How Burnout Wrecks Your Skin, And What to Do About It
In a recent podcast interview, I was asked how burnout and stress affect the skin. This question has been coming up a lot lately, and with the holidays around the corner, it’s bound to be an even greater issue. So here are the basics of what you need to know about stress and skin:
There’s a brain-skin connection. You can read about that here. In short, your chronic stress is going to show up on your skin. Your skin is your largest organ and its visible to the world, so you get to witness how stress affects it…yay…😫
Stress increases cortisol levels. This increases inflammation. Inflammation exacerbates underlying skin conditions. So basically, stress kicks off a chemical reaction that can cause an increase in the symptoms of acne, rosacea, eczema, or psoriasis, if you have those underlying conditions. It can also increase dryness and dark circles, and speed up the aging process with duller skin that has more fine lines. You could also experience hives or rashes, even if you don’t normally deal with them. Stress causes some whacky things to happen inside and out.
Burnout is a stress response. It’s more than being stressed out or tired or overwhelmed. You can get clarity on what burnout is here. Whenever you are chronically stressed, whether it’s overwhelm or full burnout, you are likely going to see that stress play out across your face and the rest of your body.
To help your stressed skin destress, you need to address your topicals (the products you use) and your lifestyle.
Topicals:
It’s critical to use products that are right for your skin type. These should include antioxidants that can help combat free radicals. There are also specific regimens designed to tackle specific concerns, such as the visible effects of rosacea, eczema, acne, dry skin, and visible signs of aging.
You want to ensure you are using the right formulas that target your concerns and using them in the correct order. They should encourage cell turnover, hydrate, and nourish the moisture barrier. This should help bring your skin back to neutral, so to speak, so you get that fabulous glow that we all want! You can find dermatology-designed products for your skin type and concerns here (takes 60-seconds).
Lifestyle:
You also need to find ways to manage how you respond to these daily stressors, not only for the sake of your skin but for the sake of your life. Stress takes a toll on our mental and physical health, which I’m sure you know! You may not be able to control all the factors causing you stress, but you can address some. That’s something I work with my clients on. For example, setting and enforcing boundaries, deep breathing, meditation, exercise, and energy management…there are various methods you can use to help manage your stress.
Feeling overwhelmed sucks. It creates a cascade of blah that decreases your happiness, health, and performance at work and in your personal life, and can wreck your skin. The worst part is that it's cyclical. When your skin is stressed, it doesn’t look as healthy, and so you feel worse about yourself, which makes you stressed and causes that whole cycle to just keep going. You can explore “Skin-Esteem”, as in how your skin appearance affects your self-esteem, here.
If you’re not sure where to start, you can grab a complimentary consult. Already have your go-to routine to beat back skin and life stress? I’d love to hear it!