A Short Affair with the Shopping Channel

I confess I am a reformed consumerista. In my early twenties, earning adult wages but still living like a teenager at home, I would spend whole pay cheques frivolously on marked down cocktail dresses (I would never wear because God knows I never went to cocktail parties), turquoise leather jackets, full-length wool coats, and I think I have a pair of thigh high white suede boots kicking around somewhere. And now fully independent, I like to think I have become more practical with age. But I suppose even the best of us relapse, or at least that is how I would explain my recent purchase of an electric facial brush for $225 US? I blame the Shopping Channel because their seductive wiles made me unable to resist the Clarisonic - a little gadget which uses a rotating brush to buff away dead skin thoroughly but gently. Apparently its so gentle you can even use it over pimples (!). You can even have it personalized - that's right, an engraved hand-held exfoliator is exactly what any self-preserving person needs. Did I mention it was water-proof?

Now there was logic to this mini-splurge; I have been in the market for a face massager for a while, as I really want to increase the circulation in my skin and also want to rid myself of my morning puffiness with some lymph stimulation - so the Clarisonic seemed perfect for my needs as you get the benefits of its vibrations paired with an exfoliation.

Needless to say, I couldn't wait to receive my "sonic skin cleansing system" (referring to it as a "system" sounds so much more effective) in the mail and tore open the package right away. I will say this: the instructions need work as it came with three heads but with no labelling or guide to which head was for what - and it said that the back lights showed you its battery power level, but mine was blinking different lights with each blinks so I had no idea what that meant. I also canned the skincare as it was laden with chemicals.

Nonetheless upon my first spin (around my face), the bristles felt good against my skin like it was buffing away a cuticle of dry, dead cells. I continued by using the larger brush head (which I assumed was the body brush) on my left leg leaving the right as a control to test.

The next day I was impressed that my skin still felt extremely soft as I presumed that newly shed skin cells would have appeared by now. My face also felt more hydrated as my skincare penetrated more deeply. And upon inspection of my legs - my ugly right leg was scaly and dry while my left was smoother and also brighter in tone. This excited me! And I wanted to start round two but as an esthetician I am wary of over-exfoliating, so I promised myself I would only use it two to three times per week and only on wet skin (exfoliation is always best on moist skin which is why we at Pure + Simple have started to do all Sea Salt Microdermabrasion treatments afte we have steamed).

But while my skin feels great, the real test will be to see if I am still using the Clarisonic in a month. Will it be a regular part of my beauty regime or will it join my discarded Lite book (electric book of lights which combat seasonal affected disorder) and Mastermoves (basically a Lazy Susan you swivel on to work your abs)?

And looking at these pieces of abandoned equipment, I have to ask myself if I really am older, wiser and more practical or have simply shifted in tastes.

Beauty Secret #9: Love

So, I am back from my Ayurvedic Seminar in New Mexico - but while the course was teaching my about marmani (the Ayurvedic version of acupressure), I learnt about something that is even more meaningful: love.

Love? Now I know what you are thinking: Put away the prayer beads and fisherman pants and start talking to me about real beauty tips, but what I realized is that being beautiful and open-hearted are one in the same... even in a very direct way.

Dr. Lad (the teacher of my course and renowned Ayurvedic doctor), sprinkled the week with side notes about the link between the way we think and our body's health. According to him, not only did negative thoughts or repressed emotions create toxins, but also displayed themselves in the physical form. This could express itself as wrinkles (Vata worry lines or liver related frown lines), blemishes (excess heat and Pitta emotions), pigmented spots (internal inflammation aggravated by inflammatory thoughts) and muscular pain (sometimes caused by unresolved grief). "Our issues are in our tissues" he would say.

Ayurveda even has emotions which are linked to specific organs and which were included in the seminar's hand-out package: the Kidneys relate to fear and anxiety (also enhanced by lack of sleep), the Stomach relates to nervousness, the Liver relates to anger and frustration, the Heart relates to Worry and the Sex organs relate to embarrassment - and the antithesis to these emotion-caused organ dysfunctions is love.

Dr. Lad went on to explain that true balance was attained through striving for enlightenment, and that this was only achieved through love - which meant we had to let go of ego and judgement. Now this for me is especially difficult as I have made a sport of self-judgement (I think I have spent half an hour trying to decide whether I am forming a double chin or not), but he said it was not only for ourselves but for the health of those around us, and as health practitioners, it was imperative that we treat and diagnose our patients/ clients from a place of compassion and love (starting with ourselves). And while this may sound to you like a lot of new age jargon, I believe him as I felt healthier than I have in years just being in such an environment of positivity.

The class itself was filled with Western Doctors, Massage Therapists, Yoga Teachers, Acupuncturists and other Ayurvedic Practitioners, and as the week wore on I noticed how nurturing this group was. And being from a large city in which we mostly keep to ourselves (and eye contact straight ahead, I was surprised by how much perfect strangers were smiling and waving at me. One classmate even stopped me as I passed her and said peacefully "I haven't had the pleasure of meeting you yet, I have just seen your beautiful face in class." I was completely taken aback (did I mention I wore no make-up and fisherman pants the whole week?). And she herself was also beautiful with kind eyes and a beaming complexion.

I reminded me of how beautifying our intentions can be - and while I knew this already, I needed to be reminded that while we can have things and attributes we want to change about ourselves, we cannot get so attached to them that they become more important than our sense of self-acceptance. Needless to say I am working on bringing these serene mountain-side thoughts into the busyness of life back in Toronto.

And I do believe in the power of mindset and karma - because when I landed at home, Ben was waiting for me at the airport in a full tuxedo and with a bouquet of flowers (these kind of grandiose gestures are totally out of character)...and I couldn't have felt prettier.

Leaving on a Jet Plane...and landing with beautiful skin

I am flying home today- and while I actually enjoy my time armed with only an ipod and a few good books- I hate what it does to my skin.

Air travel is incredibly drying, and between the increase in Vata (through excess movement) and the re-circulated air, I usually end up with dehydrated skin, some mild swelling and a few break outs. In my acne hay-day, I would say that the moment I stepped off that plane I knew a few blemishes would have popped up.

For those of your who haven't heard the Pure + Simple credo: dehydration is the cause of almost every skin-imbalance - so treat this and you'll be on your way to flawless skin.

But this time I am going to be prepared. Here are my tips for globetrotters to stay gorgeous:

1. Oil yourself from head to toe. The most important thing to do is oil your body down. Since Vata is increased Sesame oil is best as it promotes circulation, is warming and is rich in texture. And when I say oil yourself from head to toe, I mean it - every inch of it. From the scalp to the soles of the feet. I even apply a rich cream mask over top of the oil on my face (one that looks like a moisturizer so you cannot see it. While I may look like a grease ball, I won't look like a pizza face.
2. Take a ginger bath. A ginger bath before and after the flight is ideal. Not only will it nourish your body and support your immune system, but it will increase your circulation (and remember that flying impedes circulation making us puff out and swell). You do this with 1 part ginger powder and 1 part baking soda - I usually use a cup of each. Taking ginger capsules also helps to prevent jet lag as it pacifies Vata.
3. Wear pressure socks. I bought a pair of these at a trade show in Vancouver and they hugged me all the way home. Pressure socks are great for flights as they will prevent edema (swolleness). I try to wear them even around the city as they will help prevent varicose and spider veins. They come in a variety of colours and materials...even some sexy stockings.
4. Take oils internally. After flying to Australia and breaking out massively with eczema all over my face from the extreme dehydration, I started taking flax seed oil capsules when I travel. They helped me a lot when I was backpacking and flying all over the map, preventing dryness and also regulation my bowels. But you don't have to be limited to flax seed oil, you can take fish oils or evening primrose etc. depending on the contingencies of your own body. Here again, I am pretty liberal taking more before a flight than I would on a daily basis.
5. Stay away from drying foods. When travelling, stay away from Vata aggravating foods. These foods will only dry out your intestines which will not only dry out your skin, but possibly constipate you and make you feel bloated. So, anything dry is off-limits: crackers, dried fruit, bread, dense meat (avoid meat in general if you can), anything that depletes water in our bodies instead of hydrating it. I find this difficult because I used to like to travel with granola bars or dry-fruit bars as they are portable and convenient, but now I only pack fruits and veggies as they are full of cellular water. Cooked foods are better for pacifying Vata, but good luck sneaking a pot of stew past security. I suggest a nice warm bowl of oatmeal the morning you leave, and a nice hearty soup when you land.

Cyster soul, Cyster Soul: Hormone Series Part three

There have been many a day in which a regular client will lean close into me and whisper "..some of my skin issues my be due to the fact I have something called polycystic ovaries." And usually two things pop into my head - first: why didn't you tell me earlier? it would give me better insight to your skin and body, and second: Sista, join the club.

Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome, to those of you who don't know, is when cysts occur on the ovaries because a females egg does not break through the ovarian tissue to travel to the fallopian tubes. The imbalance of hormones which occur with PCOS also inhibits egg growth.

These cysts are said to produce a small amount of male hormones causing some very unpretty side effects. This includes hair where you don't want it (excess body hair), a lack of hair where you want it (thinning on the scalp) and difficulty losing weight. When my gyno explained this to me he basically made it sounds like I was going to turn into a man. But I never did. While I did not show these traditional signs, I did experience the amenorrhea (loss of periods), insulin resistance (i am also helped by the diabetic grandmas i have on both sides), and of course my struggle with acne. You can't tell, but I am shaking my fist right now and typing with only one hand. And yes, most of my clients who have let me in on their club membership have done so because their skin has broken out badly. But don't be discouraged because we have helped a lot of these clients find relief, and like anything you need to know what is out of balance to help rebalance.

Now, little is known about the cause of PCOS or even which hormones must be examined. I think it is because there are probably a multitude of reasons. Upon my visit to Albuquerque to see Dr Lad speak (where I actually am now), he went on one of his delicious tangents and touched on the issue of PCOS. He said that doshically there are many causes, while cysts and accumulation are a Kapha symptom of excess, this can actually be caused by both vitiation of Pitta and Vata. sometimes it begins with Vata pushing Pitta pushing Kapha. That is to say, that an excess of Vata prompts an excess of another and another dosha. I think this is why PCOS (and other hormone and fertility issues) has been so much more common in the modern age. Women are stressed. We imbalance our Vata or pushing ourselves aggravating our Pitta and cause our Kapha to become dysfunctional. I also notice that in many cases of acne in a PCOS client, that their skin is terribly inflamed and dehydrated.

In these cases it is very important to prescribe a cooling, soothing regime - not a disinfecting, drying regimen. Remember, acne itself is inflammation. it is also important to keep the skin hydrated because you must try to prevent scarring, and scarring occurs mostly in weak, dried out skin types. If you must use an anti-bacterial because blemishes are looking like they have a lot of pus and infection, we must opt for a Lavender or Witch hazel hydrosol with is alcohol-free and also an anti-inflammatory. But if the pimples are most cystic acne pustules (break outs which do not come to a head but are a large, painful, fluid filled cyst - usually in the chin and jaw line) then it can really only be pacified internally. You can apply arnica to it to increase circulation and disperse the accumulation of fluid, but only if it is a cyst and you cannot see a white head on it. the other option is to sterilize a pin and prick it then extract it. I personally do not advise this unless you have professional assistance, or are willing to risk scarring.

Like everything in this world, my practice has been very circular. I teach my clients about their skin and bodies and they also teach me. So, many clients have actually given me advice on how I can managed my PCOS with treatments and lifestyle. While once client raved about her acupuncturist, another informed me about the wonders of Castor oil packs (Castor oil packs are when you apply Castor oil and heat to your lower abdomen to break up and eliminate cysts. Castor oil in Ayurveda is a laxative and Kapha reducing oil).

I also have heard about the necessity of what seems to me as a Kapha reducing diet and exercise regime. This includes, low glucose/ sugar, low carbs and lots of cardio work outs. I have tried all of these suggestions and found them beneficial. But I find stress reduction the most effective.

And while, its difficult to know how much progress choosing a more natural approach, I haven't still haven't turned into a man (fingers crossed).

A-ha moments with Hypothyroidism: Hormone series part two

I have often been convinced that I had hypothyroidism. But Ben just says that I simply have hypochondria.

Because I have poly cystic ovaries and diabetes on both side, it gives me a predisposition to an under active thyroid (these are all Kapha excess disorders). But while my mother has been put on meds for hypothyroid (which she lost interest in taking after a few months), she herself has not gotten any actual proof she has it in her blood work. It is commonly known that the blood testing used to diagnose hypothyroidism does not identify most borderline cases.

But besides the thyroid being central to our hormonal health and overall health, it has a huge influence on how we look. Last week as I was doing a facial on a client, she told me that after many years of extra weight and dry (almost cracking) skin, she discovered she had hypothyroidism. I found this very interesting. She went on to add that she just found out one of her daughters did also and that she had began to develop a double chin due to it. Turkey neck (as it is so eloquently called) is a sign of Kapha excess too, and God knows I have spent many an hour pinching at what I see as a forming double chin (again, Ben calls me delusional when I do this).

So what are the other signs of having an under stimulated thyroid? Water-retention, weight gain, dry skin and lethargy. One problem is that, unlike hyperthyroidism which involves symptoms like acne, weight loss and bulging eyes, hypothyroidism's symptoms sound like how I felt for most of first-year university. Hell, sounds like how I felt for most of the winter. The other is how inaccurate testing can be. But what is a girl to do when this could be the key reason she has under eye bags (water retention) and the inability to lose weight?

Online many sites have recommended an at-home way to diagnose using a regular thermometer and testing yourself through the day. See link for details. http://allonhealth.com/hypothyroidism-test.htm

My Ayurvedic doctor, Dr Sharma, recommended asking my GP for a series of tests including a thyroid scan. From here, he said he could tell which kinds of thyroid hormones are being under-produced and could give dietary and herbal guidance based on this.

And when you discover this, there are many options. I recommend natural thyroid extract (these are animal-derived so you must be comfortable with consuming animal products). But of course, I always try to go as natural and as simple as I can with any treatment to avoid side-effects. I was horrifed to discover that another client of mine had a hypothyroid condition after surgically removing her thyroid because this was the recommended solution to her previous status as have hyperthyroid. Now she was taking medication to balance her out. As my diabetic and probably hypothyroid grandmother would say: "Ai-ya!"

Of course, starting with an experienced Ayurvedic or Naturopathic doctor who can assess your individual body and how to re-balance it is best (email me if you need referrals). But the most important thing to do is confirm whether you have hypothyroidism because it can save you a lot of grief trying to find solutions for your skin and body.

Blog posting coming Monday

I know I usually blog on Fridays, but time has not permitted that this week. I will have my next post up by Monday! I previously promised Sunday, but I double promise Monday.

Estrogenic Beauty - Part One of the Hormone Series

I don't know if there is something in the water, but so many of my clients, colleagues and team having been asking a lot of about hormones lately - Actually, there may be hormones in our water. But I will save you the tirade on the marine species in the St. Lawrence River having both egg and testes like I did at the FGI panel. That was embarrassing. What was I thinking going on a self-righteous tangent about what we absorb passes through our urine and affects our Eco system to a crowd of the most fashionable people in the city while the charming rep to my right spoke about cute cosmetics which smell like pastries? I may as well have been wearing hemp.

Anyway, I was all set on doing a posting today about dry brushing, but instead I have decided to abandon that plan and start my new series on hormones and the skin. I think its important to talk about hormones because while most of us understand how important they are and how much they influence every action within our bodies, yet we know little about their nature or how to balance them. So today I will be starting with a hormone that is very dear to me: estrogen. I, myself, have high estrogen which makes my menses very irregular (did I really just post that on the Internet?).

Estrogen also has a lot of sex appeal because it is what makes women women and what decreases dramatically when we go through menopause so it can also be connected to youthfulness. This drop in estrogen has be said to accelerate signs of aging in our skin and has spurred much fuss about how we can artificially sustain it.

But while this is a very popular view amongst beautologists, I think its very interesting to note that it is estrogen which breaks down collagen in our skin. Confused? Well, while estrogen does break down collagen, it also enhances the hyaluronic acid in our skin (hyaluronic acid helps our skin hold water and promotes a smooth texture). But as we all know, collagen is probably the most important player in keeping our skin pump, moist and healthy.

This is why estrogen also contributes to cellulite as it breaks down the strength of our cellular walls, making way for lumpy, bumpy fat. You will see many cellulite-reducing body products will focus on increasing collagen so our fat cells can retain a firmer structure. Furthermore, estrogen dominance will also result in water-retention also contributing to cellulite. This can also answer why some women have cellulite despite being slim and fit (comme moi) as well as why many women taking the birth control pill are predisposed to it.

So what do we do?
Eating for estrogen dominance: Well, we can start with avoiding estrogenic foods such as soy and hops (what beer is made out of - and also why men who drink too much of it grow man breasts). And we should consume only organic meats which are devoid of disruptive hormones if we choose to eat animal protein. We should also start to eat more estrogen decreasing foods like citrus fruits, broccoli, cauliflower cabbages, avocados and nuts. It has also been said to be important to examine your digestion because if digestion is impaired, hormone filtration will also be. This is interesting as Pitta governs digestion, and I find many estrogen-dominant clients also have Pitta imbalances.

Balancing Self-care: Topically, we should avoid chemicals which mimic estrogen in our skincare. Numerous chemical sun screening agents (why we are such sticklers about natural, mineral sunblocks despite their powdery texture and white-ish hue) as well as chemical preservatives imbalance our hormone levels as we absorb them into our bloodstream.

Another topical treatment I have done is use prescribed progesterone cream to limit estrogen production. Again, this demonstrates how deeply what we put on our bodies affects us. But while it did regulate my cycle, I still think of hormone creams as a band-aid solution (but a very useful band-aid).

Clear the mind as well as excess estrogen: This may be the most important factor (and hardest for me). Relax. High estrogen tends to occur in high-stress people (Pitta) and also contributes to more stress as it usually is coupled with low progesterone which helps regulate anxiety and stress levels... If you need a good RMT, email me. Remember, its not self-indulgence, its for your hormonal health.