Clearing the Path: Managing Stress for Radiant Skin with Dr. Stacy Shillington ND

Embark on a transformative journey with me, Dr. Stacy Shillington, as we enter week three of our Clear Skin Challenge. This episode is brimming with insights on how to banish chronic acne and embrace radiant skin, as I draw from my own battle and triumph over persistent breakouts. Get ready to eliminate dairy from your diet and indulge in the joys of a nourishing breakfast, setting the stage for a day filled with well-being and vibrant skin.

Stress and hormonal imbalances often conspire against our complexion, but I'm here to arm you with strategies to soothe your nervous system and establish hormonal harmony. This week, we unpack the magic of heart coherence and its capacity to harmonize your heart rate variability, steering you away from the relentless survival mode that modern life frequently demands. Discover an underappreciated tool for deep relaxation, guided by my expertise, and how its regular practice can lead to profound shifts in health and vitality.

As we wrap up this week's session, I invite you to reflect on your progress and share your experiences with our supportive community. Whether you're considering joining our program or simply seeking alternative solutions, my team and I are here to support your clear skin aspirations. Look forward to next week's episode, where we'll continue to share valuable insights, and until then, embrace a week filled with tranquility, joy, and heartfelt gratitude.

Interested in my new Clear Skin Group Program? Click here to learn more!

Click here to watch my FREE Clear Skin Masterclass and learn more about the 4 pillars of clear skin and my top tips to heal acne for good.

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:02

Welcome to Natural Pathic Beauty's Clear Skin Sessions, where we heal your acne from the inside out. Welcome, beauties. I'm Dr Stacy Shillington. I'm a natural pathic doctor. For the last 18 years I've been helping women clear their chronic acne, and today we are just going to continue on that trajectory. It is my mission to help you clear your acne for good, and we are at week three of our Clear Skin Challenge. So if you have not watched or listened to episodes one and two already, go back and take a listen. Those are the first two weeks of the challenge, because we are building a momentum of clear skin here. So you need to go back, you need to start week one, you need to do week two and then need to land here, and in week three we are going to do a deep dive. We're going to talk about stress and I am going to share a magical, magical solution with you, something you know about, but you probably don't know enough about it to really incorporate it into your day to day life. And I'm going to change that today. And I'm really excited because I am going to share with you the most powerful medicine that you can use to shift your health right now and to help you clear your skin. So welcome to week three, welcome to episode three.

Speaker 1: 1:21

And if you have been suffering with chronic acne, you are in absolutely the right place. Not only have I treated thousands of people with acne already, but I've suffered with chronic acne myself, so I understand the physical, the mental and the emotional trauma that acne actually puts us through. Many people may think acne it's not a big deal, you can cover it up, nobody's actually looking at your acne. But that's not how it is. When you actually have acne, it can take over your life. I know when I had acne, it actually changed my personality. It changed the way that I interacted with the world, and thank goodness it did, because acne was a wake up call for me. Acne was what really propelled me to become more introspective, to really dig in and understand my body, understand my health, and it has led me on an incredible journey. So I'm forever grateful for acne, thank you. But let's get started on that journey so we can clear your acne, so you can liberate yourself from this trauma that you're currently enduring and I know that sounds dramatic, but if you are living with acne you will realize it's not actually dramatic, it is the truth.

Speaker 1: 2:34

How is your clear skin challenge going? So I know we've already gone through week one and week two of the clear skin challenge and I'm wondering are you keeping dairy out of your diet? If you are, maybe you're feeling less inflamed, maybe you're feeling less congested, maybe you're already seeing an improvement in your acne that's entirely possible, because dairy is such a big acne trigger. And with the second week, have you found a clear skin breakfast that you love and that makes you feel wonderful? I want you to find the joy in breakfast. For me, breakfast is incredibly joyful. As I explained in the second podcast, I love and adore my breakfast. It makes me feel wonderful, it fuels me for the day, it keeps my skin clear, beautiful and glowing, and I want the same for you. So hopefully, you found that I also gave you some amazing recipes that will hopefully help you on that mission, but I hope that you are starting to feel different. I hope that your skin is starting to calm down and we are moving right along in this challenge.

Speaker 1: 3:38

And you may be asking what is this challenge doing? Is there actually a method to your madness, dr Stacy? And yes, absolutely there is. So there are two main phases that we have to go through when we treat acne. Number one we have to reduce inflammation in the body. This sets the stage for deeper healing. If we just jump into the deeper healing, it might end up with a little bit of a mess. So we always have to go through phase one, and so in this challenge, I am taking you through some of the critical steps in phase one of healing, and this is going to do two things. Number one it's going to let you know whether or not you need to dig in and do deeper healing. If your acne has cleared up by the end of the challenge, then you are incredibly fortunate and you can continue, you know, embracing these strategies that I'm teaching you and enjoy clear skin for the rest of your life. However, if you're still struggling, it tells us that you need to dig deeper, that you need to explore what is behind your chronic acne. This is where you usually need to do some testing some gut testing, some organic acid testing, some blood work. You probably need to work with an acne professional to understand exactly what the root cause of your acne is, so we can balance your body deeply and you can move on and live your life acne free. So that is how I've designed the challenge to really help you through phase one of the clear skin process.

Speaker 1: 5:06

Okay, and as always, as I just explained, we want to reduce inflammation in the body. When there's inflammation in the body, the root is often the gut or it can. Inflammation can also be exacerbated by dysregulated cortisol levels. So, as you may or may not know, chronic stress leads to dysregulated cortisol and when cortisol is imbalanced, it leads to imbalance in many different hormones and I'm going to dive a little deeper into this and this can lead to acne. Okay, so, as I said, some people are going to clear their acne by reducing inflammation in their bodies. Others, you're not going to get complete clearing through this challenge. You will get improvement, but you will know that you're going to have to do a deeper dive to solve your acne. So everybody is going to learn something from this challenge and everybody is going to get benefit.

Speaker 1: 5:59

So bit of a challenge review how it works. So, each week, we're going to take one foundational step to reduce inflammation, to help clear your skin. I'm going to explain to you why we're taking each step and exactly what you need to do. Then you are going to spend a week putting the step into action and get ready for the next step, the next week. And, as I explained, if you're still breaking out at the end of the challenge, we need to do more work. So welcome to week number three. This week, we are going to reduce your stress levels and help balance your cortisol levels, and not only should it help balance your hormones and clear skin, but you are going to feel amazing. We are going for deep relaxation. This week, I want to teach you how you can achieve this, and we are going to utilize a tool that is really undervalued. It took me a long time to really utilize this tool properly, but once I did, it changed everything.

Speaker 1: 6:58

But first of all, let's talk a little bit about how stress actually leads to acne. So, are you stressed? That's the first question I want to ask you. So many of you may say yes, I'm incredibly stressed, and the one thing that stresses me out more than anything else is my skin. I can totally relate to that, because my skin stressed me out for many, many years more than almost anything else. But maybe you're just simply a type A personality. That's what I am. I'm definitely a type A personality. I'm a go, go, go. I have lists of goals and I have great ambitions and I have great ideas and I get really excited about things and often if I don't manage myself properly, this can be very stressful on me and very stressful on my body, and I know I've worked with many patients that are in the exact same boat. So stress is a thing. And then there's others that they don't think they're stressed at all, but they've just been chronically stressed their entire lives that they don't know what it's like to not be stressed. They actually don't know what it's like to be in a state of relaxation, because they've always been in a state of survival. So let's talk a little bit about the stress response, and I think by now we all know what the stress response is.

Speaker 1: 8:18

When we experience stress, something called the HPA axis in our body is activated and what this does. The bottom line is that stress will trigger the adrenal glands which sit on top of our kidney to excrete levels of cortisol and adrenaline, and this puts us into our fight or flight state and this is our state of survival. And historically this state has been incredibly important because it allowed us to survive life-threatening situations. And then, once that life-threatening situation had passed, such as being attacked by a lion. That's the example everybody always uses, so I'm going to use it. Once that attack has been resolved, then our body returns to homeostasis, we exit that stress response and we go into our parasympathetic nervous system where we're able to rest, where we're able to digest, and this is where we should be living.

Speaker 1: 9:17

Most of the time, however, that's not the case, because most of us are exposed to chronic stress. We're constantly in that survival state and we never leave it. And this is when those cortisol levels are chronically elevated. They become dysregulated over time. 80% of chronic disease is due to elevated cortisol. That's the truth. That's the sad truth. Most of us have no idea that we're in chronic survival, and if we do, we don't know how to exit it. So for most of us, we can use some simple tools to exit our survival state. For others, it's more complex. There's PTSD, there's traumas that need to be resolved. If that is where you're at, definitely seek help with a professional, but you can also try this because this might be helpful. Let's give it a try. Anyways, we'll get to that in a minute.

Speaker 1: 10:10

But let's talk about cortisol. So when we have high levels of cortisol in the body, it is going to increase insulin levels and this leads directly to high androgens. And when we have high cortisol production in the body, there's less sex hormone production, and high cortisol also blocks progesterone receptors, and when we have these two actions going together, we have low progesterone, and low progesterone increases DHT production and this increases sebum production and acne. And then there's also estrogen levels, and I know we talk a lot about estrogen in relation to acne, and here's the thing when we have cortisol, it reduces estrogen detoxification, which can lead to high estrogen levels. But high cortisol can also lead to low estrogen levels, which increases sebum production. So, when it comes to estrogen levels, cortisol levels need to be just right in order for our estrogen to be balanced.

Speaker 1: 11:13

That's how important stress levels are when it comes to regulating our hormone levels, and here's probably the most important thing that I want to share with you about stress, and I'm going to say it a couple of times because I really want you to understand this when we're trapped in our fight or flight nervous system, this is our survival state. This is where our cortisol is dysregulated. Our bodies cannot heal. I'm going to say this again because this is so important and it applies to acne. I'm going to say it in the context of healing acne. So when you are chronically stressed and you're in your survival state, you cannot heal your acne. That is how important it is to pay attention to our stress levels and to really nurture ourselves and really understand how we can shift into our parasympathetic nervous system and allow our bodies to start to heal. So here's the thing I can give you the perfect diet, I can give you the perfect supplement, such an amazing, sophisticated supplement protocol the best I've ever given.

Speaker 1: 12:18

But if you're in a stressful state and your system is just stuck in survival, it is going to be very, very difficult for you to heal. So this is the truth and this is why dealing with stress is so very important on your clear skin journey. So how do we do it? How do we reduce stress, shift our parasympathetic nervous system and balance our hormones? So this is the million dollar question that everybody is trying to answer and it is your answer to clear skin and optimal health. And the really great news is that you have a very powerful tool at your disposal right, this very minute. It's going to help you calm your nervous system. It's going to help you shift out of your sympathetic nervous system and we can do it right this very moment.

Speaker 1: 13:09

And it is the breath. And you may be rolling your eyes and saying to me oh, my god, yes, everybody just tells me breathe, breathe, breathe, breathe. I'm so sick of breathing. I'm just going to turn off this episode now because I don't want to hear this again, but I want you to wait. It may seem simple and unimportant, because we're always breathing, we're always hearing about it, but when we breathe mindfully, with prolonged inhalations and exhalations, we actually shift the state of our nervous system, improve our physiology. There's been proven research behind this and we know exactly how you need to breathe in order to affect your nervous system. This really is the most powerful medicine that you have at your disposal. So please don't discount this, and for the next week, I want you to implement this breath that I am going to teach you, because it is going to shift your nervous system.

Speaker 1: 14:08

The science does not lie around this. So let's talk about heart coherence. And this is how your heart is beating. This is your heart rate. So if you're watching this on video, you can see that when you are frustrated, when you're anxious, when you're stressed, your heart rate is actually going to be all over the place. It's an incoherent heart rhythm pattern. It's going to go up, it's going to go down, it's going to rise, it's going to fall. It's not going to look coherent. However, when you are in a state of appreciation, gratitude, love and compassion, we see that the heart rate. It flows very nicely. It increases approximately the same amount that it decreases and the waves are coherent. So there's a very distinct difference between a heart rate of somebody that's in their sympathetic nervous system and somebody that's in their parasympathetic nervous system, and if you're watching this on video, you can see the difference very distinctly.

Speaker 1: 15:16

Now, when we are in a state of stress and we have that incoherent heart rate pattern, there's increased activity in our amygdala. This is a part of the brain that causes us to get into that sympathetic state fight, flight or freeze. However, when our heart rate is coherent, then the amygdala is shut down and there's increased activity in the cortex of our brain, where we can actually relax, where we can actually think, where our body actually has the ability to perform higher functions and heal. So this is how it works. There's very great understanding about this. There's so much research and I just wanted to show some of the studies that are out there. But, as we can see, there is a study that shows that when we actually get our breathing and our heart rate into coherence, it optimizes our hormonal balance. So this is where everything comes together.

Speaker 1: 16:19

You might be like, well, why all of a sudden is she talking about the heart rate? But why I'm talking about the heart rate is because when we breathe, we have the ability to put our heart rate into coherence. This is so powerful this just blows my mind that we can actually do this. We can have such a direct effect on how our nervous system works, and yet so many of us are suffering with incoherent heart rates and with a nervous system that's just like that's spazzy, really. So here we go. So when you inhale, this stimulates your sympathetic nervous system and it increases your heart rate. When you exhale, it puts you into your parasympathetic nervous system and it decreases your heart rate. So when we breathe in and we breathe out in equal counts, we are regulating our heart rate and we are creating coherence.

Speaker 1: 17:19

How simple is that? Breathing in and breathing out each for an equal amount of time is actually going to put your heart rate into coherence. This is going to shut down the amygdala in your brain. It's going to take you out of survival mode and it's going to put you in the frontal cortex of your brain, where you can perform higher functions and where your body can actually heal, and this is where your acne is going to heal.

Speaker 1: 17:45

I get so excited about this information because this is life changing. This can shift so much for us. A lot of the research that I read has been done by an organization called HeartMath. They've done so much research on this and they've discovered that there's a sweet spot in terms of breathing for regulating the nervous system, and this is breathing through the nose. It's doing five breaths in and then five breaths out, both through the nose. Not only does this create heart coherence, but it also creates a resonant frequency of 0.1 hertz and this helps calm the nervous system. This is magical.

Speaker 1: 18:27

So how long do you need to do this breathing? If you can sit down and do this breathing for 10 minutes a day, automatically, it's going to shift everything. If you can do this first thing in the morning, last thing before you go to bed at night, it's going to shift everything even more. And if you can do this breath work whenever you have downtime, whenever you're doing the dishes, maybe when you're walking the dog, maybe when you're having a bath or in the shower or brushing your teeth. This is going to change your physiology profoundly, and especially, you want to do this breath when you're in a stressful situation. So it's so easy to do.

Speaker 1: 19:09

Let's do it together. Now. We're just going to do a couple of them, but I just want you to feel how it can shift things. So get comfortable. I want you to close your eyes. If you're driving or if you're walking and you can't actually close your eyes, don't worry about it, just make yourself comfortable and start to breathe. So I want you to inhale through your nose for a count of five one, two, three, four, five and then exhale through your nose for a count of five One, two, three, four, five and let's repeat it Breathe in one, two, three, four, five and breathe out One, two, three, four, five. So already, already just doing two breaths, you should notice somewhat of a difference. Now imagine if you do this for 10 minutes straight and the next 10 minutes that you have free.

Speaker 1: 20:07

I want you to try this, because you are going to be blown away at how doing this very simple breath for a period of time is going to shift the way that you feel. So, things to remember a regulated nervous system leads to balanced hormones and less inflammation in the body, and balanced hormones and reduced inflammation leads to less acne. You are going to feel so much better and, yes, you are going to look so much better. Your acne is going to start to clear up. So I want you to remember this Breath is the most powerful medicine that you have to regulate your nervous system and therefore heal your body. It's free and it's always available to us. So this is your challenge this week simply to breathe, and I would love it if you could breathe 10 minutes in the morning and 10 minutes at night. Allow your body to relax, really enjoy this. And, of course, I want you to keep me updated on your progress via Instagram. Let me know how you feel after a 10 minute breathing session. Do you feel more relaxed? How do you feel after a few days of implementing this breath? You might feel completely different. This can be a game changer. This is very profound work and I'm so excited to share it with you, and I'm so excited to hear about how you implemented in your life. So there you go.

Speaker 1: 21:39

If you want more tips, if you want to watch my free clear skin masterclass, I am going to share with you my four pillars of clear skin and how I treat acne. This is a free masterclass. There's a link for it in the show notes below. And if you want to book a call with my team to learn more about my acne program and get started right away on your clear skin journey there is a link in the show notes to book a call with my team Definitely do this. It's a free call.

Speaker 1: 22:08

We want to help you on your clear skin journey. We want to see if you're a fit for our program. If you're not, if it's not for you, we have other solutions as well. So if you're struggling with acne, book a call. My team and I, we really want to help you. So stay tuned for week four of the clear skin challenge. I'm going to drop it next week and I want you to have the most relaxing, beautiful week with a balanced nervous system, and I want to hear how you do it. So have a wonderful, wonderful week. Thank you so much for tuning into my podcast, sending you so much love, sending you so much peace and joy and gratitude for allowing me to guide you on your clear skin journey. Have a wonderful day. Bye.