Monthly Archives: February 2014

Spring Clean Skin

I have spent this weekend Spring cleaning my home. It’s almost Spring but honestly, its my little girl’s birthday party next weekend and that’s what really motivated me to clean my house. So in the honor of Spring cleaning today I would like to inspire you to do some skincare “spring cleaning”. It turns out most of America is spending money on skincare products that don’t work and can even be harmful to skin. Where did you buy your last skincare product? Was it recommended by your dermatologist? Or was it something “fru fru” that you impulse bought? You should absolutely invest in your skin, its the largest organ in your body after all! Spring clean your skincare with me and trade in old gimmicks for skincare products that work! Here are the first 5 items on my list for you to Spring clean, in other words please throw in the trash:

  1. Scrubs. WHY? WHY? WHY? People like to feel something happening. If you feel those beads scrubbing your face, you’re probably thinking “its taking all those dead skin cells and dirt right off, ahhhhh”. I’m thinking AAAHHHHH STOP! Your causing inflammation and irritation to your skin which can trigger acne, redness, rashes and much more. If  you want an exfoliator trade harsh scrubs in for a gentle non harmful one like Cerave SA lotion.
  2. Fragrance body washes. My teenage boys are the hardest to convince of this (that includes my husband). Those fragrances dry out your skin and leave a residue on your skin that can flare your acne. Throw ‘em out and trade them for a plain bar of Dove soap.
  3. Heavy make-up. The goal is to use noncomedogenic(won’t cause black/white heads) products. That means mineral based make-up. Trade in that heavy acne triggering muck for some light and airy Jane Iredale powder.
  4. Scam Retinol- I hear lots of people tell me they can’t use a retinol because it irritates the skin or “I’m allergic”. Probably because you got convinced to buy one that has also added anti-aging miracle workers and a root from the wild jungles of Indonesia that a 100 year old medicine man concocted and uses to still look 20. Point is all those additives can be too much, too irritating. Get a medical grade retinol that has been researched to be effective and nonirritating. My favorite? Skinmedica 0.5 Retinol Complex, it’s what I use and look how good I look? (working on goals from last weeks post)
  5. Tanning lotions- I really shouldn’t even have to put this on my list but I’m surprised as to how many people ask me if its okay to get a tan if using these oils. Just because the tanning oils label says 5 SPF on it doesn’t mean that your tan is any safer. Getting a sunburn after you wore 100 SPF isn’t any better than getting a sunburn after you didn’t wear any sunscreen. Throw away all those gimmick lotions that make you think your doing something good for your skin while you tan. Don’t tan, its totally out of style unless your Snooki or just love wrinkles, dark spots and leather. If you gotta have some color my favorite rub on tan is Jergens, its fooled me before which means it looks close to a natural sun color.

Johnson Dermatology is going to be having a recycled products program soon so before you throw away these things go follow JD on Facebook to be in the know and maybe even get something back for those old products. Out with the old, in with the new! Hope to see you all this week at the clinic, until then, stay skintastic!

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Imperfect Perfection

I got a pimple this week. I noticed it first but then after that other people noticed it too…… I’m sure! Still all week long as I treated others’ skin I continued to hear “I wish my skin looked like yours” or “make me look as young as you”. I thought to myself “can they not see this huge bright red pus-filled pimple on my face? Come on I look like I’m growing a horn!”. My impression of how my skin looked was different from those looking at me.  I have imperfections and I think I could look better most days. Its all about perspective. One person’s view of perfect skin is another person’s worst skin day. Two people walking down the street with the same mole may have very different ideas about how it looks. One person thinks it’s a beauty mark while the other is headed to the dermatologist to have it removed. Some people would rather have a mole and some people would rather have a scar. Beauty truly is in the eye of the beholder.

So why then do we all wish our skin, body shape, hair and outfit to be perfect. It’s impossible to be perfect, right? Should we just embrace our wrinkles and pimples and rock them out with confidence? Of course we should, be proud of the way you look, you’re the only one that looks that way. But we shouldn’t neglect ourselves either. We should still use our retinol nightly to keep our skin looking young and beautiful. Use it to make our skin look the best we can make it look. That’s the key, loving what you have while still striving to make it better.  If we never tried to be better our world would stop, we wouldn’t grow into anything new and thats just depressing.

I’m hardest on myself and I find most people are the same way. No one calls me fat except for me. Well, my patients this week have inspired me to stop being so hard on myself and agree that all I can do is work to be my best while enjoying what I already have. When I look in the mirror at that belly, I’m gonna love it and think to myself “I look good”, then go workout and eat healthy all day to make it a little flatter. I’m going to embrace my imperfections and use them to my advantage.

So this week I hope this blog will inspire you to embrace your skin imperfections and realize that you’re awesome even with that stretch mark, those extra five pounds, that discoloration on your skin, the enlarged pore or any other little imperfection you don’t like about yourself. Then, when you try to make it better, don’t feel guilty. The road to perfection is never ending but the journey is what makes us all awesome. Most people don’t feel guilty for working out to become skinny. So why feel bad about coloring your hair, getting a tummy tuck, botox or fillers? I don’t feel guilty for getting botox or removing my mole on my neck. And to the naysayers that think I should love myself without having to change anything I’m going to reply by saying I’m not changing who I am I’m just improving it, just like I am trying to gripe less at my husband. I’m not a bad wife, I’m a good wife, but I could always be a better wife. There will always be a better version of me that I am striving for and I love that about me, I hope you will love that about you too.

So here’s my first step in accepting my imperfections as mine; I’m gonna share with you on this very public internet site the things I used to hate about myself that I now am going to love because they motivate me to be better! Feel inspired, feel motivated and have a skintastic day! Hope to see you all at the clinic so I can be a part of your journey towards perfect skin!

First up…… my belly! I used to hate that spot where all my extra weight hangs out, but now I’m glad its there because before it gets too big it motivates me to exercise more and eat less ice cream, making me healthier!

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 Next little imperfection I own, the scar on my knee created by a bicycle wreck when I was a little kid. Other kids called me “the hamburgler” because it looks like a hamburger patty. Well its not keeping me from rocking out my favorite mini skirt!
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Lastly, the birthmark on my elbow. People often mistake it for dirt, weird! Instead of explaining its a birthmark I usually just brush away at it and cover my elbow. Not anymore, next time that awkward moment arises, I’m going to respond with “ugh, no crazy thats a birthmark, isn’t it beautiful!?!?!”
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I won’t bore you with anymore of my imperfections but I do hope that I inspire you to love yours a little more! Talk at ya next week, stay skintastic!

Valentines Day Kisses

 

“For beautiful eyes, look for the good in others; for beautiful lips, speak only words of kindness; and for poise, walk with the knowledge that you are never alone.”

-Audrey Hepburn

 

I think this is true and just love this quote. BUT its Valentines Day week Audrey and we all want to have some good looking smoochers when we speak those words of kindness. I love Valentines Day, chocolate, no PDA rules, flowers, that warm fuzzy feeling all day long and kisses. Whether its a first kiss, french kiss, butterfly kiss, or just a peck  who doesn’t love a good kiss?!?!? So this week I want to share the womans journey to a perfect lip for beautiful kisses.

 

  1. Botox around the lips.- You will either love it or hate it. For those strong pursed lips that cause the lines around your lips, botox can decrease that motion and I think the softening effect it has is very pretty. On the other hand; some women say that after Botox, they can’t kiss the same or cant suck through a straw. I mean I’m all about “no pain, no gain” but not being able to use your kissing skills, now that should be illegal!
  2. Pump up the jam, ergh I mean lips- That was corny….. sorry, not sorry! I just always sing that song in my head when I talk about lip plumping. There are a million lip plumper products out there. Try a medical grade one like SkinMedica TNS lip plump system. It has a lip renewal as the first step and a lip plumper for the second step. It rapidly smoothes the texture of the lips and increases their volume.
  3. Cracked, chapped lips-Please don’t come at me with cracked or scaly lips on Valentines Day. Am I right girls or am I right? I mean its bad enough we let our sweet soft lips get irritated by that Sunday stuble or that everyday goatie you men are rocking these days. I recommend staying hydrated and using plain petroleum/vaseline. If you’re really chapped and need a quick fix for that hot date you have planned Friday night then try Dr. Dan’s Cortibalm. It has just a touch of hydrocortisone in it that will help the inflammation. It doesn’t taste great but I love that stuff for a quick fix.
  4. Color me red- My go to favorite is the Jane Iredale puregloss lip gloss in Montreal. I can’t describe it, its like chocolate, you just have to try it to understand the deliciousness. It’s a great time to try it out because this Valentines Day at Johnson Dermatology with the purchase of a lip color you get a free lip definer. UMM yeah thats $13 bucks saved, you’re welcome in advance.
  5. Fillers- MY. FAVORITE. HandsDOWN. Want the biggest bang for your buck, then go with filler. I understand the bad rap some people have given fillers in the lips but if you let me inject you, I promise I won’t make you look like this:lips_feature_fail-610x250
  6. Some of you may know our clinic is LEED certified, we are proud to be environmentally conscious. Keeping with our philosophy, I like to enhance the NATURAL beauty of lips. Fillers don’t just add volume to the lips. I also use them to decrease lines, give columns back, define borders to the lips, get a sexy pout and turn those frowns upside down. Fillers can enhance or recreate the natural beauty of your lips. Here are some before and after pictures of one of my amazingly beautiful patients.
This before is same day of injection, prior to injection. The after was taken immediately after she received Restylane.
This before is same day of injection, prior to injection. The after was taken immediately after she received Restylane.
This photo was taken 5 days after injection.
This photo was taken 5 days after injection.

 

 

Part two of this post is going to go into detail about fillers for the lips, so stay tuned next week. Have you lost your Cupids Bow? As a Valentine present to you, come get your lips filled for Valentines Day and get a free TNS lip plump system-thats valued at $58 while supplies last, naturally. Hope you all have a Valentines Day filled with love and lots of kisses with those gorgeous lips!

Super Bowl Sunday Skin

It’s Super Bowl Sunday Y’all! Whether its the football game, the commercials, the halftime show or the food, everyone is getting ready for the game today. So I decided today we should countdown the top 5 skin looks of the Superbowl XLVIII.

5. The Pigskin. I mean really without the pigskin we wouldn’t even have a Superbowl. Thank you pigs everywhere for giving us the skin off your back for the superbowl, literally.

4. “Best Moles” goes to Zoe of the Seattle Seahawks Cheerleaders. She is rocking a pretty “moley” set of abs. All her moles blend in well together and from comparing her pictures of last year to this year there are no new, changing, nor growing moles. Work it girl!

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3. Best Tan goes to Wes Welker. Best tan because its NONexistent! That is a seriously pale dude and he looks darn good with it too (love you hubby). I’m guessing he sun avoids, wears sun protective clothing and SPF of at least 30 reapplied every 2 hours.

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2. Cleanest Shave goest to Peyton Manning. I mean not a single “razor bump” nor ingrown hair. His beard area is smooth as a babies bottom. Want Peyton’s look? Try EAU THERMALE Avene After-shave balm it is hypoallergenic and noncomedogenic.

PeytonManning-approved

 

1. Pete Carroll wins best redness control. I had to make him number one because he was a graduate assistant coach at my alumni (the University of Arkansas). But in all seriousness he has some pretty red toned skin that he is able to keep in great control. Need to get your redness under control too? Consider laser treatments or a new (awesome) prescription called Mirvaso or Skinmedica’s Redness  Relief CalmPlex moisturizer.

Pete-Carroll

 

Hope you all enjoy the Super Bowl today! Eat lots of yummy game time food, spend time with friends and family and win every bet you make! Cheers!