Hotline Skin: May Routine Triage

Hello!

Welcome back to Routine Triage! For anyone who missed the first one last month, this is a new concept I’m trying out with the help of some paid subscribers (who can get in on the action here).

Routine Triage is a way to make my advice feel more immediate & similar to the types of questions I get everyday in the treatment room and in my group chats. In fact, that’s exactly how I envisioning it—like a text to a friend.

How it works is simple: you fire off a quick question about your at-home routine, and I reply/troubleshoot exactly how I would in a casual conversation. Perhaps I’ll ask a few clarifying questions, but it’ll be mostly straightforward answers and actionable advice. In order to accomplish this, I set out strict parameters:

• Submit a focused, single question about your at-home routine.

  • You can ask questions about products you use, gaps you feel are missing, techniques, or devices etc.

  • You cannot submit a multi-part question, or ask questions about professional treatments or in-office procedures.

Since you already have 2 really solid moisturizers, I would get the Hydra Serum and use it before moisturizer AM and/or PM. It can be used with anything, so super easy to slot in. You can even use it as your moisturizer in the morning under sunscreen if you want something extra light.

Assuming you are also wearing sunscreen in the morning ;) In which case, I would try either the Sweet Chemistry Hydra Serum (creamy, all around anti-aging, has peptides and tons of antioxidants, including a vitamin C derivative, so easily covers all of your bases). Or, since your moisturizer is so rich, if you want something thinner and super easily layered, go for the Sachi Skin Peptide Pro-Resilience Serum, which also is a great all rounder with peptides and antioxidants.

Ugh! This sounds very frustrating. If you’re using the ketoconazole/dandruff shampoo, make sure you leave on for 10ish mins before rinsing. Avoid anything thick and oil-heavy & audit products to eliminate common fatty acid culprits: isopropyl myristate, isopropyl palmitate, ethylhexyl palmitate, most plant oils, like olive, coconut, organ, rosehip. Be reallllllly good about removing sweat as quickly as possible (hypochlorous acid is great for this if you’re on the go/can’t wash your face—this is my favorite, or grab this one at the drugstore). SPF is a particularly tricky category. Mineral sunscreen (zinc oxide) is the safest bet bc tends to have fewer of the above ingredients. The most common rec I see is good ‘ol EltaMD UV Clear Broad-Spectrum SPF 46. Korean & Japanese chemical formulations are also worth looking at, I’ve seen Nivea UV Super Water Gel come up a lot, as well as the Cosrx Ultra Light Invisible Sunscreen.

*FYI for the class: Malassezia folliculitis (fungal acne) is very common with diabetes and even more prevalent in the summer as excess glucose in sweat = ideal yeast food source, plus warm weather/humidity = perfect environment for yeast to thrive.

First experiment with layering technique. Give both the vitamin C and moisturizer time to absorb before moving onto the next step. But most importantly, make sure you are letting your sunscreen set for a full 15 minutes before going in with makeup. Next thing I’d look at is hydration—patchiness often means your skin is taking the water from your makeup, so make sure you are not overdrying your skin with sulfur bar wash and that your moisturizer/spf are adequately hydrating. Possibly consider adding a hydrating serum/opting for lighter moisturizer, honestly ILIA Face Base could be perfect. I’d also look at all of your makeup especially to see if you’re overdoing it with silicones, which sit on the skin. Maybe instead of a primer, find a sunscreen that works well under makeup on its own or try using a setting spray (I love this one) rather than a primer to help with longevity.

• Dermstore: JOLIE for up to 15% off many brands (including EltaMD)

• Sachi Skin: JOLIE15 for 15% off

• Sweet Chemistry: JOLIE20 for 20% off

Join us for Office Hours on Sunday! This exclusive weekly opportunity is available to paying subscribers.

Every Sunday around 5pm EST, I’ll begin a new thread for the week in Substack Chat, where you can ask me anything. Every Monday from 8-9pm EST, I’ll be in that chat live, answering questions for the hour. That way, if you can’t make it, you can submit any time after 5pm Sunday and still get an answer. If you can make it live, join in! You can ask questions in real time and (hopefully) interact with others in class ;)

Have a great week!

xx,

Jolie

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