There’s a known “brain-skin connection”. In short, chronic stress can cause new skin issues or flare existing ones. For example: psoriasis, acne, atopic dermatitis, decreased wound healing and barrier function, poorer cell cycling, and increased signs of skin aging.
Your daily skincare routine helps support your brain-skin connection in several ways. If you missed my live workshop on this, here’s a short recap. 𝘉𝘛𝘞, 𝘧𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘸 𝘮𝘦 𝘰𝘯 𝘌𝘷𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘴𝘰 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘥𝘰𝘯’𝘵 𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘴 𝘢𝘨𝘢𝘪𝘯!
First,
your daily skincare routine helps simply because of the power of routines. Having routines eases stress. It helps you feel more in control over your life, particularly in crazy times. Routines also help you make healthier choices, work more efficiently, and free up brain power so you can “think” on other more novel events. This also helps you ease stress and conserve energy.
Your brain isn’t actually great at thinking. It’s great at routines. If you had to think about every single action it takes to drive somewhere, for example, you’d go bonkers. Your brain automatically knows to open the door, put the key in the ignition, etc. because you’ve already learned how to do that task, so now it’s routine. You perform it without thinking about it.
Having your skincare routine helps in the same way. You wake up, wash your face, tone, treat. Done. You know what you need to do to care for yourself and jumpstart your day without having to think about what to use, when to use it, or how. Same at night. This allows you to focus on other things. Like reminding little Billy not to spill the cheerios or telling Siri to play the Super Bowl 2022 Playlist on Spotify. 𝘏𝘦𝘳𝘦’𝘴 𝘢 𝘯𝘰𝘯-𝘤𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘤𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘯 𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘺𝘰𝘶, 𝘣𝘵𝘸.
Second,
it helps because it’s a form of self-care. Self-care eases mental stress. Studies have shown that having a consistent skincare routine improves self-worth and life satisfaction. Another study found that “self-pampering” (e.g. skin care and hair care) decreased depression in women (moms, non-moms, married, non-married, you name it).
This makes your go-to skincare routine a major win in easing the mental stressors of daily life. Because if there’s one thing you can control, it’s your dang skincare routine. Even if you have to shrink it down to a two-step wipe and serum. At least you can do something.
Third,
your skincare routine helps manage the stress your skin experiences when you are stressed out. This is where that brain-skin connection comes in. Your skin is the largest organ and it is one of the first to notice and respond to stress. That response can manifest in the conditions previously mentioned if not managed through topical intervention as well as mindfulness interventions.
Your daily skincare routine routine helps manage those conditions, or it should. Even the best of routines can’t prevent all stress, obviously. The products my clients work with manage the visible effects of those stress-related flare ups so they can at least look like they feel a million bucks. 𝘞𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘢 𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘣𝘶𝘤𝘬𝘴? 𝘊𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘬 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘥𝘶𝘭𝘦 𝘢 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘺 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘶𝘭𝘵 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘮𝘦.
But again, you only get these benefits if it's the right routine for your skin type and concerns so that it's effective. And it has to be enjoyable enough for you to use consistently. The right skincare routine is like the right workout. If you hate running, you won't run. Even if someone tells you it is effective and you "should", you won't. You have to balance enjoyment and efficacy. The right skincare routine is no different.
So how do you know if your skincare routine is supporting your brain-skin barrier?
Most likely you know. But here are some questions to ask yourself.
Do I enjoy using my products enough to actually use them consistently? Do I love how they feel, smell, etc.
Do I look in the mirror and feel confident about how I look? (𝘖𝘳 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘤𝘯𝘦 𝘧𝘭𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘴, 𝘰𝘳 𝘦𝘤𝘻𝘦𝘮𝘢 𝘰𝘳 𝘳𝘰𝘴𝘢𝘤𝘦𝘢 𝘰𝘳 𝘱𝘴𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘢𝘴𝘪𝘴 𝘧𝘭𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘣𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘺𝘰𝘶, 𝘰𝘳 𝘴𝘪𝘨𝘯𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘢𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭.)
Do I manage stress well and take time for self-care on a regular basis?
If you answered no to any of these questions reach out for free a complimentary personal consult.
References
Boehm (Jan 14, 2021)
Chen & Lyga (2021)
