Bare Generation

Happy International Women's Day! Today, we celebrate the incredible women who make up our industry - from new grads to experienced beauty, skin, and dermal therapists. I am honoured to work alongside such an inspiring and talented group of women.
 
Over the past 12 months since launching my new education business, I will be forever grateful for the support I have received from the all many special people in my life (you all know personally who you are 🤍)

I have also had the incredible opportunity to work with many amazing women who have welcomed me with open arms and allowed me to share my knowledge with them. I am grateful for the opportunity to inspire and empower our industry.
 
As skin professionals, we can change lives and give endless confidence to our clients - one person at a time. We are unique and have a true gift.
 
Today, we celebrate the incredible impact women in our industry make daily. Here's to continuing to lift each other up, support, and inspire one another 🙌🏼🤍🙌🏼

Did you know there are ✨five✨ different stages to breakouts? This is great to run through with clients experiencing pesky breakouts to explain how Acne forms. I also explain that the first 2 stages are the most important to focus on so stages 3-5 can be eliminated 👊🏼
 
👀 Fast cell turnover & oil production – fast cell turnover builds on the surface of the skin blocking the follicles whilst fast & thicken oil builds within the hair follicle
 
👀 Congestion and blackheads - a mix of skin cells and oil creates blockages in the hair follicle

👀 Pimples - a raised bump on the skin with no visible pus, the immune system is activated as inflammation forms

👀 Pustule – Evidence the immune system has kicked in for support

👀 Cystic acne - in some cases, we can then start to see cystic acne appearing, which is deep-seeded, very inflamed breakouts that are painful, sore, and commonly long-lasting breakouts

Did you know there are 5 dysfunctions in every skin experiencing Acne? Along with getting clear and addressing the cause of the Acne, treating each dysfunction is important for skin-clearing success!
 
Trans Epidermal Water Loss 💧
When experiencing Acne, it's normal to want to try everything to fix it, right? Oil-free products, benzoyl, topical medications, retinol, over-exfoliating, and oral antibiotics. These all things lead to an impaired skin barrier, and generally, there isn't the right balance of protecting the epidermis's outer protective layer.
 
Inflammation 🔥
Redness and irritation can be associated with impaired skin barrier, but more commonly, it occurs as the body's natural immune response to combating the excessive bacteria in the follicles and acne breakouts.
 
Fast skin cell turnover 💨
Usually, fast is best, but that's not the case regarding the skin. An abnormality in how our skin cells turn over, where cells don't come away as they are meant to and stick to the skin building up inside the hair follicles.
 
Fast & Thicken Oil flow ⚠️
Fast oil flow starts to become thick and sticky mixing with excessive skin cells leading to plugs in the follicles – causing the pesky Acne cycle.
 
P Acnes Bacteria 🦠
All skins contain a type of bacteria called Cutibacterium Acne’s, which forms part of our normal flora of our skin. Unfortunately, acne skins have an excessive amount, as this bacterium thrives in an environment with no oxygen. Due to the excessive skin cell build-up on the skin surface, the hair follicles become clogged, and the C Acnes bacteria has a big party within the skin.

Acne is one of the most frustrating and complex skin conditions to deal with and unlike many skin conditions, there can many contributing factors. It could be just 1 or a mix of all of them! There is what you see but there is also what you can’t visually see. ​​​​​​​​
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The most common causes of acne are:​​​​​​​​
👉🏼 Genetic​​​​​​​​
👉🏼 Hormones​​​​​​​​
👉🏼 Environmental​​​​​​​​
👉🏼 Gut Health​​​​​​​​
👉🏼 Diet + Nutrition​​​​​​​​
👉🏼 Stress​​​​​​​​
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Treating the condition alone can be a long slow uphill battle 😅 Frustrating for our clients and also us as skin therapists!

It may be internal, external or both. Treating the skin holistically is all about not only treating the skin condition but the reason it is occurring in the first place.

Bare, Bold & Brave is our mantra for our Acne Sufferers! It is also our mantra as skin therapists 👏
 
Do you feel frustrated with the slow results with your Acne clients or possibly even feel like giving up when you can't meet your client's expectations?

You are not alone. This is the feedback I have received from a few skin therapists I have been mentoring in the past week
 
If I experience a tricky case, here is a check list I use:

🫴 During the consultation, I explain to my clients that Acne takes up to 12 months (sometimes even longer) to treat. Set the expectation from the beginning.
🫴 Explain during the initial treatment period purging is normal; its better out than in
🫴 Ensure the client is on a complete homecare plan
🫴 Check-in and ask myself – 'Have their skin treatments made a visible difference, or do I need to change course and integrate alternative treatments?'
🫴 Do the brands I currently stock in my business excel in treating Acne?
🫴 Circling back on clients' daily diet, stress levels, gut health, sleep. Has anything changed?
🫴 Refer to a professional to check hormones levels – would my client benefit from seeing a naturopath, nutritionist, integrative practitioner?

Hang in there and back yourself, you have got this! You are bare, bold & brave 👏

Ever seen the Bristol stool chart? This nifty chart was developed in the '90s as an indicator of bowel movements for the medical industry.

I like to use it personally when doing consultations as it can be a good indicator of how the digestive system is tracking.

What are your client's bowel movements telling you about their digestive system? Is everything all good, or is there work to be done? Explaining the connection between gut health, the digestive system and conditions such as Acne is crucial as our digestive system is a way to eliminate toxins, bacteria even excess hormones! 🤔💩 Commonly, I see clients sitting at 1, 2 even 6 and believing it's normal as that's the way they have always been for them.

Do you find as a skin therapist you are treating the skin with in clinic treatments and homecare and finding it’s a slow uphill battle with clearing acne?
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Knowing the connection between acne, skin and food is crucial when starting a skin clearing journey.
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Food is meant to be loved and enjoyed, but like everything in life, moderation is key.
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Here is a snapshot of what the research is telling us about potential food triggers when experiencing acne:
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🐄 Milk – milk can cause an increase in our insulin levels (blood sugar levels), which can affect hormones that impact the skin. This leads to increased levels of skin cells and fast oil flow which cause blockages in the skin such as blackheads, congestion, and acne.

🥐 Refined carbs – we’re talking cakes, biscuits, and white bread. These foods, for the most part, have little to no nutritional value or fibre and also increase our sugar levels.

🍟 Processed Foods – anything that’s not its original form is considered a processed food. Think fast food, UberEATS and packet food. These offer little to no nutritional value, are high in fat and sugar and are full of ingredients that look like a science experiment. These cheeky foods create inflammation in the body and are a red flag when it comes to managing gut and skin health.

Ever heard of the Gut Skin Axis? It's pretty cool! Our gut health can seriously influence our skin.
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Our gut is constantly communicating with our skin, mainly through our microbiome - the resident bugs in our tummy. This is one of the many reasons we need to take care of our gut health, especially if we suffer from an inflammatory skin condition like Acne.
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So, how can we improve our gut health?
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🧘🏼‍♀️ Reduce your stress levels through mediation, exercise, yoga, laughing, and spending time with friends and family
😴 Aim for 7-8 hours of shut eye each night. It's literal beauty sleep!
🥦 Eat slowly by chewing your food at a slower pace to ensure full digestion and absorption of the nutrients
💧 Stay hydrated by drinking plenty of water. This has been shown to have a beneficial effect on the balance of good bacteria in the gut
💊 Take a probiotic and put good bacteria back in the tummy
🥑 Make nourishing food choices by swapping out processed food and takeaway with plenty of high fibre whole foods, plant-based foods, and lean protein to positively impact your gut

As skin therapists, we see more and more younger girls and boys coming in to treat their skin. Statistics show that up to 85% of teenagers experience Acne.
 
With the teens, pesky breakouts and stubborn congestion can be due to diet and lifestyle, but often it is the increased hormones during puberty preparing their bodies for adulthood.
 
A surge in androgens (a group of hormones) can play a huge role in teenage Acne, maybe something you experienced – I know I certainly did! Androgens increase during puberty making the skin's oil glands larger and produce more sebum.
 
When oil glands produce just the right amount of sebum, your skin ticks along nicely. Too much sebum in a follicle (mixed with some dead skin cells) can cause congestion and breakouts, so it's common for teenagers to experience both during puberty and why it tends to linger. If Mum or Dad have had Acne in their younger years, this also increases the likelihood.
 
Things to keep in mind when treating Teenage Acne 👏🏼
 
🧴Skincare basics 101 - educating on the importance of using active skincare AM & PM
🧖‍♀️ In-clinic treatments - Honest conversations, while the hormones are surging, we will support the skin with treatments; it will not be an overnight success. It takes time (even years)
🫶🏼 Support self-esteem - being a teenager has its own set of challenges, especially with adding Acne in the mix
💁🏼‍♀️ Focus and support the skin to reduce the chance of permanent scars
🥦 Healthy conversations around nourishing the body within - choose water as a go-to drink and eat plenty of colourful fruit & veges. Keep party foods for celebrations 😉

Students like the are the reason why I love what I do.

As a skin therapist & business owner, there was a time I struggled with wanting to

👉 Work with more skin-focused clients, but didn't know how to find them
👉 Create raving fans who would refer our clinic to their family and friends
👉 Get incredible life-changing results for our clients suffering from Acne
👉 Have a seamless skin consultation process to build trust with our clients
👉 Have incredibly well-trained skin therapists working in my business
👉 Build up our social proof for our marketing through effective and impactful before and after photos
 
You have a choice: will you learn and upskill your skin knowledge or not?
 
Like I once did, I was just hoping it would be better.
 
I also knew there is more to treating the skin than just topically.
 
Maybe, like me, you will learn how to confidently treat the skin holistically.
 
You'll learn how to do your best skin consultations yet to ensure your clients take home a complete homecare prescription and commit to a skin program for incredible life-changing results.
 
And maybe, you will discover how much more enjoyable your entire business can be when you have a team of high performing skin therapists.

Tomorrow we are closing the doors of the Clear Skin Project Professional Plus program – my signature 4-week program to help you ensure your Acne sufferers live a better life.
 
To join simply head to the link in our bio

Suffering from Acne and consuming Whey Protein Powder? Let's chat 😊

Whey protein, like all dairy, has a reputation for causing breakouts. Over the years, I have seen it to be a culprit with my clients suffering from Acne. In most cases, my clients have decided to switch from dairy to plant-based alternatives with their daily diet but completely forget that Whey protein contains dairy!

For many, it's a go-to supplement when hitting the gym and building muscle mass but unfortunately, it could be one of the reasons behind unwanted Acne.

Whey protein (and dairy in general) can cause Acne primarily since it influences testosterone production to spike, along with insulin leading to the stimulation of sebum production. It also overstimulates the oil glands, leading to the development of breakouts.

My advice is to listen to your body. If you notice that you have Acne more often when you consume whey protein than when you don't, the simplest solution is to stop eating or drinking it.

The good news is that you can still get your protein hit but with a formulation that's kinder to your skin. Look for plant-based protein powders, like pea protein, brown rice protein & egg white protein , to get your fix.

My go to protein powders
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