How Your Hormones Affect Your Skin Before, After, and During Your Period

 

There’s no denying that your hormones not only affect your mood, they also affect the state of your skin. This especially tends to be true as your hormones fluctuate during your monthly cycle. 

Oh, monthly cycles... While they may not be everyone’s favorite topic, knowing how your hormones change throughout your cycle can help you not only have a better understanding of your own body, but it can also help you anticipate how your skin will react to hormonal changes so you can better prepare to tackle those pesky period pimples. 

Unsure about how your period is affecting your skin? Let’s chat about how your hormones affect your skin before, after, and during your period so you can have a leg up on problematic skin. 

How Your Hormones Affect Your Skin Before Your Period 

Let’s start off with probably one of the most difficult to manage times in your cycle: right before. 

At this point in your cycle, your estrogen levels rise and your progesterone levels drop. The result? Your sebaceous glands open up, more sebum is secreted, and thus your pores can more easily get clogged, resulting in acne. 

Not to mention, the hormones right before your period can trigger skin inflammation and acne-causing bacteria. 

Probably not what you need when you’re already not feeling like yourself with all the hormonal changes. However, with targeted acne products, like our  Unicorn Clarifying Mistand  La Sirene Cleansing Bar, you’ll be much better prepared to combat stubborn hormonal acne. 

How Your Hormones Affect Your Skin During Your Period 

We wish at this point we had some good news for you, but unlike most other PMS symptoms, acne doesn’t necessarily clear up with the start of your period. 

For this, we have testosterone to blame. While we tend to associate testosterone with male sex hormones, we all have testosterone, no matter what our sex, and unfortunately, for women, as your progesterone drops and estrogen rises, testosterone is triggered to slowly rise as well (particularly on Day 3 of your cycle), resulting in clogged pores that you’ll likely see concentrated around your chin.  

Again, probably not what you were hoping to hear, but luckily, as you near the end of your cycle, there’s good news to look forward to…

How Your Hormones Affect Your Skin After Your Period 

Say hello to the time in your cycle where your skin starts to glow. Yes, finally. 

This much-anticipated glow is the result of progesterone and testosterone rising together, creating the perfect balance of hormones. During this phase of your cycle, take advantage of your natural glow, and plan to be out-and-about. Trust us, around Day 14-15 of your cycle, you’re likely to feel your best, giving you the perfect opportunity to flaunt your confidence and embrace your social side. 

With skin this good, why not?

Plus, not to mention, remember your hormones follow a cycle, meaning while your skin might look and feel its best now, your estrogen and testosterone are about to dip, while your progesterone rises. At this point, you might start to see your skin veer to a more temperamental side, so start being preventative, because, as we know from above, right before your period is not exactly prime time for your skin. 

Now, having said all this, you might be thinking: Do all these hormonal changes mean I can only have good skin on Days 14-15?

Absolutely not! Don’t forget, while hormones can definitely affect your skin, there are so many other contributing factors to consider, like stress,  diet,  food sensitivities, the products you use, and consistency with your routine. 

Bottom line: Be aware of how your hormones play a role in the state of your skin, but as we always say, skincare deserves a multi-level approach, meaning you have to consider all variables to get the skin of your dreams. 

Do that and you’re well on your way to that glowing complexion that we’re always raving about.  

Who’s in?