#SkinLove

Hello everyone! 

Now this is going to be very different from the kind of thing I usually post, but it's something that I feel is very important and needs to be talked about. It's also something that is very personal to me and plays such a big part in my life; living with a skin disorder. 

You see a lot of posts online about body confidence. How you should feel good no matter what shape or size you are, or whether you have an illness or disability, and believe me I think this is super important. Every single person out there deserves to love themselves and feel good about the way they look, but what I'm trying to say is there isn't a lot out there (that I've seen anyway) about loving your body with a skin disorder. 

I've suffered with a lot of health problems and illnesses throughout my life, and I know that it can take its toll on you. You start to lose faith in your body and feel unmotivated about a lot of things, but when you have a condition that is so visible, it can also make you feel like you have to hide away.

I suffer with severe eczema over most of my body. It comes and goes, is unpredictable, and can also be extremely painful. The pain and irritation is hard to deal with in itself. I also feel like I live at the doctors, hospital and pharmacy (I've tried some experimental treatment too - unsuccessfully I might add) and there are days where no matter how well my makeup goes and no matter how exciting my plans are, I feel self conscious, unattractive and like I need to hide away. 

Behind all the carefully edited Instagram pictures, the Snapchat selfies and makeup look photos are a lot of people who are hiding the real way their skin looks. Eczema, Acne, Psoriasis and Dermatitis just to name a few, so many people like me have spent days wearing long sleeved tops in 30 degree heat to hide the rashes on their arms; have been too embarrassed to wear the pretty short dress because of the skin on their legs; have been too self conscious to take part in the group photo because today is a bad acne day. 

I know I'm rambling on, and for those of you still reading thank you for your dedication, I just feel like I've spent the last 25 years of my life hiding this part of me away from the eyes of strangers (and even the eyes of family and friends) and I don't want to anymore. It is a part of my identity and something that will be there for the rest of my life. I can either keep hiding, or I can embrace it and show those rashes, sores and blisters who's boss. 

Over the next few weeks I'm planing to start a blog series focusing on those of you out there with skin disorders - beauty products that don't irritate, make up appropriate for sensitive skin, ways to deal with the anxiety it causes and how we can start loving our skin, no matter what. If any of you are interested, please feel free to message me on twitter (@AmyBarden) or email me (faceitamy@gmail.com) and we can arrange collaborations and maybe even a twitter chat to raise awareness and spread the love :)  #skinlove

Thank you all for taking the time to read this, it is something very important to me and I'd love to hear from you! 

Love to you all x 

 

Avon Planet Spa Pillow Mist

Hello everyone!

I know I tend to do a lot of beauty reviews on here, but the review I have for you today isn't really beauty related, but is something that has genuinely been helping me a lot lately.

This isn't a new product. In fact I picked this Avon one up on Amazon for around £2.99, but the idea of a pillow spray is something I'd never really thought of before recently. As those of you who read my blog know, I've been going through a few health problems over the last 6-9 months. Bad rheumatoid arthritis flare ups over the last month or so have ended up in me feeling very restless and anxious on a night. I guess it's mainly to do with the pain making a good nights sleep extremely difficult. It's not just the pain, but the fact that I stress myself out worrying and over thinking the pain and the fact that I wont be getting enough sleep. It's a vicious cycle. 

I looked into pillow sprays, and was skeptical, however for £2.99 I decided this one was worth a go. It is a mix of lavender and chamomile oils, and I have to admit it really is relaxing. A few sprays on my pillow before I go to sleep, and I don't seem to feel as anxious or tense. It helps me fall asleep a lot quicker, and stay in a deeper sleep for longer without waking up every half an hour. 

It might all be psychological, like a placebo effect, but regardless of the reason, I know I've been sleeping better and feeling calmer. I would definitely recommend this to anyone who struggles with sleeping at night, or even to any of you out there who suffer from anxiety. It can't hurt to try can it?! 

Any way, that's all for today guys, hope you liked the post. Let me know if any of you have tried other versions of this and what you though. Thank you for popping by! 

Love to you all x    

Arthritis and Me

Hello :)

I've been wanting to branch out a bit and do a couple of lifestyle posts on my blog, so I can keep it a bit more varied than just beauty posts. I was trying to think of what to write about, as honestly my life  isn't all that interesting, but one thing I would like to share with you all is my experience of being diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis a few months ago.

At only 24, I didn't think it was something I would have to worry about until much later in life. I have had quite a few health problems in the past, and suffer quite badly with eczema, but I have always been reasonably fit. Exercise regularly and all that. But around 8 months ago I started getting pains in my fingers and my ankles.

I didn't think much of it at first, just put it down to wearing heels and writing a lot by hand at work, but when it started getting unbearable, I decided to visit my GP. He ran some blood tests and took a family history, and a few weeks later put me in for a referral to see a rheumatologist.

Getting used to the daily pain was difficult. I take anti-inflamatories and painkillers daily to keep things under control, but flair ups are unavoidable. Wearing heels is completely impossible for me, and there are days where I struggle to do fiddly tasks with my hands such as buttons on a shirt, so I have even had to alter the way I dress to accommodate this illness.

For those that don't know, rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disorder, where your body's immune system attacks the lining of your joints. I have an appointment in a couple of weeks to look into some kind of steroid treatments which will hopefully help, but to be so young and feel like you have the body of an 80 year old can definitely get you down. I'm lucky in the fact that I can still work full time and have a social life without pain dictating my every decision, however there are days where getting out of bed is a job in itself.

I know there are a lot of people out there that have it much worse than me, but it has been difficult to deal with the changes I have had to make in every day life, as well as dealing with the pain which can get excruciating at times. Fingers crossed some new treatment will help.

I would love to hear any of your experiences with similar illnesses, and methods you use to cope.

Thank you for reading everyone :)

Love to you all x

New Year and No Diet

Hello everyone :)

Sorry in advance about today's post! It's basically just me having a little rant.

It seems like almost everyone around me is on a new years diet! I mean, good luck to them all, and I hope they do well, but it's starting to make me feel like I'm wrong for not caring about my weight?! Isn't that kind of the opposite of what normally happens?!

I'm 5ft 7 and a size 10. I've been a size 6/8 for years but have spent the last 8 months or so being seriously ill, in and out of hospital, and on various different medications and treatments. Yes, I've put weight on as a result of a mixture of bed rest, tablets and hormone treatments. I've finally got to a place where the doctors are happy with my progress and I can finally get on with the rest of my life, so to be completely honest, my weight is the last thing on my mind. I just want to claim my life back and enjoy myself!

For those of you who don't know, I had sarcoidosis.. which basically means your immune system attacks all the healthy cells in your body. I had fluid in my lungs, kidney damage, fluid on my spine, cycts in my joints, nerve damage, decreased eye sight and was deaf in one ear. It was horrible.

Now, I'm happy to be a bit bigger than normal if that means I can be healthy, go out and see my friends, and not have to spend time in hospital anymore.

I'm sorry for the rant, and I do honestly wish all the best to those of you on a diet, I just feel wrong for not caring about my weight, and I wondered if I was alone in this?!

As normal, all comments welcomed :)

Love to you all x