Wow, and here I thought I wrote my last post a few days ago. It’s been a week? My, my, my the time is a flying by. Well, it’s going to keep on whistling by me for a while.
My daughter is in the school musical, which means late days practicing and I’ve been even more active with my workouts and going out a bit more, so when the dust settles in my neck of the woods, I’m spending time with my daughter and just relaxing.
Here’s hoping I get a chance to post more very soon. I have a ton of pictures to upload; food related and Bella, our new puppy.
In other news…
Earlier today I stumbled upon the website, Minimalist Beauty. It really caught my eye since the writers approach to health and wellness is very similar to my own. She has some great articles about hyperpgimentation, so I’ll be curious to see what she has done. I must say, that I am so glad that my hyperpigmentation issues are quickly becoming a distant memory.
I’m very fortunate that I’ve always been comfortable with who I am and I have no desire to change, because someone might think what I do is strange. This important lesson, is something I’m teaching my own daughter.
Last evening, I received the New Spa Diamond Microdermabrasion Portable Machine from Amazon. I’m a Prime member and chose same day delivery. It arrived around 6:30 p.m.
New Spa Diamond Microdermabrasion Portable Machine
This weekend is going to be busy, so I wanted to test out the machine a few days in advance, in case I did something stupid. I didn’t. I’ve watched several tutorials on microdermabrasion and have read numerous files about the subject. Even then, it felt weird putting a rough circle on my face to buff away the skin, but I must say it did an effective job of sloughing off the old hyperpigmented skin. I only had those spots in a few areas, but they really bothered me. Underneath that sloughed off skin, was my brand new skin matching my skin color.
I can’t say that I have any rough patches, besides those parts on my face that were hyperpigmented, but now those are soft thanks to the various natural oils, clays, etc., that I’ve used to break down those troubled areas. I think I will use this once weekly or perhaps bimonthly a way to effectively slough off the dead skin.
Once I’ve used it a few times, I’ll be sure to post a thorough review and I’ll add screen shots also.
Grow old gracefully? Ha, I’m fighting it every step of the way. I’ve stepped up my game, a bit, so I can maintain the body I’m used too. With exercise my routine has not changed, but I’ve noticed with skin care, I’ve had to do a bit more… and I’m fine with that.
Well, I’m experiencing some skin shedding on the dark spots. I took a rough cotton hand towel and scrubbed, scrubbed, scrubbed off the flaking skin.
Oh my, here I am staring off into space! 😉
Opal Reply:
February 13th, 2015 at February 13, 2015 10:43 am
@Jennifer, I’m liking it thus far. I’m getting some peeling already, which is a really nice surprise. I wasn’t even expecting to get that with elecrotherapy. I researched it a lot, but guess I’ll have to do a bit more about the skin shedding. Under the shed skin, there’s my normal skin color, so yeah! Opal recently posted..Electrotherapy update
As I told Jennifer, in the comment section of my last post, I did not know that skin shedding was part of this. I wonder if it’s from the electrotherapy or a combination of all that I’m doing? Hmm…
I wasn’t expecting to see anything this early, but there does seem to be some skin tightening around my cheekbones. Also, the dark spots, caused by hyper-pigmentation is definitely starting to peel. This is the right side of my face. I had a few spots, right near the cheekbone, but that’s almost gone.
My left side of my face, is the side that has the darkest spot, right at the cheekbone. Over time, I’ll be curious to see what electrotherapy does to the dark area. It has gotten lighter.
I got out of the habit of using Hyaluronic Acid Serum on my skin, but I’m forcing myself to get back into that routine since it adds so much moisture to the skin.
I don’t think it’s solely electrotherapy that’s causing the impressive results. I believe it’s a combination of everything I’m doing.
Facials
Clay Mask
Natural oils loaded with nutrients
Electrotherapy
Clairsonic Mia 2
Since I eat extremely healthy, the only thing left was stepping up my game with my facial care routine.
This is hard for me, since I’m not one to look in the mirror and now I’m doing it for my twice daily facials. 😉
My daughter has told me my skin is looking brighter. Trust me, my daughter does not say things just to make me feel good. In that way, she’s a lot like me. She’s honest. 😉
According to Meyers Briggs, my personality type is INTJ. Over the years, I’ve taken the test a few times and, based on my answers, it always list me as INTJ. I didn’t take the test to determine who I am. I’ve been me for 44 years, if I have not figured it out by now, something is really wrong, don’t you think.
INTJ’s are supposedly one of the rarest personality types out there. making about 2% of the population. Women who have this personality are even more rare, supposedly less than .08%? Imagine that. It does make me wonder how they come by these numbers? I’m guessing it’s based on who takes the test and then, you have to hope they’re being honest, right?
It wasn’t until recently that I actually read what my personality type is and my goodness did I have a good laugh, since it’s definitely me.
A few days ago, I stumbled upon this blog post about how to handle an INTJ. Yes… I can identify with a lot of the things listed.
I can also relate to the above list. My major pet peeves are excuses and lying. Please, just accept the responsibility and stop making excuses for your actions! I know I’m in for a pile of junk, when a person gives me a long-winded explanation for something they did wrong.
Acknowledge you were wrong (I do) and work on improving. If I know a person well, I’ll call them out on that brand of nonsense. Thankfully, I don’t know too many people that make excuses. They accept their actions, make the appropriate corrections and move forward.
One of the first things I notice about a person is their skin. I observe everything.
Dating someone with bad skin? No… not happening!
I’ll be the first to admit, I’m not going to pursue a relationship with someone that has bad skin. Superficial much? And that’s so unlike me, but bad skin rates high on my ick factor.
I’m super picky when it comes to who I will spend time with, so the list of who I’d date is very slim. My list is focused on the personality and not appearance. By the way, I have not dated anyone in years. Now that I think about it, when it comes to dating, that’s about the only superficial turn off (bad skin) that I do have! If your skin looks bad, there is no way you are bringing your face anywhere near me. Why? The thought of having close contact with someone that has bad skin (large pores, oily skin, blackheads) really grosses me out. Gag! Sorry, but it’s true.
With that being said, you know I’m in awe of men that actually take good care of themselves. In westernized culture, it still (seemingly) something to ridicule or (if you’re doing something) not to admit that you are taking care of your skin. However, I have met a few who do. In my early thirties, I dated a man that did take care of his skin and had various products to prove that fact. A very masculine guy, nothing “effeminate” about him, but he loved taking care of himself and his skin. I liked that too. Then there’s my friend that I’ve known for over twenty years. He has amazing skin. His secret is he eats healthy and pays attention to his skin. Imagine that! The guy in this picture, looks like my friend. Clearly both of the two men I know are ignoring the Men’s Guide to Not Caring a Skin Care Regimen.
No, I’m not dating anyone and I’m not sure what has me thinking about this topic, unless it’s the fact that I’m thinking about myself and the effort I do make to have healthy and vibrant skin. I accomplish this by making healthy food choices, proper skin care, hydration, staying properly moisturized, etc., to ensure that I present my best face. I don’t do it for others, I do it for me. 🙂
You want to know something? I’ve noticed when I’ve cleansed, at times, that one of the first signs that toxins are vacating my body is the appearance they make on my skin. I’d get it right in the T-zone area. Sighs… thankfully, it does not last too long, but the darkening is something I could live without. I have found that lemon juice, herbal brews, clays and various other similar items have been extremely helpful in getting my skin back on track.
French red clay
Stocking up on natural clays
The past few days, I replenished my dwindling supply of natural clay and over the next few weeks, I’ll be sure to post about them. One of my favorites to use is a french red clay. Oh, how I love using this on my skin. It tightens your pores, draws out toxins, helps even dark spots, and a whole host of other benefits.
But it does not stop there… over the past few years, I’ve finally gotten used to the idea of using something a bit more expensive to aid me in keeping my skin the way I like. I’m getting older after all. I want to reduce the age spots, wrinkles and sagging. Remember when I talked about my purchase of the Olay Pro-X Microdermabrasion Plus Advanced Cleansing System? I really like it a lot, until it stopped working about six months ago. I’m thinking I received a dud, since judging from the reviews, most were still going strong with theirs. I tried different batteries, but I might try another brand to see if that takes care of the issue. I really loved that little device.
Clairsonic Skin Care Mia 2
A few days ago, I ordered the Clairsonic Skin Care Mia 2. This one is marketed for acne. That is something I rarely got, even as a teenager, so that’s not why I made the purchase. I like the wider brush that is found on this device. It similar to the one I had, but it has a charge, which means I won’t need batteries! Hooray, based on the reviews I should enjoy this device. I can’t wait to try it out!
High Frequency D’arsonval Professional Grade Device
I also ordered the High Frequency D’arsonval Professional Grade Device with Argon Electrodes. With the D’arconval, it means I’ll have to spend a few minutes on my face daily. I’m really not thrilled about that, but if it assists me in my skin care routine (which is very simple) I’m all for that.
According to Meyers Briggs, my personality type is INTJ. Over the years, I’ve taken the test a few times and, based on my answers, it always list me as INTJ. I didn’t take the test to determine who I am. I’ve been me for 44 years, if I have not figured it out by now, something is really wrong, don’t you think.
