Skincare and Meditation? What do they have in common?...

I started meditating more than twenty years ago, just around the time I started making my first simple creams and lotions for myself and my family. I learned the word “Vipassana” from my yoga teacher, and it just sounded magical to me. Later I learned that it means a form of meditation that seeks "insight into the true nature of reality". I started reading about Vipassana and meditation in general, building myself up to try it for the first time. It was awkward at first, since I didn’t know what I was doing, but with time it became natural: Watching my breathing and body sensations, being in the present moment (or at least trying to be!). Meditation became a refuge of calm, and I started seeing short and long term benefits, as well as gleaning insights about myself and the world. About a decade ago, I began hosting a small weekly meditation group (formerly in person, but currently on Zoom since the pandemic).

As I delved deeper into my meditation practice, I began seeing opportunities for meditative breathing and relaxation in other parts of life outside of the intentional meditation minutes. I do my skincare routines in the AM and PM, and as I began to practice mindfulness, taking care of my skin took on a relaxing and meditative quality. I slowed down and learned to enjoy the process, not just the results.

I started making the following observations:

• My skincare routine starts with the Buckthorn Oil cleanser as I gently massage it into my skin, all over my face and neck with damp hands. As my fingers move lightly, I notice how my skin becomes warmer, and as I pat my skin dry, I lean into the sensation of the soft towel. I repeat this again with the Herbal Gentle Cleanser. 
• Mindfully, I spray Liposomal Toner onto a cotton square, and I notice the cooling sensation as I wipe my face and neck, and then close my eyes as I spray more toner on my face and feel the pleasant, hydrating touch. 
• As I squirt Vitamin C Serum into my palm, I note and enjoy the golden color, and slowly massage it into my forehead, cheeks, chin and neck in gentle upward motions. I imagine what’s happening to my skin: its hunger for hydration, its satisfaction with the satiating serum.
• I choose my night cream as I listen to my body, asking myself what would benefit my skin the most tonight? A deeply hydrating product such as the Dana Night Cream or the Sea Kelp Moisturizer? Or an anti-aging, anti wrinkle lift, such as Ageless Boost or Ageless ND? Tonight I went with Ageless ND, considering my stressful day, and as I squirt some into my palm, mix a little of the Blue Hydrating Mask into it, I relish the sensation of feeding and soothing my skin as I press the mixture into my face and neck.
• Finally, I touch the gentle skin around my eyes with the Eye Care Complex, thanking them for a day well spent and readying them for sleep.

My skincare routine gifts me precious minutes to appreciate the elements of my body that we frequently take for granted: the pads of my fingers moving gently and with care, the bows and bends of my face and neck, the moments to listen to what my body needs. Doing my skincare routine mindfully gives me a sense of calm and appreciation and leaves me feeling centered. I learned that skincare is actually self care - for the body and mind all at once.