Whats with all the pimples?!

My entire life I have been told what beautiful skin I have. It was always tan, pimple free and glowing. My skin care regimen consisted of washing my face with water (yes water) and some DDF Ultra Lite Moisture Dew. THAT WAS IT!! About a month ago that all changed. I woke up one morning and I had pimples! Not only did these pimples grace my face, but they got to my chest and back too.  I did what any crazy preggie does and hit the Internet hard seeking out advice and remedies for my new friends. Almost every blog, website and dermatologist said pretty much the same thing-pregnancy acne is hormonal and you cant do jack shit about it. HELL to the NO. I was not about to sit back and let nature and hormones take its toll on my face. I started with my own natural remedies that I believed I would put in a pretty bottle and make millions as the new pregnancy acne cure. These remedies included apple cider vinegar, toothpaste, lemon juice, honey, baking soda…you name it, I tried it with no success.

I started getting so frustrated that I would chase down any pregnant woman I saw and ask them what they did to get beautiful skin but none of them could help me. I finally decided to go and get a facial, my second one in my whole life…like I said, I’ve never had this problem before! After much research I decided to go to Yasmine Djerradine on 60^th between Park and Madison (recommended to me by a woman with flawless skin) who insisted I go see Karen. I marched my ass there on a Saturday afternoon with the intention of meeting my family at the park after with my new radiant skin. The first half of the facial was HEAVENLY! A yummy mask here, a deep cleaning lotion there and an amazing shoulder rub. Then it took it a turn for the worse. It was extraction time. This was all new to me and I nearly jumped off the damn table. I felt like she was sticking my face with needles then squeezing every ounce of life out of me. Karen didn’t care that I was screaming and squirming around the table- she was on a mission. After what felt like an eternity of abuse she put some calming mask on and I was free to go. Karen seemed thoroughly satisfied with her job as she held a mirror up to my face for me to check it out.  I took one glance and burst into tears. I looked like I had the shit kicked out of me! What happened to glowing gorgeous skin you’re supposed to have after a facial?!?! I looked worse coming out of it than I did going in. Karen promised me this was normal and in a few days I would look much better.

I paid, put on my enormous sunglasses and sprinted home to make sure no one I knew saw me like this. Screw the park- I was going home to wallow in my misery. Poor Shai came home from golf to me crying on the couch about how ugly I am and how I never wanna leave the house - but he somehow talked me off the ledge yet again. What would I do without him! I went to bed that night and said a little prayer for my skin. When I woke up the next morning I was in shock- my skin looked SO MUCH better!! The swelling had gone down and my enormous gross pimples were now little scabs. I was ecstatic! My savior Karen also told me to start using witch hazel as a toner to keep my face clean and kill all the bad bacteria. It is a miracle in a bottle and I wish I invented it! Looking back I may have been overreacting a bit but there is nothing worse than feeling like an ugly version of yourself. Lesson learned- don’t listen to people when they tell you there is nothing you can do, be proactive and take matters into your own hands. Never take no for answer!