Sensitive skin can be really tricky to deal with. You never know what products will cause your skin to become red or irritated (or both). Sometimes you can figure out what skin care ingredient is causing your problems and sometimes it is just a matter of guessing. Keep reading to find out 11 must-know skincare tips for sensitive skin and how to care for your skin so it stays calm and feels good all the time.
Before getting into the skin care tips, you might ask do I have sensitive skin? The following questions will answer that:

• Is your skin feeling uncomfortable or tight soon after washing your face?
• Are you getting rashes or redness often?
• Is your skin easily getting tanned or burnt after being in the sun even for a less time?
• Does your skin react or feeling uncomfortable with most artificial chemicals in cosmetics?
• Do you suffer from premature wrinkles or fine lines?
• Is your skin itchy or turn flaky easily?

If your answer to the most of these questions is “yes”, then your skin is most probably the sensitive type. Now let us see what practices can be followed to work towards sensitive skin care.

 

1. TRY AN OIL CLEANSER

You might have heard of oil cleansing, but feel it's not for you, we are telling you now that you should consider trying it if you have sensitive skin. Most conventional cleansers can be irritating to sensitive skin, as they strip the skin of its natural oils, which leads to dryness. Also, these cleansers usually have a low pH about 4-5 which can irritate your skin and cause acne or a rash.

This can be avoided by using oil cleansers like, especially a natural oil based such as jojoba oil. Oil cleanser can help you get rid of any underlying makeup and any pollutants without removing the skin's natural oils.

 

2. PROTECT YOUR SKIN FROM THE SUN

You need to keep your sensitive skin protected from UV rays, this means no matter on sunny days or cloudy days, because cloudy days can also harm your skin. You can do this by including a sunscreen to your daily skin care routine. If you don't want this, then you can use a moisturizer with added SPF.

 

3. AVOID USING FRAGRANCES IN SKINCARE

A lot of fragrances, especially synthetic ones, contain literally thousands of chemicals compounds that can irritate and inflame sensitive skin. Even some natural fragrances and essential oils have this problems, some of them are not just compatible with sensitive skin. To avoid this, you should go for skin care products with no added fragrances. For those essential oil lovers with sensitive skin, these five essential oils that are considered safe for you: Lavender, Chamomile, Rosemary, Sandalwood, Tea Tree.

4. REDUCE HOW OFTEN YOU CLEANSE

Most people do not know that it's possible to over cleanse your face. Over cleansing your face, especially if you use a conventional cleanser, can throws off its pH balance, cause irritation, dry patches and redness. So you can decide to cleanse only at night and then use only lukewarm water to splash in the morning, you might be surprised to see how well your skin responds.

5. LOOK FOR WHOLE PLANT SKINCARE ACTIVES

Certain skin care ingredients like vitamin C, retinol, and exfoliating acids, when overly concentrated can be bad for sensitive skin. If you still want to use products with these ingredients, then you should go for those that have a “plant versions” of these ingredients. Look for products that are made out of organic plant extracts that have naturally-occurring actives to help your skincare without causing irritation. Our favorite organic plants based face oil - La Coéss REVITALISÉ Nutrient Organic Face Oil,  contains Chile Rosehip Oil which is loaded with natural retinol for non-irritated anti-aging effects.

6. USE A SOFT ORGANIC UNBLEACHED FACIAL CLOTH

Most conventional towels are usually too harsh or too rough for sensitive skin, this is because they usually are coated with dyes, some of them are even sprayed with chemicals. While most people won't feel the effects of these chemicals, those with sensitive skin will. There are towels which are unbleached and are made from soft and organic natural materials, your skin will thank you for that!

7. PAT, DON’T RUB

It is advisable when drying your skin with a towel not to scrub it. Patting it is the method you should adopt as scrubbing can lead to micro tears in your skin. But a soft cloth like we said earlier can mitigate this.

8. STAY AWAY FROM CLAYS AND HARSH EXFOLIANTS

A lot of clays and physical exfoliants like apricot shells and walnut shells are not meant for sensitive skin at all. These products can cause little tears in your skin due to their large or uneven particles. Kaolin clay is a good exception but even it might pose some problems. Look for detoxifying masks that don't include clay (or fragrance!) in the ingredients list, and only exfoliant with ultra-fine physical exfoliants.

9. STAY HYDRATED, BOTH INSIDE AND OUT

To prevent your skin from having reactions, you have to keep it hydrated and moisturized, drinking a lot of water and using moisturizing products in your skin care routine are equally important. You can also keep a Facial Mist around, which is very good at calm sensitive skin and will make it feel amazing.

10. LOOK FOR SOOTHING SKINCARE INGREDIENTS

There are plant extracts or ingredients used in skin care products that are very soothing to sensitive skin, and can prevent breakouts, rashes and acne. We're talking about ingredients like Lavender, Rose, Aloe Vera, or Chamomile. Products that contain these ingredients are indispensable to sensitive skin. Look for these ingredients when you try to introduce new products to your routine.

11. TAKE SEVERAL STEPS BACK AFTER A BAD REACTION

Unfortunately, even if you’re careful about what you put on your face, you can still have a reaction. If that happens, it’s important to take few steps. According to professor Nada Elbuluk, M.D., “cut down to using only one product at a time for at least a week to figure out which one is actually causing a reaction to your skin,” After that, you can start adding back one product at a time, giving each one a week before adding the next one. So that you can identify what product or ingredient caused the reaction, and avoid it.

There you have it! We hope by incorporating these tips into your skin care routine, you will even forget you have sensitive skin. Feel free to drop any comments below!