De-stress Your Skin

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There are many ways that stress affects our quality of life. Managing your stress and simplifying your days can bring positive results to many areas of your life, including the quality of your skin. See results in a brighter face, more radiant skin, and an overall boost of energy!

How Skin Quality is Affected by Stress

Stress activates different reactions in the body, and a lot of the time leaves us looking tired and worn down.

  • Going off last week’s blog post, under-eye bags are largely caused by a lack of sleep. Stress keeps us up at night, causing stressed blood vessels to burst and fluid to pool under the eyes.
  • Flare-ups are activated by stress-related cortisol release, which in turn affects the way hormones are regulated in the body.  Regulation of hormones is one of the best ways to stop acne in its tracks.
  • Rashes or hives are often caused by an imbalance of bacteria (caused by a stress trigger) in your gut—where bad bacteria starts to outweigh the good.
  • Sweating and poor diet can affect your hydration levels. Drinking coffee or pop because you’re stressed puts your sugar levels all over the map, and causes major dehydration. Dehydration = flaky, unhealthy skin.

What to Do

You probably can’t take everything stressful out of your life. That’s okay, and there’s many ways to problem solve and keep looking and feeling happy while you manage your stress and whatever the day throws at you.

  • Drink water or coconut water throughout the day to keep hydrated, which is key to having energy–low energy drives us towards carby comfort meals or quick-fixes like chocolate bars. Eight glasses a day will keep you more bright-eyed and help your skin be at its healthiest.
  • Pack your meals with antioxidants (found in blueberries, dark leafy greens and much, much more). Antioxidants stop free-radicals from interrupting collagen production—collagen keeps your skin looking plump, full, and young. A healthy and complete diet also maintains sugar levels, helping your hormones to stay regulated while promoting restful sleep to wipe away those under-eye bags.
  • Exercise releases endorphins, which put you in a better mood and provide you with energy. More energy to approach the day will decrease your stress, as will concerning yourself less with your skin quality
  • A regular amount of sleep promotes good balance of hormones, better energy, and less anxiety. To combat under-eye bags, sleep a regular amount each night, drink less alcohol (alcohol is full of sugar and stops you from deep sleep), and prop your head slightly up on your pillow to stop gravity from pooling fluid under your eyes.

Other Help

Medical grade skin care products can help improve the quality of your skin when stress is attacking it. Hyaluronic acid in products promotes collagen production. Other treatments like Juvederm stimulate collagen production using hyaluronic acid in a targeted way, and Botox reduces wrinkles caused by stress and time.