Dealing with sensitive skin is exactly like walking through a pomp field. Whatever your routine is, your skin is always angry. Any soothing products that are aimed to pamper your skin will only backfire, either inflammation or unreasonable breakouts.
Whether its season changing or work-related stress, your skin will always respond to outsider influences. What shall you do then? Should you care or ignore it? And how to care for it without causing more damage?
What is sensitive skin?
First of all, you need to understand that skin sensitivity isn’t a skin type itself. Rather it’s a syndrome that occurs to all types of skin. In response to a particular stimulus developing allergy, whether this allergy was environmental, or to particular products or even stress-related allergy.
Why does it happen?
Healthy skin has a complex job to perform, the outermost layer acting as a protective barrier in the body, both protecting it from external aggressors - including sun, wind, pollution and extreme temperatures and also regulating fluids and oxygen. As a result of different factors, the natural barrier function is compromised leading to excess transepidermal water loss (TEWL) which enables free radicals to penetrate the skin and cause harm. This is when the skin gets inflamed and show sensitivity signs. Such as itching, stinging and burning sensation, hives, swelling, and flakes.
In general, skin sensitivity occurs due to inflammation of the nerve ending existing in the outer layer of the skin, as a result of weakening the protective barrier by several factors include:
- Sun exposure
- Air pollution
- Temperature changing
- seasonal changing
- Hard water exposure: which contains irritant minerals
- Stress
- soap
- fragrance
How to know you have sensitive skin?
Sensitive skin has a more aggressive reaction than any other skin, towards nearly everything. It’s a skin that controls you; what to wear? What to use? When to go out.
That said, it could develop an allergic reaction to products that aren’t harmful. You know you have sensitive skin if:
1- You have a reactive skin: if your skin is sensitive you may have noticed that soap, fragrance, detergents, and skin products harm it, making it itchy or dry or even red.
2- You notice redness
Most people with sensitive skin deal with some amount of redness. This can take the form of a blushing, inflammation, red rash, or even red dilated blood vessels.
3- Your skin is dry
Dry skin and sensitive skin can go hand-in-hand. It can lead to acne breakouts and cracked skin. You will likely have more problems with dry skin in cold weather and when exposed to wind.
4- You sunburn easily
Now how to deal with it? Mind three important things
1- Change your daily habits
A simple change in your life routine could have a positive impulse on your sensitive skin, stay away from fragrance components as they may irritate your skin. Avoid hot showers as hot water strips skin of its natural oils. Avoid rough exfoliations as they deplete your skin. And last but not least: moisturize on a daily basis to regain your skin barrier affectivity. Remember! You have sensitive baby skin, be sensitive with the sensitive.
2- stay away from chemicals
Having sensitive skin means having to be minimal when treating it. That said; you’re not supposed to expose your skin to heavy complex products. Stay away from antibacterial, alcohol, and fragrance.
3- simple routine for complex skin
If your skin is sensitive, you need to go easy on it by applying a simple routine with clear steps:
- Apply light cleanser free of foam and soap as they gnaw your skin barrier.
- Apply a deep moisturizing mask that can help restore your skin’s natural barrier function while soothing and calming irritation. you use a product with a minimal formula that’s suitable for sensitive skin.
- The serum is the most important step in your routine: when skin gets exposed to outer pollutants that. It mainly affects the skin by the formation of free radicals, which attack the skin’s structure, causing what’s called oxidative stress. This compromises our skin’s barrier function, causing an increase in irritation and sensitivity. Go for a serum contains complex B vitamin as it is an antioxidant that restores the skin barrier balance and decreases sensitivity.