Farah, 26, lives with extremely dry skin

When it came to my skin, the biggest challenge I faced was learning to become a multi-tasker. When you live with dry skin, it’s hard not to give it all your attention. But I found that the more attention I gave to my skin, the more stressed I became, and that made it worse. 

My condition began with stress more than three years ago. During university, the assignments, quizzes and exams all revealed their impact on my skin, one by one. And then there was the weather. Living in a country like Malaysia, between the heat and the humidity, I was always so conscious with what I was wearing or where I was going, just in case I would make my skin go bad again. I felt like I was always worrying.

Every other girl you see has flawless skin. I used to think to myself, they are dealing with the same chaos of work and life as me, but they still manage to have perfect skin. Why do I have to work so hard for my skin, yet it never looks like theirs?

For me, the change came the moment I first realized the amount of positive energy around me. I have my lovely family, supportive friends and boyfriend; when you have that kind of support around you, you feel more confident, and that’s when your skin will change. My friends encouraged me to see a specialist and seek advice.

My skin concerns are still there sometimes, but when my skin flares up, I choose to bring it down with confidence. At the end of the day, you can’t compare yourself to anyone else. What I can do is compare myself to yesterday’s me and try to be a little more positive, and to enjoy life a little more. I didn’t want to feel stressed any more.