I buy most products myself. This post contains affiliate links. Full disclosure
Has your skin ever suddenly turned red, or broken out in tiny bumps all over, for no clear reason?
Especially in winter, when it’s cold and dry outside, and the heater makes it even drier inside?
That might be a damaged skin barrier. It happens to me a few times a year.
Here’s what it looks like on me, and exactly what I do to calm it down. For me, it usually takes about 3 to 4 days.
This post is for you if:
- Your skin suddenly gets red or bumpy, and you’re not sure why
- Your skin gets extra dry and irritated in winter
- You want a simple fix, not ten new products
If your skin is painful, swollen, or isn’t getting better, please see a dermatologist instead.
The short version:
- I soak Cloud Pads in sterile saline and leave them on my face for about 5 minutes.
- Then I use a barrier cream. For me, that’s Aestura Atobarrier 365.
- I keep my routine as minimal as possible until my skin recovers.
- I rest and take my vitamins. It usually takes me about 3 to 4 days to recover.
What Does a Damaged Skin Barrier Look Like?
On me, it shows up in two ways. Sometimes my skin suddenly turns really red.
And sometimes tiny bumps, like closed comedones, spread across my whole face.
It happens to me at most two or three times a year.
I am going to be honest here. I still don’t know exactly what causes it. What I have noticed is that it tends to happen when my body is tired.
When this first happened, I thought it was an allergy. I even took allergy medicine for it. But for me, treating it topically, right on my skin, seems to calm it down faster.
How to Calm It Down: My Saline and Cloud Pad Method
This is my go-to when my skin flares up. You only need two things.
1. NeilMed Wound Wash Sterile Saline
It’s just sterile saline. Nothing extra in it.
2. Clean Skin Club Cloud Pads
I bought these on Amazon, and I really love them. They are so soft and fluffy. They really feel like a cloud. And they’re truly frictionless on my skin.
The size is great too. That matters for how I use them.
How I Use Them
- Soak the Cloud Pads completely in the saline.
- Put one pad on each cheek.
- For the forehead and chin, I tear one pad in half and use a half on each.
- Leave them on for about 5 minutes.
After that, my skin calms down a bit.
I also use the saline-soaked pads to gently wipe my skin. Since the pads are so soft, there’s no rubbing or friction.
Just so you know, I’m not a dermatologist. This is only what works for my skin. If your skin doesn’t calm down, or it gets worse, please see a doctor or a dermatologist.
What to Use After: One Barrier Cream, Nothing New
Once my skin has calmed down a bit, I go in with a barrier cream.
I really, really recommend Aestura. A dermatologist friend recommended it to me when tiny bumps showed up on my skin, and I’ve trusted it ever since.
And here’s the most important part.
When your barrier is damaged, this is not the time to try new things. Focus on the barrier, and use products with as few chemicals as possible.
Your skin is already tired from fighting a broken barrier. If you start trying new products, or layering a bunch of different things, your skin just gets more tired. That’s what I’ve learned with mine.
Minimal products. Minimal chemicals.
How to Protect Your Barrier All Winter
Winter is the hardest season for my skin. In summer, at least it isn’t dry outside. In winter, there’s no break. Dry air outside, and dry air inside.
These are the things that help me most:
- Use more moisturizer than usual. I apply more than my usual amount in winter.
- Use more mist. The heater dries out my skin, so I mist more than I would in other seasons.
- Rest. My barrier tends to break down when my body is tired.
- Take your vitamins. Taking my vitamins and giving myself time to recover helps.
I wrote more about this mist and how I use it in my moisturizer post.
Final Thoughts
A damaged skin barrier is frustrating. Especially when you don’t know why it happened.
But it doesn’t have to be complicated. For me, it usually gets better in about 3 to 4 days: saline and Cloud Pads, one barrier cream, nothing new, and rest.
Does your skin get worse in winter too? I’d love to hear what helps you!
Want to Read More?
- Tight After Washing but Oily by Morning? It Might Be Dehydration
- Hydrating vs. Moisturizing: Why Thicker Cream Didn’t Fix My Dry Skin
- Why I Skip Fragrance on My Face (It’s Not Because of a Reaction)
Hands getting dry too? 💧 11 Hand Creams I Tried for Dry Hands, Honestly Rated Out of 10
Thank you for reading my post today! Hope you found something helpful 🙂
Sincerely,
Hazel 🙂
Disclosure: I buy most products myself. Some were gifts from friends or family, and I’ll always tell you when. No brand has ever paid me or sent me anything to review. Some links in this post are affiliate links, so if you buy through them I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. It never changes what I recommend. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
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