How I’m Fighting First Trimester Breakouts with Clearista Retexturizing Gel

This is a sponsored post and contains affiliate links

Now that the word is out that I’m ‘expecting’, I wanted to share with you all something that I’m doing differently this time around to keep the breakouts at bay. When I was pregnant with H, my skin went c-r-a-z-y and totally haywire. I was breaking out more than I ever had, and it seemed like nothing my friends were recommending was working to stop the blemishes from surfacing. 

How I’m Fighting First Trimester Pregnancy Acne

This time around, I have a much better skin care regimen (that I talked about here), which has only been made even better by my recent discovery of Clearista Retexturizing Gel. As I’ve mentioned before, changing up my cleansers to Derma e’s Evenly Radiant Brightening cleanser and toner have done wonders for my skin. It has majorly evening out my skin tone and halved my breakouts. However, right before I found out I was pregnant, all of a sudden it was like I was back to being a hormonal greasy teenager – every 5 minutes I swear I’d feel a new zit surfacing, and it was not cute. Of course, to hide the blemishes, I was piling on more concealer to hide them, and it was a vicious circle.

I knew I had to either change my routine or find something new to help my first trimester skin issues, but I wasn’t willing to use any products that might be considered unsafe. One of the reasons I fell in love with Derma e is because of their all natural ingredients, so I wanted to find another company that prided themselves on using high-quality ingredients that were not only safe for my sensitive skin, but also safe for use during pregnancy.  

Clearista Retexturizing Gel

Clearista Retexturizing Gel has done wonders for my hormonal breakouts! I started using it mid-January and within the week I noticed my breakouts were fewer and further between. Now a month later, I’m still seeing the long term results and have added Clearista into my normal skincare routine and I definitely plan on continuing to use it. 

What is Clearista Retexturizing Gel?

It is a crazy cool way to retexture the outer surface of your skin. Clearista has a patented and clinically proven formula that ‘enables increased hydration and resurfacing upon application’ so you can expect an almost immediate and long lasting effect in the reduction of redness, blemishes and unevenness in your skin tone – not to mention it leaves my face incredibly soft. The best part about this Retexturizing Gel is the fact that it’s strong enough to be effective, but gentle enough so that my sensitive skin doesn’t get red or irritated after using it. So I get a great finishing touch to my cleanser that helps lock in moisture and gives me a little glow – the same glow that pregnancy is ‘supposed’ to give me, but never actually does. 

My biggest thing holding me back from trying Clearista Retexturizing Gel in the first place was the price. It is a $50+ product, which is a bit more of a splurge than I’m used to. However, I am so glad I took the plunge. The 3.0 fl. oz size will easily last me several months. So yes, its a bit steep BUT it has made my skin so much smoother and helped to keep it moisturized and keeps blemishes at bay. Thats definitely worth it to me!

As a side effect, I’ve noticed that I’m using less moisturizer since I don’t have as many dry spots, and I don’t use as much coverup and foundation since I don’t have as much redness, so I’m extending the life of my other products as well. 

How to use Clearista Retexturizing Gel:

Using it is a little different to get used to. I started off using Clearista Retexturizing Gel about every other day in the evenings before bed, just to see how my skin would react, and now use it about five times a week. 

1. First, wash your face as normal and then pat (read: PAT, not WIPE) skin dry.
2. Take about a dime size amount of Clearista Retexturizing Gel and gently massage the exfoliating gel on your face for about a minute. About 15 – 20 seconds per ‘zone’: forehead, cheek, nose, cheek, mouth + chin, and I always massage a little onto my neck as well.
3. Rinse the  Retexturizer off with warm water, pat skin dry.
4. Apply Toner, let that dry. I like Derma E Radiance Toner.
5. Massage a pea sized amount of serum onto both face and neck. I really like to use Radha Beauty’s Vitamin C and Hyaluronic Acid Serum.

As an added bonus, about once a week I use Clearista Retexturizing Gel as a mask instead of just as an exfoliate and rinse process. I take a generous amount of the Gel and cover my face (and neck!) and let it sit for about 10 minutes. After my time is up, I gently massage the Gel as I normally do and rinse it clean with warm water and finish with a hot towel over my face after I pat it dry. Using Clearista Retexturizing Gel as a mask definitely pumps up the moisture in my skin, so its great for dry sensitive skin, especially in the harsh winter months!

Benefits of Clearista Retexturizing Gel

If you’re like me and super conscious of the products you put on your skin, you’ll be happy to know that Clearista Retexturizing Gel contains no synthetic dyes or fragrances, is free from polyethylene and other microplastics, is cruelty free, hypoallergenic, made in the USA (California specifically), and is a scientifically proven and patented formula. I normally stay away from exfoliants after discovering that many aren’t environmentally friendly, however the jojoba esters exfoliants in the Clearista Retexturizing Gel are certified Ecobeads, which are a proven biodegradable exfoliant!  Just in case you’re not sure about it, rest assured in knowing that Clearest has a 30 day money back guarantee – so if you don’t see a difference in your skin within 30 days of starting to use Clearista Retexturizing Gel, they will issue you a full refund!