Skin Care Step 1: Check your Regimen

Ever see those articles that come out in fashion magazines that show skincare tips for women in their 20's,30's, 40's and 50's?From stylist.caI realize now that I've gone a little past the "Angelina Jolie mark", so I need to pay more attention. Lately, I've noticed the almost sudden change in my skin condition. My skin was always sensitive as I had mentioned before, but began to notice that a slight change in texture, complexion, but it has also become even more sensitive. Ironically, I sometimes feel like a teenager because I suddenly have this new experience of dealing with acne when I never had this sort of problem.So the first step I took towards caring for my skin was revisiting my cleansing regimen.I. CHECK YOUR WATER While before, just washing with plain water would be enough for me, now I have to take a second look at all the things that I put on my skin, INCLUDING the water! Of course, you might say, you make sure you wash your face, and whole body with for that matter, with "clean water". I thought it was that simple and automatic too, until I met my friend and fellow SoMom, Kris de Guzman last year. Kris is not only the blogger behind of www.ocmominmanila.com but she is also the mompreneur behind Aquasana, which is a line of water filters. Kris would always share her OC tips with us, but when she opened my eyes to what is or could be in our tap water, I was surprised I never thought that our bathing water might not be as clean as we thought! We also never realize that when we bathe in the water, it gets absorbed by our skin and goes into our bodies.My Aquasana shower filterEver since I started bathing in filtered water, I noticed my skin and hair become softer, no kidding! While I didn't notice any tangible difference in terms of "feeling cleaner", I only realized my body knew the difference when I would bathe at the gym or if I bathe at a hotel while traveling, I really itch after bathing in unfiltered water! Besides the cosmetic benefits of fitering bathing water, there are also health benefits for keeping chemicals like chlorine and other synthetics away from our systems.Read more here. It's no wonder a relative of mine who developed cancer was asked to do juicing, shift to organic and also install a shower filter as he was trying to fight the disease.II. USE THE RIGHT CLEANSER FOR YOUI've also been wearing make up more often. Yes, since our Make Up 101 class! Would you believe I only started to put on lipstick when I was alreay married! Now I feel almost naked without powder, lipstick, a little concealer and blush. Wearing make up means having to take an extra step in cleansing, especially before going to bed. Leaving make up on at night, as we all probably know, is a super no-no.So I was on a quest to find a good cleanser and noticed my usual cleanser was not effective in removing liquid foundation and eye make up like mascara. My mom used to use Pond's Cold Cream and when I tried looking for it in stores, it had been phased out! Luckily, at Expo Mom last May, I heard about Mustela being very effective with tough make up. What got my attention was that the Mustela Stelatopia Cleansing Cream is made not only to be gentle enough for babies, but also specifically for skin with atopic tendencies. That's moi!A pea size amount of Mustela Cleansing Cream can cover the whole face, I add a bit more if I have heavy eye make up just to make sure to get everything out.III. GET PROFESSIONAL CAREI've also started going for monthly facials to specifically get professional skin care. I go to Aesthethic Center in Makati and have been visiting every month if I can the past 6 or so months.I met its owner Dr. Yanee Vasquez a few months ago who shared with us her background and credentials in dermatology having worked with one of the leading centers in the country before going on her own and setting up Aesthetic Center with branches in Makati and Alabang. I was struck by her calm and pleasant demeanor, and found out that she was also a yoga instructor and also practiced Reiki. No wonder!:)I like going to Aesthetic Center because the doctors and therapists are very professional and personable. Before I started any treatments, they made sure to test everything before hand to make sure I don't have any adverse reactions since they know my skin's history. After each session, they send a text message to ask how the treatment was and if my skin felt okay, if there were no reactions. etc.They are also quite reasonably priced, plus it includes shots in case of pimples. I find this last benefit to be a great deal because 1) the antibiotic shot comes in handy when there is an "emergency", meaning I have an important meeting or a shoot or talk I need to attend, and need to have clear skin, and 2) at other dermas, you pay PER shot!I'm pretty happy with Aesthetic Center for my monthly cleansing facial and diamond peel. I just found out that Aesthetic Science was cited as having one of the best facials by Cosmo.ph.My skin has become a lot more manageable because of these steps I took in improving my skin care regimen. Though it takes more time and effort now to care for my skin, it also feels good to take this extra time and care for myself.Next time I'll share with you some of my fave skin care products!-----For more info on Aquasana filters, visit www.aquasana.com.ph or Facebook. For more info on Aesthetic Science, follow them on Twitter,  Facebook and Instagram.  Follow Mustela Philippines on Facebook.