Nurse your holiday hangover

It’s Day Two of the Papal visit (which some cheekier individuals have been referring to as the Pope Summer Slam; I must admit that I find this hilarious — sorry), and I’m fairly certain a good number of you aren’t intending to spend this long weekend in quiet contemplation, waiting to catch a glimpse of the Holy Father, as the government intended when they bestowed this five-day holiday upon us. Some of you may already be on the beach as you read this, in fact. (Lucky you.)

If there’s anything the recent year-end holidays (holidaze? walwal-idays?) taught me, it’s that it is entirely possible to prepare for — or recover from — absolutely anything. Here’s what you will need (or need to do) to survive the next few days:

Sunscreen

It’s the middle of January, and some nights have been cold enough that people have been going out in sweaters and jackets, so it’s understandable if you think you can get away with skipping sunscreen on the beach. Right? Um, no. Your inability to feel the sun’s ultraviolet evil isn’t an indication that it is not touching your skin and prematurely aging you. (Donatella Versace!) The cooler weather actually puts you even more at risk; you don’t feel the heat as you swim or sun yourself, so you stay out longer, and you sustain more damage. So whether you’re catching some rays in Boracay or catching the Pope’s Sunday sermon in the Quirino Grandstand, please, do yourself a favor and put on some SPF.

Hydration

And you need it inside and out. The first thing you should do upon returning home after a night of overindulgence — assuming you’ve skipped the part where you shouldn’t overindulge to begin with — is to drink a pitcher of water. You will feel infinitely better in the morning if you do this, or at the very least, your headache will be more manageable. Whatever you end up doing this weekend, though, water will be essential. Drink a lot of it.

Adherence to your skincare regimen. Or a skincare regimen, period, if you don’t already have one. (You should!)

Internal hydration covered, it’s time to bring your skin back from the dead. If you forgot to wash your face before going to bed, do it now: saturate a cotton pad with eye makeup remover to wipe your smeared liner and mascara off, then saturate another one with cleansing water to remove whatever traces of makeup you didn’t transfer from your face to your pillow. Then, use a gentle foaming cleanser to get rid of the residue that is left. Use a toner if you want to, or if you feel the need to. (If you want to minimize the possibility of breakouts, some dermatologists — like mine — brew their own clindamycin toners. The antibacterial components help prevent acne from happening. Some options: Glycolic toners, if your ultimate goal is brightening. Salicylic acid, if you want faster turnover.) Apply a serum — whatever serum is your go-to — because your face needs all the extra juice it can get, and serums come with heavier concentrations of active ingredients. (Use something with vitamin C if you have discoloration issues you want to work on, something with vitamin A if wrinkles or fine lines are becoming a problem; otherwise, any serum with hydrating components is better than no serum.) Then, use a moisturizer. If you don’t typically wear moisturizer, give it a try. Nothing feels better the morning after than a well-hydrated face. If you have eye cream on your shelf (and you should), apply it gently where it belongs. Pop some teaspoons in the fridge or freezer to cool, and press them against your dark circles or eye bags for some relief.

Eat something

You may feel tempted to indulge in greasy food, but this is the last thing you should do. You’ll only feel grosser, and you won’t be in any state to work it off besides. (Cardio? Didn’t you already do cardio the night before? Doesn’t dancing count as cardio? I say yes.) Throw together some scrambled eggs; the protein will be good for you, and the amino acids, even better for helping nix toxins. Have a banana to boost your potassium. Have fruit or fruit juice for a natural sugar rush to help resurrect you, and if that doesn’t work, a cup of coffee (or three, you caffeine junkie) will always hit the spot.

Stave off the burn

Already sunburned? Delay — or at the very least, minimize — peeling by slathering yourself in baby oil. The most hardened of my beach babe, tanning-obsessed friends swear by this. Your skin needs hydration after baking, but in their experience, mere lotion has not been enough. Baby oil will keep your skin feeling soft and keep it as attached to your body as you are to your new tan. If you’re feeling the burn, pop an ibuprofen to help with the inflammation.

Crawl back into bed

It’s a five-day weekend; you’re allowed to sleep. Have some of the much-needed shut-eye you don’t get to enjoy when you’re busy meeting your deadlines and making bank. The opportunity to take as many disco naps as you want over the course of the next few days is probably the greatest gift the government has given us so far this year.