Skincare Advice for My 40-Year-Old Self

Do you ever wish you could travel back in time and give your younger self some advice? I sure do – especially when it comes to skin care and beauty.

If I could sit down with my 40-year-old self, here are the three most important things I would share about skin health and beauty:

1. Stop obsessing about all the stuff you're putting ON your skin and start paying more attention to what’s happening UNDERNEATH the surface

At 40, I was still making a lot of televisions ads (I had left my career as a reporter to start my own business) and was spending a small fortune on creams, serums, and masks – always looking for that miracle product that would help make my dry, rosacea-prone skin "camera ready". (The women behind the beauty counters at our local department stores loved me)

What I didn’t understand then was that topical products can only do so much. That's because they only work on the surface in the epidermis. But real, lasting beauty comes from a complex variety of things that are happening at a much deeper level including:

🍃 Blood flow to the skin (which brings oxygen and nutrients)

🍃 Muscle tone underneath the skin (which provides the “scaffolding”)

🍃 Tension release in the face and neck (which allows for natural movement and expression)

As well as a host of other things that are impacted by diet, hormones, stress, etc.

In other words, things that simply can't be addressed by putting something on top (even if it smells terrific and costs a small fortune!)

This is exactly why face yoga is so effective – it addresses what’s happening BELOW the surface of the skin, not just on top of it. By increasing circulation, toning muscles, stimulating the production of collagen and elastin, releasing tension, and addressing other factors of overall wellness we create beauty from the inside out.

2. Consistency trumps expensive products every time

Oh, how I wish I’d known this sooner! I used to have this idea that the more expensive a product was, the more effective it probably was. Like...Clinique is "better" than Neutragena, right? (The beauty industry certainly wants us to believe this!)

But I’ve since come to realize that a simple, consistent practice does a lot more for my skin than a drawer full of expensive products used sporadically.

Five minutes of face yoga each day will give you better results than the most expensive cream applied once a week. It’s not about having the “best” products (especially since many of the most expensive ones are full of chemicals that are making our skin WORSE) – it’s about creating habits that support your skin’s natural processes day in and day out.

3. Your face tells your story – and that’s something to celebrate, not erase

In my 40s, I was still trying to maintain the face of my 30s. I saw every new line as an enemy to be combated, every change as something to be reversed.

What I understand now is that my face tells the story of my life – and it’s mostly a great story! Those laugh lines? They’re evidence of joy. The crinkles around my eyes? Years of expressing empathy and connection.

Our culture is so focused on “looking younger” that I think we often tend to miss the beauty of faces that reflect lived experience. Some of the most beautiful women I know aren’t the ones who look youngest – they’re the ones whose faces radiate authenticity, confidence, and peace with themselves.

Face yoga isn’t about erasing your story – it’s about helping you tell it with vibrancy and genuine expression.

If I could go back and tell my 40-year-old self just one thing, it would be this: Stop fighting against your face and start working with it instead.