My Rosacea Story

I've never really had what you could term bad skin, I think I had a little acne like most teenagers but I was never particularly bothered by Rosacea or other skin conditions and after I had a hysterectomy my skin changed and I thought I would never have to worry about spots too much and I certainly wouldn't encounter the problems faced by people with Rosacea.  Suddenly last Christmas I noticed patches of redness on my skin, I thought at first it was an allergy but then I had some antibiotics for another illness and my skin magically settled down, until it got worse, and worse...

By the time I went to the Queensway Skin Clinic in Jesmond I felt I couldn't go out unless I was wearing makeup and so not only was I facing the fact that I was ageing I hated the red spotty swollen mask I seemed to be wearing on my skin.  After having facial aesthetic treatment which I'm still undergoing Doctor Uzma Obrich diagnosed that it was indeed Rosacea.  

So, what's the answer to that?  Well there's no cure for Rosacea but you can make things much better, there are a few products I've tried for all price-ranges so let me tell you about those before I move onto my actual prescribed skincare I've settled on.

Kalme is a range of skincare especially for people who have Rosacea, you have to complete all the steps in the skincare to get the best results and before I started the prescribed skincare it certainly seemed to work on reducing a little of the redness, the chameleon concealer is a thing of genius, it mixes with your own skin tone or foundation to help cover the redness often associated with Rosacea.

Salcura Bioskin is also a great choice not only for Rosacea but also for all kinds of skin issues which require some extra care, Looby has some scarring on her upper arms as well as having eczema so she's been using the body moisturiser and it really is helping.  There's a full range to try on conditions like eczema and psoriasis and they also do a range for children.

Eucerin was a brand I'd already heard of over the years and I have to say that I loved the anti-redness cream, it felt really nourishing and it has a subtle hint of green when it comes out of the tube which massively helps with redness.  Eucerin do a whole range of honest skincare for specific requirements like ageing, or blemish prone skin etc.

BRYT skincare is not only for people who have skin issues, it's also vegan, cruelty free, anti-ageing, comes in mens and women's ranges and it was the only skincare range I felt you could give as a gift, it's beautifully packaged and where as we sometimes have to avoid buying products you wear on your skin for those who have sensitivities, this stuff is perfect for everyone.

Bioderma sent me their Sensibio AR BB cream which protects skin, it's anti-redness and it's a BB Cream, not a full on foundation, I absolutely love the stuff and I'm wearing it right now!

So that's the stuff which is out there, available without any kind of specialist or medical practitioner and it's clear that a lot of thought has gone into each of these products but now let's move on to what I've been prescribed by the Queensway Skin Clinic, I asked Doctor Olbrich about my rosacea mainly just for advice so when she came back to me with a full range of Zo Skin in 6 steps I said I would follow the instructions to the letter, I've been using it now for 2 weeks and the transformation to the first photograph is what's happened, let me just show you how it was when I first went to see Uzma and her team...

Now obviously I want to hold my hands up and be honest and say that I've also had dermal fillers and botox which was what I originally went to Queensway Jesmond for, never did I imagine though that my skin would look like it does today

My skin is the softest it's ever been, it's less scarred and the redness and awful texture gets better with each day that passes.  I want to write a separate article about the 6 steps I'm currently using but I'm so thankful, I can quite happily go to the local shop without makeup now without feeling that people will be repelled by my face, the aesthetics were just the first part, having good skin is priceless and so yes, Zo Skin isn't the cheapest option but it's given me confidence again and that's something that money can't buy!

I want to thank all of the companies involved in this collaboration, each have their own specialities and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend any of them.