How Stress and Anxiety Affects the Skin

If you’re battling with stress, anxiety, or another mental health disorder, you may assume that you’ll just notice a difference in how you feel. But did you know that your mental health affects your skin in various ways too?

Depending on how severe your stress or anxiety is, you may develop a persistent skin rash, or parts of your skin may even lose color. On top of feeling awful, developing skin issues due to stress or anxiety can easily feel like salt is being rubbed in the wound.

Fortunately, there are plenty of ways to tackle skin issues brought on by stress and anxiety. But remember, while there are many methods of healing your skin, it’s essential to address your mental health issues too. That way, you can work on feeling better and can also help your skin issues subside. It’s a win-win situation.

Here’s how stress and anxiety can affect your skin – and how to deal with it.

Itchy Skin

When you’re experiencing intense and uncomfortable anxiety, you may notice that your skin feels itchier than usual. The medical term for itchy skin is pruritus, and the condition can develop from a bout of anxiety.

Anxiety is a neural condition, and the nerves may be super-sensitive to any itching signals. If your skin is extra prickly when you’re feeling down, there are several ways to reduce that persistent itchy scratchy feeling. Washing your body more often, extra moisturizing, and using an over-the-counter lotion or cream can help prevent itching. If these methods don’t work, consider speaking to a board-certified dermatologist and mental health professional.

Using a moisturizer with anti-inflammatory properties can also improve common skin issues relating to stress, including redness, flaking, and itching.

Stressed-out skin also usually benefits from products containing comforting and soothing ingredients, like chamomile, aloe vera, oatmeal, and niacinamide.

Phytomer’s Accept Neutralizing Cream is an excellent option for skin that won’t stop itching. The formula soothes, moisturizes, and nourishes skin that feels tickly. The product is specifically designed for people with skin that’s prone to sensitive reactions. As well as calming itching, it reduces redness, flakiness, and other signs of irritated skin.

The skin is left soft, moist, and calm. Plus, with ongoing use, the cream boosts your skin’s defense against environmental aggressors.

Acne

Most of us have experienced some form of acne in our lives, whether it’s a severe case during adulthood or a few pesky pimples in our teenage years. Often it seems that when we’re not feeling our best, the spots decide to come out to play – typical.

Stress from anxiety can release cortisol, which leads to acne. Cortisol boosts the skin’s oil production via the testosterone pathway, welcoming a host of blemishes.

While acne lesions are frustrating, science says it makes perfect sense for stress to show itself in the form of spots.

There are various acne treatments on the market to help tackle spots. The best solution for you can vary based on several factors, depending on your skin type. But remember, addressing your anxiety initially is the most effective long-term method of calming down a breakout.

Scarring

Behaviors relating to anxiety, such as pulling out your hair or picking at your skin, can lead to severe skin issues. In some cases, these issues can be permanent.

A disorder called trichotillomania occurs when people cause their own balding by tugging out their hair. While there isn’t a direct link to trichotillomania, stress is known to worsen it. Many people also tend to subconsciously scratch or pick at their skin, leading to scars and wounds.

The T uel Detox Healing Essential Oil Blend is a calming blend of tea tree, cedarwood, and palmarosa. The formula treats the skin to a concentrated dose of vitamins and nutrients that minimizes the appearance of scarring and calms inflamed breakouts.

Addressing the Root of the Issue

While products designed to treat the skin can help clear up some problems, be sure to address your mental health problems too so you can feel the best you can.

Talking your problems out with a mental health professional is vital, and there are some practices to follow that can help with your mood. Be sure to consume a healthy diet and protect the skin from the sun’s hot rays using high factor SPF.

Alleviation techniques like yoga and mediation are also great for managing stress levels. Always get your eight hours of kip in, too, especially if you’re feeling stressed. A good idea is to pop any devices away an hour or so before bedtime to reduce your exposure to bright screens before pillow time.

There are lots of ways to address mental health disorders, and many people decide to use a few coping strategies to help manage their mood. As mentioned, speak to a mental health professional to learn what works for you best.

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