Does Stress Affect Your Skin?

Not getting enough beauty sleep due to stress can leave serious under eye bags! Not exactly attractive' Not getting enough sleep causes fluid to pool below your lower eyelids, which is why you end up with puffy eye syndrome in the morning. Try and de-stress before bed time as much as you can and get an early night! Shut off your smartphone at least an hour before bed, the light simulates sunlight and keeps your brain awake. If you still have some darkness under your eyes in the morning, then apply a concealer in triangles under your eyes. This will help conceal any darkness or puffiness. Our favourite concealer is Rimmel London Wake Me Up Concealer.

If you're stressed, chances are you're too busy whizzing around to drink enough water. Also drinking coffee or soda to keep you awake is super dehydrating for your skin. When your skin is dehydrated it ends up looking tight and papery, which also accentuates any fine lines or wrinkles. Water is the holy grail for your skin, so get drinking! Green tea is also amazing as it has loads of antioxidants that work wonders for the skin. For a quick boost of hydration use a serum that contains hyaluronic acid, it holds on to water to plump your skin. Try the Balance Me Hyaluronic Plumping Mist when you're feeling particularly dried out. It will give you an instant shot of hydration and calm the skin.

The worst side effect of stress is acne. Stress causes the skin to flare up whether you're prone to acne, eczema, psoriasis, basically any sensitivity will be increased by stress. Stress can throw the hormones off balance and lead to breakouts across the face and body, particularly in the chin area. Again, drinking a lot of water is key for keeping your gut and hormones in balance but also maintaining a healthy diet will work wonders. Your body can handle stress much better when it's properly nourished and functioning well. Cutting down on sugar is also another huge benefit for your skin (depressing I know) but sugar can result in sporadic acne breakouts. If you have annoying breakouts use a special targeted product to reduce inflammation and clear out the blocked pores. Murad Blemish Spot Treatment can be used from the moment you feel a blemish occurring, it encourages healing by reducing the size and redness with hydrolysed oat flour and liquorice extract. If you need to treat a sudden or unexpected acne breakout take a look at our complete guide on acne flareups so you know what to do!

When we're stressed we frown a lot! I mean it's obvious isn't it, there's furrowing of the brows, pursing the lips and generally screwing up the face. These small but consistent movements when you're super stressed can lead to deeper wrinkles forming in these areas. Ok so first up, stop frowning! Easier said than done right' So to help reduce the appearance of fine lines and to try and prevent them forming, use a silicone based formula under your makeup. There are plenty of make up primers that contain silicone as it stops make up from settling into fine lines. Try the Dermalogica Hydrablur primer, it also gives you a silky luminous finish!