Why Your Skincare Stops Working In Your 40s and 50s

You know that moment - Tuesday morning, bathroom mirror, and somehow your face looks a little flatter, drier, or more tired even though nothing “happened”. If your trusted skincare and makeup suddenly stop behaving in your 40s or 50s, you’re not imagining it and you’re not doing anything wrong. Your skin is responding to one of the biggest hormonal shifts of your life.

I walk through what perimenopause and menopause can do to skin health, starting with oestrogen. Your skin has oestrogen receptors, so changing hormones affect collagen, elastin, hydration, circulation, healing, and the strength of your skin barrier. That’s why dryness can feel relentless, why fine lines can seem to appear quickly, and why foundation that once looked flawless can start sitting in lines or turning patchy. I also share a key stat that helps many women feel less shocked: collagen loss can accelerate after menopause, and the cumulative effect becomes visible all at once.

We also talk about what actually helps. I’m all for evidence-based skincare, but products have limits if the internal environment is working against you. Sleep, stress, inflammation, protein, healthy fats, and blood sugar all influence whether your skin can repair and glow. Professional treatments can absolutely support results, but they work best as a complement to strong daily habits, not a replacement.

If you want clearer skin advice with less noise and more science, press play, then share this with a friend who’s staring at the mirror wondering what changed. Subscribe or follow, leave a five-star review if it helped, and come say hi on Instagram with your biggest skin question.

Are you a woman feeling stressed, flat and experiencing the challenges of perimenopause or menopause?

It’s time to reclaim your youthful energy, radiance and self-assurance (and your ideal weight).

I’m here to help with my proven method.

Here's how I can support you -

1. Hit your health and wellbeing goals this year, balance your hormones and lose weight with your own personalised protocol, based on your body's biochemistry. Sounds awesome right!! Book a free 30 minute Peri Weight Loss Assessment with me so we can discuss your health and wellbeing goals and also see how I might be able to support you. ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Book your call here. ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

2. Follow me on Instagram and Facebook - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@the.perimenopause.path or @eskin.goldcoast

3. Book your appt package at The Perimenopause Path Clinic here. Or if you'd like a single appt, book here.

Transcript

Welcome And What We Stand For

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Hi, I'm Susie Garden and this is the Ageless and Autumn Podcast. I'm an age-defying naturopath and clinical nutritionist and I'm here to bust myths around women's health and ageing so that you can be ageless and autumn in your 40s, 50s, and beyond. The Ageless and Awesome Podcast is dedicated to helping women through perimetopause and menopause with great health, a positive mindset, and outrageous confidence. Hit subscribe or follow now and let's get started.

The Mirror Moment Skin Shift

SPEAKER_00 0:36

Hello, gorgeous one, and welcome to this week's episode of the Ageless and Awesome Podcast. I'm Susie Garden, naturopath, nutritionist, and founder of the Perimenopause Path Clinic. And last week I shared some exciting personal news with you that I'd become the owner of eSkin. It's a uh boutique skin clinic on the Gold Coast here. And we talked about why helping women age well through both wellness and skin health feels like such a natural extension of everything I've always done. So today I wanted to answer one of the most common questions I hear. And it usually goes something like this. Susie, I've been using the same skincare products for years, and why have they suddenly stopped working? I know I had this happen. Or I feel like I woke up one morning and my skin had completely changed. Maybe you've noticed your skin feels a bit drier than it used to, or maybe your makeup doesn't sit the same way anymore. Potentially you've started seeing fine lines around your mouth or your eyes that seem to appear almost overnight. Your skin might look dull, maybe there's bags under your eyes, maybe your skin is less plump, less radiant, and no matter what moisturizer you buy, it just doesn't seem to make a difference, even if it's the expensive ones. And if that's you, yeah, you're not imagining this, it's actually happening. And, you know, it's not because you've suddenly forgotten to look after your skin. Obviously, if you're doing the same things, your skin has changed because your biology has changed. And today I'm going to explain why. Because once you understand what's happening beneath the surface, you'll stop blaming yourself and you'll know exactly where to focus your energy and perhaps your money. So let's start by. I just want to put a visual in your mind. Let's picture this. It's a Tuesday morning. You've just brushed your teeth, you're looking in the mirror. Nothing dramatic has happened overnight. But somehow, you don't look like you. Your skin might feel a bit thinner, your eyes might look a bit tired, your face just might seem a bit, I don't know, flatter. Somehow, perhaps your glow has disappeared, you tilt your head from one side to the other. Maybe you move a bit closer to the mirror. You can tell I've done all of these things right. You pull the skin, knee, or jawline back slightly, and then you let go. Does that sound familiar? If you've ever done any of these things, and I've done, I think, all of them, please know you're in very good company. I think almost every woman experiences that moment in their 40s or 50s or beyond. And here's the interesting part most women immediately assume, oh, something's gone wrong. What's going on? But you know, maybe they're thinking, I haven't been drinking enough water, I should have started using retinol earlier. I've spent too much time in the sun. I need a better moisturizer. Now, while those things can certainly influence skin health, they're rarely the whole story. What's actually happening is actually far more fascinating and interesting.

Oestrogen And Rapid Collagen Loss

SPEAKER_00 3:49

Your skin is responding to one of the biggest hormonal shifts of your entire life. Because the thing is, and I've talked about this before, is a lot of people, a lot of women think that hormones only affect things like periods and hot flushes. And the reality is they influence almost every organ in the body, including your skin. In fact, your skin contains receptors for estrogen. And that means your skin is constantly responding to changes in your hormone levels. When oestrogen is abundant, it supports so many of the qualities we associate with youthful, healthy skin. It stimulates collagen production, it helps maintain elastin, which allows skin to stretch and bounce back. It supports natural hydration, it improves blood flow, bringing oxygen and nutrients to skin cells, it assists with wound healing, it helps strengthen the skin barrier so moisture stays in and irritants stay out. It's doing an extraordinary amount of work behind the scenes. Which means when estrogen begins fluctuating and then gradually declines, every one of those processes is impacted. Not because the system's going wrong, this is what's just what happens, but it's receiving different hormonal instructions. And that's a really important distinction. Because I don't want you thinking you've somehow caused this. Your body isn't betraying you, it's adapting. And one of the things women say to me all the time is it's happened so quickly. And honestly, I completely understand why it feels that way. For years, your skin quietly compensates, it keeps producing collagen, it repairs itself efficiently, it holds on to moisture, it's incredibly resilient. And then during perimenopause, there comes a point where those changes become visible. And it's a bit like watching the tide come in. You know, if you stare at the ocean for one minute, it doesn't seem to move, but come back an hour later, the whole beach looks different. And your skin changes in much the same way. These changes have been occurring gradually beneath the surface, and then one day the cumulative effect suddenly becomes obvious. And one statistic that really puts this into perspective is that women lose approximately 30% of their skin's collagen during the first five years after menopause. 30%. When I first heard this, I remember thinking that explains a lot. Because, you know, collagen isn't just responsible for reducing wrinkles. It's what gives our skin its structure, its firmness, its resilience. Imagine, you know, a mattress that's brand new, it's supportive, it's comfortable. Everything springs back into place. And now imagine that same mattress after many days of daily use. If that frame hasn't disappeared, it's lost some of its support, though, hasn't it? And that's a little like what happens with collagen. That framework beneath the skin gradually becomes less robust. And the skin above it reflects that change. And again, not because you're doing anything wrong, simply because your hormones are changing. So now that we understand why your skin suddenly feels or maybe looks different, collagen, you know, is only part of the story because one of the biggest surprises for many women isn't actually wrinkles, because we kind of expect that. It's dryness. It's that tight, uncomfortable feeling, that sensation that your favorite moisturizer seems to just disappear and doesn't really do much. So why does this happen? And more importantly, can we actually do something about it without, you know, spending our money on a dozen different products that really aren't fixing it? So let's talk about that next.

Dryness And The Leaky Barrier

SPEAKER_00 7:47

Let's start with one of the biggest complaints. Dry skin. Not, I just need a little bit more moisturizer dry. I mean, my face feels tight. My makeup looks uh cakey. It's settling into those fine lines. My skin feels thirsty all the time. I put moisturizer on in the morning and by lunchtime it feels dry again. Sound familiar? Again, estrogen is a big part of the reason. Earlier we talked about estrogen helping maintain collagen, but it also plays an incredibly important role in maintaining your skin barrier. Think of your skin barrier like a brick wall around a beautiful home. The skin cells are the bricks, and natural fats, oils, and ceramides are the mortar holding these bricks together. And when that wall is healthy, it keeps moisture inside your skin while protecting you from the outside world. But as estrogen declines, that wall becomes a little less efficient. Tiny gaps begin to appear, water escapes more easily, your skin loses hydration faster, and suddenly you're applying moisturizer over and over again without ever really fixing the problem. It's a little like pouring water into a bucket with tiny holes in the bottom. And no matter how much water you add, it's still leaking out. And that's why strengthening the skin barrier has become one of the biggest priorities in modern skincare. You've probably seen it in ads. Because it's not just about adding moisture, it's about helping your skin hold onto it. There's another reason skin starts looking different once you hit your 40s and 50s and beyond. It's because things slow down. When we're younger, our skin is incredibly efficient. New skin cells are constantly being produced, older cells naturally shed, minor damage repairs quickly, collagen is continually being rebuilt, and it's like having a highly efficient renovation team working on your house every single day. And then hormones change. Suddenly that renovation team gets smaller. The work still happens, but it happens more slowly. You know, your cell turnover slows down, your repair slows down, your healing slows. Even little things become more noticeable, you know. Um perhaps things like if you get a breakout, it might linger a little longer or it might leave a mark that seems to linger for weeks, or your skin just doesn't have that naturally fresh look it once had. And it's because your skin is renewing itself more slowly than it used to. You're not imagining this. And again, this is biology. This is not anything that you've done wrong. And I think that's such an important distinction because once women understand this, they stop expecting their skin to behave like it did at 30.

Slow Cell Turnover And Makeup Issues

SPEAKER_00 10:40

And instead, you can start supporting the skin you have now and the needs that it has now. So let's talk about makeup for a minute because I know this frustrates so many women. You buy the same foundation you've worn for years. I've again been through all of this. I know, I know how you feel. You buy the same foundation you've worn for years, you apply it exactly the same way, and somehow it settles into lines that weren't there before. It sits on the surface instead of blending beautifully. By lunchtime, it can look patchy. You wonder whether the foundation has changed. You know, sometimes it has, sometimes the formulation changes, but often it's just your skin that's changed, which is really frustrating. If you think about, I don't know, painting a wall. I like my renovation analogies today. Think about painting a wall. Freshly plastered walls absorb paint differently to older textured walls. The paint hasn't changed, the surface has. Our skin is exactly the same, but as hydration declines and the skin barrier weakens, makeup behaves differently. And this is one of the reasons I always encourage women to spend as much time thinking about skincare as they do makeup. Because makeup can only ever look as good as the canvas underneath it. Healthy skin really is the best primer.

Skincare Vs Lifestyle The Glow

SPEAKER_00 12:07

So let's address the question I'm sure you want answered, which is should you just buy better skincare? The answer is yes and no, because good skincare absolutely matters, and evidence-based ingredients can make a remarkable difference to your skin. They can improve hydration, they can stimulate collagen production, they can support cell turnover, reduce pigmentation, strengthen the skin barrier, protect against environmental damage, and that's all incredibly valuable. But skincare has limitations. Think about trying to grow a beautiful garden, but you know, you can buy the best fertilizer in the world, but if the soil is really depleted, the plants are constantly under, say, a drought, nothing's happening beneath the surface, the results will always be limited. And skin works exactly the same way. The products you apply are important, but so is the environment you're asking your skin to function in. If you're sleeping four or five hours a night, I've been there. If you're chronically stressed, if you're under-eating protein and healthy fats, if your blood sugar is constantly spiking and crashing, if your inflammation is elevated, which it often is, the skin and your skin is trying to thrive in a very difficult environment, which is why I become so excited to work with women from both directions. We improve the internal environment, which is my primary work, and we support the skin externally at the same time. And that's when you see the biggest transformation. Not because of one miracle product, but because everything starts working together. Have you ever noticed how we describe healthy people? We say she's glowing, not she has perfect skin, not she doesn't have any wrinkles. We say she's glowing. And I love that expression, obviously, because I named my program after it, um, the glow protocol. But I love that expression because a glow isn't really about perfection, right? It's about vitality, it's about circulation, hydration, healthy cells, balanced hormones, good nutrition, adequate sleep, joy, confidence, connection. You can't bottle that. You can absolutely support it, but you can't bottle it. The true radiance is always an expression of what's happening beneath the surface. And that's why I smile when women tell me that friends have started asking what they've had done, or you know, they start saying to them, your skin is glowing. Often they haven't had a treatment at all. It's just that they've started sleeping better, their nutrition is better, they're flooding their cells with beautiful whole foods. The they've reduced inflammation in their body, they're managing their stress, supporting their hormones, moving their bodies consistently, looking after themselves. And the skin simply reflects that. And I think that's incredibly empowering because it reminds us that healthy skin isn't something we're born with or lose forever. It is something we can continue nurturing at every stage of life. So if healthy skin starts from within, where do professional treatments actually fit? And, you know, things like our collagen supplements worth taking. Should everyone be using retinol? Do expensive serums really justify their price tag? And how do you know what's genuinely backed by science versus clever marketing? So let's unpack all of that next. All right, so now that we understand what's happening beneath the surface, let's answer the question I know many of you are probably asking, which is if hormones are changing my skin, if my collagen's declining, if my skin barrier isn't as strong as it used to be, where do professional skin treatments actually fit? And I think the answer is really important because professional treatments are not going to replace healthy habits. Okay, they're there to complement them, not replace them. So think about training for a marathon. You can't buy a great pair of running shoes and expect them to get you across the finish line. But equally, trying to run a marathon barefoot probably isn't the best strategy either. You need both. The work you do every day and the tools that help support you. And professional skin treatments work in exactly the same way. They're designed to encourage your skin to do what it naturally did more easily when you were younger. They stimulate collagen production, they improve skin texture, target pigmentation, some strengthen the skin barrier, some improve hydration, some encourage cellular renewal. None of them stop aging. And personally, I don't think they should, because aging isn't something we need to cure. It's something we want to do well, right? So, how do you know what's worth your money? Can I be completely honest with you? The skincare industry can be incredibly confusing. Every week there's a new miracle ingredient, a new serum, a new device, a new celebrity trend, a new treatment promising to reverse aging. It's overwhelming. And if you've ever found yourself standing in the skincare aisle wondering where on earth to start, you're certainly not alone. And one of the things I'm hoping to do through this podcast is simplify the noise. Because not everything deserves your money. There are products that are beautifully marketed but have very little evidence behind them. There are products that have decades of solid research

Treatments Evidence And Simple Priorities

SPEAKER_00 19:51

supporting them. And the challenge is knowing the difference. And as a clinician, that's how I make decisions. I don't ask what's trending. I don't go on TikTok. I don't even have TikTok. I ask what does the evidence tell us? Does it actually improve skin quality? How does it do it? What's the mechanism of action? Does it have good clinical research? Is it appropriate for this particular woman? Because no treatment and no skincare product is right for everybody. And that's why personalized advice matters so much. So if someone sat down in my clinic and said, Susie, forget all the fancy stuff. What really makes the biggest difference? This is what I'd say. Firstly, protect your skin from the sun. That is number one. Every single day, not because the sun is the enemy. We absolutely need sunlight on our skin for our health. But cumulative UV exposure is still one of the biggest contributors to premature skin aging. And a broad spectrum sunscreen is probably the most effective anti-aging product we currently have. Secondly, eat enough protein and healthy fats. By now, you're probably laughing because you know I bring protein into almost every conversation. And healthy fats as well, really. But it's because it's so important. Protein provides the amino acids your body needs to repair tissues, support muscle, and produce collagen. And your skin simply can't build strong material strong foundations without the raw materials. Thirdly, prioritize sleep. Sleep isn't just when your brain rests, it's when your body repairs, including your skin. And if your sleep is poor, your skin is often one of the first places to show it. And you've probably experienced this. Fourthly, invest in evidence-based skincare rather than endlessly chasing trends. You don't need 20 different products. You don't need layer upon layer upon layer. You need the right products. And finally, remember that consistency beats perfection. Your skin responds to what you do repeatedly, consistently, not what you do once. And women with the healthiest skin usually aren't the ones trying every new trend. They're the ones who consistently care for themselves year after year. Before we finish today, there's one belief I'd really love women to let go of, and that the idea that healthy skin is somehow selfish or vain. I hear this all the time. I feel guilty spending money on myself. It's only skin. I should just accept it. Now, acceptance is wonderful, and I absolutely believe that we should embrace aging well. But accepting aging doesn't mean neglecting yourself. And it, you know, we do things like coloring our hair because it makes us feel good. We buy clothes that make us feel confident. We exercise because we value our health. We go to the dentist to care for our teeth. We see the optometrist because our vision matters. And looking after your skin is no different. Your skin is your body's largest organ. It protects you every single day. It deserves care. And if looking after your skin helps you walk a little taller, smile a little more, or feel more like yourself, I don't think there's anything superficial about that. I think that is self-care. And that is really good for your mental health as well as your skin health. So as I'm wrapping up today's episode, I hope you're walking away with one really important message. Your skin didn't suddenly change because you did something wrong. Okay, it changed because your body is changing. And that means the way we care for it needs to change too. The products that worked in your 30s may no longer be enough. And your skin may need different support now. Just like your hormones do, just like your muscles do, just like your bones do. You know, aging well asks us to adapt. Not because there's something wrong with us, but because we are evolving. And I actually find that really empowering. I think I'm healthier now than I was in my 30s. I'm certainly more careful about so many aspects of my health. And I find that really empowering for myself. So because there's so much more we can do to support healthy skin, not to erase every line, not to chase

Self Care Not Vanity Plus Wrap

SPEAKER_00 24:22

perfection, but to keep our skin remaining healthy, resilient, and vibrant for decades to come. That's the that's the goal. So if today's episode resonated with you, I'd love you to share it with a friend. Because I guarantee there are women all around us standing in front of the mirror, wondering what happened to their skin. And it's causing them distress. So sometimes all it takes is understanding the why to replace frustration with compassion. So next week we're tackling one of the biggest areas of confusion in skin health. We're going to sort the science from the marketing. Do collagen supplements actually work? Is red light therapy worth the investment? What about microneedling, LED, laser? How do you know what's genuinely worth your time and money? Let's unpack all of that together. And until then, take care of yourself. Nourish your body, protect your skin. Stay curious, stay ageless and awesome. Remember, your skin isn't asking you to become younger, it's simply asking you to care for it differently. Thanks so much for joining me on the Ageless and Awesome Podcast. If you would like this episode, please make sure you click the little plus button if you're on Apple Podcasts, or the follow button if you're on Spotify so that you get each new episode delivered to you every single week. If you feel like writing me a five star review, you would absolutely make my day. If you found this episode resonated with you, head over to my Instagram and DM me at Perimetapores Park. I would love to connect with you.