a guide to pregnancy skincare

Pregnancy is one of those moments in your life where you kinda micromanage everything. Once you find out you’re expecting, we all start to overhaul our entire daily routines. Like gone are the days of spicy margs; now you’re setting a phone alarm reminding you to take your prenatal, and just like you switch up some of your diet and lifestyle choices, your skin deserves some of this attention too.

We all know the body undergoes a lot of changes while pregnant but your skin does too! The surge of hormones that pregnancy plays a major role in your skin. For some it’s the pregnancy glow but for others, it can manifest as a lot of unwanted skin issues—things like hormonal acne, the dreaded pregnancy mask (aka melasma), increased sensitivity or just straight up dry skin. Whether you just peed on that pregnancy stick or you’re halfway there (congrats mom!), here’s guide to skincare in pregnancy.

What to expect when you’re expecting: 

Melasma | one major way pregnancy shows its face is through a form of hyperpigmentation called melasma. You might know it as ‘pregnancy mask’ but this darkening of the skin is common and typically seen on the cheeks, nose, chin, above the upper lip or the forehead. Increased estrogen levels and sun exposure often trigger this condition in the skin and unfortunately it doesn’t readily go away or disappear post-delivery and is hard to treat while pregnant. Key takeaway here is to wear sunscreen and limit time in the sun because that’s your best bet at preventing it.

Hormonal Acne | also quite common but no less annoying, hormonal acne occurs most often in the first and second trimesters. If this is you right now, don’t stress, buy and swap out your entire routine for only acne-specific products! Most acne products will actually run you dry because they’ll strip your skin of all its moisture—which actually causes the skin to produce more oil as it tries to overcompensate for what’s being lost. Your best bet to treating acne while preggo is by using products that are both antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory.

Stretch Marks | stretch marks occur when the body grows faster than the skin can keep up with. This results in tears and injury to the collagen and elastin fibers deep in the skin—kind of like a scar forming from the inside out. There isn’t really much you can do to get rid of them once they’ve formed (wish I had better news for you!), but you can prevent them or at least, minimize their appearance right after they start to appear. Your best defense here is an emollient-rich moisturizer—one that will keep the skin hydrated and your moisture barrier intact so that it can better deal with the trauma, such as stretched out, expanding skin. Makes sense? Look for a moisturizer or a body oil containing ceramides, squalene, shea butter, jojoba oil, sweet almond oil or sunflower oil then apply that shit twice daily!!

Wear sunscreen, now more than ever: 

TBH, there’s no greater time to wear sunscreen than when you’re pregnant so if you never have before, you need to now. During pregnancy, your skin is highly susceptible to hyperpigmentation (cough *melasma* cough) which is brought on by sun exposure. Commit to wearing a broad-spectrum SPF (honestly just cover your entire body in it lol) and limit sun exposure. Wear a hat. Stay out of the sun as best as you can. More on this—while shopping for your pregnancy sunscreen, use a physical or mineral sunscreen as these are considered to be safer and provide better protection. Here’s how you’ll know it’s a physical SPF >> look at the the label and make sure it only lists titanium dioxide or zinc oxide (or a combination of both) where it lists the active ingredients.

There’s a no-no list:

Now that you’re expecting (or breastfeeding), pregnancy has a no-no list of skincare ingredients you’re gonna need to shelf for the next 9 months.

+ Retinoids /retinol / retinyl palmitate / adapalene / any other Vitamin A derivative (including prescription acne treatments)

+ Hydroquinone

+ Salicylic acid

+ Benzoyl peroxide

+ Chemical sunscreens

+ Parabens

I’ve made two different skin scripts for you with some products recs based on your skin while pregnant (see below)!

AND FINALLY… bottom line when it comes to pregnancy and skin care, always think less is always more! This isn’t the time to try and address your skincare woes so don’t stress about your skin changing on the outside. Be in awe of what your body is doing on the inside— it’s truly magical and you’re glowing mama (whether you feel like it or not)!! Take all the bump selfies and embrace the changes as they come, the good and the bad because it’s not forever. If you have any questions, comment below and from the bottom of my heart, CONGRATS MAMA!!

(also in case this isn’t obvious, I am not a doctor. If you’re unsure about anything while pregnant (skincare related or not) consult your obgyn!