How I’m Dealing With My Dry Skin This Winter — From Head to Toe
My elbows are a problem area! Robe by AnaOno
Hello, winter! Even though it’s not technically the season yet, as soon as the calendar flipped to November, everything on my body got dry all at once: My lips were chapped, my chest was rough and patchy, my elbows were red and itchy, and my feet were rough, sandpapery, and screaming for a pedicure.
I am not a huge “product” person, and I generally don’t like to buy exorbitantly priced skincare products (though I have, on occasion, made exceptions for items I got hooked on, like this and this). But having and using good skincare products that work well is part of my self-care and something I can do that makes me feel like I’m taking of myself — versus spending the winter dried-out, uncomfortable, and scratching the shit out of my red, scaly elbows.
After I was diagnosed with cancer, I threw out all of my beauty and skincare products and replaced them with “nontoxic” or “clean” products. I was really strict about this at first but, as time passes, I’ve loosened up about it. Here’s why: There’s a lot of greenwashing and confusing marketing out there when it comes to beauty and skincare products, and a lot of these terms slapped on labels like “nontoxic,” “green,” and “clean,” can wind up being pretty meaningless (which is not to say that there aren’t “clean” products that are better for you than conventional ones, or that some products may actually be harmful — just to say that this entire space is very confusing if you don’t have a chemistry degree). And “clean” products generally cost significantly more than conventional ones.
There are also a lot of ingredients we’re told are bad for us because they’ll harm our health or maybe even contribute to causing cancer, and we should avoid them at all costs. But I’m not familiar with the research so I don’t know what the actual risk that some of these ingredients pose really is. For example, we’re commonly told to avoid parabens, but parabens are a preservative used in cosmetics to prevent the growth of bacteria and mold, which could be harmful to consumers. According to the FDA, “FDA scientists continue to review published studies on the safety of parabens. At this time, we do not have information showing that parabens as they are used in cosmetics have an effect on human health.” It’s confusing!
If this is concerning to you, I encourage you to do your own research and not take marketing claims at face value, and to determine what you personally feel comfortable with when it comes to what you put on your skin. I am not an expert in this area by any means, but I can share what I do, which has changed from the early days when I was first diagnosed.
As I mentioned, I’ve loosened up my standards in this area a lot since I was first diagnosed. While I was extremely strict about this during and immediately after treatment, now I still veer toward products in the “clean, green, nontoxic” realm, but I tend to take their claims with a grain of salt, and I will buy a product that falls outside of that category every so often if it seems appealing, or the conventional version works better than the “clean” version (hello, shaving cream!).
If you want to explore this further, the Environmental Working Group is a nonprofit activist and advocacy organization that provides information about potentially harmful agents in our beauty, skincare, and household products; food; and more, and works to inform the public and enact legislation. They have several databases on their website, including Skin Deep, which rates beauty and skincare products based on potential toxicity. You can enter product names into the search function, or download the app for your phone and scan items in-store. During cancer treatment and early recovery, I lived by this app, and would only buy products with good ratings. I’ve also loosened up on this, but if potentially harmful ingredients in your skincare, beauty, and household products is a concern to you, this is a helpful tool to have at your disposal.
That said, do your own research if you need to, but here’s what I’m using this winter to combat my dry skin from head to toe.
7 Products to Help Combat Dry Skin This Winter
Photo via Ulta Beauty
1) Kinship Supermello Hydrating Gel Cream for Face ($24): Okay, this is it: This is the product category that I used to spend a bloody fortune on when I was in my strict “clean products only” phase. About six months after treatment, thanks to a free birthday gift sample from Sephora, I got hooked on the Drunk Elephant Protini Polypeptide face cream. I’m not going to lie — it’s good. Very good. It felt good going on, made my face soft, and gave my skin a little glow. In fact, I even received a compliment on my skin from my chemo nurse once while I was getting my port flushed and I recommended it to her, and she started using it, too! But it’s expensive. Very expensive. To the tune of $68 for a small container that will probably last you less than one month if you use it morning and night. For someone on a tight budget, I finally came to the conclusion that this was too much money for me to spend on a skincare product even if it’s only an occasional splurge, and have been looking for a comparable dupe ever since. I’ve tried a few other face creams and all have been good, but this is what I’m currently using that I really like, and it’s a lot more moderately priced. It’s silky and whipped and smells vanilla-and-marshmallowy, makes my face soft, and gives my skin a subtle glow, morning and night. Note: This face moisturizer does not contain SPF, and daily use of sunscreen is important for reducing skin cancer risk — in general, and for the heightened risk of melanoma associated with the BRCA2 mutation. For face sunscreen, I use Supergoop’s Glow Screen with SPF 40 when I want to be a little extra and have that dewy glow (99% of the time), and EltaMD’s UV Shield Broad-Spectrum SPF 45 Face and Body Sunscreen all other times (basically, this amounts to when I’m going for a run).
Photo via Amazon
2) Medline Remedy Phytoplex Lip Balm (3-Pack) ($7): The dry, chapped lips happened right alongside the dry skin all over the rest of my body at the onset of the cold weather earlier this month. This is the lip balm that was in the free toiletry kit in my hospital room after my prophylactic double mastectomy this summer and it’s actually really good so I took it home with me! It does not, however, have SPF, and dermatologists also recommend using SPF-protection on your lips. So if you’re planning to be outside in the sun for any duration of time, you could try using a lip balm like this coconutty one with SPF 30 from Sun Bum for $4. Also, I will note that my lips have not yet reached peak winter chapedness; when they do, I may have to seek out something stronger in this department.
Photo via Amazon
3) Aveeno Restorative Skin Therapy Moisturizing Oat Repairing Cream for Sensitive, Distressed, Dry Skin ($14): My two main dry-skin complaints (aside from my feet, which is its own category!), are the dry patches of skin on my chest, and my dry, red, itchy elbows. I don’t know the science behind this, but anecdotally, dry, patchy chest skin is a complaint I’ve seen associated with women who’ve had a mastectomy, and I, myself, have noticed dry patches of skin across my chest since my mastectomy this summer. But it wasn’t until recently that I decided to do something about it, and when I saw this Aveeno moisturizing cream recommended for exactly this issue in a cancer-related Facebook group I’m in, I decided to give it a try. I’ve been using it for a little over a week (and not even that diligently, tbh), and I’ve already seen some improvement. I use it after I shower and sometimes before bed on my chest and elbows, and throw in my arms and legs for good measure. It’s cleared up the dry patches on my chest and my elbows are now in much better shape. The one downside is that it leaves a very slight sticky residue in some places on my skin. But this product comes in a normal-sized bottle (12 oz.) at a normal-sized price ($14) (as opposed to ridiculously expensive lotions that come in ridiculously small containers), so a slight stickiness doesn’t bother me.
Photo via Amazon
4) Aveeno Restorative Skin Therapy Itch Relief Body Balm for Sensitive, Distressed, Dry Skin ($14): The above-mentioned Aveeno moisturizing cream has been doing a good job of clearing up my particular problem area: dry, red, itchy elbows. But for a little extra insurance, I also got this more intense, targeted option to have in my arsenal if I need it during the dead of winter.
Photo via Amazon
5) First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Hand Cream (2 oz. Mini) ($16): I always have a mini tube of moisturizing lotion in my purse — and have continued to do so over the past 20 months even though I rarely go anywhere during COVID — and this comes in especially handy during the winter. Right now my current on-the-go hand lotion rotation consists of The Naked Bee Intensive Care Moisturizer, Orange and Honey Blossom Hand and Body Lotion ($10) and Rooted Beauty Hydrating Hand Cream in Oat Milk ($7) — and because I never go anywhere, they’re getting less use than usual and therefore lasting longer than normal. They’re both good, solid choices, but for extreme winter dryness, I think the best dry-skin hand lotion I’ve ever used is this First Aid Beauty option, though it’s on the pricey side.
Photo via Amazon
6) AmLactin Foot Repair Foot Cream Therapy, Foot Cream for Dry Cracked Heels ($15): Do you remember getting pedicures when they used to use the blade scraper, and how satisfying it was to see all that dead, dry skin on your feet scraped off like shredded cheese and piled up on the floor? I haven’t seen the blade scraper option offered at nail salons in years, probably because it’s some sort of health hazard. But I literally fantasize about this all winter long, when my feet are at their driest and I dream of scraping all the dead skin off. My blade-scraping fantasies aren’t going to come true, but after trying many lotions, creams, and oils throughout the years I’m happy to report that I’ve found the next best thing to scraping my feet back to their original, baby-soft state: this AmLactin cream. The instructions say to use it twice a day but I only use it once at night, when I slather it on right before bed and then cover my feet in fuzzy, cozy socks, and I start to see some improvement right away within a couple of days. But note: You should go easy on this at first and only use a little to test out if you have a reaction to it. The instructions caution that mild stinging or irritation may occur on sensitive or broken skin, and say to discontinue use if this happens. I have sensitive skin and this cream actually does make my feet red after a few consecutive days of use, so I only use it sporadically: I use it for a couple of days at a time and then when my feet get red, I take a break and discontinue using it for a while. Lastly, I would not recommend using this cream during active treatment, as you can have a lot of skin sensitivities during chemo — I definitely did! So if you’re currently in active treatment, I’d opt for something a lot more gentle.
Photo via Amazon
7) Beauty By Earth Lava Exfoliating Pumice Stone ($8): The foot cream helps, but I really don’t like having dry, cracked feet all winter long so I got this pumice stone to go the extra mile. This is the type of pumice stone (vs. a synthetic kind, which I tried last year and was not nearly as effective) that I used to help smooth my dry, cracked heels during chemo, because with my low immune system I didn’t want to get a pedicure for risk of infection. First, I wet the stone in the shower and then put a couple of drops of liquid soap on it before scrubbing my heels with it with gentle pressure (be careful not to scrub too hard or for too long as this could cause skin irritation or bleeding). I use Dr. Bronner’s Pure-Castile Liquid Soap in Baby Unscented because that’s what I happen to have on hand (and foot), but almost any liquid soap will do. Note: Experts advise NOT to use pumice stones for people who are diabetic, have poor circulation, are on blood thinners, or have numbness in their feet (which could include neuropathy from some chemo treatments) because these groups could be at increased risk for bleeding and foot infections. Also, pumice stones can harbor bacteria so be sure to keep it clean, store somewhere where it can dry out properly between use, and replace when necessary. And if you’re in active treatment, you should run this by your doctor before using to make sure it’s safe to use under your current circumstances.
—
Now I’m armed with these moisturizing products and ready to combat dry skin all over my body this winter. What are your go-to products for staying moisturized all over this season? Share them in the comments!
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying links. I use affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission from items purchased, but all of my recommendations are genuine.
