Firstly, ‘sensitive skin’ is a bit of an umbrella term; everyone’s skin is different and what people are sensitive to can, of course, vary, but some common symptoms of sensitive skin include dryness, redness, rashes, inflammation, itchiness and even breakouts.
You might find your skin’s sensitivity fluctuates, triggered by food, stress, the weather, sleep pattern, products used or hormonal changes which happen generally over time or within the normal course of your monthly cycle… You may find your skin is ALWAYS sensitive, or that there is seemingly no rhyme or reason to it at all!
Here are 7 tips for you if you’re suffering from sensitive skin:
Don’t do too much. By this, I mean you should keep your skincare regime as simple as possible. No 17-part cleansing regime for you! Our skin is clever enough to be naturally able to regenerate and renew itself, and if you are in the middle of an extreme bout of sensitivity, the best thing for you to do might be to simply rinse with water alone and use no products at all (and then pat dry gently; do not rub with a towel!). This will depend on how much make up you’re wearing, as you will need to make sure your skin is completely clean morning and night (if you need to remove make up and don’t feel water will be enough, try a natural cleansing balm with no preservative, e.g. this or this, or just use a toner like this), but the make up thing brings me to the next point…
Don’t wear too much make up on your skin. If you feel you can, wear none at all, and let your skin truly breathe. If you do regularly wear a lot of foundation or powder, check the ingredients list of your usual brand and see if you might like to migrate to a simpler blend. You might also want to challenge yourself to wear less.
Don’t exfoliate too often. Once a week is plenty for sensitive skin, and you should make sure that you don’t rub your skin too hard or use any exfoliating ingredients which are too harsh and might scratch the surface of the skin.
Treat the different areas of your face differently, according to need. E.g. if you have an oily forehead but dry skin around your nose, treating the two areas as though they are the same might not be ideal for you. Maybe you could apply a clay mask to your forehead, and add extra moisture to your nose, for example. (Pro-tip: just because a face mask is called a face mask doesn’t mean it needs to be applied to your whole face! #radical)
Gently massage and/or tap lightly on the surface of your skin to stimulate blood flow. Make sure your hands are clean when you do this! This can be for just 5 mins a day, or a couple of minutes morning and night. (Sidenote: doing this on your scalp can also stimulate the area and help promote hair growth, something worth knowing if long hair is your thing!).
Introduce new products gradually. Don’t just switch overnight, unless the products you are beginning to use are very natural, in which case there may be less of chance of an adverse reaction.
Choose products which are low on ‘sensitising’ ingredients such as fragrances, dyes, preservatives or any kind of salts. Some essential oils may be irritating for you, while others will be fine within a well-formulated blend.
THE GOOD NEWS IS…
…All the products in the Leafology range are created carefully from plants and other natural ingredients, and we avoid irritating formulations. That said, the following three blends are EXTRA good for sensitive skin and would be among my first recommendations for introducing yourself to the range, if this applies to you.
(Clicking on each image below opens a direct link in a new window to explore each product):
Gentle mask and exfoliator (to use once a week or so):
Ultra-simple make up remover:
Unscented moisturising care for babies AND sensitive adults:
Psssst, here’s a little bundle deal on all three of the above products, to keep things easy (like your skincare should be):
If you have any questions, you are welcome to get in touch by email at hello@leafology.co.uk. (Contact form.)