Since starting the blog, I have lost count of the amount of skin care products I have tried out. Some I have loved and some I have absolutely hated ( Im looking at you Glam Glow). In recent months, I really feel that I have gotten my skin care routine right and my skin is in better condition than it has been in a very long time.
In saying that, you will have heard me say time and time again, that no matter how good my skin feels on any one day, it can change and become a nightmare over night. I always felt that this is down to in part to my lack of thyroid because as you may already know, the thyroid is the most important gland in our body as one of it’s main jobs is to control our hormones, and we all know the problems hormones can cause with our skin. Last week my skin was in flying form and now today as I sit and write this, I can feel my skin drying and beginning to flake and I know the next week or so is going to be full of bad skin days.
Knowing all this I was invited to meet aesthetician Jeanne Brophy, so that she could diagnose my skin and do a treatment based on what might best suit my skin and it’s issues. I had never been to an aesthetician before, as I have always gotten my facials in beauticians. The benefits of going to an aesthetician is that they are trained in skincare and unlike beauticians, who normally only have one brand to pick from, aesthetician have a range of brands that they can pull from. The likelihood of one brand having the all the fixes for your skin are slim and you’re better off pulling from an number of different brands to best suit your skins needs.
Before my treatment, Jeanne sat me down and talked through the issues with my skin and the products that I use every day. Thankfully for the past few months, I have been using more or less the same things, as this made it easier to see what products were doing what job for my skin. I mentioned all of the above concerns about my skin and that no matter how much moisturiser or hyaluronic acid I use, I still kept getting dehydration lines and my skin often felt tight.
Knowing all this, Jeanne went about doing my treatment. I am not going to go into the ins and outs of the treatment, as Jeanne tailors each treatment to suit an individuals skin. What works for me, might not necessarily be what works for you. My treatment was all about trying to get hydration back into my skin.
While I was relaxed during the treatment, the treatments themselves were more about results, rather than relaxation. While yes, Jeanne does do relaxation facials if that’s what floats your boat, I however feel money is best spent prioritising results over relaxation and getting a tailored treatment suited to your skin. In saying that, I did find the whole experience very relaxing and my skin felt amazing afterwards.
Once Jeanne had finished my treatment, she sat me down and explained her findings from working with my skin. Basically, to cut out a lot of the science, I am over using product. No surprise there. I am literally applying too much products to my skin that my skin is getting lazy. Also, because of the amount of product I am using and the amount of exfoliation I am doing, my skins barrier has broken down. What this means is that the barrier in my skin, that is meant to stop product sinking down too far and also stop is going back out again, isn’t working properly. So any product that I use is sinking down too far and also not staying put in my skin. So really while yes my skin looks good on the surface, deep down I am seeing little or no benefits.
Jeanne put together a tailored programme for my skin using mainly products that I already have. I have to continue to use my Mizon Hyaluronic acid to give my skin hydration. After this I’ve to apply my Body shop Vitamin C moisturiser. Both of these are done morning and night. To give my skin radiance and to helpwith anti ageing, I am using the Environ Avst 1. This is not a very fancy smelling product and not one that you will fall in love with, but instead it is a results driven product that as Jeanne said, will have me reaping the benefits in 10 years time.
For cleansing I am alternating between the Liz Earle Hot Cloth cleanse and polish and the Caudalie makeup remover cleansing oil, as if I was to use the oil on my skin every day, it might be too oily for my combination skin. The key for my skin right now, is no exfoliation. That means I can’t use the muslin cloth with the Liz earle and instead have to use cotton pads. Doing all this will give my skin a chance for the barrier to repair and then I can start reintroducing other product.
I know that regular visits to an aesthetician is not something that Irish women partake in, but for so many other nationalities this is the norm. As I lay on the treatment bed I made myself a promise. I spend so much money on hair and makeup, but if I am not looking after my skin what is the point. I have decided that I am now going to make regular visits to Jeanne, so that I am future proofing my skin. I have booked as a regular customer and not a blogger, for 6 weeks time, so that Jeanne can reassess my skin to see if the regime that she has prescribed is working. I am actually excited about this, as while I have so many amazing products at my disposal already, I know have a tailored programme to use the products that will actually give me life long results.
If you’re having issues with your skin, or like me you want to future proof your skin, I honestly really recommend going to Jeanne. This lady seriously knows what she is at. You probably already have all the products you need, but it about weeding out what is doing more harm than good and getting your skin care working for you.
A 90 minute session costs €150, but most people don’t need that long and hour long sessions are between €80 and €100 depending on what is needed. Jeanne is located at 30 Malahide Road, Marion Dublin. You can find out all of Jeanne’s details on her website www.jeannebrophy.com
