Tune In: A Top Derm's Honest Advice About Aging & Facial Rejuvenation

On the surface, facial rejuvenation is a purely aesthetic endeavor. But once you peel back the layers of what's being done—and, ultimately, why you're doing it—it quickly becomes much more meaningful. In this episode of Clean Beauty School, board-certified dermatologist Caren Campbell, M.D., joins me to discuss the dangers of wanting "perfect skin," off-label uses for some of the most famous skin treatments, and how trauma influences our skin and the way we perceive ourselves. 

This may sound like an episode that's primarily focused on the inner work (and in a lot of ways, it is), but so much of what we discuss has tangible, aesthetic outcomes as well. Including these ways to rejuvenate your face. 

The first thing to know about facial rejuvenation is to avoid the "perfection" trap. And this isn't just feel-good advice—Campbell notes that in the search for perfection, we can end up with distorted self-perception. 

"Our brains are wired to always see the imperfection because it's what keeps us safe. Your brain is going to try to control what it can—for a lot of people, that's having perfect skin. But that's not attainable, so folks are left feeling empty because they can never get there," she says.

Of course, this will impact your emotional health (which can influence your skin via the brain-skin axis), but it also can induce a phenomenon called "perception drift." Perception drift occurs in dermatology and aesthetics when folks have a hard time seeing the ways in which their face changes over time. 

Stress influences how we age in more ways than one. The mechanism we discuss most often is through the stress hormone cortisol. Cortisol, which gets released during times of duress, breaks down collagen, triggers inflammation, and weakens the skin barrier.

But stress can also influence how we age due to muscle tension. Everyone holds stress in the body in some way, shape, or form. And lots of folks hold it in the scalp, jawline, or neck and shoulders. 

And chronic tension in these areas can influence how our face ages. "The mind-body connection is so important," she says. "We do house trauma and stress in our bodies."

The first thing to do is to acknowledge the tension and work on lifestyle habits to help reduce stress in your life (Campbell practices mediation, she says). But for those looking for relief, you can even use neurotoxins (such as Botox) as a muscle rehabilitator. 

"The industry is starting to move toward these kinds of treatments and potential developments where you're using your body's own tools," she says about recent rejuvenation innovations such as exomes, stem cells, and PRP. "And any good healer should be empowering you to heal yourself." 

Take, for example, platelet-rich plasma (PRP), which Campbell says she uses for under-eye rejuvenation. "It's harnessing your body's healing pathways," she says. 

But just remember, before you rush to try the latest treatments and technologies: "Newer isn't always better, and there's no such thing as a quick fix," she says.