are you the type of person who easily gets stressed? (like me?) or do always go thru a lot everyday that you'd end up stressed at the end of the day?
Too much stress can cause no end of beauty fall-out! your face may erupt in blemishes, your skin may turn splotchy. your neck and shoulders will tighten up so you hunch when you walk, your nails are bitten to little nubs. sleep deprivation seems to have left permanent dark circles under your eyes (ouch!) and your scalp is so dry, you're scratching like a chimp.
Here's how to find relief:
All Wrung Out
to recharge your batteries when energy is low, do what great bathing creatures of the world have done for centuries. take a hot-cold plunge. start with a warm shower, then switch to a burst of cold, then back to really warm. don't overdo it, however; a cycle of one to four rotations is enough. if you are pregnant or have high pressure, don't try this.
Head & Neck Tension
massage your scalp with your fingertips in small, circular motion to relax tension and your skin will glow
Irritated Skin
french women use thermal water on their skin -- with selenium, an anti-inflammatory -- and we should, too.
Low Energy Flow
dry brush your body before you step into the shower in the morning. with a long-handled natural-bristle brush or loofah, brush your legs then arms from the tips of your fingers and toes toward the heart. brush your torso toward the heart, as well, but be gentle with breast are, and avoid the face. your body will tingle slightly, from your revved-up circulation and you'll feel that old get-up-and-go!
Feeling Jumpy?
run your wrist under cold water for a couple of minutes to calm yourself down.
Tied in Knots
even lobsters relax when given a little massage -- their eye stalks go limp! when you can't reach the tight spots on your upper back and shoulders, lie on your back on the floor and roll on top of a rolling pin or a tennis ball until you've untangled the knots.
Big Zits A Comin'
there's nothing like stress to bring on a pimple. if you feel one on the way...before you go to bed, apply a site-specific salicylic acid medication, and, if you're lucky, the pimple will be gone by bugle call.
Brain Drain
lie across your bed and hang your head over the edge. you'll get your blood rushing to your brain (where it should be, anyway!), which stimulate circulation to your skin cells, so that you'll look and feel more awake.
Stress Bites
to keeo from biting your nails, mothers used to tell their children to sit on their hands (LOL). but there are some who seem to need their hands to talk! instead, keep a tube of hand cream in your purse. when you want to bite your nails, apply it, and the taste will act as a deterrent. eventually, you'd be able to condition yourself not to bite those nails.
Raggedy Cuticles
If you have really dry cuticles, which makes them more tempting to bite -- don't! rub them with olive oil (olive contains squalene, which is a great moisturizer) or cuticle cream.
no cuticle cream? grab your lip balm and massage it to your cuticles to soften them and help keep the temptation to bite at bay...but don't use your candy-flavored lip balm, though! LOL
Lockluster
when your skin looks irritated and inflamed, and you see small red blood vessels and bumps that look like pimples, it may be rosacea. see your dermatologist, but in the meantime, drink green tea which helps calm inflammation. and look for skin creams with extracts of green or white tea, licorice (glycyrrhizinate), grapeseed, allantoin, resveratrol from red grapes, zinc, beta hydroxy acids, vitamin K and copper.
Cover Up
to cover rosacea, look for "luminous makeup" (which diffuses light on the surface of the skin) or concealer and foundation with yellow undertones to neutralize the red. use a damp sponge when applying makeup and toss the sponge after each use.
Eczema
eczema results in dryness, itching, flakeness, redness and occasionally, crusty blisters. look for moisturizers with green tea, shea butter, borage oil, cortisone, jewel-weed or calendula.
* tips from Fast Beauty Fixes
