At some point on our journey we have all experienced ‘bad skin days’, it happens to all of us. This is why, at AMPERNA®, we believe in skin confidence. Skin confidence means that you love your skin for the way it looks and feels; not because it is perfect, but because it is yours and a reflection of who you are.
Regardless of how far you have come on your skin journey, it is still normal to experience bad skin days. Liz AKA pretty progress says “I’ve had acne since the age of 12 and it became cystic at 19 years old well through to my early twenties. I’m turning 25 and still have those ‘bad’ skin days. I occasionally break out from stress or lack of sleep. These are a few coping mechanisms that help me get through the day/week:”
Coping Mechanisms
- I would skip wearing makeup, or at least wear less to let my skin heal faster. If you’re someone who relies on makeup, that’s ok. Start taking baby steps. Instead of covering every single spot with full coverage concealer and foundation leave some pimples out so eventually you would get used to having some visible red spots on your face. Gradually with this method, you will get accustomed to walking about with red spots without caring as much as before. When I did this, I continued to wear less and less makeup and eventually I got used to seeing my bare skin and appreciating it for what it was.
- I write a list of things that make me happy, whether that be spending time with my partner, dancing in my room, writing in my journal, hiking. I would keep myself busy to avoid overthinking.
- In terms of practical things to deal with breakouts, I would nourish my body with anti-inflammatory food to help speed up the healing process. I would increase my water intake because hydration is key. And of course, fall back to my trusty skincare routine avoiding over exfoliation and avoiding bombarding my face with too many harsh actives. I used to get carried away where I would use more than what my skin needed but sometimes simple is best whenever I break out. I also try to go to sleep earlier.
Positive Advice
If you could go back and offer yourself some positive advice at the start of your journey what would you say?
The biggest advice I would give my past self is to love your skin and never give up hope as cliche as it sounds. There will be days where you feel beautiful and other days where you won’t but that’s okay, the next day will be a new day and you can start all over again, just don’t give up. Self-love takes practice, and you will get there eventually. Here are three main steps that I do almost every day and wished I started sooner.
- Stop comparing yourself to other people. You are unique and no one does YOU better than you. Know that social media is a place full of photoshop and filters. It’s not real.
- Stay away from over analysing your face in the mirror. Keep an arm’s length to avoid self criticism and skin picking.
- Say loud affirmations. Treat yourself like you would treat your best friend. Compliment yourself loudly so your body and soul can hear how much you love and appreciate yourself. We never have enough of it.
Support
Our founder Kiri has been following your journey since you had your account with 3,000 followers. We love the support that you offer your followers. What have been some of the concerns you have been supporting your followers with and how do you help them cope?
My followers need words of reassurance whether that be through DM’s, captions or videos - they also enjoy my light-hearted videos that humourise and normalise acne and informative skincare/health related posts to pull them in the right direction. The combination of these helps them cope through their acne journey. I also reinforce the notion that progress is not linear, so encouraging them to push on whenever they face a setback.
Here at AMPERNA® we understand the emotional challenges you may face on your skin journey. Our founder Kiri personally struggled with acne and perioral dermatitis.
"Looking after your skin health goes way beyond the beauty products you use. Your diet, gut health, stress levels and daily habits all play an important role.
At AMPERNA®, we believe that the best way for your skin to look and feel its best, is to take a holistic approach. We have many differences as a business, one of which is supporting you through your skin health journey. I know what having problem skin is like; I have suffered from pustular acne, perioral dermatitis and ongoing reactive skin before."
When it comes to looking after your skin and gut health, experts recommend following an anti-inflammatory based diet. Here are three ways to kickstart your anti-inflammatory diet to help your skin and gut health.
- Focus on fatty foods such as olive oil, salmon, avocado and nuts. Omega-3 fatty acids are particularly good at supressing inflammation.
- Reduce your intake of refined sugar and refined carbs. This includes limiting your processed food intake.
- Focus on wholegrains and fresh vegetables and foods with lean protein.
