The health and condition of our Skin is a reflection of our Self.

A living system encased and protected by your Skin, our interface between the outside environment and our inner world. We are a delicate but extremely resilient living organism. As sentient beings we are able to perceive and feel things, to have an awareness, consciousness, we are able to experience subjectively. All things considered, there are many influences within us and without us that contribute to our health, how we function/dysfunction, how we choose to function/dysfunction, and how we react/interact.
Considering the health and condition of our Skin as a reflection of our Self is that simple.

What is not so simple sometimes is trying to work out what is going on within us or outside of us that could be affecting the health of our skin.

We need to ask the questions to find the answers, be observant of ourselves and notice the signals our body may be showing us.
I have a rash on my face, is the new spray deodorant I bought irritating my skin?
Is the stress I’m under at work contributing to my periods being irregular and breakout on my chin?
I feel tired every day at about 3:00 so I have a soft drink and a chocolate donut to pick me up and get me through.
My feet are sore every morning when I get out of bed and start walking.

What is my skin trying to say?
The term condition of our skin, relates to symptoms the skin is expressing such as dry, dehydrated, pigmentation, oily, open pores, blocked pores, redness, rash, breakout for example. Conditions can be further grouped into types rosacea, acne, dermatitis, psoriasis etc. Our skin is trying to let us know there is imbalance, congestion, miscommunication in the body with such symptoms.
There can be external and internal influences that may detrimentally affect the health and wellbeing of our skin and contribute to the expression of such conditions;

Environmental
– Pollution
– Sunburn / Windburn / UV radiation
– Airconditioning / heating
– Artificial lighting
– Weather – wind, cold, heat, humidity, seasons

Topical
– Chemicals
– found in personal care products e.g. fragrances, perfumes, soaps, sanitisers, etc
– found in household cleaning products e.g. laundry detergents, fabric softeners, mould inhibitors, bleaches, carpet and fabric deodorisers, air sanitisers etc
– found in personal care items eg fragrances, preservatives, colours etc
– found in commercial applications such as pesticides, paints, building materials

The EWG & SAFE have figures showing the average person is exposed to on any normal day with the main consideration being it’s not only one product but many products multiplied by the many ingredients in each that contribute to. You can read more about this here!

It is wise to choose natural, toxic chemical free household cleaning products and remember less is more when splashing and spraying cleaners and deodorisers. Even wiser to choose natural, non toxic personal care products when choosing skin care, hair and body care and make up.

Illness & injury
– Physical injuries such as burns, bruises, wounds, grazes need therapy and care to heal and improve the damage which may be temporary or long term depending on the severity.
– Viruses, autoimmune and inflammatory conditions such as chicken pox, herpes, psoriaisis, dermatitis, rashes, impetigo, IBS, Crohns for example while all different, will reflect in the appearance ofthe skin, affect skin resilience and sensitivity. It is often a long battle to restore levels of immunity and health in the skin and the individuals wellbeing depending on correct diagnosis and the choice of treatment.

Diet
What we eat, we are tomorrow!
There is no doubting the influence of food on our health, radiance and the vitality of our skin. Having a strong foundation of fresh real foods forming the daily menu gives a flexible core that can handle a little deviation. It is easy to become depleted, tired, overweight or sick if our daily nutrition has no nutritional value, just empty carbs, unhealthy fats, excessive sugar and isolated proteins.

Stress
Life today is basically a little cray cray! Everything happens at high speed, life is constantly happening, we fill in our down time with stuff or more work. We are always busy!
Stress comes from many sources and drives many physical and emotional conditions. Stress is to be respected as a serious ailment and deserves serious consideration in the ways we choose to create life balance and a healthy life.

There are many simple things we can do daily to positively nourish and nurture!