A woman who suffered from rosacea since her university years has found a way to manage her symptoms through her diet.
Lex Gillies, who blogs under the pseudonym Talonted Lex, first noticed symptoms of the condition while she was studying, but put them down to a typical student lifestyle.
As she entered the world of work, however, Lex became more and more self conscious about the redness in her face, with one employer even suggesting that she was blushing because she ‘fancied’ him.
‘At first I didn’t know how to deal with my skin, I had horrible pimples and oily skin combined with dry, scaly patches that would glow bright red,’ she told Mail Online.
‘After I found out there wasn’t a cure for rosacea I was devastated, the condition was ruining my life.
‘My face looked like a tomato and it was impossible to tell when the flare-ups would happen.’
Doctors assessed her symptoms and found that she had particular triggers for her flare-ups, including stress, hot drinks, hot showers, alcohol, spicy food and extreme temperatures, meaning that winter became ‘the worst time of year’.
‘Going from the warm indoors to freezing temperatures outside would turn my face bright red,’ Lex explains.
She spent years covering her rosacea with make up, and as a beauty blogger learned to hide the redness efficiently — but still people made comments, with some even asking if she was sunburnt.
‘Most people are mortified when I reply to their jibes with, «no it’s an incurable skin condition but thanks for drawing attention to it»,’ she said.
Working under the advice of a new doctor, Lex began researching possible treatments for rosacea, focusing mainly on reducing her stress levels — one of the major influencing factors — and cutting certain foods out of her diet.
And to her amazement, it worked — after managing stress and getting rid of gluten, she says she now only has flare-ups around twice a month.
‘I am finally comfortable with the way I look,’ she says.
Now Lex focuses on recommending products for people with similarly sensitive skin through her blog.
’10 years of constantly testing skincare, trying out make up and trialling diet and lifestyle changes in order to control my rosacea means that I am able to offer advice and support for those of you dealing with similar issues,’ she writes.
