Maybe it started with one little purple mark.
Then another.
Then another.
At first you probably told yourself you must have bumped into something.
But eventually the question changes:
“Why does EVERYTHING seem to leave a mark now?”
You never used to think twice about carrying the shopping, moving a box, gardening, playing with the dog or bumping the edge of a cupboard.
Now you look down and there is another little purple-red spot — sometimes several — and half the time you cannot even remember what caused them.
Then you notice something else. Your skin itself looks different: thinner, more crepey, veins a little easier to see.
And that is when it starts becoming about more than a bruise.
You still feel like you. But your arms have started making you feel older than the rest of you does.
Maybe you choose the dress with sleeves. Reach for a cardigan when it is warm. Turn one arm away from the camera. Zoom into your forearms before you even look at your own face in the photo.
If that sounds familiar, keep reading — because the answer may not be another cream you remember only after the newest mark appears.