grooming tips, grooming diy man with a stressed skin, Image: Pexels
The last thing you should deal with when you're under stress is a pesky pimple, but you've probably noticed that a particularly big one always appears at the worst time. Or maybe, when work feels overwhelming, your eczema flares up with fury – sound familiar?
If you've always suspected that your skin seems to behave at its worst and pesky acne flares up when your life is a mess, prepare to feel at least a little validated. Here's what you need to know if your skin has you, well, stressed.
“Many skin conditions are related to an inappropriate release of inflammatory chemicals,” says Richard Fried, M.D., board-certified dermatologist, clinical psychologist, and clinical director of Yardley Dermatology Associates in Pennsylvania.
Inflammation is the buzzword par excellence at its core, and it is your immune system's response to a perceived threat to your well-being, and your skin is your body's first line of defence.
This intricate process plays a crucial role in keeping you healthy because you want your body to repel harmful substances, such as bacteria and viruses. One way it does this is by flooding your system with protective cells and chemicals.
In the short term, this form of inflammation can cause redness of the skin (a symptom that largely depends on your skin tone), itching, swelling, pain, and warmth in a specific area.
But your body can also overreact to substances that aren't normally a big deal (hello, allergies !) or situations that don't necessarily warrant a strong immune reaction . Sometimes, that thing is stress.
“The stress response—whether you're being chased by a saber-toothed tiger, have a deadline at work or school, or have problems with your family or partner—is always the same,” Fried says. “Your immune system prepares for battle.”
If your genes, environment, or both make you susceptible to a certain skin condition, stress can also exacerbate the symptoms associated with it. “Stress is a general trigger that can cause skin to misbehave in any way it is prone to,” explains Fried.
Let's say you are predisposed to eczema ( atopic dermatitis ). According to the American Academy of Dermatology, feeling overwhelmed by, for example, that overwhelming work project or a debt you're struggling to pay, is a possible trigger that can cause characteristic patches of dry, inflamed and itchy skin to appear all over your body.
The same goes for psoriasis , an autoimmune condition that is primarily characterized by itchy, irritated, and peeling patches of skin, as well as rosacea , which can cause redness of the facial skin and bumps that may feel hot and tender to the touch.
Of course, anyone who has acne has felt the frustration of a “ stress flare ” too (stress can increase levels of cortisol , also known as the stress hormone , in your body; this can stimulate oil production in your skin and ultimately cause pimples).
Certain conditions that affect your scalp are also related to stress , such as seborrheic dermatitis (which often presents as patches of oily, inflamed skin and annoying dandruff ) and telogen effluvium (a condition in which hair falls out excessively due to severe and unusual stress).
“Stress and pro-inflammatory chemicals cause hair to go from the growth phase to the shedding phase all at once,” explains Arielle Nagler, a board-certified dermatologist at NYU Langone Health.
Finally, it's important to note mental health conditions that affect how you treat your skin and hair, such as dermatillomania (also known as excoriation disorder ) or trichotillomania (also known as hair pulling disorder ).
Shannon Bennett, a psychotherapist at Weill Cornell Medicine and NewYork-Presbyterian, describes them as impulse control conditions that typically worsen when a person feels under overwhelming stress.
Since impulsive scratching or hair pulling can be a way of coping with difficult emotions, adding a layer of stress to the mix can cause a person to engage in these actions more frequently. Understandably, this can lead to side effects on your physical and mental well-being, Bennett explains, from skin infections to feelings of shame and guilt.
This doesn't mean that stress directly causes these conditions if you don't have them, it could simply make them difficult to manage if you do, according to experts.
Even if you haven't been diagnosed with a condition, dealing with a lot more stress than usual for a significant amount of time could cause your immune system to become hyperirritable, meaning that something that doesn't normally affect your skin can suddenly make it overreact, explains Fried.
It's a little like when you've had a hell of a week and someone cuts you off in traffic when you're late for work. You may be much more likely to let out a string of expletives than if the same thing happened during a quiet week.
“We use that conceptualization for the immune system . When your immune system is in a good mood, whatever. When it's not, stress can cause your skin to misbehave,” says Fried.
If touching your face is one of your anxious habits and you always get pimples or get irritated when you're stressed, that may be less about the function of your immune system and more about the result of sticking whatever you're holding onto your face (bacteria, dirt and other nasty things that your skin doesn't particularly like). “ Acne has a lot to do with people touching their faces,” Nagler explains. “I always talk about that with my patients.”
Stress can also make you more likely to neglect habits that make you feel good . “Usually, when we're experiencing a lot of stress, we spend less time taking care of ourselves,” Bennett says. “If you're not sleeping well, if you're not taking the time to wash your face, if you're not eating well or drinking enough water, it can negatively affect your skin.”
This is partly because your immune system works better when you give your body and mind what it needs, but also because neglecting things like rest, regular meals, and personal hygiene often simply makes you feel worse. It can become a brutal cycle.
Well no. Don't get us wrong: Having some stress-relieving techniques on hand is always a good idea, whether it's deep breathing, stretching, spending time in nature, or anything else that helps you relax, says Dr. Bennett.
Not quite! While having some stress-relieving techniques on hand is always a good idea—whether it's deep breathing , stretching, spending time in nature, or anything else that helps you relax—relaxing won't be a magical solution to your worries. cutaneous. “It's not that if you manage stress better , your skin will be perfect,” says Fried. In fact, putting pressure on yourself to completely eliminate your stress for the sake of better skin can make you feel more stressed.
Managing stress (and any stress-induced behavior that can affect your skin) can be a piece of the puzzle that helps your complexion behave properly, but it's not the only solution. So, in addition to taking your breakouts as a sign that you need to take more time for self-care, talk to a professional if your symptoms persist.
Fried recommends going directly to a skin specialist, if possible. Be sure to give him a detailed explanation of your symptoms; from there, they can provide you with expert guidance on any testing you may need and come up with a treatment plan that works for your needs and lifestyle.
And about the stress component: It wouldn't hurt to talk about how you're feeling with a professional or therapist if possible, especially if your mental health is really affecting your daily life. Addressing the problem from all angles could bring you closer to stopping carrying your stress on your skin.
[ Via GQ Mexico]
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