Sleep wrinkles? Yes, that's right. The way you sleep may actually be
causing wrinkles.
If you like to sleep on your tummy or side, you might notice that once you hit your 30's, you wake up in the morning with "creases" on the side of your face. These become more noticeable as you age. As you get older, those creases can turn into fine lines and wrinkles that don't go away once you get up and wash your face.
If you really pay attention to what happens when you lay your head down on the pillow is that your skin is sort of "smooshed" onto the pillow. The skin tends to bunch up and since gravity is working against you here, your skin sags towards the side of your face that is on the pillow. If you have extra skin covering the pillow area, you tend to lie on the skin in such a way as to make a permanent wrinkle.
I really like to sleep on my left side and when I do, I can actually feel the skin on the left side of my face being slightly folded into my pillow, especially around my outer eye area, and sure enough, I have more fine lines and wrinkles on my left side eye area. The crow's feet are starting to form and they are deeper and more noticeable on my left side. I can
actually feel it happening! I have tried to make an effort to switch sides and sleep with the right side of my face on the pillow, but all that does is make wrinkles on my right side. At least I match now!
The good news is that you can help prevent the forming of these sleep wrinkles by learning to sleep on your back. This will really help prevent the folding or smooshing of the skin and thereby reduce the onset of wrinkles around your eyes and cheeks.
Personally, I'm not altogether comfortable sleeping on my back, but have really been making an effort to give it a shot for the sake of my wrinkling skin.
I think a huge factor is the type of pillow you are using. I have switched to one of those memory foam pillows that not only help to reduce restless sleep during the night, but also help to support my neck and keep my back in better alignment during the night. So far, this has seemed to help a lot. I'm actually able to sleep comfortably on my back, have reduced the amount of time spent shifting my body position around during the night, and have noticed a much less wrinkled face when I wake up.
One little trick to sleeping on your back is to completely relax your body as you are trying to drift off to sleep. You can try tensing all the muscles in your face and neck, then relaxing and literally letting go of the tension and stress as you relax the muscles.
Start with the face and neck and then move down to the shoulders, chest, etc., working your way down your body tensing and relaxing the muscles
all along the way until you reach your toes. This should put you in a very relaxed state which will make it easier for you to fall asleep and stay in the
on-your-back position.
Another relaxation technique is to count your breaths or simply notice your breaths going in and out as you take them. By completely focusing on your breath, it will relax mind and body well enough to help you fall into a nice sleep.
Another relaxation technique is to imagine a bulletin board with you writing all your issues, problems, worries and things to do on the board. After all is written, step back to read your list and then imagine taking an eraser and erasing the entire list. This will help clear and then quiet your mind so you can relax and fall asleep.
The key to successfully sleeping on your back is total relaxation, and practice. If you find yourself back on the tummy or your side, re-position yourself on your back and keep doing it until your body becomes used to sleeping this way. I'm not saying it's easy because if you are a tummy or side sleeper, you may just prefer to go back to what you are comfortable with.
In the meantime, it's important to keep your skin as hydrated as possible (drink plenty of water) and also to give it a good cleaning and moisturizing before going to bed. Try to get enough sleep because lack of sleep really shows up on your face in the form of dullness, dryness, dark circles under the eyes, and of course, fine lines and wrinkles.
Keep in mind that by sleeping your side, you may also notice an increase in the number of wrinkles on your chest. The skin on your chest is being pushed together by your arms and overall position of sleeping during the night. If you sleep on your side every night and are constantly compressing the skin on your chest, believe me, you're going to end up with wrinkles there. Don't forget to moisturize your neck, chest and hands before going to bed so these areas can stay hydrated and supple during the night while your body goes to work on repairing and restoring your
muscles and skin during your rest.
By using some of these relaxation tips, you can try to prevent sleep wrinkles in the future. Try switching to sleeping on your back to see if you don't notice a difference in the number of fine lines and sleeping wrinkles you wake up to in the morning.