IT’S both irritable and unavoidable, but there are products available locally that can help prevent and solve problems caused by mosquito bites.
When my family and I moved into our farm, I got acquainted with mosquitoes in a way that I have never experienced back when we still lived in our old house in the city.
On my first week here, my feet were ridden with mosquito bites. I’d wake up in the middle of the night, scratching my already red feet. I tried applying menthol, ethyl alcohol, and lotion, but it only seemed to make my feet even more attractive to mosquitoes!
Thankfully, applying just two-three pumps of Human Nature’s Bug Shield really worked wonders. Its strong citronella scent keeps the mosquitoes away, so I’d pump small amounts in random spots inside my room and soak cotton balls with it which I put on my window.
Gradually as the days went by, I found that even if I don’t apply it, I won’t get bitten anymore.
But there is no perfect product, so while the Bug Shield works well in repelling mosquitoes, it can’t help soothe the itching and redness of the mosquito bites.
A quick search in the internet led me to know about Calmoseptine or calamine lotion. I bought a sachet for P38 and applied it religiously, 3-4 times a day for 4 days until I ran out of it. It worked! My feet no longer itched, the red welts reduced in size, and it no longer looked red.
But again, there are no perfect products. Calmoseptine has gradually eased the itchiness and redness until it disappeared, but the whole experience left dark scars --- lots of it. It does not look pretty at all.
If you plan on concealing your scars, make sure that the surrounding wounds have completely closed and healed to help it heal faster.
To do this, apply a lighter shade of liquid concealer on the scars, let it sit for a minute, and then smudge it with your fingers without totally blending it out in order to build more coverage. And then I top it with foundation.
You can repeat the process again and again until the scars have been completely concealed. Set it with loose powder. Don’t use baby powder, though, because it would leave a white cast. I recommend using loose finishing powder from Nichido which is priced at less than P200 at Watson’s.
But concealing your scars will not make the scars disappear, so you have to treat it with scar removal cream. I tried Sebo de Macho upon the recommendation of friends and family. Admittedly, in the beginning I was cynical about it. Who could believe that a P28 product would be able to lighten your scars?
But it worked! In less than a week, my scars visibly lightened. The scars are still there, though, but they have lightened with 3-4 times daily application.
Remember, your skin deserves care and attention. So if you have “attractive” feet and blood that mosquitoes thirst for, like mine, or if you have pesky scars that you want to get rid of without spending a fortune, try my tips and see if it’ll work for you.
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Andrea Isabelle Mejos is a young writer from Davao. She likes to seek beauty from all angles – people, products, places – and writes them down. For inquiries, you can reach her at mejosandrea@gmail.com