How to look less tired naturally


9 Tips So You Don’t Look So Tired and Feel Sleepy

En español | "You look tired" is a phrase no 50-plus woman likes to hear. It's a loud and clear hint we're not coming across as fresh, healthy and attractive to others — and who needs that? Clearly some combination of stress, insomnia, the daily barrage of social media and news, family/work/health issues and a few too many late-night Netflix binges is throwing us serious shade. Here are nine ways to snap out of it with an at-home routine and a 911 fast fix.

1. Cold brew your face and body

No hitting the snooze button. Even if you feel and look like a zombie, a cold shower, steamy suds-up and icy rinse finish will get your senses tingling, smooth superficial creases from your face and lift any brain fog. Prefer languishing in a cozy bath? Do the cold, steamy, cool routine as you wash your face. The heated soothing cleanser part will still steam the lines and the cold will give your circulation a jolt.

2. Moisturize while skin is damp

Timing and technique matter. Think of a "tired" face like a deflated balloon, a "fresh" face like a round inflated one. If you lightly blot your face and immediately apply your hydrating cream or oil, skin gets plumped up. Wait five minutes, or 20, and you've lost that absorption window when emollients work best. Gently massage moisturizer into face, neck and décolletage for two or three minutes. This helps relax tension lines and gets a glow going.

3. Freshen eyes ASAP

The skin here is super thin and dry. It not only shows fatigue first, but amplifies it by going red, puffy, dark-circled and saggy. Clarify the "whites" with fast-acting drugstore drops like Lumify by Bausch & Lomb ($12, Target) or Alcon Naphcon-A Eye Drops ($11, target.com) both staples in A-list celeb makeup artist kits. Next a caffeine-packed eye cream like Garnier SkinActive Clearly Brighter Anti-Puff Eye Roller ($8, target.com) with vitamin C and caffeine, cool metallic roller tip soothes or Dickinson's Original Witch Hazel De-Puffing Eye Gel with caffeine and cucumber ($10, target. com) — chilled if possible (keep it on call in the fridge) — to soothe and reduce swelling and discoloration. No drops or cream handy? Check the freezer for frozen peas or blueberries and apply the icy bag over closed lids for five minutes. Or try cooled tea bags.

4. 

Fake your best skin

When you look tired, stressed mature skin either gets temperamental (sensitive, ruddy and possibly prone to breakouts) or it can go desert dry (ashy, sallow), and expression lines and wrinkles seem to sink deeper. Either way, a creamy, dewy stick foundation with a wide range of 30-40 shades like Flesh Firm Flesh ThickStick Foundation ($18, ulta.com), Bobbi Brown Skin Foundation Stick ($46, sephora.com) or Hourglass Vanish Seamless Finish Foundation Stick ($46, sephora.com) pulls your face together fast. Pricey? Yes, but when you're aiming for authenticity instead of a mask, multipurpose coverage pays off. Using fingers, makeup brushes or sponges, dab and blend the foundation stick where and when needed on red, brown, blue or violet discolorations.

5. Blush, don't bronze

Instinct says go sunny and beachy — but hold it right there. Don’t reach for a self-tanner or bronzing powder. That's OK for your best days. But to restore a glow, grab a creamy pink or peach blush like Revlon Insta-Blush ($8, Target) or e.l.f. Beautifully Bare Blush ($4 target.com) and give cheeks a yoga-class flush in seconds.

6. Lighten up on eye makeup, but don't ignore it

Now's not the time for smoky dark eyes — black liner and dark brown shadows can look sexy at night in dim light, but they'll drag you down during the day. To restore sparkle, choose a nude palette in light to medium shades of mauve, peach and shimmery taupe like Maybelline Total Temptation Eyeshadow + Highlight Palette ($9, target.com) or NYX Professional Makeup Eyeshadow Palette in Soft & Rosy ($8, target.com). The combo of muted brown liner and mascara and pale shimmer on your upper lids restores shape and keeps the emphasis there. Skip makeup beneath the eyes, where liner and mascara can emphasize bags and crepey skin.

7. Shake up your hair

Pulling hair back or wearing it up can exacerbate a fatigued look, especially if hair is pulled too sleek and tight. Always let a few pieces float or cut feathery bangs if ponytails are your thing. Keep your hair loose, tousled and free and play up texture, wave or color. Yes, it's a distraction but one that works and makes you look lively, animated. Consider getting highlights around the face — it adds a frame of light just where you need it.

8. Wear cheerful vibrant colors

A white shirt is a classic brightener and black makes us feel slim and chic, but juicy colors like orange, red, raspberry, yellow and bright blue signal an energetic attitude. Ditto to splashy prints, stripes — even in a scarf. When feeling blah, throw on some color. It’s an instant pick-me-up.

9. Wide awake in five?

Let's say you're already at work, a meeting, a party or a restaurant when a "frenemy" delivers the "you look tired" news. Grab an ice cube and head for the restroom. Rub the cube (or pat hands splashed with icy water) over your face right over face makeup. It revs up circulation like a cold shower. Brush your teeth or rinse your mouth with fresh water. Yawn to relax your jaw and de-tense facial muscles that exacerbate lines. Bend at the waist, run your hands through your hair and flip it back. Unbutton your blouse or shirt to a V to show more neck and upper chest, roll up your sleeves to show forearms, or take off your jacket or cardigan and go sleeveless — don't let it all be about your face. If possible, take a brief brisk walk. Movement has a caffeine-like effect that makes you look more alert. Breathe deeply from your diaphragm, five counts out and five counts in. Sit and stand up straight — no slouching — to appear more energetic. Add some statement glasses and bling. And smile: instant facelift.

More on Beauty and Style 

How to look less tired, according to top dermatologists

‘How are you?’ It’s something we’re asked countless times a day by friends, family and colleagues, and the resounding response is usually along the lines of, ‘I feel tired. ’ One of the many outcomes of the upheavals of the past year and the uncertainty of the months ahead is a feeling of perpetual tiredness—and that fatigue is written all over our faces as dullness, dark circles and angry, misbehaving skin.

“This ongoing situation is having numerous indirect effects on our skin,” says Dr Anjali Mahto, a consultant dermatologist at Skin55 in London. “Many of us are suffering from increased levels of stress and anxiety, which means that not only are we feeling mentally tired, but levels of baseline chronic stress are affecting sleep patterns, resulting in physical tiredness and impacting the stress hormone, cortisol, aggravating any pre-existing skin conditions.” 

It is the effects of stress that Noella Gabriel, co-founder and global president of Elemis, argues that we are noticing in our skin. “We need to understand that stress is not just something we go through, but something our skin has to contend with on a daily basis,” she says. “Our skin faces external stressors every single day, a fact that is then exacerbated by our own emotional stresses.

So, even if we are sleeping well, the constant hum of stress that many of us are experiencing right now is causing us to feel tired and making our skin look fatigued in the process. Here’s what you can do about it, according to the experts.

1. Establish a good bedtime routine

“Around 9pm, as the day closes, the body prepares for sleep by producing melatonin, a powerful anti-inflammatory antioxidant,” explains Gabriel. “Melatonin helps to balance the circadian rhythm and counteract inflammation and oxidative stress, which are key players in ageing. If this process is interfered with by broken sleep, anxiety or stress, the body produces cortisol, which in turn prevents your skin from producing hyaluronic acid, its natural hydrator.” What all this means is, poor sleep can result in dry and dehydrated skin, leading to dullness and an impaired skin barrier. 

With many of us working from home now and foregoing makeup, it’s tempting to skip an evening skincare routine, but if you do, you are missing out on an opportunity to support your skin’s repair mechanisms while you sleep. In terms of the best products out there, Estée Lauder Advanced Night Repair takes advantage of your circadian rhythm and helps to even out skin tone and boost glow, while Elemis Ultra Smart Pro-Collagen Night Genius is clinically proven to help strengthen the skin’s protective barrier, so it can hold on to its own moisture better and minimise sensitivity. It has also been shown to hydrate skin over 72 hours. Both help to make you look more rested than you may feel.

2. Hydrate the eye area

“When my patients tell me they think they look tired, what they are often referring to are changes in the upper third of their face, especially around their eyes,” says Dr Mahto. “Their concerns can range from pigmentation or dark circles to fine or deep wrinkles, to hollowing due to volume loss and subsequent tear troughs.”

Four effective ways to look rested without leaving the city

We looked at rested colleagues and friends who returned from vacation, and learned from experts how to look just as good without leaving anywhere.

A healthy complexion, an even tan and a satisfied look - this is what a person who has just returned from vacation looks like. Traces of fatigue, circles under the eyes, dull skin and a longing look - this is what his colleague is, who has not yet had time to rest. If you are one of the latter, then you probably look at your cheered up colleagues with at least envy. Gazeta.Ru decided to find out from cosmetologists and makeup artists what can be done to look no worse than their rested friends. And maybe even better, because it is still unknown how they acted there on their holidays in relation to the liver and other vital organs. The expert advice is suitable for both women and men, except, of course, for the part where we are offered to apply blush and highlight hair.

Svetlana Shabalina, Clinique Training Manager:

– For a rested look, use products that illuminate the skin and give it a natural glow. Here, light cosmetic products are suitable for adjusting skin tone, which will hide imperfections and flaws. For a light tanned complexion, apply bronzing powder to high points of the face for a sun-kissed effect.

Refresh your face with peach blush, which revitalizes and refreshes the complexion. Instead of classic lipstick, use lip gloss in bright berry shades. And please do not use too light shades in makeup in the summer: they can give the face a pale look.

I will give advice to men separately. Their most pressing problem is swelling and dark circles under the eyes, which makes the look tired and adds age.

Feel free to use the gels and serums from the men's lines, which refresh and cool puffy areas and make dark circles less noticeable.

To be, not to appear

To look rested, you first need to feel appropriate. If you can't go to a resort, find time to go to the spa. Peeling, moisturizing, relaxing massage, nourishing body wrap, hammam with...

Ekaterina Dobrydneva, Senior Training Manager, Medical Expert La Roche-Posay, Inneov:

– How to make yourself look rested? Of course, get enough sleep and spend more time in the fresh air. This is the main thing. And cosmetics will provide additional assistance.

Regularly use the refreshing thermal water for your face, wherever you are - in the office, in the car, on a walk.

Thermal water perfectly tones the skin, relieves irritation, activates the work of blood vessels and gives a fresh look to makeup throughout the day. Simply spray a small amount of thermal water on your face in the morning when you wake up and don't forget to use it during the day. In addition to thermal waters, flower waters also help to refresh.

The second key to a fresh complexion is regular skin exfoliation. The fact is that due to dead cells, the skin tone becomes uneven, and the complexion becomes dull. Therefore, the use of scrubs about once a week helps to even out the skin and restore its radiance. Moisturizers, masks, BB creams help improve complexion. The task of the BB cream is not only to moisturize and protect the skin, but also to give it an even tone and radiance due to special mineral pigments.

Moisturizing masks are an essential step in skin care, especially in summer. Air conditioners in offices make the skin dehydrated and dull, moisturizing just saves it. Apply the mask in the evening on cleansed skin for ten minutes, remove the remnants with a napkin or cotton pad. If you have the opportunity to spend time in the park or in the country and you want to tan quickly, we recommend using special nutricosmetics to enhance your tan.

Asya Ilyina, art director and stylist Cosmotheca SPA:

– It is important to pay attention to the health of your hair: you will not be able to give yourself a radiant look if they are dull. Healthy hair reflects light, and for this they must be sufficiently moisturized. Spa hair treatments are made on the basis of cosmetics of various brands. We especially love Thai cosmetics: its aromas help to mentally transport ourselves to Asia.

In terms of appearance, you can get a summer feel with safe highlights on the hair - the effect of sun glare - and this season's trendy baby hair style, when the hair looks naturally sun-bleached. Well, it’s worth changing the color of the varnish to bright summer shades, if you haven’t decided on it yet.

Olga Komrakova, Lead Makeup Artist Clarins:

– A rested look can be drawn. Use a make-up base that gives radiance to the skin. It can be mixed with foundation. Refresh your complexion with bronzing powder, focusing on the cheekbones and contour of the face, and apply a compact peach blush to the prominent part of the cheekbones. Apply a little blush on the orbital bone (under the eyes), it will refresh and ignite your look.

Line the upper lash line intensively with an eyeliner or liner and apply mascara to the upper lashes. Leave the bottom ones intact.

Lightly define the brows and apply a sheer coral gloss to the lips. Warm shades of makeup will give your face a fresh, rested look, and the emphasis on the upper eyelid will make the look more open.

What is bitchy face syndrome and how to live with it

February 13, 2021 Life

A very real diagnosis that can seriously spoil your life.

What is Bitchy Face Syndrome

In 2013, a two-minute video of Bitchy Resting Face appeared on YouTube. The video instantly became popular, scored almost eight million views and three thousand comments. The heroines of the video raise the problem of the “bitchy face” and tell how it ruins their lives. “I don’t want to hit you,” says one of the victims of the syndrome. “It’s just my face.”

This problem existed before, but after the video they started talking about it seriously. The essence of the syndrome is that the face of its owner in a relaxed state looks angry and unfriendly, although the person does not actually experience these emotions. Due to certain features of appearance, facial expressions can express both discontent, contempt and anger, as well as ridicule, irritation or sadness.

People with bitchy face syndrome come across as a snob, a serial killer, or an evil high school math student.

As a result, strangers often prematurely conclude that it is better not to approach this person, and friends repeatedly pester with the question: “Are you okay?” The most famous victims of the syndrome are Anna Kendrick, Kristen Stewart, Victoria Beckham, Queen Elizabeth and Kanye West.

Why the face looks bitchy

Neuroscientists conducted an experiment during which they scanned more than 10,000 images of human faces using a special program. And we came to the conclusion that a person is never 100% neutral. Normal score - 97% neutral and 3% other emotes. However, “bitchy” individuals have a lower level of neutrality: it is only 94%. And the percentage of emotions, respectively, is higher - as much as 6%. And the predominant among them is contempt.

The expression of negative emotions in a calm state is a consequence of the peculiarities of the facial muscles. Here are the main ones:

Features of the face What emotions can express
Downturned corners of the mouth

head of the online school of natural rejuvenation "The result is obvious"

Spasmodic facial muscles and slowing down of blood and lymph flow are most often to blame. Another reason is a violation of posture, in which the entire muscular sheet of the face is displaced. The clarity of the oval is lost, ptosis, swelling appear, the corners of the lips creep down, and the nasolabial folds become deeper.

In addition, the outward signs of angry face syndrome can also be a consequence of poor vision: a person squints all the time, straining his facial muscles, and over time this becomes a habit.

Why women are the main victims of the syndrome

Research has shown that bitchy face syndrome is characteristic of both men and women. This is a general problem not related to gender differences. Any person, regardless of gender, can have lowered corners of the mouth, furrowed eyebrows and an insufficiently open look, but the paradox is that men do not suffer from the bitchy face syndrome.

Scientists explain this by the fact that the phenomenon is connected not with physiology, but with social norms. For men, a serious, stern or even angry face is in the order of things. In the mass consciousness, it is associated with strength, intelligence, determination and sexuality.

No one calls a man a bitch if his face looks serious or sad.

Women with a serious or stern face are often accused of arrogance. And it's all about gender stereotypes. There is a social construct in society: "A woman should be gentle." It developed in previous centuries, when a girl in society was assigned the role of a housewife and a “good wife”. She did not have financial independence and equality with men, and the smile on her face was a manifestation of humility.

Much has changed since then, but the social attitude has remained. Women with insufficiently affable appearance still suffer from gender stereotypes. They can easily be called bitches because of an unfriendly expression on their faces, they can be denied employment or dismiss a lot of gossip behind their backs.

Art project by American artist Tatyana Fazlalizade Stop telling women to smile, edition.cnn.com

How Syndrome Ruins Life

People judge others by their appearance. And no matter how hard we try to change it, the first impression is formed in one tenth of a second - faster than a person has time to realize something. At the same time, the brain has stable reactions to certain facial features:

  • An outwardly attractive person seems to us more competent and intelligent.
  • Pronounced chin, large nose, narrow face are associated with dominance and dominance.
  • Big eyes or an open look - this is kindness, naivety, humility.
  • People with a broad face and puffy cheeks seem kind and open.
Scientists have compiled three types illustrating the "reliability scale": on the left - unreliable, in the center - neutral, on the right - reliable, journals.plos.org

Based on all of this, a person with bitchy face syndrome will almost always make a bad first impression. Others may think that he is an arrogant snob and despises everyone, although in reality everything is not at all like that. This can be a hindrance at a party, as well as when applying for a job or at a business meeting. It has been proven that people with an attractive appearance are more successful and earn 10-12% more.

How to recognize the syndrome in yourself

Check your appearance using the FaceReader program. In the picture, the face should be full face and in a relaxed, calm state. The higher the quality of the photo, the more accurate the result.

A significant disadvantage of the program is that it does not give the ratio of emotions as a percentage, so it is impossible to say for sure whether you have a syndrome. But if contempt (contempt) is present or prevails among emotions, then there is a possibility that you still have it. Here are the results of Lifehacker employees:

1 / 0

The face of Lifehacker host Irina Rogava is neutral, but expresses surprise, fear, disgust and contempt

2 / 0

The face of our videographer Olesya Shishko is neutral, but the predominant emotion is happiness

3 / 0

The face of the author Liza Platonova in a calm state expresses surprise, anger and contempt.

  • You are constantly told: “Don't be sad,” and they ask you to smile.
  • You are often asked: "Are you dissatisfied with something?"
  • You have a reputation for being tough, although you don't know how you deserve it.
  • They don't ask you for directions on the street, they don't get to know you and bypass you.
  • How to live with bitchy face syndrome

    Massage your face

    It cannot remove wrinkles and rejuvenate. But the effect is still there: the procedure helps to tighten the oval, cope with tight muscles and relax them. In addition, the face after the massage looks fresher and rested.

    Massage can be done by a beautician or by yourself. To do this, there are many special devices that greatly simplify the process. Important: to get the result, massage must be done regularly.

    Work on facial expressions

    You can be yourself in the company of friends and relatives, but if you want to make a good impression in public, you have to control emotions.

    For example, you want to look more friendly during communication: try to smile slightly, slightly straining and lifting your cheeks. The corners of the lips will automatically rise. Such a half-smile looks natural and does not cause rejection among others.

    Sometimes a contemptuous expression arises from an insufficiently open look: it seems that a person looks at everyone arrogantly. In such a situation, you need to try to open your eyes a little wider: the look will become more open and not so depressed.

    Refine your face with make-up

    • Eyes can look depressed or tired due to an impending eyelid. The problem can be corrected with makeup: draw arrows and lightly touch the inner corners of the eyes with light shadows or a pencil. The "tail" of the arrow should go up. Do not lower it so that the look does not seem sad.
    • For a fresh look, apply blush to the apples of your cheeks and blend.
    • Don't use too heavy foundation if you have severe wrinkles. The tone will gather in the folds, emphasizing them.

    Consult a beautician

    Bitch face syndrome manifestations can be removed with the help of cosmetics: mimic wrinkles on the forehead and bridge of the nose can be smoothed out with Botox, the corners of the lips can be lifted with it, and nasolabial folds can be filled with a filler based on hyaluronic acid. But this is an extreme measure. Perhaps, for a start, it is worth working on self-esteem, and not injecting.

    Don't take the problem too seriously

    The syndrome was first talked about in the West, where a smile is a sign of politeness and an integral part of etiquette. People look welcoming and friendly, because it is customary: this is a way to show your disposition to the interlocutor. And if a person does not smile, he violates social norms. And the arrogance and contempt on the face and does raise questions.

    In Russia, things are different: we don't usually smile for the sake of politeness, and the insincere smile of a stranger is alarming.


    Learn more