Meet Carolyn

My Skin Health Story

By Carolyn@Qetello

My why I do what I do here at Qetello, is very much from the heart, based on my personal experience of severe eczema, aplopecia and chronic fatigue syndrome.

The photo of my hand above is a snapshot of what my whole body looked like – I was extremely poorly and ended up in hospital.

This is not an easy thing for me to share, but I do with the aim that it might help others; to give hope that skin health conditions can be managed and a high quality of life can be achieved!

As someone who has severe eczema (in my case atopic dermatitis and contact dermatitis), allergies and auto-immune issues such as chronic fatigue, I know from first-hand experience what it’s like to live day to day with these debilitating illnesses – yet still feeling I needed to be all things to all people!

The photo of my hand is a snapshot of what my whole body looked like – I was extremely poorly and ended up in hospital.  With my eczema, came alopecia of my hair, eyebrows and hair on my arms, as well as a very high temperature, general sickness and depression.

It sounds dramatic to say, but at this point in my skin health journey, I had no quality of life, as the itch-scratch cycle just took over me, even though I knew scratching wasn’t going to help!  I was so frustrated; physically and mentally exhuasted and was in constant pain.

A new approach...

I’ve spent about twenty years seeing dermatologists and, in that time, there’s only ever been one that has taken a holistic approach to my skin health treatment.  His name: Professor Marini – The medical director of the Skin Doctors Center in Trieste, Itlay.  Very well respected in his field across the world, Prof. Marini was the first, and since only, dermatologist to listen to my stomach, ask about my diet and prescribe probiotics, omega oils, gluten and lactose free diet and a skincare routine, with high quality products – which when all combined, started to help my skin heal.

My daily routine was to shower with oil then, using cotton wool pads apply acid to my whole body.  Then leaving a minute for the that to soak in , I then applied the auto-immune suppresent, then the steroid cream.  Waiting for one minute, I would then apply a ‘spritz’ of thermal spring water before applying the emollients.  I did this twice per day for 6 months!  Whilst at the same time following a strict gluten and lactose free diet, taking daily pre/probiotic and omega supplements and staying out of the sun as best I could, baring in mind I was living in Italy!

My holistic skin management...

Wanting to understand exactly what was going on in my body and how I could help myself, I’ve since taken courses in:  Dermatology, food as medicine, inflammatory diseases, autoimmune conditions and holistic therapies to educate myself on how my diet, sleep, gut, lifestyle and mental health all impact my skin health. 

I also started to investigate what the ingredients were in products too, to understand the impact they could have on not just my skin, but my internal body too, as many products contain known carcengenic ingredients, not to mention being a disaster for the environment!
 
My research and learning has led me to choosing more natural plant based products, that are non-toxic to the body, environmentally sustainable and highly effective; combined with good quality microbiome support, a diet that suits my body, improved stress management and much better sleep! 
 
All of which has resulted in limiting flare ups and massively reducing my dependency on presecription steroids and anti-histamines.  As there’s no cure for eczema and very little clinical research, it’s all about understanding your body’s needs and managing the condition on a daily basis.

Today I am empowered, confident, healthy and happy!

With the knowledge and confidence I feel, I am empowered to take responsibility for my own health and wellbeing. I don’t want to be fobbed off with creams that often only give short term relief… and now, for the most part, I don’t! Understanding how to take a holistic approach to my health and wellbeing has changed my life.

Here to help...

Using the power of Face Yoga, I educate, inspire and empower women to achieve their healthiest, happiest skin and be unapologetically confident.

This holistic practice serves the body, mind and soul by using a range of techniques such as facial exercise, massage, acupressure and meditation all scientifically proven to improve your overall wellbeing and confidence.

By taking my Beginners Course in Face Yoga, you can expect to be feeling fabulous as I teach you step by step how to: 

  • Relax, strengthen, tone and brighten your skin, leaving you glowing. 
  • Reduce anxiety
  • Feel calm and confident

I trained to become a teacher because of my eczema and I am so excited to be your guide through this four week course coming soon!

If you’re looking for a more bespoke solution, then you may like to book in for a 1-2-1 Face Yoga consultation, where we look at your overall health and wellbeing design a specifically selected range of techniques to help you achieve your happiest, healthiest skin.  This includes:

  • Face Yoga,
  • Learning about the mind-skin connection
  • Gut health and nutrition
  • Advice on the best skincare products for your skin and more!

Find out more about the Beginners Face Yoga course here:

Enquire here about 1-2-1 Consultations here and Carolyn will be in touch!

By Carolyn

I started ‘Qetello Face Yoga, Skin health and Wellbeing’ off the back of doing online ‘Beauty Boost Hours’ for friends and family during the pandemic! Qetello (which means destiny) is all about taking a holistic approach to your menopausal skin health and overall wellebing. My mission is to share knowledge, inspire and empower women to view their skin health from a wider perspective that includes, hormonal health, mental health, nutrition, sleep, lifestyle and product choices. My peri-menopause journey started when I was 38 and my son was just turning two – it was quite a shock but explained so much! As someone who has severe eczema and a history of chronic fatigue syndrome, I wanted to find ways to manage my symptoms as naturally as possible – the more I learned the more I felt drawn to share my knowledge and experience to help others and trained to become a menopause wellness practitioner in 2023. My passion for skin health comes from necessity! I had to find a way to manage my chronic eczema, as back in 2015, I was taken into hospital because my skin was so infected from head to toe that I needed emergency attention – my hair and eyebrows fell out and I was really quite unwell. It was a really tricky time in my life and I decided I could sink or swim, which is ironic as I lived on my boat at the time!! I chose to swim and learned as much as I could to empower myself to heal as quickly as possible. Over the years, I’ve taken an array of courses, presented by leading global universities such as Monash in Australia, Leeds and Liverpool in the UK and Harvard in the USA, on subjects such as food as medicine, nutrition, human disease and most recently dermatology, face yoga and meditation. I absolutely love sharing my passion, knowledge and experience to be able to help other women feel amazing in their skin, so do let me know if there’s anything I can help you with, With much love and gratitude, Carolyn xx

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