Have you ever started a new skincare routine, and it made things go wrong? Been there, done that. Here’s how I fix it.

Back in high school, my skincare routine was pretty simple: cleanse, moisturize, and sunscreen. Over time, I started to use exfoliation serum and sleeping mask twice a week.

Last year, noticing some redness on my skin (probably due to daily makeup use), I decided to switch things up by added toner and skin barrier repair serum to my skincare routine. However, the extra moisture caused whiteheads to pop up on my oily skin. Thinking it was just my skin adjusting, I kept at it for a while. Until I consulted to a dermatologist, they advised me to take a break from the new products, which I did.

While on the new product-pause, I did some research and discovered that other oily-skin girlies found the serum I used was also too moisturizing, leading to clogged pores and whiteheads. One of them suggested to use the serum only on targeted areas. Aha! It worked.

Now, I skip the toner to avoid over-moisture. Since regular exfoliation helps with whiteheads, I do it three times a week (I consider myself an advanced exfoliation user now). The skin barrier repair serum goes only on particular spots, and not on nights where I use my sleeping mask.

My morning skincare routine is simple: skin barrier repair serum on certain spots, moisturizer, and sunscreen. As for my night skincare routine, it’s moisturizer, with optional additions like skin barrier repair serum, exfoliation serum, or the night mask. But I never use more than two products at once to avoid overwhelming my skin.

This journey taught me to listen to my skin and adjust my routine accordingly. After all, it’s all about finding what works best for you. So, take your time to find your own personal brand of holy grail.

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Sharing this story was a chance to unveil my personal discoveries. Did any part of my experience resonate with you? Feel free to share your thoughts about my story or any topics — whether it’s about life in general or anything else. Let’s chat!

Joe Goldberg is the kind of man who will over-forgive your flaws—not because he’s merciful, but because he’s done far worse, and he knows it. He lets you sit with all your mistakes, lets you linger in your mess without ever pushing you to grow—because the worse you feel about yourself, the safer he is. He makes it seem like he has endless space in his heart for you, but the truth is, it’s never about you. It’s always about him.

He says the words you wanna hear—not because he feels them, not because he believes in you—but because he needs to have his control. He knows if people ever saw the truth of him, they would run. And he can’t afford that. Because what he’s done is something no heart could bear to stay for.

He learns every little thing a woman would dream of, manifests every fantasy a woman could ever want, not out of love, but because he knows love is a blinding thing—powerful enough to make someone look past the nightmare standing in front of them. Because no woman could really keep loving Joe Goldberg once she truly knew him.

That’s why Louise said, “The fantasy of a man like you is how we cope with the reality of a man like you.”

Joe plays with empathy like it’s his favorite weapon. He knows women feel deeply—he knows exactly where their softness lives. He obliterate their intuition, bit by bit, until they can’t tell the difference between warning and wonder anymore.

From the very beginning to the very end, Joe Goldberg is a fractured soul. He crosses paths with women whose hearts shines with kindness, women who could've saved him. But Joe wants to remain the storm. Joe doesn’t want salvation.

And we can’t save people who don’t wanna be saved.