How To Tell If Your Skin Is Stressed (And What To Do About It)

Stress is unfortunately an inevitable part of modern life that not only affects our mental, but also physical wellbeing. When it comes to our skin, stress can trigger breakouts, speed up skin ageing, increase sensitivity, and even worsen conditions like eczema, rosacea, and psoriasis. It does this by disrupting the skin barrier and increasing inflammation. (1, 2)

Understanding the relationship between stress and skin health is crucial, because healthy skin is essential for fighting infections, oxidative stress and irritants. A strong skin barrier that isn’t compromised by the effects of stress also makes our skin less prone to inflammation – reducing the risk of breakouts, dark spots, early signs of ageing and flare-ups from conditions like rosacea. Finally, healthy skin generally appears more youthful and radiant—something so many of us strive for.

In this blog post, we’ll break down the science behind how stress impacts our skin, and explain what you can do (other than stop feeling stressed) to reduce the frequency and seriousness of these skin issues.

The Science Behind Stress and Skin

When we encounter stressful situations, our bodies release hormones like cortisol and adrenaline into our bloodstream. These hormones prepare the body to handle immediate threats, and although helpful in short bursts, they can have some less-than-welcome side effects for the skin, especially if you’re experiencing stress for a long period of time.

How Cortisol From Stress Affects The Skin

Accelerated Ageing

Ageing is a natural process that happens to everyone, but high stress levels over a long time can make people more prone to fine lines, wrinkles and dullness. Stress also encourages these signs to appear sooner than they normally would.

When the body experiences too much stress, it triggers the release of cortisol, which disrupts your body’s natural antioxidant defences. Excess cortisol makes your skin less effective at fighting free radicals such as air pollutants from the environment, which leads to oxidative stress and results in many people experiencing early signs of ageing. (1,4)

Acne Breakouts

Stress triggers the sebaceous glands to produce more oil, increasing the likelihood of clogged pores and acne development. Some people develop a habit of scratching or picking at spots, especially when they’re feeling stressed, and this can lead to severe scarring and pigmentation. Research also shows that some people who have higher stress levels suffer from more severe acne symptoms. ​(5, 6)

Weakened Skin Barrier

A healthy skin barrier provides essential protection against external and environmental stressors—everything from dirt and grime to pollution and UV rays. Stress can weaken the skin barrier, leaving your skin more vulnerable to free radical damage and slow down healing from wounds or irritation. (4)

Inflammatory Skin Conditions

When the skin barrier is compromised, not only are the skin’s natural defences down, but the skin’s natural ability to heal, repair and regenerate is also weakened. This means that chronic conditions like psoriasis, eczema, and rosacea are more likely to flare up because of the increase in inflammation. (2)

How Adrenaline Spikes From Stress Affect Skin Health

Adrenaline diverts blood flow to other areas of the body that need it, reducing oxygen levels in the skin. This may slow down the skin’s natural ability to repair and regenerate. (3)

Recognising The Signs Your Skin Is Stressed

Everyone’s skin reacts differently to stress. Some may notice a slight sebum imbalance, while others may develop a more severe reaction. Your skin may become more oily or dry, depending on a variety of factors – including your skin type, age, lifestyle and environment.

Being able to recognise how stress impacts your skin is the first step towards managing and preventing it. Look out for these tell-tale signals:

– Increased oiliness or dryness compared to your usual balance
– Delayed healing of wounds or blemishes
– Flare-ups of existing conditions like eczema or psoriasis

Protecting Your Skin Against the Effects of Stress

In an ideal world, we’d all be able to reduce the daily stressors in our lives – but this isn’t always realistic. To help regain control of your skin, these are a few dermatologist-backed strategies you can use to help reduce the effects of stress.

These are:

– Keep a consistent skincare routine: Maintaining a gentle, consistent skincare routine that’s suited to your skin type can strengthen the skin barrier, improving its resilience against stress-induced damage.​
– Stay hydrated, inside and out: Keeping the skin well hydrated, both by drinking plenty of water and using hydrating products will support skin barrier function and reduce sensitivity.​
– Use products with topical antioxidants: Skincare products that are rich in antioxidants, such as Vitamin C, can help neutralise free radicals and protect the skin against oxidative stress.​
– Apply sun protection daily: A broad-spectrum sunscreen prevents UV-induced stress on the skin, which can compound the effects of psychological stress.

Our Best Skincare Products for Fighting the Impact of Stress on the Skin

Now that we understand how stress impacts the skin, we can look to skincare products to tackle its effects.

If stress makes your skin oilier, more inflamed and prone to breakouts, blemishes or acne flare-ups…

Avoid products that will make this worse. For example, known irritants like fragrances or comedogenic oils can clog pores. Instead, opt for products like our Balancing Glycerin Gel Cleanser and Soothing Centella Gel Moisturiser. These are both designed with dermatologists in line with NICE guidelines and only contain non-comedogenic and oil-free ingredients. Our moisturiser also contains soothing centella asiatica and niacinamide to help calm and strengthen the skin barrier.

If stress makes your skin dry, dehydrated or sensitive…

Our skin barrier is especially delicate when it’s dry, dehydrated or irritated. Therefore, treat your skin gently and avoid scrubbing or stripping it of its natural oils. We also recommend avoiding using too many active ingredients at once – such as retinoids, prescription actives or AHAs – as this can overload your skin and damage your skin barrier.

To relieve tightness and discomfort while cleansing, our Caring Squalane Cream Cleanser is enriched with highly nourishing squalane. This cream cleanser melts into a rich oil, so we recommend giving your face a 1-2 minute massage before rinsing to help boost moisture, hydration and blood flow to the skin.

Ceramides and peptides are essential building blocks for a healthy skin barrier, so making sure they are in your moisturiser is key. Our bestselling Nourishing Ceramide + Peptide Moisturiser is packed with these amino acids, alongside centella asiatica and niacinamide to calm and soothe sensitised areas.

To treat breakouts, dark spots and signs of ageing caused by stress…

Azelaic Acid Cream helps to treat all of these symptoms. It has similar effects to retinoids in that it speeds up cell turnover and has gentle exfoliating properties. Azelaic acid is suitable for all skin types (including sensitive and rosacea-prone skin) and unlike some retinoids is available without a prescription. It can also safely be used during pregnancy and breastfeeding, when retinoids should be avoided.

Stress can undeniably affect skin health, both in the long and short term, from accelerating the visible signs of ageing to triggering breakouts and reducing radiance. But by understanding its impact and taking steps to support the skin, we can better protect ourselves.

Find out what formulas are suitable for your skin by visiting our website.

References

Evers AWM, Beugen S. How stress affects the skin: From designs to mechanisms. British Journal of Dermatology. 2021 Jun 11;185(1)
Chen Y, Lyga J. Brain-Skin Connection: Stress, Inflammation and Skin Aging. Inflammation & Allergy-Drug Targets [Internet]. 2014 Jun;13(3):177–90. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4082169/
Luqman A, Götz F. The Ambivalent Role of Skin Microbiota and Adrenaline in Wound Healing and the Interplay between Them. International Journal of Molecular Sciences [Internet]. 2021 May 8;22(9):4996. Available from: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34066786/
Pujos M, Cécile Chamayou‐Robert, Parat M, Bonnet M, Couret S, Alessia Robiolo, et al. Impact of Chronic Moderate Psychological Stress on Skin Aging: Exploratory Clinical Study and Cellular Functioning. Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology. 2024 Nov 6
Graubard R, Perez-Sanchez A, Katta R. Stress and Skin: An Overview of Mind Body Therapies as a Treatment Strategy in Dermatology. Dermatology Practical & Conceptual. 2021 Sep 28;11(4):e2021091.
Zari S, Alrahmani D. The association between stress and acne among female medical students in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Clinical, Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology. 2017 Dec;Volume 10(1):503–6.