Glow skin products are popping up everywhere, as we all want that radiant, youthful look.
Here at CV Skinlabs, we love the immediate radiant glow that our products can give your skin. We hear all the time from customers that this is one of their favorite benefits of our products!
But we also know that beauty is most beautiful when it comes from within. Over the past year, we’ve all been a little more stressed out than usual, and if there’s one thing that can help us all cope, it’s this: meditation.
Would you be surprised to know that a regular meditation practice may inspire your skin to glow, too? We’re excited to tell you how!
Glow Skin Products Can’t Counteract Stress
Of course, applying a skin care product to your skin is always easier than making a lifestyle change, but if you combine the two, you’re likely to experience more benefits.
You know, for example, that eating a healthy diet can result in healthier, more youthful-looking skin because of the nutrients in those healthy foods. Regular exercise can also make you look more radiant all over as it increases blood flow and inspires feel-good neurotransmitters that help you exude beauty.
So it makes sense that other lifestyle choices like meditation may be helpful, too.
Stress Shuts Down Your Glow Skin Beauty
Scientists have discovered something they call a “brain-skin connection.” When you’re stressed out, your body releases hormones that trigger a wide range of changes in the body. The skin, in particular, is an immediate stress “receiver,” meaning that it is sensitive to these changes, as well as a target of these stress responses.
That’s why when you go through an extended period of stress, you’re likely to notice the effects on your skin. Here are some of the most common ones:
- Increase in acne breakouts
- Bags under your eyes
- Redness and inflammation
- Dry skin
- Rashes
- Wrinkles
Indeed, stress boosts the production of the hormone cortisol—known to increase oil production in your skin glands—which can lead to clogged pores and acne breakouts. When your body perceives a threat, the immune system responds, creating inflammation that can result in redness, acne, and rashes.
Stress can also cause inflammation through the gut-skin connection. It impacts the balance of bacteria in your gut and in your skin, which can boost inflammation and cause eczema, rosacea, and psoriasis flare-ups.
The problem is, we can’t eliminate all the stress in our lives. We probably wouldn’t even want to, as some stress can help challenge us so that we grow and become stronger. But what we can do is better manage that stress so it doesn’t cause so many problems on our skin.
The Glow Skin Product that’s Free: Meditation
If you think about those times when you felt stressed, you can see that the stress usually followed your thoughts. You thought about something that scared you or made you anxious, and your body responded.
When you think positive thoughts, you’re more likely to feel free of anxiety and stress. This shows on your face, not only reducing the negative effects on your skin but allowing your inner beauty to shine through.
Meditation is one of the best methods available for managing your thoughts. You may have noticed that people who meditate regularly have a calm energy about them, and exude a quiet, radiant glow.
Meditation is a Proven Skin Treatment
Meditation does such a good job of counteracting the effect of stress on the skin that scientists have used it to help patients with psoriasis. In one study, they had 37 patients with psoriasis go through light therapy while meditating with the help of audiotaped instructions or without meditation.
The results showed that those who meditated during the light treatments decreased their psoriatic lesions more rapidly than those who didn’t.
In a more recent review of studies, researchers found that therapies like meditation helped people with psoriasis. (Some other helpful options included acupuncture and the consumption of fish oil.)
Increase Your Glow Skin Powers with Meditation
If you’ve been stressed out lately and you’d like to try meditation for more glowing skin, don’t be intimidated. It doesn’t have to be complicated.
Meditation is simply the practice of allowing your thoughts to come and go without reacting to them. Let’s say that you think, “Oh dear, with my hours cut back, I’m not going to have enough money to pay the bills next month.” Normally that thought would inspire a stress reaction in your body that would damage your skin.
When you’re meditating, you may have this same thought, but you practice letting it go and returning your attention to a central point. That point may be a candle flame, single word, picture, or even the in-and-out flow of your breath.
Your brain will still have all the thoughts it normally has, but the more you practice letting those thoughts go without reacting to them, the calmer you will feel, and the more your skin will benefit.
How to Get Glowing Skin with a Meditation Practice
If you’d like to try meditation to reduce stress and benefit your skin, there are several ways you can do it. You may want to sign up for a meditation class in your area or take an online course.
There are many apps available that walk you through various types of meditation. Simply search for “meditation apps” or “calming apps” and you will find several.
Perhaps one of the easiest ways to do it is simply to light a candle, set a timer for 5-10 minutes, and sit down in front of it. Focus on the flame. Let it burn behind your eyes for about a minute. Then close your eyes and search for the glow behind your closed eyelids. You will find it. The more you concentrate on it, the brighter it will get.
Meanwhile, if some stressful thought pops up in your brain, simply bring your attention back to the flame. You’ll probably have to do this several times, and that’s okay. Think something, focus on the flame. Think something else, focus on the flame. Keep bringing your attention back to the flame. When it finally disappears behind your eyes, open your eyes to burn the image again. When the timer goes off, you’re done!
Glow Skin Care Routine Meditation Technique
Another option is to use your skin care routine as an opportunity to practice meditation. This can help you save time, as it combines two activities into one. Here’s how to do it:
- Before you start, set an intention to slow down and enjoy the experience of caring for your skin. Today, this isn’t a chore.
- Take twice as long as usual for each step. Allow the ingredients to work on your skin. Massage your cleanser in with your fingertips, then do the same with your moisturizer.
- Focus on the process as a way to relieve stress and relax. During your nighttime routine, light a candle and allow yourself to breathe deeply in and out.
- Focus on how each product feels, as well as how your fingers and the water feels on your skin. Enjoy each step of the process, breathing deeply.
- Add in a 15-30 minute mask if you have time. Apply the mask carefully, then sit back and listen to some calming music or a calming meditation audio recording.
Do you use meditation to help counteract stress and enjoy beautiful skin?
Photo by Engin Akyurt from Pexels.
