Pregnancy Skin Help

I don't know how differently African American and caucasion skin react to different products. I have very senstive skin that tends to get dry. I use the Aveeno products and have a lot of success with them. They have oatmeal in them and tend to last a long time without leaving a greasy feeling. They have a lot of different products and I love many - the hand and foot lotions are great. We use the baby lotion for our little ones as well as the soap. I use their daily scrub facial cleanser too which is great - gently smooths.

Hi D.!

I'm a doctoral candidate in cosmetic science, so I hope this helps. You need to stop using soap (that is, anything that says "soap" somewhere in the name). It is way too harsh for your skin, especially in the winter when it's less humid outside. Try Cetaphil cleanser on the face, and even the body. You could also try one of the Olay Quench products (for body), they're designed for African-American skin, even though that's not how they're marketed. Or look for one of those creamy, moisturizing body washes. No clear cleansers, they are too drying. Look on the ingredient labels for petrolatum, safflower or sunflower oil (for body products), and for cetyl, stearyl or cetearyl alcohol in face care products. At least one of these should be near the top of the ingredient list.

Also, if you're not experiencing acne, you could certainly cut back your face washing to once a day in the evening and then just splash with some warm water in the morning and moisturize again. If the burning that you are experiencing when you apply moisturizer lasts more than a few minutes, you might try a fragrance-free moisturizer. Olay's Total Effects comes in a fragrance-free version and is pretty rich but won't cause acne.

Good luck!

What kind of Jergen's soap are you using? A hand or body soap should not be used on the face. If you want a very gentle cleanser I would suggest Origins Mint Wash and then their Calming Solution. Since you have severe dryness, I would suggest their Dr. Weil moisturizer unless you have an allergy to mushrooms. Call and make an appointment at the Origins cosmetic counter and they will do a facial for you at no cost so you can see how your skin reacts. I used to work for Origins and no their products are very good for sensitive skin and skin problems. I used the Dr. Weil moisturizer on my 4 month old sons eczema and it cleared it right up. Good luck!