Dry, cracked skin, if repeatedly exposed to soap and water and hand-sanitizers–is almost impossible to keep moisturized! You can revive the dry skin on your hands and feet with a self-care routine, plus oils and salves.
When the skin on your hands gets dried out, moisturizing alone won’t help that much. Especially if using hand-sanitizers in between soap and water.
Eee-gads! A radical result of getting clean, skin on fingers and backs of hands gets rough and will not soften up, despite “treatment” with oceans of lotion.
And even heels can get really rough and dry, in any season. While not necessarily a health impediment, dry heels are indicative of dryness under your skin—a situation you might want to address.
Dry skin becomes chronic. On your hands, dry skin erodes the naturally protective barrier you have. And thus it damages skin’s flexible nature, degrading your defenses against germs. At that point, dryness is almost impossible to control with cream or oil alone.
But since we’ll be washing our hands more often, and we might be at home more right now because of the COVID-19 pandemic, here’s a reminder to apply self-care to those beautiful hands and feet!
First, wash your hands!
We’ve all been doing this, I hope! Yes, washing your hands often is a good idea. Wash your hands with soap and water for 20 seconds at least.
Cleanness by itself notably has turned around epidemics in history.
Following the protocol with soap and water, pat your skin dry with a clean towel.
For the next 2 minutes or so (it might take less time than that), follow up with moisturizer and then body oil—on your hands!
Good moisturizer is actually high-quality cream or salve. And “body oil”—what is that?
Repeat these two-steps often for best results
1. Wash your hands. Then apply hand cream: Water-wash your hands and dry them. Apply cream liberally and massage it into your skin. Really work the lotion or cream into your skin, covering the fronts and backs of your hands, even the sides of your palms and fingers—whatever parts you scrubbed with soap and water.
You’ll definitely repeat the 20-seconds of time it took to properly wash your hands, but this time you’re ensuring the healthy state of the skin on your hands.
2. Apply a few drops of body oil. Once the cream’s absorbed, apply a few drops of body oil and really massage it in.
Re-apply the oil whenever your hands have been washed with soap. Then repeat the application of cream and oil at night before sleep.
That’s all you have to do! Just wait and see the results. You’ll love them!
I think you’ll be amazed at how this transforms your hands from rough and chapped to beautiful. And you’ll benefit all over from the massage you give your own hands!
It sounds luxurious, and it is—in a really good way! And, it really helps repair dry skin.
For maintenance, apply oil or cream, or both, daily. Repeat step #2 at least once a day for very dry skin.
If you get too much cream or oil on your skin and can’t massage it in, wipe off the excess cream or oil on another dry-skin area such as your elbows or lower legs. Works like a charm for elbows, hands and legs!
Good moisturizer is high-quality cream, body butter or salve. By “high quality” I’m referring to 100% locally-sourced or organic products made without preservatives. Lack of preservatives is good—it means you can use it up fast and get the results you’re looking for, without adding to your toxic load.
Make your own skin moisturizing cream or salve! Recipe posted here.
And “body oil”—what is that?
Body oil is the intentional product of 2 or more skin-grade or even food-grade oils. Mixed together these oils add up to a richly emollient combination to deeply counteract dryness. Again, for body oils, I like 100% locally-sourced or organic products made without preservatives. See why, and offer your opinion, here.
Your skin likes to eat like you do! (click to see more about your skin)
Extremely Dry Heels: soften them in three steps
See this post for your recipe.
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