Please help me with this awful skin

[Lolalittle]

I’m early 40’s and have these skin of a 90 year old smoker. I’ve just caught a close up of my skin and feel so down about how bad it is.

I don’t drink or smoke but to be fully honest my diet is crap. I’m aware I need to sort that out. In terms of fluid I only drink tea and water.

I obviously don’t want to share a whole face image but you can see a snippet of my issues. In addition to the teenage acne scars and huge pores, I have a very uneven colouring over my face. Parts of it seem to catch the sun? And other parts such as my eyes are so pale So I just look a mess. As you may be able to guess I also suffer with severe excess facial hair (it’s not really shown much here because that’s too embarrassing.)

At the moment I do microblading maybe once a week and pluck in between. I then use a Simple daily moisturiser with and SPF 30 (I think).

I don’t wear makeup unless a special occasion because it looks awful on my skin, just get swallowed up in the texture so any recommendations on if there’s something I can use as a general every day use that might help the appearance and therefore my self confidence would be great!

I can not afford expensive treatments so I need low cost options.

Be gentle please.

Can you afford prescription skincare? Skin and Me, Dermatica are relatively low cost options and they can prescribe you cream that actually works. You can then use it alongside cheap moisturiser (cetaphil, cerave) and SpF 50 daily.
proper prescription skincare used daily will make the biggest difference to your skin over time x

Retinol, aha, nicinamide serums and something that says it's anti pigmentation. Nivea do a good one. Oh and also vit c serum. These will definitely change your skin for the better. Use retinol at night and make sure you use SPF in the day.

That is not the skin of a 90 year old smoker!

It's the skin of a 40 something magnified a lot.

Second the recommendation for Dermatica or Skin and Me.

Also to cheer yourself up try spending some time looking at other non makeup wearers skin around your age. We've all got uneven skin tone, pores and wrinkles.

The difference is you see other people's skin from at least 1m away and your own close up in a magnifying mirror.

Honestly op, your skin looks amazing. I am 47 with deep canyons and yours us nowhere near 90 year old's.
For an affordable routine:
Superdrug vitamin e wash or superfacialist vit c oil cleanser (wait for sales n get the 200ml)
For mornings, a vitamin c serum from the ordinary then spf
For evenings, a retinol from the ordinary or similar then either a peptide serum or buy a big jar of cerave which you can use whole body including face.

Others will have better suggestions. Good luck and please try and be less critical. You have amazing skin imo

I'm so sorry that you feel this way, OP. Your despondence is coming through in your post very clearly.

What's your current skincare routine, OP?

Posters above are suggesting some really useful products but this can be really overwhelming if you're quite new to a skincare regime. And not everything will work for everyone. And you shouldn't do everything at once.

I, personally, would visit a dermatologist and work with them to find a set of products and routines that's right for you. Research carefully so you find someone good rather than someone just pushing Botox who'll just parrot "Use Retinol" at you a hundred times over. It'll cost money and it'll take time but it'll be worth it.

You also need to address your underlying issues. Do you drink plenty of water? Do you get enough sleep?
You've already said that you don't eat well. How could you improve that? You should look at baby steps - don't totally and immediately overhaul your diet because you won't stick with it. But look to things you can replace, things you cut out, things you can add in.

I promise it’s not as bad as you think, stay hydrated, fix the diet and get yourself a cheap skincare routine. Also a pore filling primer before a very light application of a CC cream or sheer foundation will help with everything else.

The ordinary has a great and really cheap range. Try the buffet or the ACA mask both from The Ordinary. The mask takes around 8 minutes, and is easy to use, and will help resurface a bit. The buffet contains peptides. Retinol has never really worked for me, and you have to be careful when it is sunny, so either use it now before Summer, or start with something else until Autumn. I love anything with glycolic acid too, personally I find pads already soaked with glycolic acid better. Nip and Fab do great ones.

In relation to the excess facial hair, have you been checked out for PCOS or other hormonal conditions?

I have PCOS and have to get my brows, ‘tache and chin threaded every 3/4 weeks.

Is your skin dry/oily/combination? If Oily or Combination, I really rate the La Roche Possay Effaclar range. It can be pricey but you can usually find it on offer (Boots stock it and regularly have 3for2 offers)

If you have the money:

IPL, a course of 3 minimum, to even out any sun damage and pigmentation
Retinol - prescription strength vitamin A/tretinoin, start at a low dose, build up gradually. Continue maybe 3-4 times a week once you’ve reached a strength that works for you. It’s a long term thing, I’ve been using it for 15 years or so.
Diet - cut down alcohol, sugars (I don’t count whole fruit in this but anything processed), all greasy and beige. I can’t eat processed breads or pasta (proper bakery sourdough etc doesn’t seem to be an issue) but I’m 50 odd and what I can eat has changed with age. Eat the greens, salads and fruit along with lots of protein, eggs and seeds.
Water- I don’t think you necessarily have to have 2 litres a day (I do) but a decent amount will help.
Sleep - try for 8 hours. I manage 7 if I’m lucky but it makes a huge difference
Laser hair removal - an absolute god send.
Skin care - I love La Roche Possay from the chemist. Doesn’t have to be flash, if you’re doing everything else, and this is consistent
Vitamin C - I do use a serum in the morning, I think this does make a difference but not, in my opinion, in the same way as tretinoin

Your skin looks quite dry and dehydrated. If you are dermaplaning often, diving straight into tret, vitamin c, aha etc is probably going to make your skin sore.

Start with increasing your moisturiser to something richer or adding an oil at night. A hydrating toner in the morning ('milky' ones are popular at the moment and the Tir Tir one I am using really does leave my face looking plumper and glowy) will make your skin look better without having to do much. A cleanser with something like aha/bha/pha would help with the texture of your skin but as its washed off won't be too harsh. Increase your spf to factor 50. If you do try retinols they can be layered with moisturiser to help with any redness and peeling at the start.

Look for deals on Boots £10 Tuesday then you can try some brands. The no 7 range is really good.
Kit and Kin magic salve ( designed for babies) is great for rashes or dry skin.
Bio oil is good for any scars.

https://amzn.eu/d/7R6Z7VK

CeraVe is great and discounted at Amazon just now.

If you do decide to use retinols, AHA/BHA or glycolic acid make sure you build up to every day use. Use only two or three times a week to start with or you’ll end up with the same problems plus inflammation!

Do you cleanse and moisturise day and night? If you don’t do night it might be worth getting something that will plump and hydrate while you sleep.

Gosh, thanks so much to all of your for your kindness and so much wonderful advise. There’s a lot of things you have all given me to look into that doesn’t feel too overwhelming or beyond me reach, which I think is why I avoid this topic usually.

To answer a couple of other questions, I’m a mum to young children so my sleep is iffy and of course means I’m always tired, and putting this sort of thing last.
I drink quite a bit of water through the week as it’s just on my desk but could definitely improve on the weekends. Alcohol isn’t reallly a factor in my life. But chocolate very much is!

I was looking into PCOS twenty odd years ago but was told I don’t have that. I did have an at home laser but didn’t find it great. Perhaps a visit to someone might be a better option.

I don’t have a large disposable income but would be willing to spend a little more than normal if I can find some products that will work well for me. Looking at the offers people have suggested is a good idea.

Tretinoin and hyaluronic acid. I've been using tretinoin for just over a year and it's made a big difference to my skin. It looks fresher, evened out my skin tone and reduced some fine lines. It reverses skin damage. I got mine from an online pharmacy. A tube costs about £20 and last me 3/4 months. Some of the subscription companies PP have suggested prescribe creams that contain tret. You need to be careful using tretinoin but there's loads of threads on MN about it.

Dr Sam Bunting's routine is simple and her products are high quality. It's expensive but so is trying loads of inferior products!

42 and I've been trying to improve haggard skin texture and tone for years. Dermatica, Skin+Me, Monderma and co are your best bet for treating it topically. Try a tretinoin and hydroquinone mix for 6 months. You can get other actives like hyaluronic acid added to it as well. I prefer them because they combine retinoids with most of the over-the-counter ingredients suggested.

I was watching a dermatologist on YouTube and he says most skin problems can be sorted with the right moisturiser. It looks like you need a richer one. I love nivea Q10 .

I’ve been using skin and me. Seems to be working so far…

Have you tried oils eg rosehip oils?

I felt a bit like this, and using a tinted moisturiser made me feel brighter and evened my skin colour out. To be honest I’m not one who should be advising as I he tit
far from right but I think you need to be putting something on it to even out skin tone - others had suggest what’s best for that . X

Vitamin C is a low-cost option. The Ordinary does one for £8.

Dr Sam Bunting has a whole skin range that’s quite responsible.

She’s a dermatologist and has really helpful YouTube videos too.

https://drsambunting.com/?tw_source=google&tw_adid=&tw_campaign=20072294305&utm_keyword=&gad_source=1&gbraid=0AAAAACralkyCRRU-h8N-nXJU75eMvUR9z&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI0bSowc2LjAMVs5pQBh39SBiaEAAYASAAEgLhlfD_BwE

Also, your skin does not look bad!

Reasonable not responsible!