I think we can all say we know what stress feels like - even if you're the most zen person in existence - stress comes into our life at some point. Maybe it's the result of work deadlines, a never-ending to-do list, bills to pay, family (or romantic or friendship) obligations, the societal pressures to behave or look a certain way, or the demands of social media

Or, you know, all of the above. It's these bouts of extreme stress (or a continuous stream of it) that can manifest and cause grooved furrowed brows, painful breakouts, or dark circles that still peep through heavy-coverage concealer.

How to fight stressed out skin

Ingredients like ashwagandha really help to calm, rebalance, and restore a compromised complexion.
Along with antioxidant-rich superfoods (avocado, kakadu plum, cacao, and more to prevent inflammation and boost collagen production).
And niacinamide (a B3 vitamin) that's known to reduce redness and inflammation, improve the lipid barrier, and retain moisture.

Skin food recipes

Feeding your skin from within is your first action if you want healthy glowing skin!

Here are my favourite skin food recipes, ideal to incorporate into your lifestyle to get a healthy and natural glow that will outdo any make-up!

See Recipes

Teaming together a healthy diet, powerful supplements and a good skincare routine, you too can help to calm your skin and reduce any effects caused by stress.

Stressed-out skin is becoming an increasingly common skin issue.

We're hot-wired to either fight or flight under stress, and while encountering a saber-toothed tiber is something that no longer happens regularly (thank goodness), the same fight-or-flight response still occurs when we're faced with a stressful situation, triggering a series of internal reactions.

What happens in your body is that your blood pumps through your vital organs - lungs, heart, brain - to help you make that decision. It's not going to your skin because it's not a vital organ!

This decrease in circulation, coupled with stress-induced adrenaline and cortisol spikes, not only affects our immune system, but it also wreaks havoc on our skin by slowing down the production of collagen, antioxidants, and natural moisturisers.

I have personally dealt with my share of stress, especially these pass few years. Living with Crohn's Disease and Ulcerative Colitis has caused major hormonal imbalances, raised cortisol levels, weight gain and rosecea for me. I now have a stoma so have to be very careful not to get dehydrated too, so I have been trying everything I can to help my skin.

Along with using my collection of face products, that are all packed with soothing and calming ingredients like chamomile water, shea butter, hyalauronic acid and calendula oil, I always agree on repairing your skin from the inside too.