Your skin is more than just the largest organ in your body – it's also a window into your overall health and well-being. May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and we want to remind you that your mental health is important too; furthermore, skin health and mental health are more intertwined than you might think.
In this blog, we’re going to take a look at how stress causes skin problems and answer a couple of common questions about mental health and skincare. So, can anxiety impact your skin and does skincare help with anxiety? Let’s take a look, together.
How Can Stress Cause Skin Problems?
As you’ve probably experienced in your own life, stress and anxiety can cause skin problems in a number of ways. This is because when you're stressed or anxious, your body releases hormones like cortisol. Interestingly enough, cortisol can increase oil production in your skin, which can lead to acne breakouts.
However, that’s not all that stress is doing to your skin. Stress can also weaken your immune system, making you more susceptible to skin infections. If that wasn’t enough, stress can also lead to you picking at your skin, which can lead to inflammation and scarring.
How Do Skin Conditions Affect Mental Health?
Skin conditions can also be a major source of anxiety and stress for some people. If you’re starting to see a cyclical pattern here, you’re very perceptive. It’s a pattern for some people – stress will flare up our skin conditions (like acne, eczema, or rosacea), and then we’ll descend into a mental health rut, too. Then, that mental health rut will exacerbate the stress and anxiety we’re feeling – and so on, you see where we’re going with this.
Furthermore, in a society where “glass skin” and 10-step skincare routines are a daily topic of discussion, it’s tough to not judge ourselves and want to hide our blemishes and dark spots. Being comfortable in your own skin is a process, and healing both your mind and your skin will play a part in realizing that you can love your skin.
How Do I Get Out of The Rut?
This is a tough question to answer, because there might be multiple things at play for you as an individual. However, we do know that self-care can help boost your mood and help you improve your mental health. And, if you’re struggling with breakouts or other skin issues on your face, developing a skincare routine will pull double duty:
- You might find that you can optimize a routine to eliminate the source of breakouts
- You’ll be investing in yourself and encouraging yourself to focus on self-care
A couple of suggestions we have for you include:
- Keeping your routine simple enough so that there isn’t any reason for you to avoid doing it.
- Using high-quality products that will be gentle on your skin.
- Remembering how important sunscreen is for your long-term skin health.
- Sticking with your routine for at least seven days ensures that you’re building a habit.
And, if you’re looking for gentle, high-quality skincare products to help you build a skincare routine, we have all of what you’ll need! Check out all of our products today and start investing in your skin and mental health.
Learn More: How To Start A Skincare Routine That Works