Day 5 of Peeling: Peeling Unpretty
What happened to your face?!
Kelan ka pa nagkaron ng balat?
So, dahil pangit ka, hindi ka manlalait?
Awww, ang tapang mo magpost ng picture mo sa blog mo. Yaan mo, gaganda ka din.
Pa isa naman, ang sarap tanggalin eh.
The first day back to work after what was the longest weekend since I-forget-now was the fifth day of peeling. By this time, not only did I have dark skin that were begging to be taken off. My friends, on a standing bet, were even trying to have my skin as the wager.
Seriously.
To be honest, the physical challenges of the Blue Peel were not the most daunting as I wasn't feeling anything like dryness, itchiness or discomfort. It truly was the effect it had on people.
While standing at the elevator well of the building where I go to work to, a man with a balat looked at me with a look that says, "Hello there, someone with the same balat as me!" Thank goodness that an elevator went ding! and I was getting off at the first stop. In the elevator, held the door for me but upon seeing me {and my skin}, the smile morphed into a pitiful look that says, "Kawawa ka naman."
*cue TLC's Unpretty*
My outsides look cool
My insides are blue
Everytime I think I'm through
It's because of you
I've tried different ways
But it's all the same
At the end of the day
I have myself to blame
I'm just trippin'
The difference skin makes
I kind of always thought that a sunny disposition was all I needed to keep curious onlookers at bay. I never thought that a humongous change in my skin would affect my self-esteem so much. If anything else, I realized as well who cared a lot for me even if their version of caring was asking me my skin underwent some second-degree burning. But I'm not one to give in to dampened spirits.
The Bright Side
Dr. Lacson advised me to wear very, very light makeup on top of the most basic moisturizer I own and some heavy duty sunblock. This meant basically no liquid foundation, no heavy powders and absolutely no blush because it's kind of pointless as both my cheeks were the last ones to show signs of peeling. My friends can attest to this:
Makeup is my security blanket. I can only come out of my house without makeup when I am to do errands like carwash, going to the grocery etc. I cannot for the life of me, imagine my day without my makeup. Not when about a fourth of my face looked like I was scarred by a telenovela villain, with really amazing skin coming out from underneath. And yet, here I am:
With my other BFF, Y.
I had just a little patch on each cheek and yet I managed to show myself in public.
The brightest spot from all of this rollercoaster-esque experience is that I discovered how fun it is to have a simple regimen. As it was imperative, I had no choice but to whittle down my multi-pronged makeup/skincare process each day and each night. After rigorous rummaging, I managed to find my most basic moisturizer:
The Body Shop's Vitamin E moisturizer!
The photo above shows pretty much everything I use in the day and at night and what a huge time-saver it is to have such a simple regimen. Now, I completely envy women who don't put anything at all in their faces and yet look so immaculately perfect!
L-R: Obagi-C Sunguard, SPF 30, best facial sunblock ever, but pricey at Php 3,700 a pop. Obagi Condition and Enhance Gentle Cleanser, Clean and ClearPink Oil Control Film, MAC Brow Set in Girl Boy {which I'm panicky about because I still haven't bought a reserve!}, MAC Pink Nouveau lipstick, Obagi Acne Clearing Solution, Charm Kabuki Brush, The Body Shop Vitamin Emoisturizer {in my opinion, the most basic moisturizer I own, which does the job effectively!} and the only 'makeup' I've applied in the last few days: Maybelline Mineral Foundation.
And so, maybe, just maybe, I will continue this streak of wearing minimal makeup. As I realized, the skin that's peeking out of the dark patches have smaller to no pores at all. There was sunshine after the facial storm after all.