2019 Skincare Resolutions
2019 is almost here, and I can’t believe how fast this last year flew by! 2018 is going to go down as one of the most important and transformative years in my life for so many reasons, including starting this blogging journey and learning so much more about my skin.
I’m not usually into New Year’s resolutions, I just don’t think they work and I don’t think anything magical happens on January 1st that makes change more possible. If you have a goal, start now, don’t wait for the calendar to say a certain date.
However, there are a few things when it comes to skincare that I would like to make an effort to focus on in 2019.
Here are my 2019 skincare resolutions:
1. Be Kind to Your Skin
One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned this last year is that you must be kind to your skin. I am guilty of being too excited about chemical exfoliation, popping my pimples and pushing on my clogged pores.
So much of this behavior stems from wanting to speed up the results of my products. I feel a pimple coming up and I want to pop it rather than wait for it to heal itself. I want to push out my clogged pores so that my skin will have a smoother appearance, rather than wait for my products to slowly (so slowwwly) correct the congestion. This behavior leaves my skin feeling bruised, looking red and angry and often leads to hyper pigmentation.
Getting so obsessed over the hyper pigmentation and pimples often leads me to being over zealous with powerful chemical exfoliants like BHA in a quest to obliterate the “imperfections” on my skin.
Do you see the common theme here?
I’m trying to rush my skin, force it into submission and in the process end up hurting it.
In 2019, I’m going to try to live by the philosophy of kindness to my skin. I will try to be patient and gentle when it comes to acne and clogged pores. I will not damage my skin and cause longer term hyper pigmentation for a moment of satisfaction.
I will not abuse chemical exfoliation products or run my moisture barrier into the ground with over use of powerful ingredients. I will take the slow and steady approach.
I will not treat my skin like it’s disposable or something not worth gentle kindness.
2. Focus on Inner Health, Not Outward Beauty
2018 was the year I got serious about moisture barrier care! My understanding of how the moisture barrier works and how it literally affects everything on our skin went much deeper this year. I never knew how important my moisture barrier was until it became damaged and now that I know, I will never go back!
My moisture barrier woes and adventures into strengthening it have taught me that above all else, inner skin health comes first.
Before, I would treat my skin based on what I could see. Was my skin even toned;? Did I have acne? What about hyper pigmentation? All of these concerns are somewhat shallow and only report the outward appearance of our skin.
Instead of just focusing on how my skin looks, I will be focusing on how my skin feels in 2019.
I will make sure that my routines are first and foremost addressing the health of my moisture barrier and protecting my dehydrated skin. I will also make greater effort to only nourish my body with healthy, whole and real food that makes my body feel great. I have recently made the connection between my weak digestion and congestion and inflammation on my skin, and I want to commit to gaining better control over my diet.
Once I have taken care of my inside, then, and only then, will I begin to take care of the outward appearance.
3. Use Products Responsibly
This has become a big concern/frustration and mission of mine since starting to become an active presence in the skincare community through this blog, Instagram and YouTube. As a skincare blogger, I have been lucky enough to connect with brands and get to test lots of new products. I’ve also been able to justify my purchases as “for the blog” or “this needs a YouTube review!”
This means I have a lot of extra skincare. A lot. Much more than I’m comfortable with, to be honest. I’m definitely not a minimalist, but I am the kind of person that gets overwhelmed by too many things. Objects don’t make me all that happy. I try to live life as clutter free as possible and only buy what I need. However, so much of that has changed in 2018.
I want to commit to being more responsible in 2019. I want to commit to using up all my currently open products and not waste anything. I want to get more organized about what products I do have and try not to buy anything new in that category until the stash is gone. I don’t want to feel overwhelmed or taken over by my skincare and beauty products.
I also want to become more conscious of the impact my skincare use has on the world.
That means thinking more about excessive packaging that can’t be recycled (sheet masks, I’m looking at you), over use of cotton pads and swabs and the little plastic applicators that get thrown away. I hate the waste that is produced by my skincare routine, and I want to make sliming it down a priority in 2019.
This also means learning more about worrisome ingredients like polyethylene (microbeads) found in many cleansing balms. I want to be aware of the environmental impact of my skincare, and that means taking a hard look at shipping. This will be the hardest one for me and one I’m not exactly sure how to tackle, but the impact of shipping is a big one. Sometimes being aware of the issue is the first step to action.
Those are my skincare and beauty resolutions for 2019. I want to enter the New Year with more wisdom, grace and patience. In skincare and in life.
Happy 2019!