Cold/Flu Skincare Routine

The day before my birthday last week, I was struck down by the worst combination of sore throat, runny nose and all-over body ache.  It came on so quickly, I didn't even clue in to the fact that napping twice a day (or ever) was abnormal for me.  For five days straight I've been battling the worst of throat and sinus issues -- I won't get into more detail than that!

The worst side effect of blowing your nose in a dry apartment is the wreckage your skin becomes.  Literally the entire centre of my face has started flaking off, and it only gets more irritated every time I sneeze.  With that, I've temporarily adopted a new skin care routine, at least until my face gets back to normal. Dry-skinned ladies: heads up!

Instead of a foaming cleanser, I start and end my day with Oskia Renaissance Cleansing Gel -- the most gentle yet thorough cleanse you can find in a non-foaming formula.  It pumps as an orange gel and melts into an oil as you work it into your face.  Once it comes into contact with water, the product gets milky and rinses off clean.  Genius.  I use it alone in the mornings and with a muslin cloth at night to make sure all of the dead skin comes off.

To manage the skin around my nose, I've been religiously applying Neostrata Moisture Infusion Oil-Free Hydrating Lotion at least four times a day.  I don't normally bother with moisturizers because oil do the trick, but this has been a godsend -- I reapply pretty much every other time I blow my nose, because my skin is so raw around there.

At night, instead of a serum, I've been piling on Josie Maran Argan Oil overtop of the NeoStrata lotion, covering my entire face from lips to eyeballs.  I've paraded on about this oil several times before on the blog, but it really is the easiest fix for most skin care issues.

To help keep you from getting sick, check out this post.  If it's too late for you (like me), keep downing water, eat as much garlic and ginger as you can (you'll smell so conflicted), and sleeeeeeeeeeep.