My Holy Grail Skincare Products for Sensitive Skin

If you have very sensitive skin like me, then you may want to read this blog post which features my Holy Grail Skincare Products for Sensitive Skin. 

Disclaimer, this is not a sponsored post!

Hello, my name is Cat and I have what dermatologists like to call hypersensitive skin. My family have another pet name for me, rash ball.

There is even a running joke in my family – if something says Dermatologically Approved, the REAL test is if it doesn’t give Cat a rash.

The Skincare Culprits

There is a long list of things that have made me break out into hives or rashes over the years (contact dermatitis), but here are some of the biggest culprits:

Antiperspirants, overly fragranced face and body creams, most exfoliators, face wipes, most sunscreens, liquid eyeliner or any sort of chemical peels.

I once decided to spray some lovely Lavender Pillow Spray on my pillow and woke up with a rash so fierce I needed urgent medical attention.

My Holy Grail Skincare Products for Sensitive Skin

It’s taking me YEARS to figure out what works and what causes harm and I thought I would share some of these products with you in the hopes that I may be able to help you if your skin is super sensitive too!

Please keep in mind I am no beauty blogger or skincare expert, I am just sharing some honest reviews here.

Face Cream

Last year I discovered Esse Skincare at my go-to skin clinic Nine Aesthetics. Esse is made in South Africa and has become an international success story.

Esse believes that optimal skin condition depends on the probiotic microbes living on and in it. Without microbes, your skin can’t perform its basic functions and the rate of skin ageing increases sharply.

Esse creates an environment on the skin that favours the growth of beneficial microbes, using prebiotics to selectively feed good microbes.

I have been using the Hydro Moisturiser for over a year and I haven’t looked back.

The cream is made with probiotic extracts and prebiotic nutrients, all jammed into this ultra-gentle, light Aloe based cream that soothes my sensitive skin.

Esse is not cheap, and this bottle costs me around R500 and on average, I purchase a jar every two months or so.

Retinol

I bought this Retinol after Lipgloss is my Life recommended it to me.

Retinol is known to improve texture, wrinkles, pigmentation, and tone, something my 30-year-old face needs.

My Collagen is also depleting fast,  (oh and thanks to Leigh for also sharing that terrifying fact of life with me too😂) but that’s a whole other story.

I was so hesitant to start using Retinol because I heard it can be disastrous for people with sensitive skin with recorded symptoms of dryness, redness, itching, peeling, and flaking.

Well, curiosity got the Cat and I bought a bottle online from Skin Miles. At R1000 a bottle, I am using this stuff so sparingly guys.

I use once every 3rd night and so far, have had no bad reaction, so I am thinking about trying it every second night soon.

But yeah, Leah was right, starting at 0.5 retinol was right for me and some of the scarring on my cheeks is disappearing ever so slowly.

Deodorant 

For most of my life, I have had welts under my arms trying to figure out which deodorant would work for me. I have tried the ones made out of salt crystals (absolute crap) and a whole range of others that claimed to be free from aluminium, alcohol and fragrance. (known triggers)

Sanex Sensitive was my go-to, but then after a year of use, it started to burn me again!

The only one that has worked (so far) is this roll-on from Pure Beginnings. It has virtually no scent, is alcohol-free, aluminium salt-free, and basically free from crappy ingredients. It’s no Mitchum, but it works for me and the rash hasn’t been back for a few months! About R60 from Dischem if you’re interested in trying.

Body Cream 

I was introduced to BioSeal by a friend a few months ago.

The cream has a subtle herbal scent, is not sticky and instantly soothes my skin. It contains ingredients like shea butter, aloe vera, tea tree, peppermint, chamomile and beeswax to name a few.

It’s been formulated to heal eczema, itchy and dry skin, and a whole bunch of other skin concerns.

I have suffered from folliculitis for quite some time now, which is basically inflamed red itchy follicles.

My dermatologist told me to stop applying overly fragranced, thick creams, as well as to only apply cream the day after shaving (when follicles are closed) and these tips have definitely helped me.

The only body creams that I use are Eucerin and now Bioseal.

Bioseal is marketed as a body cream to be used by the whole family and I think the price tag of R100 is reasonable for the 230g tub.

I love how quickly it absorbs, and I have not experienced any sensitivity towards this cream over the past few months.

Bioseal is another South African skincare range.

Exfoliator

Once again, Leigh saves the day! She wrote a blog post a while back about The Body Shop’s Chinese Ginseng & Rice Clarifying polishing powder wash.

I trust her reviews 100% so I gave it a bash and have bought about 10 bottles since.

Don’t tell me influencer marketing doesn’t work.

The exfoliator is made from rice powder and you mix a tiny bit in water to make a paste.

I only exfoliate once a week, and this product leaves my skin squeaky clean with no adverse reactions.

Sunscreen

Sunscreen has been one of the biggest issues for me in my skincare routine.

For years I just chose not to wear it because I would break out in welts so painful that I would need to lather my skin in cortisone cream.

Until Candice from In My Bag suggested I try Dermalogica Ultra Calming sunscreen, which is formulated specifically for sensitized skin using only natural mineral UV protectors (no chemical sunscreens).

Although I have already inflicted a lot of damage to my skin from not wearing sunscreen for years, I now wear this one every single day. It’s around R900 so not cheap either.

If they ever discontinue it I am screwed!

Ok, that’s it for this post on Skincare for Sensitive Skin – but before I sign off, once last awesome piece of news, I can get Dermapen needling treatments with no rash outbreaks, as long as they only use the Dermapen and no other products!

YAY for me! 😂

I hope this article on my Holy Grail Skincare Products for Sensitive Skin helped you.

xxx

LFC