This "Mediterranean Diet" Skincare Duo Fixed The Most Stressed-Out Skin I've Ever Had
The acne, wrinkles, and dullness were no match.
The last few months have, without question, been the most stressful I’ve ever survived. Between building a company, planning a wedding, and still managing to make it to two out-of-state weddings and a bar mitzvah, my schedule has run my body ragged. But because I’ve gotten so good at pretending everything’s fine (a quality my therapist calls “extremely problematic”), you’d never really know just how exhausted and overwhelmed I was… unless you looked at my skin.
I take a lot of pride in my complexion-care routine, and now that I’m a bride-to-be, I’ve become even more militant about caring for my skin health (the first thing I did after I got engaged was book a dermatologist appointment.). But the more stressed I got, the worse my skin started to look. It was dull and sallow, and new fine lines and dehydration wrinkles started to appear on my forehead. It somehow felt dry and oily at the same time, and I got a few rogue pimples in places I’ve never broken out before—like on the side of my nose and on my lip.
Understanding the stress-skin connection
Given the link between stress and skin, it shouldn’t have come as a surprise that after two straight months of working 14 hour days on minimal sleep, I didn’t recognize the haggard-looking girl in the mirror. When you’re stressed out, your body kicks into “fight or flight” mode and starts releasing a whole bunch of a hormone called cortisol, which does a few different things to your skin.
First, it triggers inflammation and weakens the skin barrier, which exacerbates pretty much every skin concern you can think of—acne, dryness, eczema, rosacea, psoriasis, the list goes on and on. It also breaks down collagen, which leads to more visible fine lines and wrinkles; boosts sebum production, which causes breakouts; and reduces blood flow to the skin, which makes it look dull and lackluster.
By the time my stress levels hit their peak, my skin was dealing with all of these issues, and my regular routine just wasn’t cutting it. I remembered a product duo that a friend had given me, which she swore other beauty editors called “crack” for their complexions. It sounded like exactly what I needed.
The product duo that fixed my stressed skin
Testament Beauty, which was founded by former editor Sophia Chabbott, was created around the concept of “the Mediterranean diet, for your face.” Its formulas center on simple, garden-grown ingredients from the Mediterranean—like grapes, melons, and herbs—that are rich in antioxidants, hydrating oils, and plant-based actives.
First up on the list of Testament products I tried for my stressed skin is the brand’s Ancient Vine Vitality Serum. It’s packed with antioxidants, which gobble up the free radicals that cause stress-related skin damage. It’s a rich, luxurious oil-serum that smells incredible and blends seamlessly into skin, and its star ingredient—Spanish grape seed oil—make me think of it like a fine white wine for my skin. It’s also got a hefty dose of vitamin C in it, which helps to brighten up the dullness that comes along with stress and lack of sleep.
Testament Beauty Ancient Vine Vitality Serum, $120
Key Ingredients: Vitis Vinifera, Vitamin C, Raspberry Seed Oil, Pumpkin Seed Oil
Next, there’s the brand’s moisturizer, which was specifically designed with stressed skin in mind. Its star active, Damascena Rose, targets both the skin impacts of stress (dullness and fatigue) and the stress itself (with its calming scent). It pairs the ingredient with soothing chamomile and strengthening probiotics to bring stressed skin back to a balanced state.
Testament Beauty Damascena Rose De-Stress Moisturizer, $88
Key ingredients: Damascena rose, bisabolol, lactobacillus ferment:
I decided to ditch the rest of my routine and just use this serum and moisturizer every morning and night (after washing my face, obviously). After just one day, there was a notable difference in my skin—it looked brighter and more alive than it had in weeks. From there, it kept getting better the longer I used the products. 10 days in, I was back to looking like my normal self… and maybe even better.
The importance of caring for your skin when you’re stressed out
Obviously, the ingredients lived up to their promise—but that isn’t the only reason why I’ve come to love this duo for my stressed-out skin.
When I have a zillion things going on in my brain, I like that I don’t have to think about what to put on my face, which makes the simplicity of this two-step, twice-daily routine incredibly satisfying.
More importantly, though, both products are pure luxury to apply, which helps make the chore of putting on skincare feel like an act of self care. On my busiest recent days, these few moments were often the only “me” time I really had, and Testament’s indulgent formulas made me really appreciate them to the fullest.
Living life in the constant fight-or-flight mode I’ve been operating in isn’t sustainable—and it took a freak-out from my skin for me to realize it. I’m working on lowering my stress levels, and this simple, mindful skincare routine is a step in the right direction.