What Nurse Practitioner Jordan Harper Buys at the Drugstore

I believe in a double cleanse to properly clean your face. Your first cleanse is for taking off the day, whether that’s makeup orsunscreenor whatever. It can be a balm, oil, what have you, but the best drugstore option is a micellar water. There are other brands out there, but Bioderma is superior. It’s the most effective at taking everything off, and it’s really well tolerated by the majority of skin types.

This comes in a massive jug. So I talked about double cleansing for the face with the micellar water, and this is essentially that for the body. I like to double cleanse my body to get everything off, especially if I’m wearingdeodorant. I’ll follow up with a nice-smelling soap, since this is fragrance-free. It’s very well tolerated if you have eczema or any type of dry, sensitive skin. I use it on myself and on my kids. I use it to shave my legs. I think because it’s an oil, I get less razor burn using it. I use it in the shower, but it’s also great post-shower, especially if your skin tends to feel tight afterward.

Sarna is great if you have itchy skin. Its active ingredient is pramoxine hydrochloride, which works by calming the nerve endings that send the “itch” signal to your brain. Think of it as turning down the itch noise so you can stop scratching and let your skin heal. That’s paired with squalane, one of my favorite moisturizers because it closely resembles the lipids naturally found in healthy skin. It helps strengthen the skin barrier, reduce water loss, and soften dry, tight skin without feeling greasy. When your barrier is compromised, skin becomes more reactive and itchy. Getting your skin to function optimally is just as important as relieving the itch itself.

I also like that it doesn’t have any type of steroid in it, like hydrocortisone. There is definitely a time and place for hydrocortisone and other steroid creams; it’s just not ideal for everyday itch. Topical steroids can thin the skin with prolonged use over time, which is hard on delicate areas like the face, eyelids, neck, and skin folds. I like this non-steroidal option for my family because it provides itch relief without those same long-term concerns. Of course, use steroids creams when recommended by your doctor.

People don’t realize this, but it takes a long time for a potentialscar to fully heal. Be extra careful with sun exposure for the first 12 months and really baby it for the first six. If you can avoid a scab, you can avoid a scar. Obviously, you need to let the wound heal, but if you can do things like covering it up with scar tape and not letting the sun get to it, you can prevent scabbing. I prefer these strips because you can just cut out whatever shape you need to fit whatever area you’re covering up. I think everyone should use this, but I especially recommend it for people with kids. They tend to just rub off whatever is on their skin, but with the scar tape, they kind of forget about it.

For adults, this is good in addition to the silicone scar tape. The tape is nice because it’s completely blocked from the sun, but you’re not going to go out and about every single day with a Band-Aid on your head, let’s say, if you get a curling-iron burn. It’s also important that you’re taking care of that scar for a longer period of time. SPF is a major way to do that. Getting sun exposure to an area that’s healing and potentially scarring could set that pigment in, causing it to be darker and more noticeable. This has the healing components helpful with scarring as well as SPF, so it’s a great two-in-one.

I love Aquaphor in so many different ways. You can obviously squeeze it out. Again, back to the scarring, it can help prevent scabbing. My kids are young and are constantly getting cuts and scrapes. It’s easier on the go if you don’t have the scar tape on hand. You can use it to slug at night and prevent transepidermal water loss. This is a nice way to act as a second skin. It also comes in a twist stick for applying on lips. If you’ve got sunburn, you can accelerate healing. In the summer, I love the spray. When me or my kids get too much sun, you just spray it on. It’s cooling, too.

Aquaphor is great for acting like a second skin, but I like this because it’s a bit more breathable. It has really hydrating ceramides in it, and it’s an occlusive, so it locks that all in. This is great for barrier repair and if you have really dry skin. I would think of this as more of a skin treatment and less for when you have an injury or a burn.

I have two differenteye dropsthat I like. I love Lumify for events, photo shoots, or if I’m going to be out and about with people. I’m not using it every single day, but I like it better than Visine for whitening the eyes. It targets the veins instead of the arteries, so there’s less of a concern with the rebound effect that you’ve got with Visine. I wouldn’t say it’s a really great product for your eyes, but I do think it’s a much better option. Truly, our eyes can make us look more tired than we are, and this instantly wakes me up.

Lumify isn’t great at hydrating the eye. That’s not why I use it. It’s more of a beauty thing. I had LASIK when I was 21, so I just struggle with chronic dry eyes. For actually hydrating the eye, I use Systane’s drops, specifically the Ultra PF ones. They have to be preservative free; this is really important. And get the single vials, not the little bottles. These are a lifesaver. Lumify does not touch what they do from a hydration standpoint.