Water is my skin guru!

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When Gaby proposed our second topic for the year....I was a little thrown. You all know I’m not a beauty blogger. Not that I don’t like to look pretty, I just don’t have anything new to add to the mix of what all those amazing bloggers are already telling you! Honestly, what I do know I probably read in the same places you did (ahem*google*ahem).

So, the topic of skin and skincare....it threw me for a loop. I sat wondering what in the world do I have to tell these people about skin.

My skin isn’t really that difficult. So I can’t tell you tips and tricks on how to deal with super oily or Sahara desert dry skin! Mine is kind of in the middle. It has its ups and downs days. When I first moved to South Africa....I thought I was going to have to use a tub of moisturizer a week! It felt like my face was never going to be rehydrated! I tried product after product and nothing worked. What was even more strange, was that I was getting pimples like crazy!

I couldn’t understand it! I was past...way past...that age of having breakouts (so my 19 year old self thought!). My skin was so terribly dry as well! It was like all the moisture was hiding way at the bottom of my skin and sprouting little devils to come out and laugh at me!

I even went as far as buying really expensive products (what I had used in America that was so much cheaper there!) to see if maybe it was my switch in products that caused these problems! Nope...nothing! Then we thought, okay maybe it’s just the stress of the move and planning a wedding. Only...I didn’t feel so stressed at the time. I was high on life and the excitement at the pace in which my life was moving!

Then it clicked....the one MAJOR change that could have affected this whole thing. WATER! That is right, peeps....water! When I moved to South Africa, I was told not to drink the tap water. No, there was nothing wrong with it, my family drank it. But because the water is treated differently here....they thought it might cause me digestive problems as I wasn’t used to it. So, instead, I had to buy bottled water. Which I often forgot to do...again...expensive!

Slowly, I went from drinking 3L of water a day to battling to remember to drink 1 glass. So I took the dive. The tap water was just fine on my tummy. It was even more amazing on my skin! It took a few weeks....but it was like I had a miracle drug!

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 My skin became soft and smooth again. The acne went away completely and so did the dark circles under my eyes! I was eventually able to switch to a light moisturizer with sun protection and geeze, a small tub lasts me two months now!

You see, our skin is made up cells and cells are mostly water. When those cells are getting proper water intake, they get dry and tight and flaky. That was exactly what was happening to me. Moisturizers could relieve the problem momentarily but my night fall....it was just as bad if not worse! I was literally dehydrating my face! And believe me, you could tell!

What is even more amazing was the other benefits this had. My concentration improved and my alertness increased. Still today when I’m feeling a little bit groggy at work, I turn for water first. Usually, I’m feeling this was because I’m even just slightly dehydrated!

I still love my face wash and creams and will probably die using vaseline as a makeup remover....but water is my go-to skin friend!

Don’t believe me?

I challenge you! Take the 4 week water challenge! Take a photo today of yourself with no makeup on! Change nothing in your skin care routine other than to increase your water intake to a minimum of 8 glasses a day. Each week on the same day....take a new photo of yourself with no makeup on. I promise you’ll see a change in your face over a month! And by then you’ve created a new habit of drinking water everyday! It’s a win-win!

What’s your skin secret?

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XOXxx

Shana Danae..