Skin irritation. Ah, the very thing that makes you feel like banging your head against the wall.
It begins with a feeling of your skin irking a little.
Most certainly, you find yourself overlooking it.
Then it moves onto a more severe stage where you feel like your skin has been set on fire and the heat just would not calm down.
Imagine this- you wake up with these red spots and blemishes on your skin and you begin scratching it incessantly.
Well, welcome yourself into the worst situation possible.
Skin irritation needs to be tackled carefully.
Your skin is sensitive and when it begins to feel itchy, it needs to be dealt with all the more cautiously- scratching it will only make it worse.
Before you find a cure to skin irritation, it is important to understand what exactly might be causing it.
See where I’m going with this?
Correct, I’m walking you through the whole process of overcoming it.
But why am I exactly doing this?
Because at one point in my life, I've been in your shoes and I understand your situation just as well as you do.
What Causes Skin Irritation?
Okay, let’s begin with what might be irritating your skin.
First off, everybody's different, but that doesn't matter too much.
You know how they say; sometimes the problem might be right under your nose while you’re looking all over the place. We’ll begin by looking under our noses first.
Pollution: We all go outside to go about our days.
Some people are less keen toward their hygiene routine. Or some are just... ignorant.
Well, if you don’t wash your face after working out or coming home after playing a sport, you will be providing the bacteria a perfect ambiance to grow.
Now: how does that happen? Well, when bacteria dwell on your skin, they basically feed off of it, resulting in skin irritation.
1) Exfoliation: Okay sounds silly?
No, not really.
Exfoliation once a week is healthy and will keep your skin healthy.
But exfoliating regularly and roughly, that’s not the best thing to do.
You already know your skin is super sensitive and needs to be taken care of.
Roughly rubbing the hard particles of the face wash you use to exfoliate your skin might cause skin damage, resulting in skin irritation.
2) Make Up: Let’s get down to business.
If you use make up, admit it, there have been times where you slept with it on because you were too lethargic to take it off.
Now you must be wondering what could possibly go wrong.
According to a case study, sleeping with makeup causes the pores in your skin to become clogged. Clogged pores hinder your skin from staying hydrated and moisturized, resulting in dry, flakey skin.
The reason why skin irritation occurs is often because it is dry. See where I’m going with this?
Not taking off makeup won’t only cause skin irritation, it will also result in breakouts!
3) Fabric: Clothes are your basic essentials.
Clothes, bed sheets, quilts, pillows- you need all of these things to go about your life, regularly.
Well, sometimes the problem is in the most basic things.
Have you ever wondered why you experience skin irritation right after waking up?
It could be because the bed sheet fabric might be causing some annoyance to your skin.
Sometimes, the fabric of some clothes, for example heavy embroidery on a dress might collide with your sensitive skin and cause irritation.
In this case, immediately get rid of any fabric that might be irking you.
4) Dry Air: Sounds familiar?
You and I already know that it is the peak of winter. Regardless of where you are, outdoors or indoors, the air around you is dry.
Why am I saying this?
Because dry air is usually the reason why your skin becomes dehydrated, dry and irritated.
While you can’t do much about the air outdoors, you can definitely use a trick to treat the indoor dry air.
This you can do by using a humidifier to spark up some moisture in the indoor air.
This will make ventilation slightly moist, keeping you at bay from skin irritation
5) Moisturizer: This is crazy.
I just told you to moisturize your skin and now I’m coming to trying to make the point that the bottom line issue could be the moisturizer itself?
Well, not really. So what am I talking about, exactly?
I’m talking about your moistening strategy. I’m telling you not to go overboard with the moisturizer.
There are 3 basic elements in your body: Water, lipids and proteins, that keep your skin moisturized.
When you overuse the moisturizer, you actually, unknowingly inform your body about the abundance of these elements within.
This halts your body from providing your skin with these essential elements that nourish your skin, resulting in skin irritation.
This in fact means, your body develops a dependency on synthetic products to nourish your skin instead of moisturizing it naturally.
Sometimes, the skin irritation might be caused due to neomycin ingredient found in lotions as well.
In such a case, avoid over-using moisturizer.
6) Other Irritants: Yeah, that’s right! There’s more to what causes skin irritation.
1) Latex- Latex or rubber can trigger allergic reaction, particularly if you are already allergic to it.
This provokes the burning sensation giving you skin irritation.
2) Scents- Beauty products that are scented, could be anything, carry chemical compounds that synthetically give these products the sweet-smelling odor.
When these harsh chemicals collide with your skin, they cause skin irritation.
In this case, it is best to avoid scented beauty products. Try using fragrance-free products instead.
3) Nickel- Nickel is the metallic compound used in hooks, jewelry, ear-piercing needles and etc.
If you are already sensitive, the contact of nickel with your skin can cause skin irritation.
In worst case scenarios, it might even trigger earlobe dermatitis.
Why Skin Irritation is So Harmful?
The reason why skin irritation needs to be cured is because more often than not, it results in more breakouts
This is because once you experience skin irritation, the dead cells in your skin become flaky and fall apart at an abnormal pace.
This triggers the skin to become excessively oily, blocking the pores and provoking more breakouts (this isn't my opinion it's a known fact by medical professionals).
Make sure to follow the guide to reach the bottom line of what’s causing you skin irritation, eradicate the issue and keep your skin fresh and thriving!