Breakout from Your Breakout – How Your Period Can Affect Your Skin

Breakout from Your Breakout – How Your Period Can Affect Your Skin

Hormonal breakouts, the dreaded words no-one ever wants to hear but in reality it happens to the best of us. It’s safe to say everyone experiences different kinds of breakouts, from skin dryer than the Sahara to those pesky spots that always seem to appear at that time of the month without fail. But, if you’re experiencing your skin changing in a pattern throughout each month, it could be related to your period more than you think!

Have no fear though, by tracking your period cycle, it can give you a heads up in order to adapt your skincare routine, helping to combat problematic skin.

Skincare cartoon

 

Right, let’s go back to the basics. There are four phases that your beau-ti-ful body goes through during your period cycle. There is menstruation, the follicular phase, ovulation, and the luteal phase, with each phase potentially affecting your skin in a different way...

Stage 1 – Menstruation

This first phase is usually the first seven days of your cycle (when you’re actually having your period) and your levels of oestrogen and progesterone are at their lowest.

During the menstruation phase your skin may be looking duller than usual and you may also notice the sensitivity of your skin is heightened when using skincare products and makeup. Keeping your skin well moisturised and washing it more frequently will work wonders as your sebaceous glands will be working overtime to excrete sebum (oily matter) which can be the main culprit for clogging your pores and causing breakouts.

We recommend exfoliating more than usual to remove any dead skin cells and to brighten your skin. Don’t go too crazy on the exfoliation as you could end up drying out your skin and could ultimately cause more sebum to be produced - 2 or 3 times a week would be ideal.

 UpCircle Coffee Face Scrub - Citrus Blend

We suggest UpCircle’s Coffee Face Scrub, formulated for dehydrated skin. Made with essential oils with antiseptic and anti-inflammatory qualities, by scrubbing away the dead skin cells, you’ll be left with glowing skin that feels silky smooth.

Stage 2 – Follicular Phase

You normally enter the follicular phase (day 10 and day 16 of your cycle) after your period has finished doing its thaaang and your oestrogen levels will begin to rise and peak.

We’ve got some good news for you, your skin tends to look its best during the follicular phase, meaning you don’t really need to make any drastic changes to your usual skincare routine.

Not only do your oestrogen levels rise, your serotonin levels will increase too (YAY - more happy hormones!), so you’ll not only be glowing on the outside, you’ll be glowing on the inside too.

Although testosterone is widely considered a male hormone, we women produce a small amount in our ovaries and adrenal glands (Is there anything women can’t do!?), the rise in testosterone levels naturally moisturises the skin and increases the production of collagen.

UpCircle Face Moisturizer with Argan Powder

As your skin is usually low maintenance whilst you’re in stage 2, you'll want to maximise your skin’s natural glow by applying a fabulous moisturiser. The award-winning moisturiser by UpCircle is suitable for all skin types and is super hydrating and brightening, it’s also made with antioxidant Vitamin E rich argan powder to help rejuvenate your skin, sign me up!

Stage 3 – Ovulation

Ovulation usually occurs on day 14 of your menstrual cycle and this stage is nearly all about balanced hormones. During ovulation your oestrogen and testosterone levels are balanced giving your skin that natural radiance. Don’t get too excited though, once your progesterone levels begin to increase, it can lead to oilier skin… we knew this was too good to be true.

MOA Silver Rain Mystical Toner

As your skin is more prone to bacteria, we recommend using a water-based toner to avoid clogging your pores. MOA’s Silver Rain Mystical Toner is the holy grail, with ingredients such as antibacterial colloidal silver and clary sage (which is meant to help with hormonal imbalances), you and your skin will feel fresh and fantastic. 

Stage 4 - Luteal phase

Congratulations, you’ve finally made it to the last stage of your cycle (from day 15), but now’s not the time to relax on that skincare routine of yours. Although you’re nearing the end of the cycle, there is one final hurdle…or many, as this is the phase where your hormones are kind of all over the place. Let’s call this the “breakout phase”.

During the luteal phase, you’ll be battling against the dreaded premenstrual syndrome, better known as PMS and this is due to the hormonal imbalance within your body. You may feel more bloated than usual and feel your face may be getting a little bit puffy (not so cute). Whilst PMS’ing you'll most likely want to stuff your face with the greasiest junk food but try to avoid eating too much processed foods as your skin naturally produces more oil throughout this phase.

To help keep those spots at bay, cleanse...cleanse...cleanse.

MOA Daily Cleansing Ritual- Hot Cloth Cleansing Kit

Hands down on of the best cleansers out there - the MOA Daily Cleansing Ritual kit, created to not strip your skin of all its natural oils (this can lead to breakouts!), it merely gives your skin a little TLC through a deep cleanse and removing excess oils, some say it’s magic others say it’s genius, either way it’s a skincare must have!

Through the fluctuating hormone levels your body goes through each month. By learning to adjust your skincare routine can help keep your skin in tiptop shape regardless of what’s going on inside, we can finally wave goodbye to the days of our skin owning us, as it’s time to own your skin!

Through the fluctuating hormone levels your body goes through each month, by learning to adjust your skincare routine can help keep your skin in tiptop shape, regardless of what’s going on inside. We can say goodbye to the days

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