Please help my 40 year old skin!!!

[OhCobblers]

I haven't really taken care of it on a regular basis. I go through phases of buying lots of products following the occasional facial and the go off them. For example started off loving Dermalogica but found it left dry patches if I didn't slap a moisturiser on straight away. (Have tried OCM and though I loved the way my skin felt it seemed to be when my spot problem started, I used bio oil too which may not have helped to try and get rid of a few marks?).

Hardly clean it at night and if I do it's using a wipe, sometimes use Nivea q10 night cream or Sarah chapman facialist serum/oil which is too expensive to continue with when this bottle is finished!!

I've used La Roche posay moisturiser but it felt too light/thin and I've gone back to using Nivea (blue pot). Having done some reading on here I went to boots (blew a fortune I couldn't afford this month!!) and bought the following and use it in this order (am I going wrong?) :-

NIGHT TIME
Time delay Micellar cleansing water.
Boots tea tree wand for night (the added joy of turning 40 has brought with it spots which seem to be excess sebum filled?)
Sarah chapman facialist or Nivea q10 night cream

DAY TIME
La Roche posay effacler cleansing gel
Time delay anti wrinkle serum / la Roche posay effaclar duo anti blemish cream
Sometimes Clarins beauty flash balm (found a tube and figured I should use it!)
Nivea moisturiser

To use twice a week I also bought No 7 Microdermabrasion exfoliator.

Does this sound ideal or way off the mark ?would appreciate any tips, ideas or input! THANK YOU!!

I'm 41 and have recently adopted a more pared down approach which seems to be resulting in better looking skin (I think, I cannot be sure!). I was previously using gazillions of creams, lotions and potions and my skin was getting really congested.

I wash with water in the morning and moisturise with a body shop moisturiser with high spf. In the evening I use a hot cloth cleanser with flannel followed by splash of cold water followed by a serum and moisturiser.

I also exfoliate twice a week.

I clean my skin, including taking make up off using coconut oil and wipe it off with a rough flannel, which exfoliates at the same time. Just water in the morning. I use Boots basic moisturiser twice a day and my skin is lovely. I'm 44,

Thanks for replies, but also just wondering if the new regime I'm following is vaguely right? I guess time will tell but any other hints or tips would be gratefully received! Thanks

I'm no expert but that seems a lot of products to be using!

The clarins beauty flash is more for under make up to wake up your face and an occasional face treat.

I would use a SPF in the day and only use the serums at night, do you have an spf cream?

Cleansing is very important, do it thoroughly but gently, the roche stuff is good. If you don't clean it properly and the moisturise, then you are just rubbing dead skin and dirt back into your pores.

Change your moisturizer on a regular basis. I have noticed that even if i love my moisturizer, after the first jar its just stops working. Drink lots of water and cleanse every night.

I would just stick to a couple of products; my skin turned really sensitive in my 40's and I'm convinced it was from using too much stuff.
In terms of a regime: cleanse, moisturise, use a sunscreen, don't smoke or sunbathe. Job done.

I would use less too but would add in a moisturiser with spf.

On the spot front have you recently had a coil fitted. That's what triggered mine, anyway.

I don't think anything you put on your skin does anything more than a topical illusion. I have young glowing skin with very few lines. I use a baby wipe at night and nothing else. In the am I use a baby wipe and Olay or E 45. I am thought to be 38 but real age is 53. Had oily skin when younger which I think has kept my skin young as I didn't use moisturiser until mid forties. I think what you eat plays a big part. Plenty of fruit and veg, butter, oils, nuts, seeds, oily fish and protein and good chocolate and being happy. Smile a lot...good for muscles and makes you instantly look years younger.

Ditch the wipes, whatever you do ditch the wipes!

You seen to be using tons of products

I use micellar water,ocm once a week and eucerin cream.

The body shop aloe range is very gentle.

I think these creams are a waste of money that the beauty industry are making billions out of.

I wash my face with a gentle face wash, I use seba med, and put coconut oil on it twice a day. I exfoliate with good old tst Ives twice a week.

I get horrendous eczema on my face but when it's clear my skin looks a good 10 years younger.

I'm 40 and have to treat areas of my face separately. I have developed teenage skin and blackheads on my nose and chin (hello perimenopause) so use neutrogena black head facial wash/scrub daily. I then use the neutrogena oil free moisturiser on chin and nose and Nivea q10 on the rest. On really sunny days I use the Nivea q10 one that has SPF 30 (don't wear it everyday as find it a bit sticky) but otherwise the other one I use has SPF 15.

I always use eye cream and always moisturise me neck as I think that shows aging more than the face.

I'm often lazy at night and do nothing but if I do I use Nivea q10 night cream.

andmyunpopular...totally agree. If you look at the ingredients in face creams there are a lot of chemicals. There is a school of thought that believes that the chemicals in creams combined with potentially harmful toxic sunscreen is actually responsible for aging skin. I tend to use my coconut oil or almond oil mostly.

You are using a lot of products and there doesn't seem to be any focus to what you want them to do.

Assuming what you are after is minimizing ageing + spot control then you should have:

Day
Gentle cleanser. There is no point having anti-ageing ingredients in your cleanser as they are being washed off straight away. Cetaphil, any micellar water would be fine.

Leave on salicyclic acid treatment - exfoliates and dissolves blackheads so does you spot treatment too - Effaclar K would fit the bill, I use Paula's Choice 2% BHA.

If you want to at this point you could use a serum either with Vitamin C or peptides like Boots Protect and Perfect Serum - however you are getting into the exaggerated claims zone here.

Moisturiser - oil-free and with SPF 30, both UVA and B protection. This far and away the most important anti-ageing thing you can do.

Night:

Exactly the same as day except you don't need SPF in the moisturiser. Any old moisturiser will do as long as it's oil-free (when the spots come under control with the salicylic you may find you can get away with this or you may not). If you want to go anti-ageing pick something with retinol in it but again, skin creams often don't have enough in to support the claims they make.

Clarins Beauty flash balm is a primer, if you aren't wearing makeup over it, don't bother.