Why did my skin products stop working?

Why did my skin products stop working

The belief that skin products stop working is a common misconception. Unless you have been storing your products in an inappropriate place, they should be effective until their expiry date. However, there are a few things that may have happened that led your skin type to change thereby explaining why your products don’t seem to work anymore.

For example, daily aging, climate change, and internal/external factors such as medications or changes in your environment, are things that will render your products less effective for the simple fact that they are no longer for you.

Does skin get used to products over time rendering them less effective?

Skin products do not stop working, but there is a plateau once we get accustomed to the skin that we have been able to achieve with products. This is because products can only reach a certain layer of the skin. Once they’ve done all their work on all the layers that they can reach, thats all they can do. Keep in mind that even though they have done their maximum, they will continue to carry those results for you.

“Skin doesn’t become immune to products.”

Skin becomes tolerant and learns how to work with products. For example, retinols. It is not uncommon to see peeling after the first application . However, applications after that may not yield the same extreme results because the product has done its job.

Careful not to overuse.

We recommend certain products such as retinol for short-term use only. Retinol helps your skin look fresh all the time, but it becomes very thinned out over long-term use.

Using strong products all the time leaves no room for improvement. Plus, when you overuse certain products, your skin becomes lazy! When the skin is not allowed to perform its natural functions by itself, it becomes dependent on products to carry out its daily functions. As a result, the moment you remove one of those products from your routine, your skin experiences problems.

Tips for optimal product use

  • Store your beauty products in a cool, dry place, and avoid direct sunlight.
  • Try storing eye creams and moisturizers in the butter compartment of your fridge. This will keep products cool, stable, and refreshing when applied!
  • When possible, choose products that come in pumps or tubes, they hold longer as they are not in contact with open air or skin.
  • If you’re using a potted product use a small spatula or cotton swab to remove products from the jar. The natural oils and bacteria found on our skin can alter or spoil products.

Love, Peace, and Great Skin!

Dérmica MedEsthetics
(780) 885 7108
dermica.ca

Treatments to remove dark spots

treatments to remove dark spots on face

What treatments does dérmica offer to remove dark spots?

Located in Edmonton, Alberta, Dérmica offers a variety of treatments to remove dark spots on the face. Base level intervention would start with products. Professional products target pigment removal at a superficial level. Our favourite product to remove hyperpigmentation is the Retinol Resurfacing Serum. It helps even out the skin tone. If generalized uneven skin tone is your concern, look out for products containing lactic acid.

Facial coupled with AHA boost

All of our facials have reserved time for pore extraction. The extraction process clears away oil and debris for better absorption of Alpha Hydroxy Acids (AHA). Our AHA boost contains those good brightening acids, for example glycolic and lactic acid. Boosts are mild peels.

Peels

Other treatments to remove dark spots on the face include chemical peels. Glycolic acid is used to remove sun spots, acne scars, and other dark spots on the face. It penetrates the deepest into the skin because it has the smallest molecules.

Picture your skin as a bunch of scales held together by glue. Glycolic acid can reach deep levels to dissolve the glue thereby separating the layers. Over the next few days following your treatment, loose layers will start to crunch up and dry up. You may start to see flaking in some areas. As a result, your body makes new cells thereby pushing pigment up to the surface. Follow up peels are required to push the pigmentation all the way out. All things considered they are a great choice for all skin types.

skincare edmonton

Photofacials

Lastly, photofacials are our maximum treatment to remove dark spots from the face. They are considered “maximum level” treatments because they target hyperpigmentation with laser precision.

IPL Phototherapy is able to isolate specific ranges of light. Each range of light within the spectrum penetrates to a different level in the skin.

More control

Our ACLARA photofacial targets melanin cells with no effect on the superficial tissues. This results in maximum effect with very little downtime.

Book your spa services in Edmonton! Schedule Appointment

Love, Peace, and Great Skin!

Dérmica MedEsthetics
(780) 885 7108
dermica.ca

Retinol and Sensitive Skin

can you use retinol if you have sensitive skin

What does retinol do?

Retinol does pretty much everything. Firstly, retinol helps accelerate the cell turnover rate. The cell turnover rate is how quickly your cells are coming up with a new one, bringing it up to the surface, and purging it. Young skin is constantly regenerating; retinol has that affect on skin in general.

Retinol is meant for temporary use. When you are using it, it forces your skin to exfoliate. This exfoliation process will give you textural repair, as well as remove scarring and hyperpigmentation and acne. In addition, due to its regenerating capacity, it is also used in anti-aging products.

Can you use retinol if you have sensitive skin?

The negative side effects outweigh the benefits of retinol for someone that has sensitive skin. Keep in mind there are different types of sensitive skin. Sensitive skin types include rosacea and can range to a dryer, more mature/sensitive skin.

Using retinol when you have sensitive skin may cause irritation. For instance, rosacea can look like an abundance of skin, which leads clients to exfoliate more often than they should.

However, the reality is that inflammation is causing the skin to get thick and the pores to get big. As a result, the type of exfoliation provided by retinol will make the problem worse. Instead, we recommend using salicylic acid. Salicylic acid will exfoliate the damaged skin and also take down inflammation. Additionally, salicylic acid helps to strengthen the fibres of the skin which greatly helps rosacea.

Rosacea pimples

Sometimes rosacea acne gets confused for regular acne, however, rosacea pimples will never burst. Salicylic acid is the only way to get rid of those pimples.

In conclusion, using retinol when you have sensitive skin is not the best option. Try using products with salicylic acid.


Other posts you may enjoy:

Sensitive Skin Tips

Alliviate the RED: Rosacea treatments, symptoms, triggers, and types

Love, Peace, and Great Skin!

Dérmica MedEsthetics
(780) 885 7108
dermica.ca

Seasonal Skin Changes

seasonal skin changes

Should you change your skincare seasonally?

In a city like Edmonton in Alberta, the seasons change drastically and we get to experience many diverse climate conditions! Whether the seasons are changing or you’re moving to a different part of the world, your skin will react to its surroundings. This is why it is important to acclimate your skin to the climate conditions of your environment. Adding or exchanging certain products in your routine can help avoid breakouts during seasonal skin changes.

Environmental influences

We all have our skin type to work with, however, seasonal skin changes are due to environmental influences. For instance, the summer tends to be hotter with higher humidity levels resulting in much higher water loss. In addition, the longer days often mean we receive more sun exposure. As a result, your skin is more likely to become damaged and dehydrated. You will collect excess buildup from sweat, makeup, and dirt which can clog your pores.

We recommend using products that cleanse away that build up. Also, exfoliation becomes more important in the summer because it helps to remove the surface layers of the skin.

Can skin types change with the season?

Normal combination skin types that border on dry skin can experience full-on dryness in the wintertime. This is due to changes in the environment, for example, cold exposure. The cold can be harsh on the skin as well as cause wind rash. We recommend physically covering you skin with a scarf during the winter months. Just remember to keep the scarf clean!

In addition, in the winter you get double sun exposure coming directly from the sun, and the reflective exposure that bounces off the snow. For this reason if you find yourself on a mountain, or going skiing or doing anything outdoors, make sure you wear sunscreen! Plus you’re more likely to get a chapped sunburn/windburn so make sure to protect your skin.

On the other hand, normal combination skin types that border on oily skin can become full-on oily in the summertime and are more prone to breaking out due to heat exposure or high humidity. They should switch to a lighter, oil-free moisturizer in the summer.

Treating seasonal damage

In the fall, skin starts to dry up a little. Summer damage should be lifted with skin treatments such as photofacials or chemical peels. Ideally, these treatments should take place at the end of summer or the beginning of fall.

The goal of the treatments is to remove the cap of dead summer skin and rejuvenate your skin. This will help the ingredients in your products actually make it to the cells that need the extra hydration and nutrients.


Love, Peace, and Great Skin!

Dérmica MedEsthetics
(780) 885 7108
dermica.ca

IPL Laser Hair Removal and Shaving

What happens if you don’t shave before your IPL Hair Removal treatment?

The reason we ask that the hair is shaved flush to the skin is because the target is melanin. If there is hair that is long enough to cast a shadow on the skin or fold over on to the skin, that area will get the get unnecessary heat at the surface of the skin which may cause burns.

Also, your results are not going to be as good as they would be if that hair wasn’t taking up that extra energy. In other words, all the energy would go straight to the source we are targeting, which is the bulb. That hair strand is already dead so we don’t need that interfering. We need the live bulb.

Can you shave after IPL laser hair removal?

Most definitely. You can shave after IPL laser hair removal as often as you’d like or not shave at all. However, you cannot do any form of hair removal that involves pulling the bulb out of the skin, for example, waxing. In addition, you should not use corrosive hair removal creams that can potentially absorb into the skin and have an effect on the bulb.

Can you use IPL on stubble?

If there is a shadow being cast on the surface of the skin by that hair growth you should not. By shadow, we mean that it causes a greyish appearance and its apparent that hair is present.

ipl laser treatment face

What about men that want to get rid of their beard?

IPL Hair Removal is an excellent choice to get rid of an unwanted beard. However, clients need to make sure they are clean shaven before their appointment.

Other posts you may enjoy

Laser Hair Removal side effects and other FAQs

Mens Laser Hair Removal Edmonton

Love, Peace, and Great Skin!

Dérmica MedEsthetics
(780) 885 7108
dermica.ca

What happens if you stop using IPL?

what happens if you stop ipl

What happens if you stop using IPL before you get to your results?

If you stop IPL laser treatments prematurely, there will be a short period of time before you start seeing some growth come back. Most areas that clients have treated are influenced by hormones that drive growth. Therefore, it is inevitable that the hair will come back because hormones change.

In conclusion, stopping treatments prematurely will decrease hair growth but won’t get you maximum results. Furthermore, stopping IPL prematurely will not result in more hair than you started out with.

What happens if you stop IPL after reaching your goal?

Once you finish your full treatment course and we get to your goal, you will see an extended period where you wont have any hair growth at all. Very seldom do clients experience earlier regrowth, and if they do, when they do it is significantly less hair, typically thinner, and takes a lot longer to grow to the point of needing to shave more than once every few months. It takes about 3-5 years on average before you need a touch up.

Can IPL make hair growth worse?

No, typically in most cases it does not have that effect. On the rare occassion that this occurs, this is considered an adverse reaction symbolic of something abnormal going on in the body.

Other posts you may enjoy:

Treatment considerations for IPL phototherapy.

Electrolysis vs IPL Hair Removal

ask dermica

Other questions?

Call us or submit your questions to our “Ask Dérmica” feature.

Love, Peace, and Great Skin!

Dérmica MedEsthetics
(780) 885 7108
dermica.ca

Get in Touch

Sun 10am - 5pm | Mon 10am - 5pm | Tue 10am - 6pm | Wed 10am - 6pm | Thur 10am - 8pm | Fri 10am - 5pm | Sat 10am - 5pm
10518 82 Avenue NW, Edmonton / Get directions
(780) 885-7108 bookings@dermica.ca