A Gutsy Girl

Heal your gut. Heal your life.

perioral dermatitis

10 Resources Alternative Uses Earth Mama Angel Baby

Filed Under: Inspire, Love, Raising Baby, Unprocessed, Wellness Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Today I have 10 resources alternative uses Earth Mama Angel Baby.

{Disclosure: I am part of the #EarthMama Blogger Ambassador Campaign in which I am a financially compensated blogger for Earth Mama Angel Baby.  All opinions are my own and based on my own experience.}

The Earth Mama Angel Baby products have been good to Samarah….real good to Samarah.

But here’s a little secret I’ve been hiding –> they have been real good to me as well.

After the Nipple Butter post, someone commented to me on Facebook, “I used that nipple butter with both my boys and is absolutely the best product hands down!!!! It is unreal!!! I also still use it for cracked and dry feet on everyone in my family, dry cuticles and elbows! I can’t say enough amazing things about this stuff!!”

That had me thinking about the Earth Mama Angel Baby products in a whole new way, alternative ways.

Since their products are safe and contain zero toxins or chemicals, it only makes sense that I could use them in many different ways. These past couple weeks, I have been doing my research and due diligence. I have personally tested out 2 “applications,” and I have compiled a ton of alternative ideas/uses.

10 Resources Alternative Uses Earth Mama Angel Baby

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10 alternative uses and resources for using natural Earth Mama Angel Baby

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10 Resources alternative uses Earth Mama Angel Baby via www.sarahkayhoffman.com

Natural Nipple Butter

  1. Homemade Eczema Cream (via Good Girl Gone Green)
  2. Beach Vacation Essentials (via Mindfully Frugal Mom -> Oh. My. Gosh. = “Lipple” Butter. This is just far too fantastic!)

Earth Mama Angel Calming Lavendar Soap and Wash www.agutsygirl.com

Organic Castile Soaps

  1. 10 Frugal Household Uses for Castile Soap (via Whole Food Mom on a Budget)
  2. Nectarines & a Swimsuit = Yikes (via Dig Deep, Play Hard –> this is super cool! p.s. Wanna see deliciousness in her own swimsuit?! You’re welcome.)
  3. Homemade Soft Scrub Recipe + 12 More Awesome Uses for Castile Soap (via Happy Mothering)
  4. DIY Non Toxic Cleaning Recipes (via Mama Pure)
  5. Lavender Vanilla DIY Foot Spa Treatment (via The Eco Chic –> Foot spa?! Stat.)

Angel Baby Bottom Balm

  1. The Natural Medicine Cabinet (via Mama Pure –> she uses and mentions several products/uses in this post, but I just chose this one for “Rashes/Skin Irritation”)
  2. Non-Toxic First-Aid Makeover (via Green Moms Collective)

Angel Baby Oil

  1. Homemade Baby Wipes

Earth Mama Angel Baby Natural Nipple Butter www.agutsygirl.com

These last few weeks have come full circle. Turns out the Nipple Butter may be just what my skin needs.

After I found out all the ways people use it, I started using it on my ring finger. I am, for some unknown reason, just now allergic to my Engagement and Wedding rings. I get a horrible, itchy rash from time-to-time. I took the rings off for just a couple of days and applied the Nipple Butter a couple times per day in very modest amounts.

I am, already, able to put the rings back on tomorrow. No rash in sight!

Ring Finger Healing with Earth Mama Angel Baby Natural Nipple Butter www.agutsygirl.com

Furthermore, I have been using the Nipple Butter on my face, gently and in modest amounts as well to see if it might help with the Perioral Dermatitis. I am unashamed when it comes to showing my face without makeup and completely raw because this is how I live most every single day but look….

Perioral Dermatitis Update from using Earth Mama Angel Baby Nipple Butter via www.agutsygirl.com Skin

Far from perfect, but if you compare it to these same images HERE, it’s like night and day! Some of those blemishes are from the nasty Aunt who just made her un-welcomed visit 🙂 And just to be clear, most women have several of their own little facial funsies – the difference is makeup. (Side note: I am still on the hunt for an amazing, natural makeup line. Anyone?!)

I truly believe that to completely, 100% get rid of the Perioral Dermatitis, I’m going to need something stronger from my doctor at the beginning of September, but the combination the Nipple Butter + GAPS are really doing something for me.

I am grateful to have found the Earth Mama Angel Baby products. I am most excited about the fact that this “campaign” reminded me that quality products provide quality in a multitude of ways and that experimenting with these new ways is not only fun, but can bring about new ah-ha’s.

I will be an Earth Mama forever, and Sam will be my Angel Baby.

Together we are going to make the perfect little “Earth Mama Angel Baby” team.

Xox,
SKH

Again, please remember that this post was created as part of the #EarthMama Blogger Ambassador Campaign in which I am a financially compensated blogger ambassador for Earth Mama Angel Baby. 

Brazen and Learning to Live Without Fear

Filed Under: Gut Healing, Inspire, Love, Wellness Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

This post is about brazen and learning to live without fear.

What’s wrong with your face?

Those 5 words are words I’ve feared hearing since my Perioral Dermatitis came back with a vengeance. I have been telling friends and complaining to Ryan how I hated going out in public because my face looks so awful. I’d try covering up with makeup, but that only made it worse.

Let’s rewind a minute. Back in the beginning of April, I told you I would heal my Perioral Dermatitis naturally.

It has been just over 3 months. Not only am I not better, I have gotten worse.

Perioral Dermatitis and owning it vs. fearing it Brazen via www.agutsygirl.com

I have felt ashamed, and I have felt an immense amount of fear on so many different levels.

So when someone spoke those 5 words to me this past weekend, I was embarrassed. Those weeks of bottled fear had come to fruition. But then a funny thing happened, I felt relieved.

Brazen and Learning to Live Without Fear

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Why? Because that was my biggest fear, and when those words were spoken I realized just how ridiculous that fear was.

A couple moments later, I looked down on my right hand. And there it was, flashing at me….

Brazen and Learning to Live Without Fear own it via www.agutsygirl.com

#Brazen is not my thing. The #Brazen belongs to Carla Birnberg, but I have been wearing this bracelet for several weeks now and yet I have been ashamed.

With a million changes in my life currently, this physical manifestation is my body’s way of saying,

You’re done with too much. Delete. Get rid of. Destroy the fear. Stop being everything for everyone. Start being something for a few. 

I do not regret all of the changes I’ve made with my personal care items, but I am more confident than ever that something else is going on. (There was. It was SIBO. See the bottom of this post.)

I finally made the doctor’s appointment I’ve been needing to make, thanks to a great friend and her referral of an Eastern meets Western doctor in the North Bay.

But here’s the thing…..I can’t get in until September.

A week ago that would not have been okay with me. I would have feared those 5 ridiculous words for the next 2 months.

But now?

In public – no makeup.

with Periorial Dermatitis and my Peekepoo Fiona www.agutsygirl.com

At home – no makeup.

Brazen and Learning to Live Without Fear www.agutsygirl.com Adoption

In everything I do, with everything I give….I refuse to be ashamed, but instead brazen.

I am Brazen.

And this is who I am.

Xox,
SKH

p.s. I would learn later that the Perioral Dermatitis was related to my undiagnosed (for years likely) SIBO (that I was diagnosed with a few months after I wrote this original post.) You must believe in the gut-skin connection. Click HERE  to read more about it. In 2017, I really began to address fear. Like, REALLY began to address it – check out – Brazen Trail Racing.

Replacing My Personal Care Products and How I Will Heal Perioral Dermatitis Naturally

Filed Under: IBS IBD, Inspire, Unprocessed, Wellness Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Perioral Dermatitis….it all comes back to the gut, but this time there are several things I am doing to heal the PD and continue healing the gut, namely replacing my personal care products. So today I wanted to share with you all about replacing my personal care products and how I will heal Perioral Dermatitis naturally.

[Read more…] about Replacing My Personal Care Products and How I Will Heal Perioral Dermatitis Naturally

Perioral Dermatitis

Filed Under: Gut Healing, IBS IBD, Inspire, Love, Safer Beauty, Unprocessed, Wellness Tagged With: , , , , ,

Perioral Dermatitis. It all is starting to make sense, but yet I’m having a really hard time grasping it all. Read on, and you’ll see why.

Yesterday I told you about my nose rash, the same nose rash that has plagued me off-and-on since I was just 13 years old.

Today I promised to tell you what this nose rash is and some likely culprits I’ve already identified and thus banned from my life.

What is Perioral Dermatitis?

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What is Perioral Dermatitis www.sarahkayhoffman.com #perioraldermatitis #skincare #SIBO #gutskin #guthealth

Each time I was diagnosed by doctors, my nose rash was something different but never was it the very thing that it in fact is….Perioral Dermatitis (PD).

Perioral Dermatitis

(also called periorifical dermatitis), is skin disease characterised by multiple small (1 – 2 mm) papules, pustules and vesicles which are localised to the perioral skin (around the mouth), nasolabial folds (around the nostrils), or perioccular area (around the eyes). It most commonly affects women between the ages of 20 and 45 years, but may also affect children, men and the elderly. It is not uncommon, and has a tendency to recur in individuals who have had it once.

I am 1,001% confident that this is what it is (You can see several pictures of it here.) The kicker in all of this? If you dig deep, you’ll find that the root cause of this is, you guessed it, THE GUT. 

I suspected this, and after Dr. Jacob Teitelbaum saw my nose, he nodded and agreed that I was likely correct. (<–oh my gosh, I have so much information to share with y’all)! But PLEASE know that problems in the gut and an overgrowth are not only caused by food – there are so many external factors that can contribute, and Dr. Jacob agreed with me that the way I eat was likely not the culprit. (And hence, my further devotion to holistic healing.)

My first goal was to seek out information around things that make it worse and/or things that trigger its return.

Perioral Dermatitis Triggers

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Perioral Dermatitis www.sarahkayhoffman.com possible dermatitis triggers and:or causes #perioraldermatitis #skincare #SIBO #gutskin #guthealth

There are many theories and ideas around what causes Perioral Dermatitis and/or triggers it to come back.

I believe many of these are personal culprits.

Healing this naturally means I have to start somewhere, so I’ll be talking about this more tomorrow.

Banned from My Life

I’ll share two things quickly with you today that I’ve already banned from my life.

Sodium Lauryl Sulfate

I immediately started investigating this ingredient upon learning about Perioral Dermatitis.

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Perioral Dermatitis www.sarahkayhoffman.com Sodium Lauryl Sulfate #perioraldermatitis #skincare #SIBO #gutskin #guthealth

Fluoride via Toothpaste 

You can read all about it here, and you will also make note of the association between fluoride and PD.

Tomorrow I’m going to show you what I’ve already done, what I will be doing and methods and products I’m currently trying (or will be trying).

I am having a hard time grasping all of this. I’ve been the queen detective of food ingredients for 5+ years, and now I’m having to deal with a whole new behemoth of an ingredient situation that I was not prepared to dive into.

I have been reflecting on what awful timing this is.

And then I remembered that the good Lord doesn’t give us anything we cannot handle. The good Lord perhaps knows my passion, knows my commitment and knows that by putting this here for me to face now might mean that ONE OF YOU will not have to go years living with it.

See you tomorrow.

Updated in 2017: It took me three years to find a skin and body care company that worked with PD, but I did it. Check out the Never List, read my story, and then shop! For Perioral Dermatitis in particular, you might want to check out the Countercontrol line. You will never regret it.

Beautycounter Never List sarahkayhoffman.com

Xox,
SKH

Possible Perioral Dermatitis Causes and Triggers via www.agutsygirl.com #guthealth #skincare #dermatitis
Sodium Lauryl Sulfate SLS via www.agutsygirl.com #skincare #naturalskincare #sibo #guthealth

Chemicals in Personal Care Products Part I

Filed Under: Love, Safer Beauty, Unprocessed, Wellness Tagged With: , , , ,

Today I am focusing on Chemicals in Personal Care Products Part I.

Did you know: “there are 1,328 chemicals in our personal care products that are BANNED in Europe for safety reasons (source found via ShiftCon)?”

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Why I Won’t Stop Fighting

Filed Under: IBS IBD, Inspire, Love, Wellness Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

There are so many reasons for why I won’t stop fighting.

I won’t stop fighting until we stop treating symptoms and start addressing problems.

Why I Won’t Stop Fighting

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These stories will come full circle. They always do.

Why I Won't Stop Fighting via www.sarahkayhoffman.com

The rashes around my nose, on my chin and on my cheeks were prevalent from middle school until I went completely gluten free. I reviewed (on Friday) all my medical records from ages 11-18. From ages 13- 18, I was seen by a doctor for these rashes. On four different occasions (ages: 13, 14, 16, 18, not including all the dermatologist visits), they sent me home with a topical treatment or medication. As I got older, I stopped settling for the treatments and medications. I wanted answers.

Fast forward to 2008, when I was 24. I was diagnosed with Colitis. I was immediately given suppositories, and if I became severely distended I was told to go to the pharmacy, grab a bottle of liquid calcium-magnesium-citrate and chug it. I stopped seeing my GI. I told him I didn’t want anymore medications and false bowel movements. He said “food didn’t matter.” As I learned more, I never looked back (and in the process have nearly healed myself).

Bounce ahead even more: January 16, 2012: The Scariest Day. I ended up in the position only because the dentist told me I had roughly 6-7 cavities to fill (about a month earlier). They “fixed” a few, but in the process “overfilled” and made other mistakes which landed me back in the seat to fix them. Only that time, they put too much Novocain in me and I couldn’t swallow….go ahead, read about what happened. Immediately, I switched to a new dentists. First visit, “no cavities.” I went for my 6-month cleaning again this past week. Still, “no cavities.” I knew there was something wrong with my first dentist. Doesn’t it seem odd that one dentist says I have 6-7 cavities; the next, none?

Here I find myself today, July 15, 2013. I am fighting another battle. Too early for me to talk about it here. But I will say this….I have fought this for over 4 years at this point. This is not a pain that has anything to do with running. Yet, a year ago I was told, “It hurts. You stop running. Simple.” <- NO, that is treating the symptom, not the cause. This cause is not running, since I have the pain on random days, during other workouts, etc.

I switched doctors – yet again – she tells me on Friday,“You don’t have XYZ. But here, if you want to take care of it anyways/stop the pain, I will give you X or Y. Give me a call when you decide what you’d like to do.”

Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. Wrong.

She never once asked to have my medical information sent to them. She barely listened for 5 minutes to my story. She looked at me, fairly topically only, and said, “You look great!”

If I didn’t have XYZ (which so many suspect I, in fact, do) then why would she just offer up nasty medications – just ‘cuz? And furthermore, she assumed that I am naive and uninterested about my health. She gave me the wrong facts about a procedure and diagnosis, when I knew that what she was telling me was misinformation. I called her out on it. She denied. I confirmed with the Mayo Clinic when I got home. I was correct.

I spent a lot of time crying on Friday night. I messaged friends, and of course my mom.

But then I simply got angry (well first I actually got a foot massage:) ).

Our medical system is so off. We value drugs and medications, masks and temporary relievers. I have YET to meet a doctor who will simply LISTEN. (<– caps are critical there.) We teach children the art of listening, paying attention, getting facts, making sound decisions, attempting compassion. So why is it that the medical system (whom we pay thousands and thousands and thousands to) can’t get it right?

I will not stop. This current battle, like the rashes when I was a child, Colitis and dentist, will be won.

I won’t stop fighting until we stop treating symptoms and start addressing problems.

p.s. In 2014, I finally found a doctor who listened and who figured out much of what was going on.This post documents the beginning to that journey.

Xox,
SKH