A Journey Through Menopause: Navigating life with Clare and Rebecca

October, Menopause Awareness Month, prompts reflections not only on hormonal changes but also on how this transformative phase affects our skin.

Balance Me founders Rebecca and Clare have made it their mission to ensure midlife skin is fully supported through this significant life stage. Think of our wellness-inspired skincare as supporting better, not younger looking skin as our mission is to inspire skin confidence and celebrate every skin’s unique story.

As Rebecca and Clare have journeyed through the perimenopause - the 10 years of so before menopause, which is usually around the age of 51, acting as their own guinea pigs they have innovated and created effective solutions to plump, hydrate, reduce stress and support compromised skin.

There are many physical as well as psychological changes that take place throughout midlife as hormonal imbalances collide with the day-to-day activities of an on-the-go lifestyle. We’ve highlighted some of the most common below and then chosen skincare we know will support and boost mood as well as optimum skin health.

Simply put by having a skincare ritual – five minutes at the beginning and end of the day, you will naturally carve out ‘me time’, and it will help you to relax. We speak from experience! And finally keep your routine simple. 3 Steps: Cleanse, Treat, Moisturise and then add in some targeted extras like exfoliation and eye care along the way!

The Stress-Skin Connection: 

Stress can age the skin and act as a trigger a host of skin issues from lack of sleep leading to dark circles – hello Wonder Eye Cream to loss of glow; dull lacklustre skin where our Vitamin C Repair Serum an become your daily must apply. And as you would expect from a skincare brand with wellness firmly at its roots, the power of touch and connection is championed so each texture helps entice you to massage your skin, encouraging blood flow, and supporting lymphatic drainage to combat sluggishness in midlife. Two favourites are Super Berry Cleansing Balm as a first step indulgent, nourishing cleanser and Super Firming Body Oil along with our Vegan dry brushes which can be applied from your shoulders to your toes!

Loss of tone:

From a physiological point of view we can we lose up to 30% of our collagen during our perimenopause years. Now collagen holds your face up like scaffolding so our skin may start to sag, it also becomes thinner and drier as the oestrogen declines, and we lose fat on our face. And annoyingly we also lose elastin because elastin production is maintained by oestrogen. For this very reason the sisters created Collagen Boost Moisturiser, which they fondly call their ‘bouncy skin cream’ thanks to its clever tripeptides that not only help inhibit collagen from breaking down in the first place but help trick collagen into creating more. And one of their favourite creams for their evening routine is Tripeptide Plumping Cloud Cream. This cream is light in texture as the name suggests but packs a powerful punch with rejuvenating Tripeptides, Ceramides for skin barrier support and Hyaluronic Acid to target dehydration and fine lines in one go!

Blemishes, blocked pores, redness and inflammation:

We may experience acne for the first time in menopause and perimenopause because testosterone may be become the more dominant hormone we have, and this may also mean a bit more facial hair. Skincare that we originally designed for our teenage children has quickly been adopted by ourselves and our midlife community. Exfoliation is key in midlife because it counters the natural slowing of skin cell turnover, which can lead to a buildup of dead skin cells that makes skin look dull, rough, and uneven. By removing these old cells, exfoliation encourages new cell growth, which can improve skin's texture and tone, reduce the appearance of fine lines and dark spots, unclog pores, and allow other skincare products to penetrate more effectively. Our salicylic acid-rich BHA Exfoliating Concentrate is a fast action, fast absorbing leave on solution and our Congested Skin Serum is an ‘on the spot’ soothing gel to gently calm inflammation and speed away blemishes without causing dryness or irritation.

Hyperpigmentation

And our hormone fluctuations affect our pigmentation too and we become more sensitive to sunlight. Step in our Azelaic Dark Spot Serum, our clinically tested dual-function serum that tackles the pigmentation pathway at every stage. For best results apply twice daily over 60 days. We test each new innovation with a group of real women from our global community and this ‘best in class’ formula produced outstanding results and for our clinical trials 100% saw a reduction in pigmentation resulting in a more even skin tone; 90% observed an improvement in their skin barrier; 80% had a reduction in wrinkles.

Connect with us on Instagram @balancemeskincare [insert link] and please do share your experience as we can then further support our wider community and friends as they too, journey through the menopause.

Discover our curated rituals and discover your your new routine!