How Jennifer Young skincare helped my daughter after chemo
At Jennifer Young, our skincare products are designed to address the side effects of cancer treatment, but so often those side effects carry on or even worsen for a time, after treatment finishes. Rachel is a Spa Development Manager who knew about our skincare products through the wellbeing industry, however, she hadn’t yet tried them on her six year old daughter.
When she met Jennifer at an event she wanted to ask which products would be best for her little girl, who had recently finished two and a half years of chemotherapy and post treatment had developed very sore, red skin. As our products are extremely gentle and natural, they are suitable for children, and Jennifer listened to the symptoms Rachel described before sending her some products to try.
Here, Rachel explains what her daughter was experiencing and the impact that Beauty Despite Cancer skincare made.
How did you come across Jennifer Young’s Beauty Despite Cancer skincare products?
I had seen a lot about Jennifer, her therapist training and her skincare collection on LinkedIn and when I saw her at an event I made a beeline for her because my daughter has had skin problems after finishing chemo.
What chemo side effects was she experiencing on her skin?
She had been on chemo for two and a half years, starting just before her third birthday, having been diagnosed with blood cancer. However, she had been on steroids during that time which had kept her skin really clear. That's all her skin knew, so when she came off everything her face quickly became red raw and really sore. Her school actually thought she had something like an infection, but in reality there was nothing wrong, it was just her skin's reaction to coming off the drugs.
She also had a very itchy scalp where new hair was coming through - that’s a bit better now it's longer but it was really itchy. In addition, her hair is not the same. Before chemotherapy, her hair was really dark but it has come back lighter, very broken and fragile. She lost her hair four times throughout treatment, which has been really hard for her to understand.
When I saw Jennifer I told her my story and asked if she had anything that would help. She was very supportive and understanding, and kindly sent me some products to try, which she didn’t have to do.
£20.00
Which skincare products did you try?
So far we have tried the Defiant Beauty Itchy Skin Oil and the Scalp Care Oil, both of which my daughter loves. I started my career in spa hotels, so she has always had the chance to have her nails done or have a gentle massage at home and she loves it. She enjoyed the application process as well as the results - they were brilliant.
Did the products help with the chemo side effects?
They've been brilliant. I think the first thing to highlight is that massaging the oils in was a really enjoyable thing for her, and that in itself was important.
Beyond that, the products calmed her skin quickly - they took about a week to start having an effect, and by then the redness in her skin had gone down and so had these very sore, dry patches around her eyes. Her skin is now back to this beautiful porcelain that it was before.
The scalp oil has also been fantastic for her hair. It's given her hair and scalp the moisture it needed. It’s looking much healthier, and the itching has stopped. Both products have been especially good in the cold weather.
Beforehand I had been trying everything with no effect, but these products have been fantastic.
