Hyperpigmentation; a skincare nightmare!

If you are in the United Kingdom, today was such a hot day. As the sun was blazing with its prickly sensation of heat, all I could think of was sunscreen! Because how many of us really wear it as often as we should? In the hustle and bustle of our busy lives, juggling so many aspects of our beings to simply get home at the end of the day, or for those who work from home or are home-makers, we can only have room for one thing; rest.

And then slowly, second by second, day by day,pigment by pigment we begin to notice changes in the appearance in our skin. For many, myself in the past included, we do not even know what is happening at first! It's a simple unevenness around the neck, or a darker patch appearing around the forehead. Worse, the chest area, arms and even stomachs if we've been out there. It reminds me of how important I realised I wished I knew what was appearing on my skin, having the simple knowledge of just a name to call it before attempting a resolve. This is why I'm here today, to help ensure that every reader understands the term hyperpigmentation, what it is, and how to treat it.

In law, it's substantial to use layman's terms and definitions, that way everyone whether highly educated or not can understand. So, hyperpigmentation means a condition that causes skin (or areas of) to darken. Mostly, you'll notice darker patches on the skin, it's causes include sun exposure, pregnancy, and health conditions such as Addisons. Let's just focus on sun exposure and pregnancy; in addition to this, we will cover the three types of hyperpigmentation. The first, which is most common, sun spots. Sunspots, also called liver spots or solar lentigines, sunspots are common. They’re related to excess sun exposure over time. Generally, they appear as spots on areas exposed to the sun, like the hands and face.

The second type, which is Melasma. Melasma is believed to be caused by hormonal changes and may develop during pregnancy (I suffered this myself, ouch). Areas of hyperpigmentation can appear on any area of the body, but they appear most commonly on the stomach and face.

Lastly, there is Post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation. This is a result of injury or inflammation to the skin. A common cause of this type is acne.

Now, all these types will have you running helter-skelter looking for quick solutions, also known as "microwave solutions" to get rid of the damage quicker than the sound of a "ding! But I can assure you, that it is important to know exactly what is happening to your skin, and how to help it. In my 5 years of experience in skincare, and at least, 2 decades of suffering from hyperpigmentation, I have found out one thing; you need the right products! 

This brings us to how you can care/treat hyperpigmentation.  If you have any of these types, adding the right skincare products is essential. You'll find many products claiming to have the solution and what you'll be tempted to do, is try them all. Big mistake! I totally understand the desperation, if you have a dark neck/chest area which now means you are unable to wear that bustier dress or your favourite asymmetric blouse, you tend to become even more insecure than ever thus the need to get rid of it tends to be high. However you have to do the needful diligence, to ascertain whether that product is right for you. 

Okay, now you've found the right products, you have even set a routine and set reminders in your calender to get this show on the road. But you want it to be a 24hour wonder, the number one question I get asked all the time is "Do you have anything for hyperpigmentation? My answer is always a yes, directly followed by do you have the patience? Many of us have zero! We've got hyperpigmentation from months ago, some even decades ago and want a 2week Eraser? Unless Jesus Christ is the one applying the products, please do not fall for this. I entreat you to understand that having a skincare routine should be treated as a luxurious journey, a marathon at that. Give time, time. 

What I strongly advice against, is jumping on every bandwagon of "trend" . I've seen a rise in production of serums, where a lot of users have no idea of what they are doing causing more harm than help. I was a victim, in my desperate desire to get rid of mine, I added a very popular brands' Vitamin C serum to my routine, in short I got burns on my neck which was worse in sight than what I intended to remove.

In summation, let sunscreen be your friend. Regardless of the weather, don't be deceived. The harmful rays are there rain or shine, a minimum sun protection factor of 30 should be applied and topped up daily. You'll eventually have to understand that no matter where your skin is, love it. Darker shades or not, it's the building you live in, it's better to begin working on it than not.

When I created the Blemish Eraser Kit, these were all I had in mind. I went further to create the Skin Repair Kit which is for pregnant women and new mums, we get this concern bad! It's a joy to see how many women benefit from using it.

I may have missed a few points, and I'll endeavour to cover them in my next blog. In the meantime, I hope I have done my best to help you tonight (this morning wherever you are)

xoxo

Justina N. Tsikata