Cold Weather Skin Care

It is becoming colder by the minute and the cold, dry air can lead to dry, irritated skin even if you are prone to oily skin. Here are some ideas to keep your skin more hydrated this fall and winter season!

1. Switch up your skin care products! // Switch from foaming cleansers to milk, cream, or oil cleansers. I've been using La Roche-Posay Toleriane Dermo-Cleanser and it leaves my skin feeling hydrated, but not greasy! It can be used with or without rinsing, but I prefer to rinse it off. As for moisturizers, try a richer cream or balm. La Roche-Posay Toleriane Riche Soothing Protective Cream works great for me and doesn't cause any breakouts. I also like to use La Roche-Posay Cicaplast Baume B5 Soothing Repairing Balm on any areas that are especially dry.

 2. Increase your intake of healthy fats. // Eat foods such as avocado, salmon, walnuts, and olive oil or take omega-3 supplements. Healthy fats and omega-3s can help boost your skin's hydration level and decrease inflammation.

5 Tips for Better Sleep!

Getting adequate sleep is one of the best things that you can do for your body. If you aren't getting enough sleep, you can get sick more easily, have trouble losing weight, or break out in acne. The amount of sleep needed varies from person to person, but it usually falls between 7-9 hours a night. I'm doing my Family Medicine rotation right now and difficulty sleeping is a complaint I see often among my patients. Here are several tips that can help you get a good night's sleep! (Of course, there are many sleep disorders out there. If you try these tips out and still find yourself having trouble sleeping, see your primary care physician.)

Image via Pexels

1.) Stick to a schedule. // Try to go to sleep and wake up at the same time each day, even on the weekends. This will help to regulate your body's internal clock and help you to fall asleep and stay asleep throughout the night. 

Gluten/Nut Free Banana Granola | Recipe

This granola is literally the best! It tastes great added to yogurt, cereal (I like to add it to my Cheerios in the morning to give it more flavor), or even just by itself. You can easily switch this recipe up - you can use different seeds, honey, maple syrup, etc. (I adapted the recipe from this one, so I can't take the credit!)

Ingredients:
1 cup sunflower seeds
3/4 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
1/4 cup chia seeds
1 cup unsweetened banana chips
1 ripe banana
1/4 cup agave nectar syrup
1/2 Tablespoon coconut oil
1 Tablespoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon sea salt

Didactic Year of PA School | 5 Tips

I can't believe I'm done with my first year (aka didactic year) of PA school! It went by so fast! I'm starting my clinical rotations in less than 1 week (exciting, but also nerve-wracking...eek!). I did very well in my didactic year, so I thought I would share some of the tips that helped me!

1.) Find your own groove. // Some of my classmates didn't study on the weekends (unless there was an exam on Monday). Others took one day off a week from studying. Don't try to do what everyone else is doing. Do what is best for you! Personally, I studied a little everyday for the most part. There were a couple rare weeks where we didn't have an exam, so I would take a break from studying then. This tip also applies to how you study. Some students like to make study guides. Others just study from their notes and PowerPoint slides. I started out trying to make study guides, but it ended up being too time-consuming for me. I ended up just studying the PowerPoint slides and my notes. Sometimes I used the Quizlet app as well.

This is literally what PA school feels like most of the time.
Source: Pinterest

2.) Share notes/study guides! // If you do make study guides, make sure to share them with your classmates! My class created a private Facebook group in the very beginning, so that we could share notes, study guides, etc. This is not a competition, so make sure to help out your fellow classmates!

My Top 8 Tips for Clear(er) Skin!

As you may or may not know, dermatology is one of my passions. For this reason, I decided to write about my top 8 tips for clear (or clearer) skin. I have struggled with moderate acne in the past, so I understand how frustrating it can be to find a solution. Here are some tips that I have found helpful in my skin care journey and as a La Roche-Posay Be Clear Ambassador.

1.) Less is more! // Less really is more when it comes to skin care, especially if you have acne or sensitive skin. If you use a ton of products, it will just irritate your skin further and cause more breakouts. Make sure to use a gentle cleanser (NOT Cetaphil as it tends to cause breakouts for many) and avoid physical exfoliators (scrubs).

Mini Review: I have been using LRP Effaclar Purifying Foaming Gel and Effaclar Duo Acne Treatment for over a month now. I have found the acne treatment to work very well. It keeps my breakouts and clogged pores at bay! It contains 5.5% benzoyl peroxide and 0.4% micro-exfoliating LHA to treat both blackheads and whiteheads. The cleanser is a little drying for my skin type (combination-dry), but it would be a great option for those with combination or combination-oily skin! It is soap-free and has a pH of 5.5. The pH of 5.5 is important because it is the pH of skin. If the skin's pH gets out of whack, you can end up with irritation and acne.

2.) Be an ingredient detective. // Look at the ingredient lists of skin care and makeup products before purchasing. This website has a list of ingredients and rates them on comedogenicity and irritancy: Become an Acne Detective. You can also copy and paste ingredients into this website and it will rate the ingredients as well: Ingredient Analysis. These are not fullproof lists. Some ingredients that are rated high on the scales may not break you out or vice versa, but the websites are good starting points. Some people break out from silicones, such as cyclopentasiloxane, which is not rated comedogenic.