I’m turning 29 on August 27th and with each year I become more and more aware that life is full of the unexpected. Many young people start their 20s off with a plan such as “I will have my career set by 25, be married by 27, have kids by 30, and everything will be perfect by the time I enter my 3rd decade”. No struggle, no worries and no unexpected surprises - right? WRONG, WRONG, WRONG! My first journal entry the week I turned 28 was that I had no expectation of what the year was to bring and that brought a great sense of calm to me. No expectation meant to me at the time no let down. I am so thankful that I acquired that mind set but here’s how it shifted. When I set my heart up to open for any experience what I didn’t know was that it could still bring let down. Now as I’m able to recognize that here are some of the lessons I’ve learned over the last year and how it has dramatically changed my life for the better:

As soon as people find out what I do for a living, there are a few consistent reactions. “Don’t judge my skin!”  - some say with the mind set that I am always analyzing or WORSE, judging someone by their skin. “What do you use?”  - as I have mentioned before, this changes all the time so it’s quite difficult to truly answer. Lastly, “What should I be doing?” and even more specifically “What is the ONE thing I should be doing?”. As many of you know by now, I can’t answer you and I really dislike giving general advice. In previous conversations, I have had people tell me that I “recommended” such and such product to them, when really I only gave a generic response. I can tell you with certainty that I do not create a routine for anyone on the spot or give advice without a full on health consultation. Let me break it down as to why this seemingly resistant approach is actually the most beneficial to you.

It’s without a doubt easier to blame things that we don’t like about ourselves onto others. “My parents raised me this way”, “my partner eats badly so I eat badly”, “my work environment doesn’t let me take breaks” etc. These excuses allow us to give our power away. I am one of the many people who has been stuck in this mind spiraling dilemma. It is easier to blame others for what got us in our situation but is it really true? Or more importantly is that fair? What I want to talk about is not how to shift the “blame” from one subject to another, but how to take this “shaming” act out of the equation altogether. With many of my clients seeking resolve in a health aspect of their lives whether it be their skin, hormones, nutrition, stress management etc. I hear all the excuses all the time. It’s disheartening when you feel alone in your situation. The truth is you can feel alone by blaming the people in your circle or you can feel empowered by honoring yourself by getting to the root of the issue. See when you shift your mindset about how you might be a victim of a circumstance, you may realize that you have every ability to become the hero of your own story. Here’s how:

I have to start by expressing my gratitude to the people who shared their appreciation for my last post. I’ve always found writing to be a therapeutic release for me so often times I forget about the impact of my words when I share my posts every Tuesday afternoon. If by sharing my truth means that it uplifts you or someone you know, that is the most valuable reward for what I do. Clearing someone’s skin, or helping someone relax is great but making a simple connection where someone doesn’t feel alone creates a bigger purpose for me. And for that I am eternally grateful.

Now to follow up on my post last week, I have recently written on skincare and intuition but I wanted to take it a step further and provide some basic tools to help navigate the masses and tune in to yourself. Here are my tools to becoming your very own therapeutic skin coach:

As most of you know, I’m much more than just your facialist. For most of you, I’m your friend, skin guru, product know it all, life supporter and for some I simply keep you in check. Many people ask me what sets me apart from other facialists and how have I been able to build a following in every city I’ve lived in. When I think about these questions it brings me to the beginning of Therapeutic Skin Coach. You may be thinking where did the name Therapeutic Skin Coach come from? And what does it mean? Let me break it down and give you an insight on how I let my intuition guide me to your better skin health and in my life. 

When it comes to our bodies it’s easy for us to take it for granted, especially if we don’t know exactly how each organ works. I was recently giving a facial to a friend who is also a health coach and nutritionist, she said something that stuck with me: “Most people think of their digestion just like a tube”. This resonated with me because it’s true what comes in isn’t what goes out, so why do we think that we can eat what we know to be unhealthy and our bodies won’t suffer the consequences. Now that we just wrapped up a holiday weekend full of outdoor fun and lots of sun, it became more apparent to me that most people don’t think of skin as a live protective barrier, they think of it more as a sleeve or a body suit. So today I’d like to break it down and really explain the function of skin and how to create some best skin health practices. 

With summer now in full swing it's time to talk sunscreen! This is a topic that so many people are either uneducated on or just seem to oppose. Depending on the generation you grew up in there are different ways to look at sunscreens. There are the baby boomers who if I had a dime every time they told me that "back in the day we just used crisco oil" I would be insanely rich. Yes, we get it, you didn't grow up with sunscreen so you're unaware of the increasing need for it. Then there are the millennials who at a much higher risk for sun related damage and cancers yet the information out there is so confusing that we are constantly breaking out from SPF or still getting burned. So let's get one thing straight, whether you burn or tan - YOU NEED SUNSCREEN. The US is the second country in the world to have the highest rate of skin cancers, second only to parts of Australia who have anti - sun ads the way we have anti - smoking ads. Take that in for a second, remember when everyone though smoking was fine and then they turned out to be incredibly wrong. That's the same thing that is happening with lack of sun protection. So that being said not all sunscreens are created equally. Here is the run down on what to do and how to make the most of your summer without risking your health. 

During my consultations I ask many health related questions in order to determine what may be the underlining issues of my client’s skin. The most important question I ask is always: “What is your ultimate goal with your skin?”. The reason this is the most valuable question is because at the end of the day you are the person who lives with your skin and your goals are important for me to know so I can help get you to where you want to be. I would say that the most common goal that my clients confess to me is that they want to be makeup free. This is a common goal because makeup free means no flaws right? Wrong, makeup free is actually about confidence and embracing yourself just the way you are. Here is how to get makeup free and shift your mindset on what this means. 

I could write about skincare all day. It is a subject you all know by now that I’m an endless pit of knowledge on. Today however I have nothing to say on the matter because of the senseless acts of violence committed in Orlando this weekend. As an LGBTQ supporter I have been numbed by the pain this tragedy has inflicted on myself and the world. Whether it is a question of terrorism or a hate crime isn’t the point to me, the point is that hate is trying to take over the countless amounts of us who choose to let love win. In these times of confusing grief it can feel really easy to be angry, saddened and feel so many emotions that we feel uncomfortable with. Many of us will suppress this and go about our lives, many others will lend support in whichever way they can and some of us will just be confused as to what the next move should be. My heart was one of the confused hearts. That is until I watched a social media video on how we can let love win. Here is what happens when you let love win…

Today is my 10 year esthetician anniversary. Time certainly flies by and I couldn't be more grateful. Following the less popular path at 18 years old was really difficult but I remember having the strength to quiet the mean voices in my head that this wasn't going to work out. I learned to follow my gut in that very moment. Choosing this path has changed me in many ways. With each success and mistake, I would do it all over again for the magnificent lessons and people it has introduced me too. This includes all of you. Believe it or not I learn from all of you each time we meet. Whether it is a piece health information that you learned about or just a fact of life, I have spent the last 10 years developing the best education because of that. Here are some of the best lessons I have learned from my time as a skin coach:

We all have an intuitive voice in our head that guides us through our everyday tasks. Whether we are choosing what to wear in the morning, what to eat for lunch or what you want to watch on netflix, those decisions come from a “feeling”. Whether you are directed by this “feeling” or are mindlessly choosing the same things repetitively, your intuition plays a big role in every aspect of your life. When choosing your skincare, the same intuitive process can make the world of a difference towards your skin’s health. Let me walk you through the process of letting your instincts pick your skincare and how it will benefit you.

About two years ago I was introduced to the idea of adding supplemental support to my every day routine. I was always the girl who would buy a multi vitamin and take two before I gave up on it all. I never felt different or experienced positive results. The multi vitamins would make me sick to my stomach and the whole concept turned me off. I felt like I was getting enough nutrients from food and didn’t think much else about it. After I started diving into the world of green skincare products I quickly began to realize the efficacy of these products are only a reflection of the internal work you put in as well. That’s how my whole view on my practice and caring for skin changed. I have been able to maintain a healthy diet for the majority of my adulthood by slowly educating myself on the nourishment of each ingredient. What always struck me was that the consistency in my diet had to be 100% or else I would suffer. From digestion issues, to hormonal flares to the dreaded breakouts, if I wasn’t “perfect” I would soon regret it. Now this isn’t a life that is sustainable for me. I needed support and I needed to know that a life of suffering was not the only answer. That is when Adaptogens were introduced to me and my fears started to melt away.About two years ago I was introduced to the idea of adding supplemental support to my every day routine. I was always the girl who would buy a multi vitamin and take two before I gave up on it all. I never felt different or experienced positive results. The multi vitamins would make me sick to my stomach and the whole concept turned me off. I felt like I was getting enough nutrients from food and didn’t think much else about it. After I started diving into the world of green skincare products I quickly began to realize the efficacy of these products are only a reflection of the internal work you put in as well. That’s how my whole view on my practice and caring for skin changed. I have been able to maintain a healthy diet for the majority of my adulthood by slowly educating myself on the nourishment of each ingredient. What always struck me was that the consistency in my diet had to be 100% or else I would suffer. From digestion issues, to hormonal flares to the dreaded breakouts, if I wasn’t “perfect” I would soon regret it. Now this isn’t a life that is sustainable for me. I needed support and I needed to know that a life of suffering was not the only answer. That is when Adaptogens were introduced to me and my fears started to melt away.

Often times we are incorrectly led to believe that our skin conditions are our skin types. Our skin type is our predisposed skin that we were born with. Typically your family members will have similar types whether everyone runs on the oily side or dry side. Skin conditions are acquired over time and can go in and out of our lives. Some examples are eczema, psoriasis, rosacea, acne and anything else that can be triggered by your environment, hormones, nutrition or stress. The main problem is when the type and condition are polar opposites leading you to not know which products to reach for. Today I am going to talk about sensitive skin types and sensitive skin conditions. When you are dealing with these, you do have to treat your skin in a counterintuitive way. Let me break it down to answer why are you sensitive?