Dry, flaky, cracking lips

Image via WikipediaDuring the summer I took advantage of a promotion on one of the more expensive lip therapy/lipbalm treatments, thinking I was in for a treat I was eager to get using and having never had a problem with lip products before, did not do a patch test. Silly me! I must have been allergic, my lips had never done this before, but suddenly the cracked to the point where they bled and the top of my upper lip actually started to peel. There were weird whitish patches and it was the ugliest, most difficult to disguise thing I had ever experienced on my face. Other than a nasty mosquito bite that once left me looking like Quasimodo for a week, but I digress.
Despite using various treatments such as The Bodyshop's shea butter lipbalm, vaseline, neutrogena spf20 lipbalm and many others, the problem persisted. I tried creams from the pharmacy, consulted a doctor ( she told me to use SPF and was very dismissive) and nothing helped. Finally, I was in the pharmacy a week ago buying some winter essentials, when I spotted Neutrogena's Norwegian formula lip and nose balm. It was only €3.50, so I thought it was worth a try and if it didn't work, I would keep it for my nose in the cold/flu season.
Surprise, success, it worked. My lips are cured. No more flaking, peeling or anything else. They are completely normal again. The funny thing is, this is the cheapest of all the products I tried. Typical, right? Moral of the story, don't assume that because it's expensive it's going to be right for you, sometimes the least expensive products are the best.