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We’ve all woken up from a bad night’s sleep to see (and feel) the telltale signs of exhaustion written on our complexion. Good news: if your skin looks tired, you have the option to brighten up your appearance with a few high-performance skincare heroes.
In this article, we’ll discuss five signs your skin is tired, as well as how you can address these signs with skincare and lifestyle changes.
When you wake up tired, you’ll likely be able to see the physical effects of fatigue on your face. Here are five things that can contribute to a tired-looking appearance.
The skin under your eyes is very thin, with many blood vessels under the eyes. When you’re low on sleep, the skin can get pale and cause the blood vessels to become more visible. This can lead to dark, purple-looking circles underneath the eyes.
You can also get dark circles by looking at screens and staying indoors too long. Anything that strains the eyes or causes the skin to get pale can cause these dark circles to appear. Other causes of dark circles under the eyes include smoking, drinking, and stress.
Keep in mind that while exhaustion can cause dark circles, it takes more than one or two long nights to cause them to show up. Often, you might see dark circles after multiple sleepless nights.
If you’ve gone too long without sleep, you might also notice your eyes look puffier than normal. This can often be because exhaustion can cause the blood vessels to expand, which can cause fluid to build up more in the eye area. Plus, it's often more noticeable in the eye area than in others because the skin is already so thin.
However, puffy eyes alone don’t always indicate a lack of sleep. It’s generally normal to have puffy eyes right when you wake up, as liquid tends to accumulate in the eye area overnight. However, normal puffiness should go down as you wake up.
Other causes of puffy eyes include eating salty foods, allergies, drinking alcohol, and genetics. If your puffy eyes are due to lack of sleep, you may also notice redness.
You might think of fine lines as signs of aging, but they can also be signs that you need to get more sleep. Exhaustion can affect your immune system when you don’t get enough sleep. Not only can this cause you to get sick more easily, but it can also affect your skin’s collagen production.
Collagen is the protein that helps your skin hold its structure. As collagen levels decrease, your skin may appear less firm and elastic, resulting in fine lines around your eyes and mouth.
Your body’s circadian rhythm controls your skin’s natural repair mechanism. While you sleep at night, the skin’s blood circulation increases to raise body temperature and transport materials to help repair damaged skin.
This can cause you to wake up to dull-looking skin that may even cause breakouts. Going to bed late may even contribute to dry skin, which tends to show more fine lines and look more dull.
If your skin is feeling or looking more oily than normal, it could signify exhaustion and stress. Your skin produces more sebum or natural oils when cortisol is high, which can contribute to blemishes and a slick, shiny appearance.
However, breakouts can also be caused by some skincare conditions, improper skincare products, and not exfoliating properly.
When you’re trying to rejuvenate tired-looking skin, it’s important to consider what can cause your skin to look tired in the first place. While a lack of sleep is one common cause of dark circles and puffy eyes, many other factors can cause these symptoms.
The causes of tired-looking skin include:
If you want to brighten your appearance and refresh your skin tone, here are a few steps you can take:
If your skin is tired, you might notice signs like dark circles, puffy eyes, fine lines, dull skin, and oily skin. However, lack of sleep is only one of many possible causes behind this exhaustion. These signs can also be caused by dehydration, dead skin cell buildup, and environmental factors.
Luckily, you can brighten tired-looking skin with products like resurfacing serums and moisturizers, as well as lifestyle changes like eating a nutrient-rich diet and getting more sleep. To learn more about skincare, visit the U Beauty Blog.
Sources:
Dark circles under eyes Causes | Mayo Clinic
How To Prevent Puffy Eyes | Consumer Reports
Beauty Sleep: How Quality Rest Impacts Appearance | The Sleep Foundation
Brain-Skin Connection: Stress, Inflammation and Skin Aging | PMC