Treating rosacea

Hello!

I have been away for a while as unfortunately I was struck down with flu for a good 2 weeks and have spent ages recovering from it! I am a huge wimp so can’t handle these things very well…

While visiting the doctor to follow up, I asked if there was anything she could do about my face. When I say my face I refer to the huge, glaring red patches covering my nose and cheeks caused by lots of lovely broken blood vessels under my skin. The first time I really noticed it on my cheek was about 2 years ago. I assumed it was caused by the contraceptive pill or some sort of hormonal problem so ignored it. I didn’t even realise it was rosacea until a few months ago when my dad, who also suffers from it, pointed it out to me. After doing what anyone does these days when they have an illness – googling! – the future of my face is looking rather bleak. Rosacea is unfortunately incurable, however it can be controlled with certain treatments. Antibiotics, topical ointments and laser treatment appear to be the most common options. Laser treatment would be the best option for me as I suffer most with redness and visible blood vessels but it looks like the NHS don’t offer this meaning it’s very expensive for a stone broke student like me! It also doesn’t cure the underlying rosacea. Most people seem to get it in their 30s and 40s. For someone who’s had it since they were 18, I feel a little bit peeved the damn thing couldn’t have waited a few years to invade my face! Normal makeup doesn’t cover it up very well and if it does it seems to disintegrate during the day, in which case I end up looking like a belisha beacon anyway. Nights out are a pain because in those sweaty bars and clubs my makeup just melts right off anyway. People stare and sometimes even say things. I’ve had someone tell me it looks really nasty before and ‘ooh is it contagious?’. No it’s not if you’re wondering!

I don’t know why I didn’t see a doctor sooner. She was really great about it and at the moment I’m on a 2 month trial course of tetracycline to see if it will clear the spots on my face of any infection. Unfortunately, it won’t do anything about the redness but one step forward is better than none.

After the doctors I decided to cheer myself up with a bit of retail therapy with a friend. She needed to go to Boots where I wandered around and accidentally stumbled on a whole section just for people suffering for rosacea, redness and acne! After mulling over which products to buy and reading reviews online, I bought La Roche Posay Toleriane Facial Cleanser and La Roche Posay Rosaliac Intense Cream. Both of these products are really gentle on rosacea-prone skin and are designed to avoid irritation and soothe sore patches. I don’t particularly have itchy or sore patches but my face is constantly red – so I am willing to try anything to get rid of it. I’ve only been using them for a few days so can’t comment on any improvements with the redness yet. I use the cleanser on an evening to remove my makeup which it does well – even my eye makeup- and it leaves my skin feeling super-soft which is great. Because the cream is concentrated it’s more like a serum. I feel it works best before bed because it’s quite sticky and takes a while to properly soak into your face. Once it’s done this though your face feels like a baby’s bum!

I also bought the Dermablend Corrective Foundation and Dermablend Corrective Concealer Stick by Vichy. These are both types of camouflage makeup designed for people with skin conditions, birthmarks or tattoos that they want to cover up. They contain about twice the pigment as normal foundation/concealer so I’ve only needed a little bit to cover my whole face! Because I’m using so little makeup compared to normal, my face looks far less cakey and my skin is able to breathe a bit more. Both products also contain silicones, which is an important component in cosmetics for rosacea sufferers, as silicones form a protective barrier that helps to protect our sensitive skin. The best part is that after setting my makeup with the Dermablend Setting Powder, my makeup stays in place perfectly for about 8-10 hours! I even walked to a lecture in the rain today and there was no redness in sight.

I understand not everyone will want to cover up their birthmarks, tattoos, conditions etc. and that is completely up to them. There is no wrong or right way to go about it as every face is perfect so long as you are happy! I just feel more comfortable when I have makeup on and that is my personal choice. For anyone who feels similarly and who hasn’t tried camouflage makeup yet, I would recommend these products.

The last thing to say is that I would recommend looking online and reading reviews before buying any of these products. They aren’t cheap and as every person is different, you might find a different skin care regime works best for you.

Our health is very important. Obviously, rosacea will not kill me and the impact it has on my physical health is minimal but for me and many others with similar skin conditions, the psychological impact is far greater and it can really get you down sometimes! Although I broke my rule to try and stop spending money and spent quite a bit of money on my face this week, I definitely think it’s a worthwhile investment to gain a bit of confidence back and become a bit happier in myself! Sorry this one was a long one but hopefully I have helped everyone gain a bit more knowledge by reading it.

Olivia
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Bake your own bread!

Hey there!

A great way to save money is by making your own meals from scratch and baking your own bread is definitely a great way to save a few precious pennies. Plus it’s fun to get your hands dirty making it and the dough acts as a great stress relief ball that you can work all your frustration into!

Stress-relief ball!

This week I’ve been baking bagels and pretzels. Pretzels are great as a sweet or savoury treat and the bagels are perfect for breakfast or lunch. All in all, I think I worked out that it costs around 60p to make 8 bagels or 6 pretzels. Fab!  I got my recipe for the bagels from here.

My bagels look pretty poor compared to the ones in the link above but this is when I was waiting for them to rise a little more before putting them in the oven. Once they’ve been baked they look and taste great.

 

It really doesn’t take much time at all to prepare and bake these and you actually spend most of your time waiting for the dough to rise.

So give it a go and save yourself a couple of quid! There’s tons of baking recipes you can find online for a loaf of bread or bagels or whatever you fancy.

Olivia
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7 ways to save money when it’s running out…

Hello!

So it’s the end of March and in another few weeks it’ll be time for the next instalment of my student loan. Woohoo! This means money is tight and the moment and obviously I have to be extra careful with it… something that is easier said than done. Unfortunately, I still have bills to pay for the end of this month and then all throughout Easter. To help myself stay on track, here are my 7 ideas to help save money that I’m going to try and put into practice myself throughout April:

1) If you’re on a night out, draw out cash and leave your card at home.
It’s my flatmate’s birthday and we are all going out tomorrow night. Luckily it’s a student night so most things are cheap anyway but I find if I’m a bit drunk than I am tempted to use my card to pay for drinks. When you’re drunk you’re not exactly in a rational and responsible state of mind which makes it hard for you (well… me) to stick to any rules about money. This way I have no choice but to stick to a budget.

2) Take the time to prepare yourself a snack before you go on a night out.
A friend does this and I really need to start doing the same. All those drunken trips to the kebab shop really take their toll on your poor purse. Before you go out, take a few minutes to prepare something to eat when you get in. It can be leftovers from dinner or a bag of crisps – whatever. You just need something that you can easily open or shove in the microwave. Then you can go out knowing that when you get hungry on the walk home you have a wonderful treat waiting for you.

3) Have a movie night or go to the park.
We often have movie nights in our flat or we take a basketball/football/frisbee and go to the park. These are good ways to socialise without having to spend much, if any, money and have a lot of fun. This weekend I went to the beach which only cost me £4 for travel, which was worth it for many hours enjoyment and a good frolic in the sand and sea.

4) Buy food at your local market.
My local market is absolutely fab! I usually buy a bag of red peppers, a few onions, mushrooms, potatoes, carrots and strawberries from there every week and it comes to around £6. Then I will buy enough meat, usually chicken, for the week which comes to £5. It’s so cheap and the quality of the food is great as well. I laugh every time I go into the supermarket and see a punnet of strawberries for £3 when I just bought 2 for £1.50. Save your pennies and start helping out local grocers!

5) Always think about a purchase before you make it.
This one only really applies if you’re an impulsive spender, like me. If I walk into a shop and see a dress I like then I will immediately pick it up and take it to the till without thinking. What I have started doing is walking around the shop before going to the till. Carrying the dress around with me gives me enough time to think about whether it’s really worth that 20 quid. In most cases I end up putting it back and going home.

6) eBay and Amazon are your best friends.
I have found so many bargains on these sites from printer ink to personalised mugs. Never buy anything unless you’ve checked to see whether it’s cheaper on these sites first. In addition to that, I also sell loads of second-hand items, mainly clothes, and jewellery (not second-hand) on eBay and this helps to de-clutter my room and give my overdraft a break.

7) REVISE!
For me, this one is probably the most important. Like pretty much everyone else, I have exams in May so this means I’ll have to work hard over Easter to catch up on all the lectures I fell asleep through and work I’ve been putting off since January. And if I’m revising at home, I can’t be out spending money. It’s a win-win! Well, possibly.

Olivia
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The beginning

So this is my first blog post as a stone broke student.

Honestly, I have decided to start this blog to keep myself on track financially. I’m terrible with money. I know I’m not the first or last student who will be irresponsible this way, but it really is a habit I need to break. I don’t have parents that can bail me out with huge sums of money – even if they had a lot of money they wouldn’t just hand it over. Of course, I appreciate money and that it takes a lot of work to earn it but my problem is I’m so impulsive and don’t think about what will happen once it’s gone. Then I have to resort to tipping my room upside down looking for spare change every time my cupboards are bare. This is not fun.

My plan is to share details of my life in general and my spending habits. Hopefully through doing this, I’ll learn some valuable life lessons on money management, my bank account will get a break and I’ll be rolling in heaps of money by the time I graduate! Well, maybe…

Enjoy!

Olivia
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