Much like a fit body cannot be achieved by one visit to the gym, great skin requires more than a one time visit to the spa.
In my many years of performing skin care treatments, I’ve often experienced a common scenario. A client will visit the spa for a one time facial then request a recommendation for store-bought skincare products. If you wouldn’t seek, accept, or pay for a spa treatment using these products, is it wise or optimal to consider them for home care use? I do, of course, understand there may be multiple reasons for doing so.
Investing in your skin on a professional level is not inexpensive and may be a challenge to your budget. When clients ask me to recommend affordable store-bought products, I try to educate them on why these products have a much lower price point. The products you see on store shelves are mass-produced and therefore contain lower quality ingredients in order to sell them at a reduced price. They often utilize multiple synthetic and less expensive ingredients. That’s not to say the more expensive a product the better it is for your skin, but knowing whether an ingredient is beneficial or, perhaps, harmful is a step in the right direction for optimal skin health. Your skin is the largest organ of the body and since it’s porous, it absorbs whatever you put on it. The investment in your skin should start with seeking regular treatments from a professional. Also, the products that professionals use during treatment and recommend for home use often involve more costly technologies to create. They typically have higher quality ingredients and premium formulations that work in harmony with your skin rather than against it. In order to ensure a products’ ingredients are biocompatible, meaning that the ingredients are not harmful to living tissue and will not produce a toxic or immunological response when exposed to the skin, an investment in the science behind the product is required. This investment in research and development is more involved than simply knowing that an emulsifier, a humectant, and a preservative are necessary to create a skin care product that has a shelf life. Therefore, a concerted effort toward quality and safety sets most spa products apart from the others, but such consideration may come with a higher cost.
Improved skin health is not only a financial commitment but a lifestyle commitment. We live in a world of instant gratification that causes us to be impatient with anything that may require more time and effort, including the health of our skin. At times, clients come into the spa hoping to purchase that ‘miracle’ product or have just one skin treatment that will result in immediate and permanent perfection. Unfortunately, such options do not exist, there truly is no quick fix. Like diet or exercise, nothing happens overnight. Improved skin is a partnership between you and your skin therapist as well as a partnership between internal and external nourishment of the body and these days it seems ‘ain’t nobody got time for that’. With skin health as well as overall health, sometimes it gets worse before things get better and the journey can be long and slow. But ultimately you will get there, don’t give up. It takes time, commitment, patience, determination, and investment to achieve the skin of your dreams. While it may not be what everyone wants to hear, it is the reality of the situation. So, in deciding to make this worthwhile commitment, you’ll be that much closer to the skin you’ve always wanted.
