When it comes to healing your skin, trusting the process is more difficult to do when you don’t understand what’s happening with your skin, or have a real plan for getting clear. Many clients come to me after having tried everything available over the counter, every crazy skincare routine on Tik Tok and IG, and every unhealthy suggestion from someone with naturally clear skin.

That’s because your skincare routine becomes more effective when you connect with your unique skin needs with understanding and patience. Healing and clearing the skin happens in stages over time, meaning your skincare routine will change as you go through each stage. 

Phase 1: Skincare for your skin type

Your journey to clearer skin starts with treating it based on the main challenge you have: whether it’s your skin being too dry or too oily. We start here because your skin’s protective barrier needs to be restored to a healthy state for us to tackle any problem, and oiliness and/or dryness are the key symptoms that tell us what your skin needs most immediately. 

In a lot of cases, simply restoring the skin’s protective barrier can be enough to clear acne and discoloration. If your skin is oily, you may be experiencing breakouts due to clogged pores. Correcting the oiliness reduces the clogged pores and the number of breakouts. If your skin is dry, it can become irritated and inflamed. Restoring moisture calms the inflammation, and the skin begins to heal and appear brighter and more radiant.

Everything starts with knowing your skin type. We can’t skip this step!

Take our skin quiz to identify your skin type.

Phase 2: Dealing with skin breakouts

Once we stabilize the skin’s barrier, we can begin narrowing down the cause of breakouts like acne, eczema, and psoriasis. We use internal and external tactics to get them under control. For example, your esthetician may recommend a salicylic acid gel for your AM routine and cream at night to treat breakouts from the outside, and have you try removing certain acne-causing foods, laundry detergents, and lifestyle habits for 30 days to narrow down your triggers. 

Phase 3: Clearing hyperpigmentation and dark spots

Now we’re ready to even the skin tone. Dark spots and old acne scarring can be frustrating and many of my clients want to skip straight to skin brightening. However, if we haven’t cleared up the breakouts that are causing the hyperpigmentation first, then we’re just going in circles.

When your skin’s barrier is healthy and your breakouts are under control, it’s easier to fade dark spots for good. This is where your esthetician may switch up your routine to focus on products made with ingredients that specifically target dark spots.

Stage 4: Maintaining clear skin

Your skin is adequately hydrated, the breakouts are gone, and you’ve faded all of your hyperpigmentation. Welcome to clear and cocky!

All of your consistency has paid off, but it isn’t over yet. In fact, it’s never over because maintaining clear skin is a lifestyle. Your AM and PM routine are part of your everyday self care, like brushing your teeth. You repeat the steps everyday to keep your skin healthy and looking your best.

Keep in mind the occasional breakout may happen. Cold sores. Over-indulgences that show up on our face. Skipping your PM routine.

But know that you know the order that works best for clearing the skin, you’re prepared to get clear and cocky again every time.