What Causes A Stressed Face: Understanding The Signs Of Burnout

Stress, often known as the fight or flight response, is a release of chemicals like cortisol and adrenaline (sometimes referred to as “stress hormones”) in the body that cause distress, anxiety, fear, and the urge to act. For many, stress occurs when they are overwhelmed or adversely affected by events, tasks, or relationships. Stress can be caused by everyday experiences such as work or school issues, problems in one’s personal life, or family conflict, among many other concerns.

When experienced occasionally or short-term, stress may not have long-term adverse impacts. The release of a stress hormone like cortisol is even normal or necessary in specific circumstances (one example being when we wake up in the morning). However, excessive or persistent stress affects humans in a number of ways, taking a toll on the mind and the body. There are a few ways stress can manifest itself in the body. Learning how to cope with stress, understand the warning signs of burnout, and manage your emotions can be valuable in reducing the impacts of stress.

What are the physical symptoms of stress, and how do they manifest in the body? 

There are a number of ways stress can affect the body, including the following.

Changes to hair and skin

Tension and stress can lead to visible changes to your body, including skin aging and dark circles centered on the eye bags. Skin aging often comes as a result of the brain-skin connection transmitting stress responses to the skin. The stress-related skin changes we see often show up as fine lines (whether those be horizontal or vertical lines), less elasticity, more oil on the skin, and shifts in pigmentation. Eye circles, on the other hand, are usually created due to stress diverting blood away from the face. This can cause the skin barrier between the blood vessels and the under-eye bags to become visually thinner.

In addition to skin changes, stress can also cause graying hair. According to the study, Hyperactivation of Sympathetic Nerves Drives Melanocyte Stem Cell Depletion, the stress-related activation of sympathetic nerves drives the depletion of somatic stem cells. Because hair follicles store certain types of stem cells, the depletion of these cells can cause the formation of unpigmented hairs (i.e. gray hair).

Facial tension

When feeling stressed or tense, your muscles might tighten or become stiff or difficult to move. When someone experiences a high volume of stress for a sustained period, they may experience tension in the face, grind their jaw, furrow their brow, or scrunch their forehead.

Facial tension can range from mild to severe. The symptoms of facial tension can include redness in the face, stiffness in the jaw muscles, dull or aching pain across the forehead, and numbness or tingling. In addition, stress can cause tension headaches or migraines, which may feel like a headache in the back of the head or a band tightening around your forehead.

There are different types of tension headaches, including episodic and chronic. Episodic tension headaches are more short-term and can last around thirty minutes, but if you have them frequently, they can disrupt your daily functioning. Chronic tension headaches may last for hours, days, or weeks. Chronic facial pain or headaches because of stress can contribute to symptoms of depression or anxiety and can impede an individual's daily life. If you're experiencing chronic facial tension, consider seeking support from a doctor or therapist.

Redness or flushing

Facial redness or flushing is another common symptom of stress or anxiety. When your face becomes red or flushed due to anxiety or stress, it may be due to the dilation of the capillaries in the face. This symptom may also be caused by related conditions, like high blood pressure. Depending on the situation, redness or flushing can last for a period of hours or longer.

The self-consciousness and additional stress that can come alongside this symptom can be hard to cope with, as you may worry about people noticing that your face is red or that you look different. This process can be a feedback loop in which the more that you notice others seeing that you are stressed, the more stressed you become.

Lip damage

Lip damage can also occur as a result of stress due to chewing on your lip or the inside of your mouth. Many people partake in chewing behaviors subconsciously. If your lip biting is causing damage to the outer layer of your lips or the inside of your mouth, increasing your awareness of the behavior can be beneficial. Once you know it is happening, you can take action to stop it.

One way to refrain from biting your lip is by distracting yourself. When you notice yourself engaged in chewing on your lip or the side of your mouth, try to redirect the energy through a distracting activity. For example, you could write in your journal, call a friend, or play with a stress fidget toy.

Temporomandibular joint dysfunction (TMJ)

Temporomandibular joint dysfunction (TMJ) is a condition that can cause intense pain in the jaw. The pain can be so debilitating that surgery may be recommended. TMJ has several potential causes, including face or jaw trauma, misalignment, braces, chewing gum excessively, and damaged teeth due to nocturnal grinding. It can also develop due to stress, anxiety, or clenching your jaw. If severe enough, TMJ could require medical intervention. If you find that TMJ impacts your quality of life, it may be helpful to seek a medical diagnosis and treatment from a healthcare professional.

Fight, flight, or freeze response

When faced with a substantial threat or perception of a threat, the body often goes into survival mode. As a result, you may experience a fight, flight or freeze response. The fight response means that your body is trying to combat a situation, whereas flight means you're trying to run away or avoid, and freeze means your body tenses up and you become immobile. During a freeze response, you might struggle to set boundaries, talk, or stand up for yourself.

People with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and anxiety disorders may often experience the fight, flight, or freeze response due to general stressors. While you may or may not experience facial effects as a result, knowing what the fight or flight response looks like can help you choose coping skills to address it. 

If you are experiencing trauma, support is available. Please see our Get Help Now page for more resources.

Mental burnout due to long-term stress

Long-term stress can cause long-term mental and physical impacts. For many, a consequence of stress is mental burnout, which is a state that results from overworking to the point of exhaustion, frustration, and a reduced sense of accomplishment. It can occur due to a career, relationship, schoolwork, or other responsibilities. 

There are three main components to burnout, including exhaustion, cynicism, and feeling like your professional ability is compromised. If you start to experience significant work-related stress, take on too many responsibilities at school, or put too much on your schedule, you might start to experience burnout. Some people also experience burnout from too much sensory input or difficulty with executive function, which is common in those identifying as neurodivergent or living with a learning disability.

The physical manifestations of stress above could be present when someone is experiencing burnout. A person may have little or no control over how their burnout manifests. A few symptoms of burnout may include the following:

• Stress headaches
• Anxiety
• Panic attacks
• Stomach aches or headaches
• Immune system issues
• Poor work performance or reduced work performance
• Isolation from friends and family
• Depression
• Exhaustion (or other symptoms resulting from sleep deprivation)
• Difficulty concentrating or focusing
• Difficulty managing a healthy work-life balance

The risk factors for burnout can vary from person to person and may be more significant for those with certain personality traits, such as high levels of neuroticism or low levels of agreeableness. In addition, some professionals may be more prone to job burnout than others. For example, burnout commonly affects those in caregiving or helping jobs. It can also affect those in educational settings, with a common example being male and female medical students (or those of any gender). However, it can affect people who work in any role or industry. Other workplace risk factors that may cause you to experience burnout symptoms include high-stress levels and situations, bullying, harassment, unfair treatment at work, and job expectations that are too high or feel hard to manage.

How to cope with emotional exhaustion, stress, and burnout

If you want to overcome burnout or stress, you may find relief from the following coping mechanisms.

Lifestyle changes

Making short-term or long-term lifestyle changes can be beneficial for reducing your stress level and the overall risk of burnout. For example, you could take a break from work or change your shift to hours that work better for you. If you can't take a vacation or sick time, try to make the most out of the time that you're not working. Minimize thinking about work when you're not at work, and instead focus on your other interests, positive friendships, and family relationships.

If you often work late into the evenings, try to check in with yourself to ensure you're not being overextended. If possible, consider trying to address the size of your workload with your manager. In addition, try to make time for your hobbies and take the time to de-stress after work.

Self-care practices

There are many self-care practices that you can try that may help you manage stress and find relief from physical symptoms, and improve your overall well-being, including the following:

• Taking hot showers or baths
• Massage
• Maintaining a healthy diet
• Moisturizers to deal with dry skin and other skin issues
• Yoga
• Establishing supportive relationships
• Meditation or relaxation techniques
• Deep breathing exercises

Facial exercises

For relief from stress-related facial tension, you can also try a variety of facial exercises:

• Happy face: Smile as wide as you can and hold the face for a count of five. Repeat this ten times.
• Furrowed brow: Intentionally wrinkle your forehead and arch your eyebrows. If you hold this position for a count of 15-20 seconds, then release it, you may release tension. You can do this exercise in a set of three.
• Eye squeeze: Close your eyes gently and hold them that way for about 20 seconds before releasing them.
• Facial massage: Massage the sides of your forehead with your thumbs, being careful not to press too hard.

Counseling with a professional

Recent studies have shown that online counseling can benefit those experiencing burnout. For instance, one study examined the effectiveness of web-based psychotherapy in treating and preventing burnout. It found that online therapy reduced participants' burnout risk compared with the control group.

If you are already stressed or experiencing burnout, making time for therapy may feel challenging and even more stressful. With online therapy through a platform like BetterHelp, you can match with a therapist online and meet with your therapist wherever you have an internet connection, which may offer convenience and remove some of the pressure and stress you might experience from scheduling an in-person appointment. You can also choose between phone, video, or live chat sessions with your therapist.

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