The Method: OCM
OCM = Oil Cleaning Method. This is a way of cleaning your face using oils instead of soaps or detergents. I have extremely dry skin, and it doesn't matter how moisturizing your cleanser says it is, my face WILL be dry after using it. It got super bad after I got pregnant, with red, peely patches, mostly by my mouth. Every time I shower, I rub my face, and dead skin comes off in those icky rolly things. What sold me on trying this was this quote from acne.org:
“Oil dissolves oil. One of the most basic principals of chemistry is that “like dissolves like.” The best way to disolve a non-polar solvent like sebum/oil, is by using another non-polar solvent similar in composition: other oils. By using the right oils, you can cleanse your pores of dirt and bacteria naturally, gently and effectively, while replacing the dirty oil with beneficial ones extracted from natural botanicals, vegetables and fruit that heal, protect and nourish your skin. When done properly and consistently, the OCM can clear the skin from issues like oily skin, dry skin, sensitive skin, blackheads, whiteheads and other problems caused by mild to moderate acne–while leaving your skin healthy, balanced and properly moisturized.”Makes sense. Especially since I have a doctorate in chemistry. From Harvard no less. But I'm being too modest......
Here's the webpage I went to. Totally check it out. Because I said to, that's why.
So I tried it, following the directions for dry skin: 1 part castor oil to 3 parts olive oil. Rub all over face for 1 minute, lay a warm, wet washcloth over face until the cloth is cooled to room temperature, rinse cloth, and wipe my face off.
That's it.
Results? Nothing short of AMAZING. I am in love with cleaning my face this way. My skin feels amazing, looks amazing, and is most definitely clean. It feels like my skin has been taken back to high school (don't be fooled by my amazing good looks, high school was over 10 years ago). I LOVE it. While I still get dry patches, it's only because I don't clean my face everyday. Come on, 11 pm rolls around, I never got out of my pajamas, let alone put on make up (which this will clean off, including the devils own eye makeup). I don't want to clean anything, I want to go to bed.
(Don't hate on me for going to bed at 11. Best way to say I only had to get up once, is to stay up late.
But on the days that I do clean my face, it's not dry. It doesn't flake, it doesn't peel, it doesn't crack, it doesn't get red and itchy. It's AWESOME. And my skin is clearing up too. If I could use this on my whole body, I'd never have to bathe again.
And that would be SWEET.
Extra Things About Me That You Never Needed To Know!
What is something you miss?
I miss Louisiana. I miss the humidity, I miss the rain that was actually warm enough to walk in, I miss the Spanish moss on the trees, I miss the smell. Oh, how I miss the smell! That was the best part of being there. I miss my grandmother's house too, but I will never get to see that again. Or the massive red anthill that was in her back yard. We used to take cans of Black Flag and spray the crap out of it and watch the ants come pouring out. And we'd spray them then too. And when the can ran out, we'd pour boiling water on them. It was AWESOME.
I also miss the driving motivation I had to exercise.
Oh wait, I never had that.
Nevermind.
This girl I work with also gets dry patches around her mouth and has been trying to figure it out. They had her on anti-biotics and then she tried a cream.... come to find out it was a steroid cream so when she stopped using it, the dry patches came back worse. I'll have to tell her about the oil.
ReplyDeleteWell, if her dry patches are caused by a disease or something, this may not help. I just have super dry skin. I never would have gone to the doctor for it, because if I slathered on enough lotion throughout the day, it was mostly okay. But she should certainly try it.
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