Sunburn Remedy

I may be a blond but I had definitely inherited the Irish skin tone from my family leaving me a nice pale white and therefore super sensitive to the sun. As I've gotten older I've learned to accept my pale skin tone and gave up on trying to be really tan since it's just not possible for me. Unfortunately this past spring I got full on sun poisoning when I attended Steeplechase because I spent all day out in the sun with no sunscreen on. I know, super stupid on my part. Fortunately, my wonderful boyfriend took very good care of me while I had multiple panic attacks from the pain and my shoulders become completely covered in blisters. Desperate for anything to help my burn heal, I started googling remedies. Although there's no real cure, there are a couple things you can do to help heal a sun burn, or at least take the sting away for a bit.

First is the most obvious: aloe.

I use this Banana Boat Aloe After Sun Lotion. I think it smells good and it's not greasy or gross feeling. I'll use it any time after I'm in the sun, burnt or not. It's become one of my summer essental since an old friend of mine recommended it to me back in high school. Although it's better to use an actually aloe plant, which actually my grandma just recently gave me one to start growing, this is a decent alternative to aloe gels which I think feel gross.

Now the best remedy to sunburn is: black tea!

Sounds crazy, right? Wrong! It's seriously the best thing ever. I discovered this trick after reading countless of articles online. I'm not going to go into the scientific reasons as to why this works, but it does! Here's what you do: depending on the amount and severity of your sunburn you can either take a full tea bath or just what I would consider a "tea shower". 

How to take a "tea bath": Buy a box of black tea bags, it can honestly be any brand, doesn't matter. Fill up your bath tub about half way with lukewarm water, you want it to be warm enough to make the tea but not too hot since hot water doesn't feel good on a new sun burn! I put around 10 bags of tea in mine and let the bags soak in the water for a good 30 minutes before getting in. Then, I laid in the bath for 30 minutes making sure my really burnt areas where completely submerges. You could use a cloth or sponge here to drip some of the tea of the bad areas but be sure to use an old cloth or one you don't mind getting stained because the tea with discolor it! After 30 minutes let yourself air dry for awhile before using a towel then putting on clothes. It's best to let the tea soak into your skin and if you have a really bad burn like I did, let the tea bags soak in the tub over night and take another 30 minute bath the next day! You can repeat this as many times as necessary, although I would recommend taking a really shower or bath somewhere in there so you don't start to smell like tea. When I had sun poisoning on my shoulders and arms I took a 30 minute bath Saturday night, left the tea to soak over night, took another one Sunday morning and buy Thursday my blisters were gone and I was just peeling. For sun poisoning, I think that was pretty fast!

How to take a "tea shower": Now I did this the other day because I just had sun burn on my neck and shoulders and want it to heal faster. Buy any type of black tea and make a pot or bowl of tea using 1 or 2 tea bags. Don't use until water is cooled! Take a bowl of the tea with you into the shower and using either a sponge or cloth that you don't mind getting stained, gently poor the tea over your burnt areas. Take your time, because you want the tea to soak into your skin as much as possible, therefore don't just dump the bowl on your. Let yourself air dry a bit then let the tea soak in over night. I promise that when you wake up the next morning you will be able to tell the difference!

I hope this will save one of you on your next beach vacation or trip to the pool! I know I was so happy discovering this simple trick! Until next time, stay sweet & sassy! xx