First off, I shower mainly at night.  This gives me plenty of time to do what I need to do during and afterwards.

Secondly, now is the time to break out the body cream.  I slather this all over and hop in my pjs so that I can let the moisture soak in all night.  Most body creams I use offer 24 hour moisture and since the body isn't exposed during the day like the face and hands, I don't have to worry about reapplying.

Thirdly, now is when I use hand cream.  Hand cream is different from body cream.  Most hand creams have added waxes to them so that they can offer some protection against total moisture loss when you wash your hands.  They also tend to have a non greasy finish and are formulated so that you don't need to wait for the cream to fully absorb before continuing on with your work.

These are my main additions to my Winter skin routine.  As for my face, I do need to give a bit more attention to it.

First off, the breakouts.

I use my extracting loop a lot when it's cold.  Usually when the weather is warmer I sweat more so my pores are flushed out on a regular basis.  When it's cold, I don't sweat much at all and all those cells and sebum stay in my pores for much longer leading to clogged pores and more breakouts.  This is at least my theory.....

The last thing one should to when they have breakouts on dry skin is to use an allover treatment.  You'll only aggravate your skin more.  After I extract my clogged pores or cleanly pop whiteheads, I always follow through with an antibacterial agent to ensure that it won't come back or get infected.

My favorites for this are:

 Tea tree oil - Super affordable and potent.  Remember to dilute this before applying to the skin.

Sulfur - Another great antibacterial that works like a charm on most breakouts.  It also has the added benefit of providing a physical layer over the skin to help block out possible possible irritants while it works to heal the skin.  It's stinky but works overnight.

Light Therapy - This is great if you're sensitive to chemicals or smells, but it is pricey and doesn't always work on everyone.  I use a model from Tanda and I love it.  It comes with a blue light (acne) and a red light (wrinkles) and once fully charged it lasts a surprisingly long time.  I use these on those underground cysts that have yet to fully form.  The light stops it from getting any bigger and if I start right when I feel a pimple coming, it never surfaces.

More tips in the next post.  See you soon!