If you follow Johnson Dermatology on Facebook then you may have noticed we have been introducing team members and their favorite products. If you don’t follow us then you should so you can hear about our amazing team members and all the personal favs. I thought this would be a good time to re-introduce myself and give you guys my regimen and favorite products.

If you have yet to meet me at the clinic, then you don’t know that I am the happiest person ever right now. It hasn’t always been that way. I have been in bad places before, not as nice, not as happy. Where I am right now though, is the best I’ve ever been, on top of my game. If you ever cross my path, now is the time. This girl is on fire!

When I was a little girl and my mom asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up I replied “a plastic surgeon so I can make you beautiful”. Kids are mean. My mom was already beautiful. The point is, I have always known that I wanted to be in health care, helping people. In kindergarten, my teacher sent a book home with me before we had learned how to read and told me to just practice reading with my mom and I could show her what I learned the next day. I took the book home and told my Mom I had to learn the entire thing. I cried while working on it that night worrying I wouldn’t be able to read the entire book the next day (even though my teacher didn’t expect that of me). I forced my Mom to spend the entire evening teaching me to read that book and the next day I read it to my teacher. I’ve always wanted to be the best academically. So with a combination of a passion for helping people and a serious competitive dedication to academics (I graduated grad school top of my class with a 4.0, toot, toot) it only seems fitting that I am a dermatology nurse practitioner now and the happiest I could be in my career.

It’s not just my career either. It’s the total package. I have amazing friends, a husband that I don’t deserve, an above average daughter, wonderful family and a lovely home. I hope my cheer doesn’t annoy you, like that person that everything is always perfect in their life. I’ve made a D in a class before, I’ve been confused about my career path, I’ve dated some real duds, I’ve been a mean girl before and probably worse. It just so happens that through all that I got here and I’m feeling blessed at this moment. Some of my favorite things are traveling and eating good food. My Dad is an amazing chef from Malta (an island in the mediterranean sea) who gave me my love for fine cuisine. I love traveling so much that I was actually a traveling nurse before I was a nurse practitioner. I have worked in hospitals across America from San Francisco, CA all the way to Orlando, FL. But the most exciting thing about me (for the purpose of this skin blog) is my skin care regimen, right?!?! People always ask me “What do you use?” so here it is!

Body Moisturizer- I use plain vaseline on my legs. I use Cerave SA in a jar (white jar with blue lid) for everywhere else. I have a common condition called keratosis pilaris on the back of my arms. It’s a bunch of tiny red bumps. The Cerave SA improves that more than anything else for me. I just can’t use it on my legs because it burns after shaving, plus my legs get drier than the rest of my body and need stronger moisturizer.

Face Skincare Products- I use sunscreen every AM. If I’m dry then I use Elta MD and if I’m feeling greasy then I use the BOB. I use SkinMedica Retinol every night.

In the Shower- I wash my body with plain dove soap. I wash my face with Cetaphil Dermacontrol foam wash. It’s super light. I also wash my face with my Clarisonic. Get real, it’s like a face massage, so relaxing!

On the go- When I’m traveling I wash my face with Cetaphil gentle skin cleansing cloths. They come in a blue package and are by far the most gentle cloths that I have ever tried.

Injectables- I use Botox. I’ve had Dysport and Xeomin but Botox is my personal favorite. I also have Voluma. I’m ashamed to say that I am a baby when it comes to needles. I can stick them in people all day long but I just can’t stand being the one getting poked. So Voluma is an obvious choice for me because it lasts two years unlike a lot of the injectable filler’s  that last one year or less. In my mind that’s being injected less often which is a total plus for a baby like me! Plus it is so smooth. I use 44 units of Botox and I have one syringe of Voluma in each cheek(total 2 syringes)…. and I still look naturally beautiful, BOOM!

Make-up- I use ColorScience powder and my favorite eye shadow is a Jane Iredale trio called Golden Girl.

Laser- I love the results of laser hair reduction. I also think the PDL is so nice to take the redness out of acne in a quickie. Pre-prom or pre-wedding, that PDL is a life saver.

Fav Peel- I have had the vitalize peel and it was shocking how much one peel changed my skin. It calmed down my acne and faded a lot of my brown spots, highly recommend!

Well enough about me! If you want to learn more about the products I use or what I think would fit your needs come see me at the clinic. I honestly enjoy every single patient I get the honor of meeting and being a part of their skin. You guys are a part of my happiness. So thank you for trusting me and making me a happy person! Hope to see you all at the clinic soon!

Cheers, Nina

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