My solution to ease allergies

So following from my last blog post, I’m sure most of you know about my current skin condition after trying out Fresh products. It’s still not perfect worse affected are my eye areas which are still red and rashy… I’m even developing double eyelids because of the swelling on my right eye. I have to admit that I look pretty freakish now hahaahaah… True story: I went for a shower last night, removed my makeup and my friend asked me if I had already showered and I said ‘I’ve already showered’. She says that I don’t look like I’ve cleaned up…and it’s all thanks to the red rashes all over the face which is more obvious once makeup is removed. My skin tone just looks so uneven now that people think I haven’t washed my face properly hahahahaha… deary me…

I just better pray that my skin will recover quickly. Now that I’ve stopped using the Fresh products I still needed to cleanse my skin. As you might know I’m a HUGE fan of Cetaphil, I love it because it’s soap free and is awesome for people who are super sensitive. But I don’t think they have Cetaphil here in Korea so my next best choice is… Kiehl’s Ultra Facial Cleanser. I have never tried the cleanser from the classic Ultra facial line but I absolutely adore their Ultra Facial Cream. And going by experience I thought it was worth a try since I had nothing to lose due to the state of my face. First what claims to do:

- mild cleanser formulated with sugar-derived glycoside to thoroughly cleanse and remove makeup
- does not over –dry or strip your skin of its natural oils
- effective ingredients can help absorb excess oil and dirt on the face
- is pH balanced to maintain a healthy balanced skin condition
- tested for safety and gentleness

Along with the claims the active ingredients are impressive, for example the product contains Apricot Kernel Oil packed with Vitamin E (for moisturizing and creating soft skin), Avocado Oil packed with Vitamin A, D, E and potassium (restores natural moisture in your own skin) and Squalane derived from olives. Yep, there is no doubt that when using this product that my skin didn’t dry out like when you use most cleansers. It’s super gentle on the skin and although I have itchy skin, I realized the itchiness settled down after using this cleanser day and night for 2days. The lathering of the foam makes cleansing really gentle and gets right down the pores to clean all the dirt away. With continued use my skin will be normal in no time.


In combination with the Kiehl’s Ultra Facial Cleanser, I have never stopped using the Ultra Facial Cream it’s been my best friend since I started taking Oratane. It really does keep the skin moisturized for ages throughout the day and has been great for me underneath my makeup. I probably will get asked… but ‘NO’ I DO NOT use any toner between my cleansing and moisturizing routine. I’ve been laying off the toner for a while now since my dermo said that it’s more likely to dry out my already medically enhanced dry skin. May be one day I’ll get back to doing the full routine again but right now I’m totally fine with just the two simple steps. In between I love to do my exfoliation routine, as I’m dry and sensitive I only do it maximum twice a week. I probably shouldn’t have tried out the Fresh Face Polish sugar scrub and opted for the Benefit's "Honey...snap out of it" facial scrub (a possible future review) instead since that worked so well for me back in Melbourne. A lesson well learnt, right now I’m in no state to be trying out skincare products not till my skin stabilizes after having stopped the Oratane medications.

I have to thank Oratane for taking away my cystic acne which was just unbearable. But at the same time there is a little regret to know that it has made my skin terribly sensitive and that it will possibly be like this for a long while. Not to mention that although Oratane has taken away my acne there is no guarantee that it’s gone forever. According to most cases there is always a chance of relapse after about two years. So I’m having my fingers crossed that this doesn’t happen to me because I don’t think I want to go on the meds again. It’s really damaging to your insides and on the outside you might look pimple free BUT due to my dry state, friends close to me has said that it looks like I have aged a little compared to when I had oily skin. Actually a good amount of oil production is the key to staying and looking youthful. And what Oratane (just like Accutane) does is dry up all those oil glands underneath the skin so it inhibits oil production. It’s an extreme way of removing your acne right? Well, I totally agree and wouldn’t recommend it to people in general unless you’ve exhausted all options available. CLICK here to read about my acne treatment.

Final words: If you ever have any allergies on your face make sure to give Kiehl’s Ultra Facial Cleanser and Ultra Facial Cream a go. At least you can still cleanse and moisturize instead of doing nothing and letting the dirt collect as you wait for your skin to heal on its own. If you just leave it its likely your skin will take longer to recover without any sort of care. Once the skin is cleansed well and moisturized well it will produce a healthy balanced skin condition thus, the skin will only get better and better.

That's all for today, I'm out.

Love from ME