Hello there, rosacea

Welcome back my lovelies to another segment on different skin conditions, this time our focus is on rosacea. Before I delved into the world of beauty, skincare and all the interesting things that come with it, I have never even heard of rosacea, now I know I am actually someone that has rosacea. I have to admit it has gotten significantly better upon learning what it actually entails. I was treating my skin for the incorrect conditions, including acne and hyperpigmentation, not knowing the root cause was actually something entirely different. So let’s jump right in!

First off, what is this rosacea I speak of, and do you have the condition too? In essence it’s facial redness and, can you believe it, blushing. It is a common adult condition that hides itself as an acne-like skincare condition. It is chronic and ultimately incurable, yet very manageable with the right products, medicinal solutions and skin treatments. The most common area of effect is the nose and surrounds, but it can easily spread over to the cheeks and jawline in most cases. For example, my rosace is positioned alongside my cheeks and seems to derive from my outer cheeks closest to my ears, working its way central of my face. I always thought my constant blushing was a sign of shyness, or as the old wives tale goes, innocence, now I know that emotions are only partially responsible and the root cause is rosacea. It can also present itself as tiny red pimples, small red vascular lines (known as telangiectasis), an enlarged red nose, (known as rhinophyma) and eye problems, including swollen eyes, red eyelids, conjunctivitis and rosacea keratitis. This condition is so easily mistaken for a blush, as mentioned, rosy cheeks, acne, being flushed or even sunburn. It is also trigger sensitive, such as through using alcohol, smoking, eating hot and spicy foods, heat and emotional stress, (no wonder mine is so bad, all of these apply to me). In short, rosacea is actually an incurable auto-inflammatory skin condition and the redness presented is mostly caused by small blood vessels that enlarge, which in turn leads to the appearance of tiny red lines.

Now that we have the basics down, let’s look at ways in which we can keep this under control:

• the best and easiest advice is the basic advice: use a gentle cleanser and wear SPF regularly (as in apply it 3 times daily). Not wearing SPF will worsen the red appearance.

• Avoid skincare products that contain alcohol, menthol, witch hazel, peppermint, eucalyptus oil and exfoliating agents.

• Due to the overlap it has with acne, it is advised to try medicine used for acne, including oral antibiotics, topical antibiotics, benzoyl peroxide isotretinoin (in my case I use retinin, which is very similar as both fall under the umbrella that is retinol or vitamin A)

• Other viable ingredients that can be incorporated to help treat this are azelaic acid, metronidazole, sodium sulfacetamide and in some cases vitamin C.

• The use of laser treatment or intense pulsed light is a recommended treatment to treat the continual redness and noticeable blood vessels on the face, neck and chest.

• Glycolic peels are another treatment form that may additionally control rosacea in some people

• Applying green tea infused in diluted vinegar is an easy at home remedy

• It is recommended to keep a journal source to write down food and cosmetics types that may worsen the condition. Avoidance of triggers is always your best option.

• Microdermabrasion treatments are recommended to prevent the skin from thickening due to the inflammation.

• Staying hydrated is also a good help source, as it helps flush out any other unwanted toxins.

This is my basic skincare routine for helping to control my rosace:

Morning:

• Facial wash: I use Skin Creamery Oil-Milk Cleanser (I can also recommend Skoon gel-milk cleanser and They Body Shop Aloe calming foam wash)

• Toner: Lush Tea tree water toner (their eua roma water toner is also a great option)

• Serum: Skoon Wow-wow wonder vitamin C serum (Hey Gorgeous also has a 20% vitamin C serum worth trying)

• Moisturizer: Skoon wrap me up therapy cream (Or the Avène Antirougeurs Day Soothing Cream)

• Sunscreen/SPF: La Roche-Posay Anthelios invisible fluid SPF 50+ (the Avène SPF50+ Fragrance free cream is also a good one)

• During the day, resorting to the Avène Thermal Spring Water is also a good way to calm your face and cool it.

Night routine:

• First cleanse: Pink Cosmetics makeup melt (or the Lulu & Marula balancing cleansing balm)

• Second cleanse: the same as the morning ones

• Exfoliating: Skoon Oh Sherbet exfoliating mask (this product actually has azelaic acid, which was a recommended ingredient mentioned above)

• Mask: Lush Fresh Face Mask Catastrophe Cosmetic (the Avène Antirougeurs Calm soothing repair mask

• I usually apply toners and serums for other conditions, so I’m leaving this part out and focusing only on the products targeted at rosacea, however a recommended serum is the La Roche-Posay Rosliac AR intense visible redness reducing serum (it works well, it’s just not incorporated into my current routine)

• Treatment: Skoon Retinin cream (my form of retinol, I appreciate it being light, yet effective)

• Moisturizer: Skoon wrap me up therapy cream (La Roche-Posay toleriane double repair face moisturizer is also a great alternative)

• Extra: As a hydrating and calming means and for that extra soothing effect I like the Skoon ruby marine mask and/or the Skin Creamery facial hydrating oil

There you have it my lovelies, I wish you a happy and blushful weekend.

Keep going, keep glowing and keep growing, your doing amazing!

• B x