The summer season takes a toll on our skin. Sun exposure, sweat, and the general chaos of the season cause our skin care routine to fall by the wayside. The aesthetic industry has provided solutions with more accessible and affordable options for long-term upkeep, but without a solid routine, our investments can be stifled.
Jackie Arrick, APRN-NP and owner of Elite Aesthetics by Jackie, offers services that cover all the bases, from medical-grade skin care to technology- and science-forward laser treatments and injectables, unique to her practice.
“I feel like we are more inclined to overuse products when what we really need is three or four skin care products that target our main concerns,” Arrick says. “When we put too many products on our face, that’s when we create irritation and barrier issues.”
Arrick recommends starting your winter skin care routine with CO2 laser treatments. CO2 lasers are ablative, using heat to resurface the skin, providing a solution to wrinkles, scars, sun damage and uneven tone by stimulating collagen production and new skin growth. This new technology allows the former weeks-long healing process to be complete in a matter of days.
Alongside CO2 laser treatments, Arrick offers services such as neurotoxin and dermal filler to attain anti-aging goals outside of merely the skin's texture, pigment and barrier.
In order to adequately protect these investments we make in our skin, Arrick emphasizes the importance of maintaining a routine of three or four efficient products. Her favorite medical-grade skin care, SkinBetter, is backed by science and technology, and “can treat virtually any skin type or concern,” Arrick says.
While big-box name brands can be more affordable and accessible, Arrick stresses the importance of consulting an aesthetician or medical spa professional before starting a new routine.
“It can be overwhelming to walk into a store where the products might be more affordable but less effective doses and also more likely to irritate and cause skin problems.”
The reality, she says, is people just don’t have the time to keep up with multistep routines.
“Let’s give you three or four ‘hero’ products that are great for your skin. Medical-grade skin care is going to be more effective and that’s why it’s more expensive,” she explains. “Much more research and data go into it; there’s more science behind it.”
SkinBetter offers, among many others, three products which Arrick recommends for the arid environment awaiting us in the colder months.
“With winter skin, we want to make sure that we are maintaining a barrier and preventing irritation or dryness,” Arrick says. “My clients often can’t tolerate prescription-strength retinol, so we recommend a switch to AlphaRet, a less irritating nonprescription-strength retinol. You’re still getting the benefits of the retinol but without the irritation.”
Arrick also recommends Mystro, a daily active balance serum that can be used prior to a moisturizer or retinol. Mystro helps prevent redness and irritation and can be a great solution to acne-prone, sensitive or healing skin.
A good winter routine is then completed with TrioLuxe, a heavier moisturizer than SkinBetter’s everyday moisturizer, Trio Rebalancing.
To learn more about the services mentioned here, visit eliteaestheticsbyjackie.com.
"We are inclined to overuse products when what we need is three or four that target our main concerns."