Monthly Archives: March 2017

Why worry?

I’ve never been appreciative of how precious time is in our short lives. How blessed we are to have each day. Recently, with my husband working a shift that keeps him from me and our children four days a week I’ve found greater value in time. I’ve been putting a lot of thought into exactly how I spend my time. What activities I want to do, what goals to spend time on and with whom I want my time spent. Ofcourse, my family is number one. However, I spend a large amount of my time working. A great deal of my life is spent with the people I work with and my patients. I love my patients. However, what originally drew me to Dermatology is the team at Johnson Dermatology. The teamwork practiced at JD is unheard of in the medical field and the caring hearts found in that clinic are unfortunately a dying bread in hospitals I’ve worked before. But what the true rarity is at that clinic is the leadership. Dr. Sandy makes me believe in the good in this world and in healthcare generally. She gives me an environment where caring for patients comes before meeting quotas, where taking care of employees comes before taking care of herself and where everyone feels motivated to be better. She worries from a sincere heart. When she sees me under stress, she helps without asking. Which is why she wrote a blog post for me (Thank You SJ). She reminds me why I want to spend a great deal of my precious time investing in and working at Johnson Dermatology. I know you all will enjoy her post as much as I did. Cheers.

From Dr. Sandy:

 

I know better than to worry. I know to let go and let God. However, I do worry. I worry about a lot of things. As a mom, wife, daughter, sister, friend, doctor, business owner, etc…I worry a lot. I have a lot to worry about in life (or so I think). Funny thing is that there are things I don’t worry about in life. Those are the things that end up getting the best of me and about which I should have worried.

Take this spring break for example. My family and I left the clinic to go skiing. I was worried about the logistics of travel. I was worried about us getting hurt skiing. I was worried about leaving the clinic….although I know the clinic is in good hands. I was worried about Honey’s maternity leave and new baby. I was worried about Dr Nelson and his wife having their baby. I was worried about Nina being the only provider in the clinic…although I know she could handle it. I worried about a lot of things. However I did not worry about our leisure bike ride at our destination before our ski trip. Well BAM! … just imagine…perfect day…family happy and sun protected…enjoying our ride…BAM! A woman stops her bike right in front of (Dr.) Brad. He flies over the handlebars and lands very awkwardly. BAM! He looks nauseated but shakes it off and walks his bike back to the store. He drives us to our destination then tells me he thinks he may want to go to see if he broke his arm. WHAT? BAM!!! We leave the kids at the hotel (not worrying or thinking about them eating dinner) and he and I head to the Emergency Department. Of course if you know me you know I don’t like waiting (which is why we try to see patients within 20 minutes of their appointment at our clinic). Well this ER had 3 (yes 3) “waiting rooms”. It was like a Disney ride. Just when you think you are at the front of the line…..you move to a different line to wait longer and worry more. Turns out he did break some bones. He did get to ski some and our family is having a great time. We have 3 more days left of our vacation so I am still worried about our safety and getting home.

While we are away, some unusual activities occurred at the clinic; but our team is handling them well (big thank you to our clinic manager Shelly). Dr Nelson and his wife Ashley had a beautiful healthy baby boy (check out the pictures on our social media). Honey and her family are doing great and she has started seeing patients. Nina did have to handle some extra work but she worked diligently and survived. Nina’s work in the ICU and ER and inner cities has paid dividends.

What will happen next? I don’t know. I will try to worry less and enjoy more. After all, like the old English proverb states… “worrying is like sitting in a rocking chair….it gives you something to do but it doesn’t get you anywhere”. Since we already mentioned Disney, I should also try to follow the advice of Walt…”Why worry? If you have done the very best you can then worrying won’t make it any better”.

So my spring time resolution is to get out of the rocking chair, use sun protection and start moving. I hope you will join me but I will try not to worry about you. Stay skintastic.

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Perspective

This week I thought I might hit my stress breaking point. Have you been there? When everything goes wrong? In the past 7 days my husband has started working evening shift, my daughter got a perforated ear drum, we lost her ballet shoes (found them later), I got an abscess, I cut my hair shorter than I planned to and then my Saturday girls night plans got cancelled due to weather! I mean really? I cried more than once. Then I had a long group text with my girls, spent a weekend relaxing with my husband and regrouped. I realized that if I kept crying about how much my luck was down right now I would just feel worse. I looked around and realized how blessed I am in this life. I have a roof over my head, a family that I dreamed of, friends that are family and a job I love. I live in a country where we are free. I can express myself and rule my life. And that’s what I’m going to do, feel how I want to feel, have the good attitude I want to have and be in the good mood I want to see in other people. What does this have to do with skin? Nothing really. Except that you should take that attitude with your skin too. Here are some tips…..

  1. If you want fuller lips- go get ’em. Don’t let anyone tell you your goals should be changed. It’s YOUR goal, not theirs.
  2. If you have always suffered with psoriasis(or other skin probs) and want to be clear, take action. Pick up the phone make an appointment and tell your dermatologist. Take control of your situation. Don’t suffer before you investigate if there are answers. Don’t settle on less than you deserve.
  3. If you “hate” your acne don’t tell yourself that. Go see a dermatologist. Then tell yourself what you do like about your skin, that it heals quickly, that you don’t have stretch marks, that you love the color of your skin, that you love the dewyness- whatever it is focus on the beauty you do see.
  4. Dont compare yourself. We are all different. Not better nor worse, different. Unless you are realizing how blessed you are. Sometimes seeing others’ misfortunes helps you appreciate what you do have.
  5. Unwind. We are all harder on ourselves than how others see us. You might think your skin is ugly but someone thinks it’s beautiful. Always. Guaranteed.

Tomorrow night at Mercy Fitness Center on Dallas Street in Fort Smith from 5-7pm is the UltraShape Power event. There will be special package pricing, giveaways and more! You don’t want to miss out. Go to Johnson Dermatology Facebook page to watch the live video we did Friday too! Hope you guys had a great weekend!

Stay Skintastic, Nina

 

Dupes for the Win

Yesterday we celebrated my little girl turning four years old with a party at our house. I forgot about planning her party until 4 days before her Birthday. Yes, you read that right four DAYS. I sent invitations via text message with a pathetic plea for people to attend on short notice. I didn’t cook a thing- bought snacks from sams. I ordered the cake on Friday for the party the very next day. There were no decorations. There was no plan. I spent literally half the money, time, stress and effort that I have spent on her previous parties. It was the ultimate stetford wife birthday party dupe. And guess what? It was her best party yet. She had just as much fun and I had way more fun! We made memories which is what really matters anyway right? Point is sometimes a dupe is a good thing. So obviously I need to share with you all my favorite secret skin care dupes.

  1. Latisse. It’s no secret I love my thicker, darker, longer lashes I have from Latisse. But Latisse is an investment. I also love Jane Iredale purelash extender and conditioner. It’s like putting a moisturizer on your lashes before mascara. Although it doesn’t actually make your lashes change it does make them appear thicker, darker and longer when applied before your mascara and coming in at over $100 cheaper than Latisse you can’t complain.
  2. My favorite body moisturizer is Cerave itch relief moisturizing cream found in a 12 ounce tub at Walmart for $20. You can get its dupe- 100% petroleum jelly in a 13 ounce tub for 1.97 one aisle over at Walmart. This dupe may even be the better option for the driest of winter skin folks.
  3. Jane Iredale hydration spray is life. I use it before I apply my HA5 to pull moisture into my skin. I use it to set my powder so I am dewy not cakey. I sometimes just spritz it on because I love the rose scent and need a pick me up. It’s my coffee for the skin. But if you don’t want to drop $30 on this slice of heaven then at least get the Evian dupe. It’s a spray mineral water that’s half the price and does just as good a job(minus the luxury smell).
  4.  Dermaplaning. Have blonde vellus facial hair(peach fuzz) you’re getting removed with dermaplaning? I have no clue how much it cost but I’m guessing it’s more than buying the hand held facial razor that comes in a pack of 3 for about $4 and you can do it at home once a month. We sell the ones by Tinkle at the clinic. Stop by and learn how to use them and get a skincare consult while you’re visiting!
  5. Retin-A. If you’ve been following me for any length of time you know that I want all non-pregnant/breastfeeding women on a retinol or retinoid. Previously, prescriptions have been over $100. Recently one went over the counter and can now be found at Target, Sams and Walgreens for $27! It’s called Adapalene gel or Differin gel 0.1%. It’s not even a dupe it’s just a lower strength prescription medicine that you can now get without a prescription. Go get you some and save money!

You may have noticed there is no dupe for SkinMedica Retinol, HA5, Lytera, TNS, Botox and Fillers. That’s because I don’t believe in those dupes. It’s not even worth it. Sometimes you just have to pay to play. The key is to know where a good dupe option is so you can save money on that and put it towards a higher end product to change your skin. Hope you all had as happy a weekend as I did.

Stay Skintastic, Nina