Stress is one of the biggest factors that can speed up the aging of your skin.
Stress, whether emotional, nutritional or physical can cause an elevation in the hormone cortisol. Cortisol job is to mobilize energy and one of the things it sacrifices is the collagen in your skin.
Things that can cause chronic stress can be:
- Lack of sleep
- Over- or under-exercising
- Constant anger or negativity (yours or those around you)
- Diet that is not nutrient dense
A constant state of stress causes inflammation, imbalances hormones, and even accelerates aging, especially on your face. They don’t call them worry lines for nothing!
How to get a handle on excess stress
If you’re dealing with chronic stress hearing someone suggest that you relax is likely to make you want to throw a shoe at them. Here are a couple tips you might want to try?
Prioritize a “Down-time minute”
Rather than trying to squeeze 30 minutes of meditation into an already full schedule commit to just ONE minute. Just sit still and breathe for ONE minute.
The key is to do it every day. Once it is part of your routine it is easy to increase it to TWO minutes. Work you way up to five minutes. Your nervous system gets significant benefit from even this short break.
Pet the dog or play a game
Dr. Deepak Chopra categorizes intimate relationships as an important life area to attend to when you want to manage chronic stress.
Make room for laughter. Even a silly word game while you’re driving home can break the cycle of cortisol build-up.
Get adequate sleep
Sleep is a key factor in maintaining hormone balance. Cortisol should naturally lower in the evening, supporting your body’s ability to handle stress in a healthy way.
You want to address the temperature and darkness of the room to help you get a good night’s sleep.
Next Steps
Click here to take Dr. Rose’s Nutritional Profile Quiz and get an overview of what your nutritional imbalances could be. You’ll get your results immediately.
Dr. Marina Rose helps both men and women with nutritional and hormones imbalances in and around the city of San Francisco, CA by addressing the underlying cause.