It’s been a little over a year since I woke up to a dissonant but enthusiastic “Happy birthday to you” sung into my ear, and I realized how quickly another year rolled by, with me standing at a new threshold—the thirties. I had almost braced myself for impact, but it felt like nothing changed, that is, until I took a closer look in the mirror and noticed fine lines drawn in lazy patterns across my face. My skin was aging, and it showed. I smiled at my reflection and saw how the crinkles beside my eyes lasted longer than they should, and I knew that I needed to pause them before they decided to make my skin a permanent abode.
I am not one to sit and let bodily changes happen. I do everything in my power to delay them for as long as I can. So began my journey of finding the right anti-aging products for my skin before it lost its youthful suppleness. The skincare industry overflows with products that make promises more sincere than wedding vows, but do they stay with us till death do us part? I hopped from this shop to that website, and everything seemed so convincing that I thought, “Wow, is this what being in The Bachelorette feels like- Like a woman choosing a potential partner from a pool of romantic interests? Am I really supposed to try different products before choosing the one for me?”
Well, my experience wasn’t half as exciting.
I sailed through weeks and months, trying one product after the other, looking for signs that put the ever-increasing lines on my face to a pause and my mind to rest. When I had almost exhausted my options and the shopkeepers knew what I would ask for as soon as I stepped into their shops, I decided to switch to home remedies for anti-aging.
From then on began the second season of my skincare series ‘Will I beat signs of aging before they beat me?’ From avocados to bananas to egg whites, I tried a potpourri of ingredients that feel better when they go in my mouth than on my face, but I was again met with disappointment. Sure, my skin looked firmer and brighter for a few hours, but in less than a day, it looked like nothing had changed. I found that home remedies do not really work, as the concentration of ingredients is not enough to help reduce signs of aging. Besides, they are not even clinically proven. My efforts were in vain, and I was getting more impatient by the minute. Were anti-aging products not meant for my skin, or was everything I ever knew about them a sham?
They say the third time’s a charm, and that’s what must have happened with me because it suddenly dawned on me that I should find out more about anti-aging before choosing my products. I sat with my laptop, ready to research from another angle. And that is when I stumbled upon ‘collagen’. Collagen is an essential protein that helps maintain the skin’s elasticity. However, its production slows down with age and other external factors like the sun, stress, and pollution, thus causing the skin to age prematurely. So I dug deeper to find out how I could fix the collagen levels in my body. It was a game-changer for me. For the first time, I was looking for products that can help stop aging not just from the outside but also from the inside.
So I started searching for products that have ingredients to keep the collagen production steady in my body. Phyto Retinol and Rose Oil caught my attention, and I already knew about Vitamin C’s contribution to anti-aging. What I didn’t know was how essential Sea Buckthorn, with its rich source of Omega, is for boosting collagen production. Now that I was pretty clear about the ingredients to help stop skin aging, the next step was to find the right products that would combine the goodness of these ingredients.
After some more searching on the internet, I found the OZiva Daily Anti-Ageing Routine, which has a Youth Elixir Face Serum and a plant-based Collagen Builder that together retain the skin’s firmness while giving it a youthful glow. Both products are plant-based, i.e., derived from completely natural ingredients and thus safe for the body. I quickly checked the ingredients and saw that they had all I had read about until then. Besides the list of promising components, I was sold when I saw how easy it was to follow the routine. I did not have to bring out my mixer and blend raw ingredients or sit with a straight face until my skin felt like it had been plastered.
All I had to do was mix two scoops of the Collagen Builder in a cup of water, stir, and consume it in the evening. The second step involved patting a few drops of the Youth Elixir Face Serum on my face before heading to bed. This two-step anti-aging routine quickly found a place in my daily schedule. The serum reduces photodamage, increases hydration, and tightens the skin to reduce wrinkles. On the other hand, the Collagen Builder rejuvenates dull and dry skin, protects from UV damage, and boosts collagen production.
And to top it all, these were clinically proven to give anti-aging benefits, which I felt was pretty promising compared to many other products I had tried before.
I have been religiously following this routine, and in just a few weeks, I could already see positive changes– the lines were disappearing, the crinkles bounced back to smooth skin, and I could see that my face had a natural glow. My skin was looking healthier than ever before. Well, I guess I have finally found the one, and the journey to get my hands on the right product was worth it!
