I spent a lot of time outdoors with my kids over the summer, between swimming, camping, and so forth. I was really diligent about wearing sunscreen and a hat, and yet I see that my skin looks dull and there are brown spots on my face, that weren’t there a few months ago. I feel kind of discouraged about it, but I know there must be something that I can do to improve it. What would you recommend for me?

Summer is a really tough season for our skin, especially in Arizona where our sunlight is extremely intense. Despite our best efforts to protect our skin, it’s very common to develop discolorations and other signs of sun damage over the summer. But the changes would have been worse if you hadn’t practiced sun protection, so it’s great that you took those precautions. We see a lot of patients after summer to clean up the sun damage. We recommend starting with “boot camp for skin,” an aggressive skincare program that you use at home, to jump-start your skin restoration. Depending on the nature of your brown spots, many of our patients also opt to have IPL, Clear+Brilliant laser, or a chemical peel for maximum improvement.