Why I Switched from Natural Facial Products to Rodan + Fields

This post has been a long time coming. As silly as it sounds, I’ve wrestled with my thoughts and rationale, wondering how I would explain myself and my decisions after publishing past blog posts that contradict what I’m about to write.

In a nutshell, I’m going to tell you why the girl who endorsed natural, organic beauty products made the switch to Rodan + Fields products. You’re probably raising your eyebrows, wondering how I could be a sellout to the natural beauty movement or simply hoping I don’t clog your newsfeed. Either way, just hear me out.

The Backstory

Last summer, when my youngest of three was about 7 months old and I had hit the 4-year mark of limited sleep, I called up a friend who sells Rodan + Fields and told her I wanted to give it a shot, that I was tired of looking worn out and blah.

Truthfully, my face reflected what my body felt. Physically, I was sleep deprived and stretched thin, but despite that I could tell an improvement in my skin after using the Rodan + Fields Redefine regime for nearly three months. Of course, when it came time to reorder my regime, I asked my friend to postpone it. Why? Because a) it was expensive and we were trying to minimize not just things but spending in anticipation of our year-long RV adventure, and b) because I wanted to use natural or organic beauty products.

Fast forward nine months, and I’ve tried countless natural beauty products: shampoos, facial oils, foundations, mascaras, face cleansers, lotions, etc. I’ve found effective natural shampoos that actually sud, an organic CC cream that I love and a natural mascara that doesn’t irritate my sensitive eyes. But what I haven’t found is a great skin regime that works for me.

I don’t have perfect skin, but I don’t have horrible skin either. I can use makeup to fake brightness, but without makeup (which is me 75% of the time now and likely 100% of the time on our RV trip) my skin is a bit dull. And the more I age, the more I notice the emergence of darker spots, expanding pores and fine lines. And that doesn’t even include the monthly hormone-prompted blemishes that have gotten worse post-babies (what?!).

So yes, I’ve found several natural organic facial oils that leave my face super moisturized and soft. But that’s where the benefits end. Have they brightened my face, evened my skin tone or helped minimize my pores or fine lines? Nope. Have they actually caused more facial blemishes in the form of clogged pores since using them? Maybe.

I could blame my skin on my hormone roller coaster due to three babies in less than three years. I could blame my skin on the fact that I love cheese, and dairy is commonly linked to breakouts. I could blame my skin on my lack of sleep since having children, and the fatigue that comes from caring for kids in general. I could blame my skin on the fact that I work out a few times a week, which means lots of sweating. There are so many reasons I could cite.

But they don’t really matter. Because despite all those reasons, Rodan +Fields has been the only facial care routine that has cut through all those maybe-sorta reasons. The Redefine regime worked despite the fact that I was waking up a couple times at night with my baby. It worked despite what foods I ate. It worked despite my fatigue. And it worked despite my sweaty workout tendencies.

My Rationale

Do I wish Rodan + Fields used all natural ingredients? Yes. But do I think Rodan + Fields products would be as effective if they used all natural ingredients? No. I’ve used a slew of natural facial products and none have come close to the changes I’ve seen in my skin from using Rodan + Fields.

Do I still bathe my kids with organic bath soaps? Yes.

Do I still use aluminum-free deodorant? Yes.

Do I still oil pull with organic coconut oil? Yes.

But do I still put synthetic diapers on my kids? Yes.

Do I still indulge in Chick-fil-a from time to time? Yes.

Do I still use gasoline to fuel my car? Yes.

Do I still get my daily dose of chocolate? Yes.

The way I see it, much of life is a balancing act—balancing work, family life, school, social life, etc. It’s about balancing the get-tos and the have-tos. I’ve taken this same balanced approach to my own self-care and that of my family’s.