Grey hair in unwanted places. Lack of energy. Lower (or higher) sex drive. Ah, the joys of aging. Now we can add another startling fact to growing older - decreased resistance to stress. While stress naturally takes a toll on your mind and body, your ability to ward off the negative effects of stress decreases with age.
As you age, your body loses some of its ability to recover from physical and emotional stress. Aging appears to accelerate and premature eye wrinkles are often the result.
It's natural to have some loosening of the skin around the eyes as you age but if you are under severe or frequent amounts of stress, the delicate skin around the eyes is prone to sag much sooner.
Fortunately, there are practical things that can be done to reduce your stress levels and save your eyes from premature wrinkles. Here are a few:
Get Enough Sleep
Stress often causes you to lose out on sleep. If you're constantly tired from lack of sleep, you're eyes get stressed. This causes nasty little pockets under your eyes known as eye bags.
Not only can stress cause a lack of sleep but a lack of sleep can cause more stress. You can break out of this cycle by getting a moderate amount of daily exercise.
Going to bed at the same time each night can also help. If you are still having difficulty sleeping, consult with your doctor. You must get an adequate amount of sleep to prevent your eyes from premature wrinkling among other health problems.
Cut Back On Your Schedule
Overcommitting is a major source of stress. There aren't enough hours in the day for you to manage and do everything that crosses your path. Just as getting enough sleep will help you combat stress, taking time out during the day to do less also helps. This goes for commitments at work and at home.
When you cut back on your commitments, your stress levels are automatically reduced. And that's the goal right? Less stress equals reduced pressure to your body, especially your eyes.
Turn Off The Screens
Screen addiction is quickly increasing. MP3 players, televisions, smart phones, video games and the like are sucking people into starting at screens for hours on end. This extended time you spend in front of screens causes quite a bit of strain on the eyes. That's because your eyes require frequent periods of rest from staring throughout the day.
As entertaining as it may be, sitting in front of a screen for hours on end can do irreparable damage to your eyes – inside and out.
Growing older doesn't mean giving in to a weak body. However, stress will cause you to appear older. You can fight premature wrinkles around the eyes by limiting your stressors. Getting enough sleep, cutting back on your schedule and limiting the time spent in front of screens can help.
Look forward to experiencing your elder years. Just not too soon.
Michelle Howard Smith
Michelle is a mom of a special needs little boy. Well acquainted with stress, she shares tips and information on how to reduce stress and pain.
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