My journey to clear skin
Sophie Jilley, 31
Master Esthetician 11+ years experience
It’s been a long, bumpy trip to Destination: Clear Skin..but man was it so worth it!
I’ve struggled with acne, blackheads, and scars from picking the acne (yes, Esthetician’s pick too..)
So finding the perfect balance has been a lot of trial and error to say the least.
I went through stages of severe hormonal acne back in 2013; that jawline cystic, super inflamed bumps that you could just feel everytime you washed your face and hated what looked back at you in the mirror. You feel disgusting, and immediately want to get rid of them at all costs, so you result to an hour of picking, prodding, pushing, whatever you can do to get some sort of release from the pressure and ugliness you feel…only to feel ashamed of what you just wasted an hour of your life doing. Trust me when I say I’ve been there. I feel for you.
Now for me, it was a little different being an Esthetician, I have so many resources at my hands. I was using all the right products, maybe even too many products. So the frustration was enhanced because I just could not get a grip on controlling this skin condition, and awarded myself Worst Esthetician of 2013.
So it led me to think deeper…that it’s SO MUCH MORE than just the products for curing acne, or any skin condition for that matter. We have to look at the inside FIRST, work on the gut, the organs, the brain, the stress, the overall package. Treat the cause not the symptom.
My first step was to get off of all hormonal birth control. Now I’m not here to tell you birth control is bad and no one should be taking it. For some people it works very well, and I’m happy for them! But for me personally it enhanced my moodiness, craziness, and most importantly my acne. So I ditched the birth control and saw a teeny tiny shift in my skin, but it wasn’t enough for me to be sold.
Next step was to reassess diet. Now at this point it’s somewhere around 2014..this is when I really got full force into working out and lifting weights. The diet wasn’t terrible, but I started to research more on dairy and the effect it has on women’s hormones in particular. Cow’s naturally have more levels of sex hormones, that’s not including what is added to them at factory farms, which mess around with our own levels when we eat & drink them, which raises our testosterone, estrogen, insulin, even cancer producing cells. So it was my own personal research that led me to next ditch the dairy as much as I could.
Was I perfect at first? ABSOLUTELY NOT! I mainly stayed away from milk & milk products, but definitely wouldn’t pass up a slice of pizza on my cheat days. I started to see an improvement! The jawline acne had now vanished. But the blackheads and little surface forehead pimples combined with occasional cystic acne would still pop up around my face every couple weeks.
When I decided to start competing in bikini bodybuilding shows in 2017, I was forced to become more tuned in to sugar & the effects it had on the body. Sugar & high-glycemic foods (which turn into sugar once processed in the body) cause spikes in your blood sugar levels. The pancreas respond by releasing insulin, which raises oil production & sebum in the skin. Not to mention it causes major inflammation, glycation of collagen & elastin and leaves you looking dull, saggy and even flushed (not in a good way.)
Not only that, skin conditions like rosacea usually result in an overgrowth of Candida. What does candida feed off of? SUGAR. So the bad bacteria sitting in your gut is a sugar addict feening for you to eat that donut, so it can chow down and multiply.
I will say..lowering your sugar intake is an EXTREMELY hard thing to do. It’s a lot of discipline, detoxing headache & moodiness, but once you get past the first couple of weeks, you start to become more in tune with your body. For me personally, I just loved waking up with less inflammation and acne so it was a no-brainer.
You have to decide what’s important for YOU!
Fast forward to 2019, we’ve reached our 30’s! What a transforming decade my 30’s has been. I finally have my skin routine compressed and figured out, I have found a transforming microchanneling treatment that I’m in love with, I’m 100% dairy-free & have become fully plant-based, and I ABSOLUTELY LOVE what the combo is doing for my mental health, physical health, overall well-being and of course MY SKIN!
I try to stick to good wholesome foods, alkaline-water, limited processed & high glycemic foods, but still keeping BALANCE. I don’t beat myself up if I have a Sinfull Cookie (which are amazing if you haven’t tried the local Houston bakery treats) or an apple. I use pure ingredients on everything from my scalp to my feet. I have finally found the centered balance in all aspects of my life that I was searching for & my body is thanking me for it. I can’t stress enough how important that word BALANCE is in life.
So what are a few of my current daily routine must-haves that I practice to keep up with my complexion?
Chlorophyll & Hot water
I start every single morning with hot water & a tablespoon of liquid chlorophyll. Chlorophyll along with giving that rich green color to all things beautiful, also has powerful detoxifying properties & can help reduce inflammation & bacterial growth. The hot water is a must, and something I recently discovered from Dr. Kim while getting acupuncture treatments. It helps to detoxify, warm the bodies organs internally and keep the digestive tract moving…because everything starts in the gut, so keep that sucker happy! I usually wait an hour before drinking any tea or coffee and eating anything.
Alkaline Water
Alkaline environments help to keep away bacteria & infection. They have a really hard time thriving in them. It strengthens the immune system, and keeps your body functioning properly. Try to stick to room temperature alkaline water, as the organs have to work harder to keep the flow going with ice cold water, and can almost tense up. If you can do hot water (thank you Dr. Kim) even better! But definitely stick to room temp especially for those of you with digestive issues.Probiotics
Probiotics are hot…everyone talks about gut health and how important it is to keep the good bacteria alive and thriving, and keep the bad bacteria DEAD so it can’t cause those late-night cravings. I like to stick to Designs for Health for all my supplements, so their Probiotic Synergy & Probiomed is a must for me. You want to make sure your probiotic is science-backed, health care trusted/recommended & physician backed, of course with a holistic approach. Don’t go pick up a bottle off of a Walmart shelf. It’s more than likely going to do more harm than good.Cellulose Biodegradable Sponges
I swear by these things! I was introduced to them at a spa I worked at. I thought they were weirdly cool how the expand with water. But these little discs of magic are amazing for removing ALL your cleanser and oil from your face, plus they give you a nice little light exfoliation daily from the textured sponge. Make sure to store them somewhere they can’t accumulate bacteria and make sure you throw them away after a weeks use.Salicylic Acid, Vitamin A & Human Growth Factors
This combination for me personally works phenomenal. I use a salicylic cleanser from Image Skincare to address my oil production and keep the pimples at bay. I prefer to use Vitamin A (Environ’s AVST Moisturizer & Image Skincare ACE Serum) on my skin as opposed to Retinol’s, as it tends to be less aggressive and more tolerable for my skin. And last but not least the Growth Factors. The Secret Sauce. Now there’s a lot of topic on which growth factors work best. For me, I believe Cytokines & Growth Factors derived from human bone marrow delivers amazing results. Inflammation, Healing & Anti-aging all in one. I love Livra’s Cellular Renewal System (1).Microchanneling
Another amazing treatment combining a micro injury to the skin to promote an anti-inflammatory response of regrowing the skin tissues & inhibiting the collagen formation. I combine monthly treatments & use an at-home tool to enhance the effect of my products. My skin has done some absolutely amazing things with Microchanneling.Diet
I don’t think I need to explain much here. But a balanced, whole food diet is everything. Whether you do keto, vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free; make sure you’re getting 85% good, wholesome foods. I chose vegan because it works for ME. Choose what works for YOU, but really look at what you’re eating, and decide is it good for my body? Does my body really get the good nutrients that it needs from this? Read the labels, know what you’re putting inside your body. Treat your body with respect and it will do the same for you.Reducing Stress
I can’t stress enough how bad stress is on the body. It leads to inflammation & hormonal rises which leads to nothing good. A few things I do to manage stress; working out, acupuncture, get enough sleep, self care, hot baths, deep breathing, drinking hot water, sitting outside and just being.Reducing Caffeine Intake
I LOVE coffee. Zak & I have a strong passion for the smell, the different beans and where they come from, the taste & the boldness. It’s simply something that makes us happy. But I have taken it to an extreme and it hasn’t been so good on my body & my acne. I took the hard hit to switch to decaf because I still need the taste. I surprisingly have found my body has adjusted for the better. And I’ve found some pretty decent Organic Decaf Coffees. Don’t get me wrong, I’ll still throw in an occasional REAL cup every now and then.
So there you have it…my journey & tips to finding the perfect skin. Am I fully there?
Of course not., we always find something wrong with our skin! But I am so grateful that I went through everything that I did, and how far my skin has come.
For any question on services or products I mentioned, leave a comment below! I’d love to chat and get to know what challenges you’re facing on your skin journey.
Peace, Strength & #AgeLater
-Sophie