I have a love-hate relationship with TikTok. On one hand, it gives me such great budget interior design ideas and new recipes to try, and I’m always in-the-know of the latest memes. On the other hand, this app convinces me I need a new thing every damn day: a morning routine, a Ninja CREAMi, a $400 Korean skin care serum. Lately, it’s been telling me that I need to de-stress, lest I end up with (or worsen???) “cortisol face.”
I know what cortisol is — we all likely do. It’s a hormone that spikes in our bodies when we’re going into some kind of stress response. Since we all stress out, we all experience cortisol spikes. But some of these girlies have now convinced me that my face has changed shape as a result of everyday stress.
You see, I wouldn’t call myself an overly stressed person. I think I stress out the normal amount, if such a thing exists. Yet the more I look at myself in the mirror after watching a few beauty influencers tell me that cortisol makes your face permanently swell up, the more irrationally nervous I get. And now I’m stressed about stressing. Make it stop!!!
(And if you’re thinking this is all a bit hysterical, I encourage you to remember the gua sha you impulse-bought in 2020-21 after watching one video about it and think again.)
So, I needed to do the research for myself, but also for the greater good, about whether TikTok is lying to us. Because, believe it or not, TikTok is still the internet, and the internet is all smoke and mirrors.
The fact is, yes, cortisol can cause changes in your face. But that’s when cortisol levels are chronically — key word! — elevated, meaning unless you’re experiencing insanely high stress levels on a daily basis, the amounts of cortisol hanging out in your bloodstream aren’t enough for any defining, long-lasting effects.
Cushing syndrome, for example, is an endocrine disorder that can lead to facial fat accumulation, to put it nicely. But those with the condition are experiencing long-term, very high cortisol exposure.
Temporary spikes aren’t going to have the ability to make discernible change.
Instead, if you find your face a little puffier during moments of increased stress, think about other factors: Are you sleeping enough? Drinking water instead of a fourth cup of coffee? Housing a bag of salty potato chips for breakfast? Sure, patterns like these often crop up when you’re stressed, but rather than cortisol, they’re more likely the reason you’re looking and feeling a little rounder.
The fact of the matter is, no matter what products influencers try to sell you to reduce “cortisol face,” the best medicine is a good night’s sleep, maybe a quick walk outside with a glass of water, and a journaling sesh.
And what they don’t tell you is that cortisol spikes are kind of necessary — your body releases cortisol to deal with the stress you’re experiencing. For example, it regulates blood sugar and controls your blood pressure. Without it, you’d be useless in any high-stress situation or environment, which isn’t helpful for managing the moment.
That all said, cortisol does affect the skin — it can slow wound healing (aka if you pop a zit) and make it harder for inflammation to come down. Something to consider, but not freak out over, surely!
I feel better. Do you? I’m still probably going to get into a good gua sha routine once again and build in more time in my schedule for self-care, but it’s good to know that a hormone that I have little control over is not making me blow up like Violet Beauregard after all.