words Alexa Wang
The good thing about skin is how visible it is. If there’s something wrong, it won’t take very long at all to spot it. If you act when you spot signs of your skin is stressed, you can often stop any lasting damage from occurring. Here are three things you can watch for to tell if your skin is stressed, and some things you can do about it.
Your Skin Will Become Irritated
This one is obvious. Stressed skin is irritated skin. This is usually caused by a more chemical response to things, but the result is the same. Irritated skin can be a very big sign of stressed skin, so look out for some of the reactions to irritation your skin might display. This includes things like hives or itchy skin, redness and swelling and flaky skin too.
Irritation can be one of the more difficult things to directly fix, but a simple and considered skincare routine with gentle skincare products is where you should start. Patch test each product before using them and follow any directions for use. If the irritation is most noticeable on your facial skin, you could try rose water for your face. Remember to also keep your shower and bath water no hotter than lukewarm and dab dry and not rub dry your skin after showering.
Lastly, throw out all your sponges and brushes and just use your hands for soaping your skin. You only need to use washcloths some of the time for specific things.
You Can Develop Adult Acne
Breakouts of pimples and zits in adults is another sure sign that your skin is stressed. This is usually a hormone trigger and can be caused by actual stress which your skin will then mirror. If you’re not usually prone to pimples and breakouts, but you see one starting in your adult years, take it as a sign that your skin is stressed.
You’ll want to wash your face twice a day – morning and night – to remove any excess oils and dirt build-up that might be on the skin. Not only will this help with any adult acne breakouts, but it’ll help with your skin’s dryness.
Your Skin Will Be Dull
Dull skin might not be the most well-known of all signs that your skin is stressed, but it’s one of the most important. This one isn’t usually the first thing you’ll notice if your skin becomes stressed, which means you could do well to keep an active lookout for it. Dull skin can be a sign of a loss of water in the skin which leads to your body not shedding as many skin cells as it should, which means it isn’t healing as it should.
Here, the trick might seem a bit counterintuitive, but it’s time to exfoliate. Help your body along with its natural process of shedding dead skin cells with an exfoliating product or brush, but do so gently. You’ll also need to have a good hydration plan in place post-exfoliation because you need to replace some of that lost water and moisture in your skin. Drink plenty of water and use a good quality natural moisturizer on your face.
Combatting stressed skin is a combination of a solid skincare routine and a reduction of your life stresses. Sometimes the latter is much more difficult to accomplish, but caring for yourself mentally can be just as important for your skin health as a proper skincare routine. Before you do anything else though, make sure you’re using the right products for your skin type and aren’t doing damage to your skin in the way you use them.
