13th February 2023

Tired Skin: How Sleep Affects Your Complexion

How are you sleeping? Our relationships with sleep are often complicated and differ from person to person. As adults, we need a recommended 7-10 hours of sleep each night, and a lack of sleep can have numerous implications on your health and well-being. It can even lead to tired skin and leave you looking and feeling less than lively. If you’re struggling to maintain a healthy bedtime routine, you need to get to the source of the problem and improve your sleeping habits. Your skin will thank you for it!

Symptoms Of Tired Skin

Dullness
Cortisol, a steroid hormone predominantly used to help regulate stress, can cause skin inflammation when levels are high. These levels can increase due to a lack of sleep, which can also hinder proper blood circulation and decreases oxygen levels in the blood. Due to these things, your complexion can appear lacklustre, blotchy and pigmented. Higher cortisol levels can even increase the likelihood of active acne and skin sensitivity.

Dryness
Did you know that your body works to rebalance your hydration and PH levels while you sleep? You naturally perspire overnight, which also acts as a natural moisturiser to help minimise the appearance of wrinkles. Without sleep, you get in the way of this natural process and your PH levels decrease, leading to dry, tired skin.

Dark Circles
Sleep deprivation can dilate the blood vessels beneath the eyes, leading to dark circles and puffiness as a direct result of decreased blood flow. As with dullness, this happens due to low oxygen levels in the bloodstream and a link between sleep deprivation and iron deficiency has even been made, creating a vicious cycle that can worsen your symptoms further.

Premature Ageing
The inflammation associated with insufficient sleep can break down the proteins that are responsible for healthy, youthful skin – collagen and elastin. These proteins are responsible for structure and elasticity, which is why laxity and volume loss can occur. Collagen and elastin levels diminish naturally over time, but a lack of sleep can speed up this process and encourage fine lines and wrinkles to form.

How To Treat Tired Skin

Obviously, the first thing to do is to address your nightly routine and try to increase the amount of sleep you’re getting. Sometimes, underlying concerns contribute to the symptoms mentioned above and even a regular, healthy sleep cycle isn’t enough to rejuvenate tired skin. In those instances, many people turn to aesthetic treatments to help restore a more even tone and radiant complexion, especially if their symptoms are negatively impacting their mental well-being.

Dr Firas offers a wide range of advanced injectables that work to revitalise the skin from within. When it comes to fine lines, anti-wrinkle injections have long been used to safely and effectively minimise these telltale signs of premature ageing. They block communication between nerve endings and the brain to temporarily stunt muscle movement, allowing the overlying skin to lay flat and smooth.

For deeper wrinkles, dermal fillers offer similar results in different ways. Using a hyaluronic acid-based gel solution, Dr Firas can volumise the skin and stimulate the production of collagen and elastin at the same time, for optimised, lasting results. Tear trough fillers are also highly effective for minimising dark circles and hollowness beneath the eyes.

Profhilo is an injectable in its own league. While it possesses similarities to a filler, it is actually a bio-remodelling injectable that harnesses a high concentration of uniquely cross-linked hyaluronic acid to hydrate and boost the skin from within.

For a more long-term solution to tired skin, ask Dr Firas about more advanced treatment technologies, like HIFU. High Intensity Focused Ultrasound offers a non-surgical alternative to a facelift by lifting and tightening the skin, penetrating deep beneath the surface to stimulate collagen production. The results of your HIFU treatment can be taken further by combining it with microneedling, which is a form of controlled trauma whereby hundreds of tiny punctures are created using a safe and precise needling device. This triggers natural healing processes, increasing collagen production and blood circulation for tighter, brighter skin.

Get In Touch

As the UK’s leading laser dermatologist, Dr Firas also boasts the most advanced laser treatments on the market, offering intense skin tightening and rejuvenation for tired skin. The type of treatment you may require depends on the severity of your symptoms and will be determined during your consultation at his Harley Street clinic.

To book a consultation with Dr Firas, call 07494 764 201 or get in touch here. You can also email info@drfirasalniaimi.co.uk if you’d prefer. Don’t forget to follow him on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter for more help and advice.