h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

ok, didn't know where else to post this question. i did a search, actually several searches through h2g2 and it doesn't seem that anyone has given any advise on this subject yet....
Dry Skin...it is driving me NUTS! i finish showering and right away soak down in baby oil while my skin is still wet...once i dry off i lather lotion all over (tons of it) but still no matter what lotion or oil i have used the dry skin comes back...within 5 to 10 minutes of applying this stuff you can see the alligator skin appearing again...it is not bad enough that i have dry skin but now it is quite cold outside which makes it worse...
does anyone out there have any suggestions on helping tone down the dry skin???
Monsy

btw, i use a liquid soap for dry skin when bathing instead of regular bar soap as the regular bar soap can make the dry skin even worse than it already is...
Monsy

Are you sure it's not psoriasis or eczema?

Could it be that you're just too fastidious and clean Monsy? One of my brothers showers 3 times a day. It's too much. Your skin has natural oils (or it should have, at least). If you keep washing them out, your skin will get dry. You can try to replace your skin's own natural oils with oil from a bottle, but it won't be as good. Some people are afflicted with particularly dry skin and they can ill afford to wash out the small amount of natural oil their skin is able to produce, too often. If you're not washing out the oil from your skin too often, try moisturizing cream. Anita Rodick (think that's how you spell her name) - the woman who started the "Body Shop" says moisturising cream works whereas all the other expensive goo is just a crock. I would tend to believe her. All the cosmetic producers were up in arms about what she said - probably a good sign.

Check you don't have a medical condition.
Take fewer showers like Salamnder suggested.
Have you tried Vaseline?
Joan Collins says that the only beauty aid you need is vaseline as it is cheap and really protects
your skin.I reckon if it's good enough for a baby's bum then it's good enough for my various bits and pieces.

Dont use baby oil! And dont use vaseline! They are both mineral oils, and are NOT absorbed by the skin. Vaseline in particular is used to prevent moisure passing, not to increase the levels in the skin. Also I wouldn't put it past Joan Collins to say something completely untrue, knowing that we will all beleive her, just out of evil bitch-ery.

I was getting dry and rough skin. *smiles brightly* Now I use the moisturising shower creams, Oil of Ulay do one, and so do Dove. *holds product up to camera* You use them in the shower, and scrub them on and off with a bungy plastic netting thing. *smiles again* They really do work. *camera focuses on product and reasuring male voice comes up with the strap line* "Moisurising shower creams with bungy plastic netting things. They really do work".

In Stockholm I was getting even drier skin than normal, so I bought some Nivea Body lotion for slapping on afterwards. That made a noticable difference too. Clarins to a good one, which is expensive, and smells fresh and slightly sporty. And Yves Saint Laurent do one called Absolus Contours which is actually for cellulite, but which is (a) extortionately expensive and (b) worth every single penny. But most days I only use it on the orange-peel, though I do use it all over on special occasions. *grins salaciously*

While you are applying all that cream, try rehydrating the skin from the inside. Drink lots of water and less of the drinks with sodium. That includes alcohol

Do we get a close-up of that bungy plastic netting thing? I've never seen one before...

9 out of 10 doctors say - take fewer showers and spend less money on moisturising cream.

Better still... Give up cigarettes, hashish, alcohol, caffeine, and anything else that's bad for you. And then go and live on some remote mountainside for the rest of your life, away from people and their silly cosmetic fads. The chances of survival are slightly higher than for the rest of us...

Do you know the red plastic netting bags that satsumas and clementines are sometimes packed in? It is that sort of netting, but usually a hygenic white, though I have seen them themed to match the decor in your bathroom - if you have that sort of bathroom, that is.

There is enough of this netting stuff scrunched up to form a good sized handful, and they come free with the bottles of stuff, or you can buy them separately. Though it grieves me to pay a quid to buy something from one end of the shop, that they give away free wrapped around fruit at the other end of the shop. There must be scope for ironic comments about orange peel skin here too. Ain't cellulite a bugger!

WOW! i must say that while i was away busy with christmas things around here you were all quite busy bees helping me with suggestions to my problem ...ok, let's see...top to bottom with comments:
showering habits- i shower once a day, normally in the mornings before work
baby oil- yep, guilty...i do use it...always thought that maybe it would help but from what one suggestion stated it might not be doing anything at all to help
vasoline- tried that and all that happened was my clothes stuck to my skin due to the coating of vasoline must say it was quite an experience LOL!!
scrunchy sponges- swear by them haven't used a regular washcloth in years...the scrunchy sponges seem to create much more lather than the washclothes with much less product applied to them
bath gels, liquid soaps- been using all kinds of them including the dove liquid and oil of olay liquid...i can say that they do help but don't seem to do it all
lotions- you name it i've tried it...
drinking-ok, not to shock those of you who have known me on h2g2 for quite awhile now but believe it or not in real life i don't drink...that massive headache you get the next morning tends to turn me off of the stuff
water- you mean there is another drink out there? just kidding, i normally drink water while at work then when i get home i will drink either water, orange juice or a couple of glasses of tea (no sugar)
in the morning i drink about 1/2 to 1 cup of coffee depending on the morning
orange peel skin- some sort of torchure for things we must of done as children
cellulite-let's just skip that one as i could go on and on LOL!!
maybe i just need to move to a different region, one that doesn't have such a large fluxuation in the temps. i mean one day we are at 70F and the next we are at 15F or we go from 40F to 95F in the course of one evening...i think that might put a great amount of strain on anyones skin
thank-you for the adive though and i will try removing babyoil from my daily ritual and also try a few of the creams that were suggested
Monsy

Just to stick my tuppence worth in...

Two other things you could try. Aloe Vera gel - not the body lotions with Aloe Vera in but pure extract gel - more widely available in health food shops than chemists round here. Its lovely and soothing, especially if you skin itches , good for sunburn too. Also kind if your skin is sensitive. For something really rich, try cocoa butter - again try to find a lotion with mostly cocoa butter in, some of the ones on sale only have tiny amonts in.

And here's my two drachmars...

Lubriderm is great. Vitamin E capsules are better. And an added bonus effect of vitamin E is that if you use it often enough, stretch marks get less visible.

Try to find some vitamin E in a gel form. They usually look like little yellow drops of rain. If you see them, you'll know what I mean.

I think you should approach this problem scientifically Monsy. Showering once a day doesn't sound excessive but you probably have naturally dry skin and once a day might be too much for you. Remember that up until about 40 or 50 years ago almost nobody bathed more than once a week. In the village where I live, water had to be hand-pumped up from wells, fetched indoors in buckets and heated in pans. My aunt tells me that when they were kids, not only was bath night an occasion, but they only got a clean pair or pants once a week. She said the kids might have been a bit whiffy but since they all smelled the same, nobody noticed. Also remember that it's not just your skin's own natural oils you're washing out, it's also beneficial bacteria. Yes, it's true, don't screw up your nose like that. There really are good bacteria that help to keep your skin free of nasty bacteria that would do you harm if they could just get a foothold.

Anyway, this is what I think you should do. Cut down your regular showering to maybe once or twice a week. Wash as often as necessary - but ONLY the bits that are dirty. Use moisturising creams as Sue and A Girl called Ben have suggested. Drink plenty of water as Zorpheus suggested. Eat as much fresh fruit and veg as you can stand. See how it goes for 2 or 3 months.

Good luck.

.... and use lots of deodorant!

As far as "commercial products" go there are a few out there that are wonderful. All available in some form or other from the Body Shop, but similar products can be found elsewhere. Since I'm sort of a Body Shop addict I'll suggest theirs.

Body shop makes a solid cake they refer to as a "massage bar". I use this right after showering. For particularly dry skin areas (sometimes pretty much everywhere) I love their Mango Body Butter. Unfortunately so does my dog! I've also heard their hemp products are excellent but have yet to try them.

Another suggestion... you may want to try showering just before bed instead of in the morning and slathering yourself with your favorite assortment of the stuff listed in this thread and getting your night clothes on (or whatever). If you've got to have bath oil the Body Shop has an excellent base oil as do most natural food stores.

One other product (and not by the Body Shop even) that I adore is Body Drench lotion. You can get it in any tanning salon or in most beauty supply shops. While I don't tan it's still a wonderful product.

Now for cellulite (or as I prefer to call it, "hail damage") I can't help you.

Good luck!

showering once or twice a week? well, i think that my family would kick me out of the house if i did that so i think i am going to have to try another cure for the dry skin... and as for the deodorant, i don't think all the deodorant in the world would help if i did happen to try that one LOL!! i do realize that showering everyday is not needed but it seems to be a habit which i don't think i will be able to break
the body shop products...haven't tried those yet but we do have our fair shair of body shops around here so i will give them a try...you did mention a few products i had not heard of before, thank-you
showering before bed then lathering up with a lotion of some sort...now why didn't i think of that? will give it a try.
thank-you everyone for your advice, it is much appreciated
Monsy

And a quick one from your friendly local Pharmacy, we would normally recommend E45 cream (They also do soaps, shower gels etc.) as a first step. There are other brands available. If that has some effect but not enough, there are more products available, but a chat with your doctor would be wise if E45 is having no effect at all.

Be careful: E45 can aggravate skin conditions (especially eczema - I know one man with bad eczema whose skin flares up like a burn if he gets any of thet stuff on it).

The reason some people have problem with E45 is that it contains lanolin (an extract from sheeps wool I believe) which a lot of people (including me) react badly too. If you have sensitive skin at all I would recommend avoiding anything with it in. Same goes for perfumes and colourings too. I have psoriosis combined with dry and sensitive skin - trust me on this, I've been though just about everything on the market!

Try oatmeal-based soaps and lotions if you have dry-but-sensitive skin. It's a very gentle and natural way to cleanse and soften the skin. Aveeno, a popular brand, is sold in grocery stores all over the States. Homemade is best because you can avoid any additives or chemicals. In addition, oatmeal products lather up incredibly, providing lots of bubbles!