Earlier this year, I told you I was trying some other skin strategies and I would share my results with you.
There are many things you can do with your skin to improve its appearance. It comes down to time and money. You’ll get lots of different advice too. A plastic surgeon or dermatologist’s advice will differ from an esthetician who will differ from an influencer.
I do research daily on the topic of age management and natural health and very often there is conflicting advice. It’s frustrating and confusing (not to mention time consuming).
Throw in a bit of FOMO (fear of missing out) and what’s a girl to do?
Here is my due diligence process.
1. Don’t be an early adopter of anything. If it hasn’t been safely vetted or tested by a very large group of people, then wait a few years to see what happens. Don’t be a guinea pig for beauty. Anybody remember Fen-Phen?
2. Avoid slick marketing campaigns which simultaneously push a particular miracle. If you look around on any social media platform (and the algorithm knows you are worried about a particular problem) all of the sudden you will begin to see the same solution touted everywhere. That’s a paid coordinated effort.
I fell for it too. We all have at some point in our lives. (see my results below from believing these campaigns).
3. Don’t discount the advice of the average Jane. Also known as unslick advertising. I could write an entire book on this subject alone.
When it is the goal to get famous, to go viral, get likes, etc. the integrity of the messenger is often not in your best interest.
I avoid behemoth companies like the plague. This sounds funny to write because I worked for the largest behemoth companies in my industry.
The average Jane on the other hand, usually shares her advice because something happened to her and she found a solution and wants to share it. She practices what she preaches.
Just because a message/product/service isn’t packaged the way you think it ought to be, don’t immediately tune it out.
The best advice I ever received (about aging) came from a woman in Canada who developed her own exercise modality and if I had judged her by the first video I saw, I would have missed out completely. (In case you’re curious, her name is Deanna Hansen and the modality is called Block Therapy. This was the video I initially watched.).
4. One size does not fit all. We’re all different; we all have different lifestyles, diets, stress, etc. We could be doing the exact opposite things to achieve the same goal and they may work great for each of us.
Why do you think there are so many different pieces of equipment in the gym? Some people thrive on just doing yoga and others swear by heavy lifting. Why so many different diets? I know healthy vegans and healthy carnivores.
Take a little bit of this and a little bit of that and make something you’re own. Give it enough time to see results.
The way to achieve any success is to be consistent.
5. Trust your intuition. I have learned about a lot of things in my lifetime. Sometimes I learn about something and it instantly repels me.
I take that as a sign that either I’m never going to do that (be a runner for example) or I’m not ready for that information yet.
I’ll give you an example. In 2019, I jumped off a pier while on vacation and twisted my ankle. Everyone has had a bad sprain, so you know the feeling.
I just ignored it, wrapped it in an ace bandage when I got home and avoided stepping on it. I figured it would heal itself.
I finally went to an orthopedic doctor and got a diagnosis. He suggested a physical therapist, which I did go to for six treatments. I was faithful to the treatment plan of certain exercises.
In addition to that, over the course of a year, I tried anti-inflammatory drugs, CBD oil, DMSO, massage, heat/cold… you name it, I tried it.
All of those things worked temporarily but the pain always returned. I couldn’t walk for more than an hour at a time.
One day, a particularly painful day in utter frustration I turned to Youtube for any suggestions at all, outside of things I had already tried which would help me.
I came across a gentle man with a very heavy French accent who was talking about energy distance healing. It sounded crazy to me at the time, but I contacted him and we set up a session via Zoom.
He lived in a remote island half way across the world, on a farm (I heard his chickens in the background of our session).
The session was $50 and the setting was far away from what I was used to (and my comfort zone). He asked a few questions for about ten minutes and then had me close my eyes for the remaining time (about an hour).
I didn’t feel anything at the time, but I do remember thinking “well, that was $50 down the drain”.
Three days later, I was able to walk on my feet without pain. My ankle felt better than it had since the initial injury.
Had I judged him, the technique, or the clucking chickens I wouldn’t have found relief. It was a HUGE lesson for me.
If you hear about something that doesn’t sound familiar to you, just put it on a shelf for later. You may use it later in life.