You screwed up and actually burned your skin when you spent the entire day outdoors. Sure, you may have slathered on some sunscreen, but this may not have been enough. Instead of reprimanding yourself, you can choose to do something about it. You may have aged your skin by a couple of months, but as long as you know that you need to be more careful the next time around, you can also fix some of the damaged you caused. You need to come up with a rescue plan, and lucky for you, you do have options available right now.
If it hurts and your skin is swollen, you need to take aspirin or ibuprofen. These meds work by reducing inflammation, which means that they ease the irritation and redness that are your body’s first responses to a serious burn. The catch is, you have to take them within 24 hours of getting fried. Otherwise, the redness can actually cause permanent damage.
Then, you need to moisturize like crazy. Lotion infused with an anti-inflammatory like aloe vera will decrease the flakiness you are likely to experience, as the redness from your bad burn turns into peeling and itchy skin. Slather it on as often as possible because it’ll feel cool and soothing. After that, don’t forget to use sunscreen religiously. Blocking UV light exposure gives skin time to heal and your immune system a chance to repair some of the damage. In fact, experts suggest that zealously using sunscreen with an SPF of at least 15 can keep precancerous cell changes you’ve already racked up from progressing. Continue reading ‘Sun Burn Rejuvenation Tips’ »