Lucy Sheridan has built a career on helping people stop comparing themselves to others. As the world's first Comparison Coach, she's on a mission to help her clients find inner peace, achieve their goals without the side-eye at what everyone else is doing, and ultimately cure their comparison habit. Her mantra? Be less 'them' and more 'you'.
We caught up with Lucy to talk about something she knows intimately: the connection between how we're feeling and how our skin behaves. Because as anyone who's ever broken out before a big presentation knows, our complexion has an uncanny ability to broadcast our internal state to the world.
When stress shows up on your skin
"Ultimately what we are feeling within us is reflected in our skin and this can tell us a lot about what is going on," Lucy explains. "Does our self care need a boost? Do we need to slow down a bit? Are we looking after ourselves? If we are not nourishing ourselves it can show through on our skin."
It's not just anecdotal. Research consistently shows that psychological stress triggers inflammatory pathways in the skin, disrupts barrier function, and can worsen everything from adult acne to rosacea. Your skin is essentially your body's stress dashboard, lighting up with warning signals when things are out of balance internally.
For Lucy, stress shows up in a predictable pattern. "If I'm stressed and it's a certain time of my cycle I can break out across my neck and chin and this makes me feel really self-conscious," she shares. Sound familiar? Hormonal fluctuations combined with cortisol spikes create the perfect storm for inflammatory breakouts, particularly along the jawline and neck.
The good news? "When we are kind to ourselves and feeling in flow with our lives it's impossible to ignore that glow on our skin," Lucy notes. It works both ways. Just as stress depletes your complexion, genuine wellbeing shows up as that elusive lit-from-within radiance that no highlighter can replicate.
Building a stress-proof skincare routine
When life gets chaotic, your skincare routine shouldn't add to the stress. Lucy's approach is refreshingly practical. Her non-negotiable? Cleansing. "A busy work life, heavy makeup some days, there's nothing better than washing the day away and feeling new again."
Her go-to is the Light Work. "I LOVE it," she says simply. The ritual of massaging away makeup and daily grime becomes a moment of transition, a physical act of letting go of whatever the day threw at you. No surfactants to strip already-stressed skin, just nourishing oils that dissolve everything while leaving your barrier intact.
For stress-induced sensitivity, keeping your routine simple but effective is key. When cortisol levels are high, your skin barrier becomes more permeable, making it reactive to ingredients it would normally tolerate. This is when a calming, minimal routine pays dividends.
Lucy's skin has "sensitive phases" that require forward planning. "Before being in the sun, I must moisturise within five minutes of getting out of the shower," she notes. It's this kind of skin awareness, knowing your triggers and planning accordingly, that keeps sensitivity in check even during stressful periods.
The investment that changed everything
Perhaps Lucy's most valuable advice comes from personal experience. "Invest in yourself and seek some specialist knowledge," she advises. "I'm 36 and my skin has changed a lot in the last five years. Had I not found a brand like Pai and benefitted from a consultation I know my skin would not be as healthy as it is today."
It's a reminder that skin changes. What worked in your twenties might fail you in your thirties. Stress patterns shift. Hormones fluctuate. Environmental factors accumulate. Having expert guidance to navigate these changes isn't indulgent. It's practical.
A professional consultation can identify patterns you might miss. That monthly chin breakout? Could be hormonal, could be your phone harboring bacteria, could be your hand-on-chin thinking pose. Those sensitive phases Lucy mentions? They often follow predictable triggers once you learn to spot them.
The mind-skin connection in practice
Lucy's work centres on comparison, that uniquely modern affliction where everyone else's highlight reel makes your behind-the-scenes look shabby. The stress of constant comparison doesn't just affect your mental health. It shows up on your skin too.
When you're in comparison mode, cortisol rises. Sleep suffers. You might skimp on skincare because what's the point when everyone else looks flawless? The irony is that those flawless images are usually filtered, lit, and edited within an inch of reality. Meanwhile, your stressed, sleep-deprived skin is dealing with actual biological consequences.
Lucy's mantra "Dream it. Real life it" applies to skin health too. Instead of comparing your stress breakout to someone's ring-light selfie, focus on what your skin actually needs. Real care. Real ingredients. Real results. Not the filtered version.
Building a relationship with your skin means noticing its patterns, responding to its needs, and yes, sometimes seeking help when those patterns become too complex to decode alone. As Lucy discovered, sometimes the best investment in your skin is admitting you need expert guidance to understand it better.
For more tips on living comparison-free, follow Lucy on Instagram @lucysheridan. And if stress is showing up on your skin, remember: it's not just you. Your skin is simply doing its job, telling you what's happening inside. The question is whether you're listening.
