April is National Stress Awareness Month. Most of us don’t need a special month to know that we have stress in our lives. It’s inevitable – the demands of work life, family life, illness, etc… I don’t know anyone who lives a stress-free life.
But, what exactly is stress? Stress is a state of mind created by emotional or mental strain. It begins as a thought or perception of a situation, but eventually becomes something physical. We all react differently. For some, the heart rate increases, we sweat, our stomachs hurts, we can’t sleep, or maybe our skin breaks out. What begins as a mental state of mind becomes something tangible in our bodies. Recognizing stress and being mindful of what causes it in our lives is the first step in dealing with it and preventing physical distress.
As a provider of holistic skincare solutions, we know that stress impacts the condition of the skin as well. In fact, there is a fairly new field of medicine, called psychodermatology, that focuses on the intricacies of the mind-skin connection. Doctors who specialize in psychodermatology treat skin problems that are caused or worsened by stress.
The mechanism behind the skin-stress connection is multi-faceted. When a person becomes stressed, the level of the body’s stress hormone, called cortisol, rises. This increase signals your sebaceous glands to produce more oil, which leads to oily skin and acne. The extra cortisol also causes a biochemical reaction that depletes your C and B vitamin stores (Vitamin C is required for collagen formation). Therefore, when under stress, it’s even more important to eat five to seven servings of antioxidant-rich fruits and vegetables per day, and consider some supplementation as well. Additionally, stress makes it more difficult for skin to heal because it reduces the barrier function of the skin, resulting in water loss and an inability to repair damage after injury. Finally, stress increases blood flow, which leads to inflamed capillaries and exacerbation of conditions such as rosacea. The skin is our largest organ and is the first line of defense from all sorts of environmental toxins–from UV radiation to pollutants. Keeping your skin healthy is critical to maintaining overall health.
The challenge is to recognize your triggers and take small steps to manage your stress. Some suggestions for learning to put stress in its place:
Remember, stress comes from your perception of a situation. We can all choose to let stress take over, or we can put it in its place and preserve our mental and physical well-being. With some practice we can take control of our stress and not let it harm our beautiful skin.
Click here to read Ginger Hodulik Downey’s book The Esthetician’s Guide to Outstanding Esthetics.
