Fine Laugh Lines: help for a newbie?
EDS Skin Care Forums Forum Index » Skin Care and Makeup Forum

Sun Oct 14, 2012 8:23 pm

Ok, so I'll preface this post/thread by stating that I'm new to the forums, so I hope that I'm not being utterly repetitive by asking these questions. I did perform the search to see if I could find some information, but I'm pretty new so I got easily overwhelmed Confused

My question is about laugh lines, more specifically what successes people have had at diminishing the fine lines. Granted, I'm only 23. However, I played soccer since I was only 5, up until I was 19, so during all of that time in the sun it was unavoidable that I would gain -some- skin damage. Sadly, the laugh lines seem to be the most prominent damage and something that I hate more than anything. They're fine lines, no folding of the skin or deep set wrinkles, but I don't want them to progress to that stage.
Currently my skin care regimen is kind of...simple. I've been battling some acne (hormone related, I believe), so I use a manual skin brush with foaming acne medication (gentle, not harsh), and then some OTC retinol skin serum, and an organic skin cream (mostly for moisture, since my skin can be a bit dry). The retinol has been helping with the acne and resurfacing my skin a bit, not to mention some old acne scars, but...in way of the laugh lines, eh. It's not bad, but not doing more for them as I would have liked.

I've been interested in the idea of facial exercises, but I've heard mixed reviews on which regimen to follow. Carolyn's facial fitness was one that I thought may be the best for me, and a good preventive measure, but I don't want an exercise program that would make the lines more pronounced. I've heard of that happening on a few other ones :\
I've been trying to exfoliate more as well, though I admit that I don't do it as often as I should. I've heard of the Galvanic Facial instruments that you can use at home (Tei Spa has one that I saw recently), but really I'm an obvious novice with all of this. I also don't want anything that would be insanely expensive, since I'm a grad student, nor am I looking for botox. That isn't something I'm interested in, especially for only being 23.

If anyone has any suggestions for products, tools, facial exercise programs, oils, natural products, etc., I would so greatly appreciate it! Thanks Smile

free skin care · Sun Oct 14, 2012 9:26 pm

dainaleeo2 wrote:

Ok, so I'll preface this post/thread by stating that I'm new to the forums, so I hope that I'm not being utterly repetitive by asking these questions. I did perform the search to see if I could find some information, but I'm pretty new so I got easily overwhelmed Confused

My question is about laugh lines, more specifically what successes people have had at diminishing the fine lines. Granted, I'm only 23. However, I played soccer since I was only 5, up until I was 19, so during all of that time in the sun it was unavoidable that I would gain -some- skin damage. Sadly, the laugh lines seem to be the most prominent damage and something that I hate more than anything. They're fine lines, no folding of the skin or deep set wrinkles, but I don't want them to progress to that stage.
Currently my skin care regimen is kind of...simple. I've been battling some acne (hormone related, I believe), so I use a manual skin brush with foaming acne medication (gentle, not harsh), and then some OTC retinol skin serum, and an organic skin cream (mostly for moisture, since my skin can be a bit dry). The retinol has been helping with the acne and resurfacing my skin a bit, not to mention some old acne scars, but...in way of the laugh lines, eh. It's not bad, but not doing more for them as I would have liked.

I've been interested in the idea of facial exercises, but I've heard mixed reviews on which regimen to follow. Carolyn's facial fitness was one that I thought may be the best for me, and a good preventive measure, but I don't want an exercise program that would make the lines more pronounced. I've heard of that happening on a few other ones :\
I've been trying to exfoliate more as well, though I admit that I don't do it as often as I should. I've heard of the Galvanic Facial instruments that you can use at home (Tei Spa has one that I saw recently), but really I'm an obvious novice with all of this. I also don't want anything that would be insanely expensive, since I'm a grad student, nor am I looking for botox. That isn't something I'm interested in, especially for only being 23.

If anyone has any suggestions for products, tools, facial exercise programs, oils, natural products, etc., I would so greatly appreciate it! Thanks Smile

Hi dainaleeo and welcome. I think the 3 most popular products (with clinical research behind them) that most people like on EDS are Retin A, some kind of Vitamin C serum and a good sunscreen (a lot of people like the physical ones).

You are already using a retinol product. Retin A will be stronger and may or may not be overkill at your age. There are tons of threads on EDS about Retin A if you do a search. It is prescription only if you are in the US. Some countries you can by it over the counter. There are lots of people that order from a company calledwww.alldaychemist. If you decide to order from them be careful there has been some credit card fraud from them so it is best to use a prepaid credit card.

You don't seem to be using any Vitamin C product. There are tons of these available. Some very expensive. Some cheap. I am using a brand called Mad Hippie that I like. You can save a lot of money by DIYing you own. Here is a link if you want to read about that.

http://www.essentialdayspa.com/forum/viewthread.php?tid=11902

You can buy a semi ready made from SkinActives. A lot of people order from them. I have not used this one but I'm sure you can do a search here and fine some reviews on it.

http://www.skinactives.com/Vitamin-C-Serum-Ascorbic-Acid-L.html

The last thing is sunscreen. The number one cause of aging is the sun. Everyone seems to have their own opinion on which type and brand of sunscreen to use. I tend to use the physical ones because I do think they are better for you but some people don't like the feel or "whiteness" of them. Unfortunately the more cosmetically elegant one tend to be more expensive. 2 brands that are popular here are Burnout and Devita.

http://www.essentialdayspa.com/forum/viewthread.php?tid=38705

http://www.essentialdayspa.com/forum/viewthread.php?tid=31436

As far as facial exercise is concerned I can't really help you. I have bought 2 different programs but haven't really done either of them but there are a lot of different people that have gotten really great results with them here. You are really young still so I would look for a program that isn't hard core. I am not sure what age you should start face exercises. So you might wont to make sure that you are not too young.

I don't think that you would get that much use/help out of a galvanic instrument at you age.

As far as exfoliating at your age you skin should still be turning over fairly quickly (maybe around every 21 days) Just be careful you don't do it too much. Make sure you are always washing off your makeup at night even when your really tired and eating healthy really can make a big difference in how your skin looks. Make sure you drink enough water also. Good luck.

Sun Oct 14, 2012 9:55 pm

CookieD wrote:

Hi dainaleeo and welcome. I think the 3 most popular products (with clinical research behind them) that most people like on EDS are Retin A, some kind of Vitamin C serum and a good sunscreen (a lot of people like the physical ones).

Oh thanks for all of the info! Smile

& I realized that I accidentally used an 'o' in my username instead of a zero Laughing

silly me.
Anyway, I was thinking about going to the derm in order to get a perscription for Retin-A, since the serum that I have is made with retinyl palmitate, which I hear is not as strong as Retin-A. Though, it has been working on my acne scars & some breakouts, so at least it's doing a good job in that respect Smile

Better than nothing! & a good way to ease my skin into it, since my skin can be temperamental & quite sensitive when it wants to be.

I do need to invest in a good sunscreen, since I normally rely on my makeup for that part, though it's low at only SPF 6. Though, luckily I don't go outdoors much, other than to walk my dog, since most days I'm at work or at school. I've avoided the sun like a plague ever since my athletic days.
I forgot that I do somewhat use a vitamin C product...more or less. After cleansing I will usually either apply lemon juice directly to my skin, or mix it with a bit of water if my skin feels extra sensitive. I'm not really sure if this would qualify, but since vit. C is in lemons...I only assumed. It's merely been helping with lightening the past acne scars & brightening my skin overall. I normally leave it on for roughly a half hour before washing it off, then applying coconut oil & my moisturizer. I may try to make my own though! Smile

Thanks for the helpful link on that!

I wasn't sure on the facial exercises either, since I get mixed reviews. Some say I shouldn't bother, some say that it's good to start young. I was looking for something gentle, & I've incorporated facial massages, so I may stick with that.
I normally use the skin brush to manually cleanse my skin, which does a good enough job at exfoliating on it's own, so I generally don't use another exfoliant over that. My skin just has a tendency to look awfully drab, probably due in part to my occasional smoking habit (awful, I know). I'm going to try drinking more green smoothies, since I did find another thread about laugh lines & a lot of people found some success starting with nutrition. So hopefully that & some of the suggestions you've made will help! Thanks so much Smile

free skin care · Sat Oct 20, 2012 5:05 am

dainaleeo2: There are 2 things that I would like to comment on:-

One of the bad habit to avoid is smoking as this is not good for your health. It affects the liver and also skin/body dehydrates more when you smoke causing lines and wrinkles.... For now, you won't see it much, but as you grow older, the lines around your mouth will be wrinkly and of course tar-tar buildup for smoking. If you can stop smoking at your age now, your skin will thank you for it.

Try to use a sunscreen of at least SPF30 not SPF6, the higher the better to further protect your skin.

Everything else, cookieD gave you some great suggestions....

Automatic Message

If this is your first visit to the EDS Forums please take the time to register. Registration is required for you to post on the forums. Registration will also give you the ability to track messages of interest, send private messages to other users, participate in Gift Certificates draws and enjoy automatic discounts for shopping at our online store. Registration is free and takes just a few seconds to complete.

Click Here to join our community.

If you are already a registered member on the forums, please login to gain full access to the site.