Winter is around the corner, yes people it is STILL Fall. Yes, yes, I know it’s cold as heck and snowing like nobody’s business… wait is that only New England? Oh. But it’s true, Winter doesn’t officially starts till Dec 21st.

Anyhoo, I thought to share how I keep the skin feeling hydrated AND keep the pain at bay (aside medication of course, not a fan of medications).

My number one go to lotion was once Jergens (gosh I swore by that for the longest) that was until I tried Nivea!! Let me tell you, this lotion is super duper moisturizing but when you live in “the Antarctic” or maybe it’s just my preference but a long lasting moisturization is essential. To get that, I incorporate Johnson’s baby oil gel – which can be used by itself but I despise grease and like to use lotion based products, so I add a drop of the gel oil to pumps of Nivea lotion or Neutrogena (or baby oil) body oil. When I tell you my skin stays moisturized for over 48hrs, please believe me! Neutrogena body oil I just absolutely love, I use it in winter and summer, keeps my skin moisturized and smelling yum.

Now let’s address the muscular or skeletal pain that are often aggrevated by cold temperatures. Yes you can bundle and stay warm as much as you can but you just can’t escape bracing the cold wind altogether. In between walking from warmth to a car (gosh I’m jealous of auto starter owners :(, dear Santa bless me with an auto starter na) or walking from and to the parking lot of a store, OR walking through grocery store’s  produce or diary section – seriously why is it deep freezing cold, like whyyy! I know why but geez, I digress. My point is, it’s nearly impossible to avoid the cold entirely so you can expect to feel an ache here and there to which all you need are Vicks vapor and Aboniki. Yes o.

Vicks vapor takes care of any brewing coughs or congestion, personally I know when I’ve been exposed to the cold more than I need to so after a hot shower, yes hot not warm, I apply Vicks all over my chest, upper part of my back and my throat, that’s before applying lotion/gel oil up to the patella area on my knees.
For the joints or bony areas from the knee down, lower back and forearms, I apply Aboniki – a topical analgesic that relieves muscle pain that can be compared to America’s Ben-Gay or Activon. I especially love Aboniki because it’s cheaper and does not produce heat sensation like Robb, Ben-Gay or the rest. You barely feel it working but it works magic.

The only downside to using these topical analgesics is the menthol smell, lol, some people just can’t stand it but I will pick that any day over a full blown pain crisis or admission #dontnobodygottimeforthat. But you can do this routine at nighttime before bed like I do, and slip into heavy onesie, socks and comforter – oh that’s just me? Oh ok. 😁😂.

Bonus…

I can’t say enough for this, super handy for stomach cramps and especially joint/muscle pain. I have few of the electrical and nonelectric ones too, you can never have too many.

There you have it, my winter body health care routine. Hope someone out there finds this helpful.
If you know of more ways to combat dry skin aka ashiness and muscle pain, or would simply like to share your body health care routine, make sure to share in the comment section below.

✨Till Next Time✨