8 Steps To Reducing Redness

In my previous post, "Adult Acne? ...Or Is It Really Rosacea?" I went over the differences between adult acne and rosacea and how to tell exactly what kind of breakouts you're experiencing.  I also mentioned lifestyle changes that could help to manage rosacea flare-ups.

Of course, not everyone with redness issues has rosacea.  Rosacea is a vascular disorder, usually inherited, usually shows up around the age of 30, and is marked by a chronic redness that gets worse with age when left untreated.

Adult Acne? ...Or Is It Really Rosacea?

While I regard myself mostly as a specialist in adult acne, I also specialize in rosacea, as well as in general sensitivity.  And, as someone who actually has rosacea herself, I can understand the frustrations that come along with not knowing how to properly manage the condition.  This can be especially frustrating when you believe you have rosacea and it turns out it's really acne, and vise versa. 

I once had a client who’d been trying all sorts of topical and internal antibiotics and other medications, even birth control (though she was in her late 40s), and nothing was working.  In fact, most of what she was using topically was making things much worse, and what she was taking orally was helping a little or not at all (like the birth control).

Surviving Winter Dryness with Adult Acne

Did you know that only 10% of the world's population has truly dry skin?  As in, genetically does not produce enough oil to maintain its acid mantle, aka natrual barrier.  We call this skin type "Oil-Dry" because it doesn't produce enough of the natural oils skin needs to function properly.  10% of the world's population has skin that produces so much oil, their pores are so large and free-flowing, the skin actually never experiences acne.  The rest of us have combination skin, with oil production occuring along a spectrum.   This is why I believe there are 4 skin types, not three - Dry, Slightly Dry, Slightly Oily, and Oily.  As my instructor at beauty school (may she rest in peace) said, "There ain't no such thing as normal skin."

Oiliness and Dryness at the Same Time??

Winter dryness actually affects everyone’s skin, not just those born with a genetic lack of oil in theirs.  However, for people with acne, or even just skin on the oilier side, dryness can be quite baffling, becuase we're just not used to it.  On top of that, this kind of dryness can have many people breaking out more in the winter than in the summer, even though the opposite may seem to make more sense.  Dryness isn't not just about itchiness, flaking, tightening, or redness.  Personally, my skin always used to look far worse in winter as an adult, with more breakouts, dullness and redness.  My oily adult skin always looked its best in summer. 

Knowing what to do about winter dryness starts with an understanding of how it happens in the first place.