Sun smart

In the spirit of being proactive about my health, yesterday I had my first skin cancer screening. If we were still living in Michigan, it may not have occurred to me to have this done; between winter lasting 7 months out of the year and having office jobs where I’m trapped in windowless cubicles, I always felt like my exposure to the sun was minimal at best.

Then we moved to San Diego, where the sun rarely doesn’t shine. And I saw California natives with leathery, freckled skin who looked at least 10-15 years older than their actual age – even people in their 20s. And I remembered those endless summer days during high school and college where I tanned myself to a deep bronze color. I gradually realized that maybe - just maybe - it was possible to have too much sun exposure.

Don’t get me wrong, I love being tan. People see my pale skin and assume I can’t get a tan, when in fact I get quite dark if I try. But I also burn easily, which we all know is a huge no-no. I try to follow basic sun rules, like always wearing sunscreen, but I’m not as diligent as I should be. If I’m not in too much of a rush in the morning I’ll apply my daily moisturizer with SPF 15 on my face and body. And if I’m going to be in the sun for a prolonged period of time I’ll wear an SPF 30 or 50. But I still get a mild sunburn, usually on my shoulders, at least once a summer.

I checked out just fine during my exam, but my dermatologist warned me that I’m high-risk because of my fair skin and eyes and said I should have a skin cancer screening once a year. He also said I should be able to monitor my own moles for changes in shape and color pretty easily because I don’t have that many.

So I’m going to try and be more careful about my sunscreen use, especially those times when I’m at the beach or hiking and am too lazy to reapply. Or the days when I decide to go for a “short walk” and don’t put on any sunscreen at all.

Baby steps, right?