Skin Protection. Real Talk.

In the last few months, I’ve been to a bunch o’ places including Philadelphia, New York City and of course, my personal favorite, day trips down to the lake. As I was prancing about in flower-laden fields (okay perhaps I’m exaggerating) I was thankful to be outdoors and even happier for the sunshine. That is until I opened my email and read this: Did you know that Women ages 20-29 are the fastest growing segment of the population being diagnosed with Skin Cancer, especially Melanoma? 

Of course I panicked. Surely, I had to spring in to action. Alert the people. Sound the alarms. Didn’t I? I mean what kind of person would I be if I didn’t? Apathetic? Uncaring? Indifferent? Certainly, that wouldn’t do.

Enter the paranoia. Hats, check. Umbrellas, check. Spray-on sunscreen, check. Rub on sunscreen, check. Scented sunscreen, check. Tinted sunscreen–you get my drift. Fact is I went overboard. And that’s when this article   Skin Care 101 – Healthy Skin is Protected Skin was written.

In doing the research, I learned I didn’t have to wear 15 layers of sunscreen or a 2-foot brim hat in order to spend time outdoors. I could go outside, travel, spend time at the lake, prance around in the fields and it was okay–more importantly, I was okay. All I really had to do was make the protection of my skin a priority. What’s that look like? Well for one, I use a moisturizer + sunscreen in one, namely Eucerin. I know this may come as a shock but I absolutely can’t stand to lotion my skin. Heck if ashy skin didn’t look so dreadful, I’d forego lotion all together. But having an all-in-one lotion and sunscreen  product just makes my life easier. And it doesn’t cause my teens’ ezcema to flare up either.

So, no more sunscreen less trips outside. No more “eh, it’s cloudy, I’ll be fine without it.” And definitely, no more acting as though skin cancer is some distant, can’t touch me kind of thing. I love the outdoors just as much as you do, probably even more because I grew up in St. Croix. But loving the outdoors is not a reason to put the health of your skin second.

Now, who’s up for a little field prancing?

Note: I received Eucerin lotion samples as part of my partnership with the Eucerin Skin First Network, however the opinions in this post are my own. I’ve been a Eucerin user for 14 years.