Self Care Tips To Improve Your Acne & Life

 

How many of us neglect our own care in favor of caring for others? In our work, and personal lives?

How often do we push aside our own wants and even basic needs? How many times do we decide that we aren’t a priority right now?

Too often, I think.

Self care, the deliberate act of caring for ourselves physically, mentally, and emotionally, is something most of us need to improve on.

How Can These Self Care Tips Treat Acne?

If you have acne, I’m sure you’re not unfamiliar with the feelings of low self esteem, self doubt, and even depression and anxiety that can arise as side effects of this condition.  People with acne need self care more than ever to help us improve our confidence and mood. 

When we practice good self care, we experience an improvement in our mood and reduced anxiety. Good self care habits can also improve our self-perception and relationship with others and ultimately help us in dealing with the stress of acne, while possible managing the amount of acne breakouts we get too due to the improved mental well being.

Self-care is knowing what we need to take care of ourselves and doing it. To prioritize self-care is to know that if we don’t take care of ourselves, we won’t be able to give to our loved ones and those around us in a positive way.

Put another way, what you put into yourself is what you’ll put out into the world.

To do well and be satisfied in other areas of our lives, we need to take care of ourselves first and foremost.

Here are my top 14 self-care tips to treat acne

1. CHECK IN WITH YOURSELF

Every hour or so, check in with yourself and see what you’re feeling.

Sometimes we become so consumed with our tasks that before we know it, hours have passed.

How is your body feeling? Cramped? Should you get up and stretch? Do you feel hungry? Should you eat? How about thirsty, I bet you could use some water. Maybe you’re feeling a little tense. Are you  stressed?

Checking in with yourself brings your body’s state into your awareness. If we don’t check in with ourselves we can carry tension, miss signs of dehydration, and any other number of signs that something is off.

If you’re serious about these self-care tips then set an alarm every hour throughout the day to check in with yourself. Try it for 4 weeks and see how it improves your life.

2. TALK TO SOMEONE -THERE'S A HUGE ACNE COMMUNITY AROUND US

Those of us who sometimes forget to take care of ourselves might also experience anxiety and feel our issues are burdensome to others.

That doesn’t mean we should feel the need to hold our stresses in. Loved ones are often happy to listen, so don’t feel afraid to reach out, even just to vent.

Being vulnerable with people close to us can often improve bonds of closeness and having someone to talk with can help alleviate your stress.

One of the problems I ran into, was that I felt like no one I knew understood my acne and skin problems which can make you feel further isolated. 

If you don’t know people in person to talk to these issues about, taking it online is a great way to connect with those who have acne. Acne focused influencers and brands who inspire positivity like prettyprogress23, emilykeel ,  teamacne, and banishacnescars are great people and places to safely express yourself to others in the acne community.  

3. DON'T DENY THE THINGS YOU LOVE

It’s important to remember that self-care is about doing what makes YOU feel good. Self-care isn’t about forcing yourself to do things you don’t enjoy, it’s doing anything that refuels you and restores some vibrancy to your life.

Self-care isn’t all about pampering yourself, but it can include it. If pampering yourself is what makes you feel reinvigorated, then do more of it!

If you want to get yourself iced coffees every day, then you do you! If you want those sexy new heels, get them, girl. If you want to take lush bubble baths, make time for them.

Life is too damn short to spend it depriving ourselves of simple joys. Instead, ask yourself what you love and enjoy, and fill your days with it.

4. SCHEDULE A DAY TO SLEEP IN AND JUST RELAX

Are you usually busy-busy, and running on less than optimal sleep?

Nothing can substitute the benefits of a regular, restful night’s sleep, but allowing yourself the extra planned time in bed when you know you can, can really liven you up.

For me, Sundays are my scheduled sleep-in days. No alarm, no plans too early. Just my body’s clock telling me when it’s time to start my day. And sometimes I’ll even override that clock and hit the snooze button in my head for just a little longer.

Sleep is so important for our self-care, and yet so many of us are sleep-deprived. We’re in a better position to make decisions, handle the insults the world throws at us, and interact with others when we aren’t sleep-deprived. Make adequate sleep a priority.

5. Stick To Natural Products

Make sure you’re using natural products: I know when you have acne, you want to overdo it. You see so many ingredients, chemicals, and you just want to pour it on. But in the case of acne self-care, especially if you have cystic acne, make sure you focus on the quality of the products, instead of the quantity.

I like to do an overhaul of my skincare products. I throw away any products that are expired, any products that I’m allergic to or ‘broke out’ from. I also do a clear out of the ingredients in my skincare routine. I throw away any skincare products with ingredients that irritate my skin. For me, I throw out anything with silicones, artificial dyes and fragrances, and mineral oil!

Once you have cleared out your skincare cabinet, introduce and incorporate your favorite skincare products. My favorites have always been natural skincare products, that are free of artificial dyes, chemicals, mineral oils. A plus if they are freshly made. My favorite skincare products for my cystic acne have been products fromBanish My favorites are the Vitamin C Creme,Banish Oil, andBanish kit to fade leftover hyperpigmentation. 

6. TAKE YOURSELF OUT

Feeling burnt out or stuck in a routine? Feeling under-appreciated and want some change? Take yourself out.

If you can’t afford the luxurious trip to the spa and dinner at a fancy restaurant that you deserve, then you can find affordable ways to pamper yourself at home. Try making a new dish just for you to enjoy. Watch a movie you’ve really been wanting to see. Go for a walk in the park.

Whatever you’ve been longing for, don’t wait for someone else, just go do it!

7. WORKAHOLISM IS NOT A VIRTUE

You need a healthy balance between work and life. Even if you’re lucky enough to love your job, you need to know when to turn the switch off and say no, this is my time.

Our culture glorifies self-sacrifice and those who are constantly on their grind. Everywhere I look is someone who lives on coffee and energy drinks and boasts about a lousy sleep or all-nighters.

When we set these high expectations for our grind, we feel shame and guilt for doing anything that feels remotely selfish to us, and we ignore our bodies. This often leads to higher stress, tension in relationships, and burnout.

8. Schedule time to treat your skin

Because I have acne scars, I have to be consistent inmicroneedling to make sure I’m producing collagen to reduce the appearance of my scars. I schedule 2x a month to make time to microneedle my skin

In my self-care efforts for my cystic acne and acne scars, this is my routine:

1. Turn off the phone
2. Play some relaxing music
3. Have some ice water with lemon
4. Prepare myBanish kit
5. Microneedle my face

 

On the days I do not microneedle, I make sure to take a few minutes to use my Banish stick for facial massage and drainage on the face. This is a great skincare self-care.

How To Do A Facial Massage For Acne: 

I take the Banish stick and wipe it with an alcohol wipe. Let it dry for a few seconds

Then in upwards motion, I push the Banish stick along my cheekbones, forehead, sides of nose, etc. to increase blood circulation! I use theBanish oilas a lubricant to help the stick slide around the face smoother. 

As often as we promote self-care through exercise on our bodies, we should also exercise our faces by using the Banish stick! When we feel that grittiness when using the Banish stick, it’s a sign that our face is congested and we need to cleanse it out. Think about having a clogged pipe-it’s time to drain that thing! When our face is not congested and free of mineral deposits, blood can flow more easily throughout our face, further promoting blood flow to build collagen and give us that amazing glow!

9. Get Exercise Regularly To Reduce Anxiety

There’s only one wrong way to be active, and that’s by not doing anything at all.

Adding regular movement activity into your day can do wonders for improving your life and acne. Exercise releases feel-good hormones that improvemood and reduce anxiety, which can be powerful self-care tools in dealing with acne.

How much exercise should I do?

You can get the anxiety-reducing benefits with 30 minutes of activity 3 to 5 days a week, but don’t worry if you can’t do 30 minutes.  Even smaller amounts of time like 15 minutes can be beneficial too.

Take a class, go for a jog, walk the dogs, go swimming, or dancing, even just in your house. These are all acceptable, and anything that moves you will be great!

10. START SAYING YES... OR NO

If you’re a yes man, always trying to please everyone, try saying no when you want to and seeing how it makes you feel.

However, if you’re forever in your comfort zone, try saying yes to new things that scare you or push your limits. Sometimes we really want things, but we let our fears and anxieties prevent us from them.

Changing how we respond to others based on what we want is one of the more important self-care tips because it enables us to ask if this is what’s best for us.

11. SOAK UP SOME SUN

Many of us are unknowingly affected by a lack of sunshine in our lives, and it’s such a simple act that can have a big impact.

The sun has amazing restorative powers. Whether you’re just enjoying a cold drink in your backyard or hiking the trails, the sun can improve our mood big time.

Enjoy responsibly, with sunscreen of course.

12. Clear Out Clutter

We aren’t all neat freaks, I get it.

But there’s something deeply therapeutic about keeping your space neat and clean.

The simple act of cleaning can be rewarding. The accomplishment of having a decluttered space and mind to work with and it can enable you to take care of yourself better.

This can also include getting rid of extra stuff, which can be more of a hindrance than useful. Decluttering, donating, and organizing paves the way for better self-care.

Clutter in your environment, especially your home environment can extend into your mental wellbeing.   

From experience, dealing with acne already adds a low constant level of stress because it is an everyday maintenance type of situation and it’s easy to stress about a pimple we already have, or about future ones that we are getting so the fewer things we have to stress about, the better! 

Clutter which can be defined as having too much stuff in the space we have can cause ongoing stress especially in the home where its one of the places that should be safe for us to unwind and destress. 

Some studies showed thatcluttered environments was linked to poorer mental health, and unhealthier eating - a cycle which can make acne worse, and in turn ourselves feel worse. 

The thought of clearing out clutter can seem overwhelming the larger your clutter pile gets. If that’s the case,  here are some tips to declutter:

1.  Try to think to yourself if an object has even been used in a year or longer and what purpose it currently serves you. 
2.  Give yourself a goal of clearing out 1-5 items weekly until you are satisfied with your space.

13. TAKE A BREAK FROM UNNECESSARY MAINTENANCE 

Sometimes we just don’t feel like washing our hair, but we wouldn’t dream of being caught without it done. Sometimes we don’t want to shave our legs but loathe the thought of someone accidentally feeling or seeing what is naturally there.

If being perfectly primped all the time is what makes you happy then I encourage you to keep it up. But if you prefer the low-maintenance route, then you get to decide what you want to do. This goes for other areas of your life, too, like cleaning your house or trimming the lawn. Sometimes it’s good to just take a break from the things that can wait, and instead, use that time to do something we really enjoy.

 

14. Prioritize Your Hygiene and Pamper Yourself

We sometimes do feel lazy when it comes to taking care of ourselves but in reality, this is also one factor that we can consider important in terms of improving your life. Loving yourself first before others is basically a general rule.

Getting ourselves properly primped and pampered every now and then is important when it comes to practicing self-care. Go ahead and have a hair cut for that new look that you've been aspiring for! Treat yourself for a facial massage and purchase products that you can include in your self-care routine for acne.

Book an appointment with your masseuse. Including these on your monthly routine doesn't necessarily mean that you need to spend thousands just to fulfill that need.

As Katrina Mayer once said - "Loving Yourself Isn't Vanity. It Is Sanity"

Each of these self-care tips is totally subjective. Not every tip is a positive self-care tool for everyone, and if there’s anything that isn’t on this list that does it for you then feel free to share in the comments!

You can’t pour from an empty cup, so you need to make sure your own basic needs are being met before you can share yourself with others. Anything else you feel is important to your well-being matters, even if it seems trivial to others.

Need a little more help? Find more basic self-care tips here.