Whether it’s the week before, or the week during, period skin can test our patience. Many of us experience so many other symptoms with our periods and a painful pimple or two in the mix doesn't help. Struggling with your skin on top of period stress each month is a lot. That’s 12 weeks a year. Absolutely rude if you ask us. 

So what can we do about it? Well, plenty actually! Firstly, we can remember to forgive our bodies. We know acne and pimples can feel discouraging, but at the end of the day, our hormones are working hard for our bodies. Though it is frustrating, who are we to fight nature? Breathe. 

Now let’s get into the actual tips, because let’s be honest, we are totally going to try to fight nature on these rude face invaders.

Step one

stop being so aggressive. You are only going to make the big red spot on your face angry, and he is only going to be more noticeable.  Stop picking, stop over doing active acids, and stop touching it. The best way to treat this little guy is to keep him clean, and maybe invest in some invisible spot patches! You can press these on before bed, and the swelling will really go down. A great brand is Hero cosmetics “Mighty Patches”. It helps keep the spot clean through the night, and helps him go down in size.

Step two

drink extra water. Get hydrated my friend because a happy inside will make for a happy outside. Make sure you are getting all the water you need, and your skin will thank you for the glow. The water will also help support your cramping body, so don’t skip this step friend.

Step three

predict! Anticipate that pesky period and the week before try to support the skin with nutrient rich foods. Healthy fats will help with the cravings too. It’s a win win. We might experience cravings and we can indulge those cravings in ways that won't make our symptoms worse. Think dark chocolate, almond butter, avocados, and greek yogurt- all healthy and satisfying alternatives. Adding some lemon to your morning water will help you detox a bit too before the big event.

Step 4

check out the ingredients in your makeup! We all spend so much time researching our skincare, but you know what else goes on your face? Your make up! Look for products with great, skin happy ingredients to protect your skin from drying or irritation. Clean skin can’t stop with skincare! It needs to extend to your make up. Try going lighter, or find a more breathable foundation to keep skin comfortable.

Step 5

yoga. Now is a really good time to chill on the high intensity work outs. Those actually raise cortisol, the stress hormone! Which can lead to more troublesome skin. Yoga is calming and actually lowers cortisol in the body. Plus, during this time it can be so frustrating to be working out at half your usual strength. Give yourself a break and breathe. Like literally breathe. Take the time to relax and stretch and focus on some positives. This can really calm the skin and keep it happy and glowing.

 Step 6

fermented foods. Let’s support our skin by supporting our gut health. You can get your favourite Kombucha, grab some pickles or other fermented goods, and have yourself a happy tummy party! This can help lower inflammation and reduce the possibility of pesky zits! 

Step 7

hydrating masks. I know we discussed wanting to attack the face invaders, but truly, let’s just try to hydrate the skin. It will obviously get the skin glowing, but it also makes the skin relax and it helps treat pimples effectively through support instead of anger. Try the Evio Skin Rejuvenating Mask which will soothe and calm skin while adding a ton of moisture. We can obviously do our spot treatments with salicylic acid, or better yet, lactic acid, but over all focus on hydration.

Step 8

CHUCK THE BEAUTY STANDARDS. Don’t let that annoying period skin get to you. Who ever said you couldn’t still be attractive with the odd spot, or 20 spots!?! You are beautiful no matter what. Focus on the fact that acne and pimples are human, and we can try as much as we can to make our skin glow through this rough patch each month, but at the end of the day nobody is perfect and it’s time we forgive ourselves for being a human with a period.

So let’s put on that moisturizing face mask, sip the Kombucha, and unfollow any instagram page that makes us feel worse. We have to survive a period every month. We can do anything. Let’s get glowing.