BEAUTY ADVICE: SKINTERVENTION

SKINTERVENTION:  BEAUTY ADVICE FROM AMY WECHSLER FROM AN ARTICLE AT ELLE MAGAZINE, NOVEMBER 2012

 

Amy Wechsler, MD is Chanel's newest team member, who will bring a refreshingly scientific approach to mind-body skin cures.  She is a board-certified dermatologist and psychiatrist (two doctorates that is one of just two in the country).

 

SKINTERVENTION OF AMY WECHSLER, MD

 

"I can tell when someone hasn't  been getting enough sleep, or if she's been around secondhand smoke.  It could be the dullness of her skin, acne, or more lines and wrinkles.  A lot of women in their twenties, they're burning the candle at both ends.  They're partying really hard.  They come to me to undo the damage, asking for Botox and fillers when they don't need them.  They just need to get more sleep and stop smoking.  They'll see a difference in a week."

 

 
"If you've got a line that's familial-something your mom had, like between your eyebrows and it's already etching itself in, we can cure you of it, and you won't need Botox there after a few years.  We use just a teeny bit; we call it "baby Botox."

 

 

"Any activity that decreases cortisol and the other stress molecules can minimize the damage on the skin.  Yoga and massage work, but not for everyone.  For example, yoga hurts my joints.  And topical acne medications, over-the-counter ones with benzoyl peroxide or salicylic acid or prescription retinoids, can also help."

 

 





"Humming releases nitric acid, which speeds healing.  I think it also increases your endorphins.  And humming can help with pain, more than a stress ball.  During procedures, you'll  see patients gripping stress balls, their shoulders all hunched.  But when those same patients try singing or humming, they totally relax."
 
"I'm not high-maintenance, I promise!  But I have a body towel, a dedicated hair towel, and a separate face towel.  When I was a teenager and had bad acne, my dermatologist said, "Never get your hair oil on your face, ever!"

 

"I was a real skeptic because I tried, like, 50 of them, and most don't do what they say they do.  First at all, it should never irritate the skin around the eye, the most sensitive skin on the body.  Number two, it has to be extremely moisturizing.  Number three, it has to address fine lines.  They aren't that many out there that do all three.  I love Chanel Sublimage because it works.  And regular Vaseline is a good alternative for people who can't afford Sublimage or just want the very basic.

 





"Applying safflower oil topically can boost your skin's stores of linoleic acid, a natural moisturizer.  Only two oils are primary linoleic acid - olive and safflower - but the problem with olive oil is you smell like a salad."

 



"There's a huge psychological component to a purchase, be it a lipstick, a bag, whatever it is.  There's something about spending money on ourselves that is a huge self-esteem booster.  Patients say, "Do you think it's worth it?"  I ask if they like it, how it makes them feel.  And they love that cream; it has a special significance for them.  And I think that's real."