My Own OTC Experience

There’s Method acting, but recently I engaged in some Method reporting. While working on our annual article on the OTC/medicated skin care market, I sampled a new personal care product (not related to the story) and woke up a few days later to blotchy, itchy and broken out skin. Nothing too terribly wrong with that, it's all in a day's work. Before an appointment with a dermatologist to get to the root of the irritation, I popped down to the local drugstore looking for a solution. With a tube of 1.5% hydrocortisone and a tub of aloe vera gel in hand, I was on my way to the derm…but still, a little hesitant that it would solve my skin problems.
 
Armed with a bag of personal care products and a few questions, I finally saw the doctor but after a brief appointment, I left with very few answers. The derm prescribed a 2.5% hydrocortisone cream (not available in the OTC aisle) and advised me to use some particular sensitive skin brands.
 
But her advice leaves a gaping hole in my beauty routine…what about all those novel anti-aging formulations from the other marketers not named? What about all those new, primarily natural ingredients? And what about up-and-coming skin care companies which may have the next big thing but not the cult following to get a recommendation from a derm?
 
I’m determined to expand my scope, as the personal care marketplace is too illustrious to pass up all these remarkable new developments.