"Natural" cleansers, and other hidden dangers.

Unrefined Shea butter from Ghana

A couple of years ago I had a small Tibetan phrase, a mantra of compassion, tattooed on the inside of my left wrist. I had no problems with the tattoo, it healed perfectly and it looks great.   When I got started on my second tattoo, a Chinese dragon, I was shocked that I had such a hard time healing.  Two days after the first session, I had a small rash on the inside of my arm that stayed away from the inked area.  It took nearly three weeks to go away, it itched and left behind some hyperpigmented spots.  I'm used to that. I put some salicylic acid on the spots to help them fade... more on that in a minute.  I deduced that I must have picked something up a virus or something at the skating rink that weekend and didn't think about the rash again.

After the second session,  I made an extra effort to be especially diligent about aftercare.  Again, I got a rash, only this time it covered my upper arm from my elbow to my neck.  I managed to get it to heal pretty well, but I did lose a little spot of ink in a couple of places. I continually erupted with tiny pinhead bumps wherever I had new ink, even after it was seemingly completely healed.  I was so careful to use an extra gentle unscented shower gel so I wouldn't aggravate the site, and an unscented "natural" lotion to keep it moist while it healed. The more careful I was, the worse it got. My allergist said I must be allergic to the ink, which was disappointing because I have one more session to go.  I looked at my specialty shower gel yesterday, which I haven't used since the tattoo three months ago, and I saw wheat in the ingredient list as  hydroxypropyltrimonium  hydrolyzed wheat protein, along with oat kernel flour, and PEG-20 almond glycerides.  On their website, the company boasts soy as one of their active ingredients.  Soy.  I was putting my big offenders straight into my bloodstream every time I washed.  I had blind trust in these words:  "And it's soap-free, dye-free, fragrance-free and hypoallergenic, so it's gentle enough for sensitive skin."

Back to the salicylic acid.  I've been battling acne for 21 years or so. I had tried nearly every product on the market targeted at breakouts. My doctor told me to use the Neutrogena line of products, and I did. I had fewer breakouts, but I still had them. My bigger problem was the marks left behind after they cleared up.  I was consistently left with a little spot that was a different color than the rest of my skin.  I tried more salicylic acid to help peel away my "uneven skin tone" and speed the renewal process.  My skin felt great, and it looked younger, but the spots wouldn't go away.  They actually got worse, and my breakouts were back.  I stumbled upon a wiki about it, and salicylic acid has been shown to cause skin discoloration, and there is such a thing as a salicylic acid sensitivity.  May 1st I quit using all of my existing facial products and switched to Neutrogena Extra Gentle Cleanser and unrefined Shea butter.  I highly recommend this Shea butter. I bought a 2 lb block 7 1/2 weeks ago and I still have 2/3 of it left. I use it twice a day on my face, neck, hands, feet, tattoo areas and anywhere else I think I need some extra moisture. My skin loves it.  It's great for every part of you.  My acne is no longer a "problem" and I'm not embarrassed in public or staying out of photos.  My spots are fading and I'm hoping by the the end of the summer I'll have a nice, even skin tone.