Acne, Eczema, Psoriasis and their psychological effects

Camouflaging Acne Scars- Can It Really Be Done? By Mari Bozozo If you’ve suffered from acne for years on end as I have, you more than likely have a very up close and personal, albeit turbulent relationship with its successor- scars. Even if you have managed to win the battle against acne, you continue to wage the war against the scarring that it has indefinitely left behind. Thanks to having highly skilled estheticians in my corner, coupled with eating sensibly, taking the proper supplements, and drinking lots of water, the lot of my acne has been, for a lack of a better phrase, “in remission” for quite some time now. However, the scars that it’s left me with have posed more than my fair share of challenges. These challenges, in my estimation, supersedes its predecessor by leaps and bounds. Acne is cyclical, meaning that it comes and goes. But the scars that it leaves behind lasts forever. There is no taking a break from the permanence of scars, as they are always there. Always. Sim...

Word Association Test On Skin Disease Words Do Matter By Audrey “This test in which the organ of the skin played a vital role as psychic mediator was developed by Carl Jung when he worked as a psychiatrist at the Psychiatric Hospital in Zurich at the turn of the century. It was to mark the beginning of his understanding of the psychic material which presented itself to him, in the course of his work, and during his subsequent psychiatric investigations and studies. Between the years 1902 and 1907 Jung’s early work produced the extraordinary and exciting demonstration that the skin’s electrical activity changed remarkably when certain specific words, (charged with emotional overtones for the subject) were spoken in the course of the test. It became clear that mental activity particularly the process of recall evoked the simple verbal stimuli was consistently and continuously reflected by skin changes. Jung’s paper on his psychological investigations with the galvanometer was ...

8 Things You Should Never Do After A Facial By: Audrey I consider facials to be regular complexion maintenance—kind of like car tune-ups for our face or regular dental cleaning for your teeth. Regular facials can help fight the stress, the environment, and some of our lifestyle habits that take a toll on our skin. And there is plenty to be said for that fresh, shiny glow and soft skin post-facial (not to mention the relaxation of an hour or two of all about me time). But after more than 25 years as an esthetician, I’m always surprised how some people spend $400-$500 on hair and nail on a regular basis and yet, their skin is last on their list! Skin is the largest organ of our body and one of its main functions is to protect our internal organs from harmful things and yet it’s neglected by people of all ages. For those of you that facial is part of your lifestyle, here is the list of 8 things NOT to do on the day of your treatment. For the first day after getting a facial, you...

What About Men With Acne? By Mari Bozozo As a woman, I know all too well that the lot of us are subjected to acne for a plethora of reasons, with hormonal imbalances heading at the top of the list. This would not only explain our cyclical skin eruptions but why we appear to be the sex that appears to struggle with it at a higher rate, thus making us far more vocal about this issue. But what about men with acne? While I believe that they are just as susceptible to it as women, it appears that they adopt a stance of silence and inaction toward it. Thus, resulting in more challenges dealing with it. Certainly, I am not undermining a woman’s insufferable experiences with acne. If that were the case, I’d be undermining my very own. However, if I’m to do a “comparative analysis” in regards to which sex is at a more disadvantage in having acne, I’d be compelled to admit that it very well may be men. Ponder over this for a moment: As women, what is the #1 go-to weapon in our arsenal to eithe...

Comparing “Our” Skin to Theirs By Mari Bozozo Have you ever found yourself randomly gawking at someone for no other reason than to admire (well, more like envy) their perfection personified better known as clear and smooth skin? I know that I have. I would also ask myself, “Why were they blessed with the good skin gene, and I have not? It’s just not fair!” As with a variety of other plights that we all have and continue to endure, being stricken with a chronic skin problem such as acne makes life grossly unfair, also. You all may very well know, and probably from firsthand experience to boot, acne not only impacts an individual physically, but it also packs a pretty mean punch mentally, emotionally, and psychologically. Being in an almost constant state of unhappiness and self-consciousness, never being able to fully relax in the presence of others, and overall letting one’s appearance dictate just how he/she would live life is what acne has done to sufferers by the masses, ...

Acne Scars & Beyond the Physical Damage that it Causes -Part 2 By Mari Bozozo Fast forward to my getting out into the real world after graduation, in pursuit of the career and life that I had been preparing so long for. It was at this time that I had noticed what all of that acne in college had done to my skin. My eyes were not ready for this horrid sight: On my left cheek, approximately the size of a fifty cent piece were only what I could describe as moonlike craters. Later, I learned the proper name for it, ice-pick scars. In my mind, I’d become disfigured. To compensate for my disfigurement, I began to strategically position the left side of my face away from others, by turning subtly to the right. It didn’t matter what setting I’d been in. At work, at social gatherings, even at home amongst family, I was not going to bare my skin to the world suffering further humiliation. I kept up this charade for an indefinite amount of time. Then one day it happen...

Acne Scars & Beyond the Physical Damage that it Causes -Part 1 By Mari Bozozo Over the course of my lifetime, I’ve applied many invaluable lessons to my life by way of the following sayings: “It’s better to have loved and lost, rather than not to have loved at all.” “Look both ways before crossing the street.” “Don’t talk with your mouth full.” And last but certainly not least, “If you are insufferable with acne scars, then avoid mirrors at all costs, especially of the magnifying persuasion, as if your life depended on it. As someone who has grappled with acneic skin for practically half of her life, it is not a far stretch of the imagination to believe that I’ve incurred scarring from it, as well. In my estimation, this is where the struggle really begins. My hate and more hate relationship with acne scars took place very shortly after I graduated from college. While I was still a student, especially during my first year, there was a huge margin for adjustment. Shortly...