Healthy Beauty Skin & Body Face & Neck

Skin-Deep: Topical Solutions

Since stress marks everyone's skin differently, the first step is to take note of how your face reacts during the two weeks surrounding a high-stakes work presentation or a fight with your sister.

• Breakout Busters

For those whose skin reacts with greasiness and breakouts, the key is exfoliating to unclog pores that can harbor bacteria. "Instead of a gritty scrub exfoliant, which can cause further redness, use a product with lactic acid, which hydrates as it removes dead skin cells," says Baltimore dermatologist Dr. Noëlle Sherber. "Then follow with an oil-absorbing kaolin clay mask." (The Kinara Red Carpet Facial Kit includes both steps.) Spot treat blemishes with a salicylic acid gel. But if your acne comes with sensitivity and patches of dryness, the standard over-the-counter routine won't benefit you as much as a trip to the derm's office. In those cases, Wexler recommends Isolaz, an acne-fighting light therapy, with a salicylic acid infusion to brighten skin and clear acne. Another in-office treatment is an antioxidant-rich glycolic acid peel, such as Vivité, paired with blue-light treatment. "The light waves kill acne-promoting bacteria underneath the skin without causing dryness or irritation," says Sherber.

• Dryness Relief

If your skin goes to the other extreme with dryness, flaking, peeling, redness, sensitivity, rosacea, or eczema, you're not alone: A study in the Journal of Investigative Dermatology found that when women experience psychological stress, their skin becomes more easily dehydrated, even leading to eczema. Try products with ceramides and hyaluronic acid. "They absorb water and surround each dead skin cell with lipids, making the cell more able to hang on to water," says Murad. For daytime, use SkinCeuticals Hydrating B5 Gel with hyaluronic acid or Clinique Redness Solution Daily Relief Cream, which contains caffeine and glycine to reduce redness and inflammation. For evening, treat with CeraVe Facial Moisturizing Lotion PM, since it has both hydrat-ing acid and ceramides. Another temporary skin soother is "a nightly 20-minute bath--that's not superhot!--before you apply a moisturizer," says Sherber. "For patients with stress-related dryness, it hydrates the skin and also builds in time to unwind." For your body, swap your traditional cream for one of Darphin's Aromatic Care Oils; they moisturize just as well, plus offer relaxing aromatherapy benefits.

• Wrinkle Repair

For lines, sallow skin, and other visible signs of aging, you want to help skin fight back against free radicals and environmental damage with antioxidants. Murad's favorites are products that contain pomegranate extract and vitamin C, like his Essential-C Daily Renewal Complex. The next step up is a chemical peel to reveal your newer, younger skin below. Or check in with your doctor to bring in the big guns: fractionated laser treatment to brighten dull, wrinkled skin and up collagen production. Sunscreen is even more important than usual, since when you're stressed, "the dead cell layer on the skin's surface becomes thin, with microscopic holes in it," which can't protect as well against aging UV rays, says Murad.