We do so much to make our skin look great in the morning. Our bathroom counters are cluttered with everything from 10-step skin care to that $95 foundation, or the most recent Mecca haul from clean beauty brands.

But what if one of the biggest secrets to better skin was as simple as laying down and taking a nap? After all, our body never stops working — especially when we’re asleep. 

Sleep is food for your brain, body, and skin.

Without adequate sleep our skin is more prone to

• Ageing faster⁠ - our body's cell turnover and collagen production increases in the evening so by the same token, when sleep is compromised, so is cell turnover and collagen production, which helps skin feel firmer and the complexion to have a plumper, more youthful look. Only getting 5 hours a night can lead to twice as many fine lines as sleeping 7 would! Literally reversing all the blood, sweat and tears (& dollas spent) built up from your skincare routine. 
• Irregular hormones - particularly cortisol. “Cortisol levels decrease while we sleep, so if you don’t sleep then cortisol levels will remain high,” says Joshua Zeichner, MD, head of clinical and cosmetic dermatology at Mount Sinai hospital in New York City. “This may interfere with wound healing, promote early ageing, and even lead to acne flares.” A review published in June 2014 in the journal Inflammation & Allergy Drug Targets even suggested that elevated cortisol levels — that are directly associated with stress — can lead to a greater risk of the skin condition psoriasis and slow wound healing time by a whopping 20 percent.
• As mentioned above, poor sleep also impacts your body's natural recovery process, leasing to a slower recovery from environmental⁠ stressors like sun exposure.
• An overall poorer skin quality and immediate effects such as hanging eyelids, swollen eyes, darker under-eye circles, paler skin, more wrinkles and fine lines, more droopy corners of the mouth, to name just a few. 
• Your skin becomes imbalanced, which leads to a dehydrated complexion, redness, and breakouts. Poor sleep can cause moisture levels in your skin to decrease and also lower your complexion's pH levels, causing your skin to not be able to produce the moisture it needs. This can create unnecessary redness, leaving your skin uneven and even trigger breakouts. That's why using skin care products that keep your skin at a slightly acidic level (so it keeps moisture in and bacteria out), and monitoring the amount you sleep is an absolute critical component of your beauty regimen.

The good news is that you can make up for lost time — quickly. Recent studies have shown that just three to four nights of more sleeping in (yes, sleeping in) can make up for sleep debt and reduce our tired sighs.

While you shouldn’t fully abandon your daytime skin care routine in favour of getting more Zzz’s, there are some easy ways to amp your skin-sleep relationship for morning results.

Here Are 5 Ways to Maximize Your Beauty Sleep for #WokeUpLikeThis Skin

The connection between ample, good-quality sleep and healthy skin is undeniable. Here are five strategies to maximize your snooze time for a healthier, more youthful complexion.

1. Your bedtime routine is in your hands

Most experts agree healthy adults need between 7 to 9 hours of sleep per night to function at their best, but you may need more depending on your individual lifestyle conditions. To figure out the exact amount your body needs to function on all cylinders, go to bed 15 minutes earlier every night and continue adding 15 minutes until you feel wide awake all day along.

2. Tailor a bedtime skincare routine

A bedtime specific routine will ensure your doing the most for your skin when your skin is at its driest. In terms of cleansing, a proper night clean is arguably more important than in the morning — you don’t need to use fancy products or scrub too hard. A gentle cleanser to remove dirt, makeup, and extra oil will do the trick but do keep in mind to look for ingredients that have a slightly acidic level (so it keeps moisture in and bacteria out). For skincare, stick to moisturising ingredients such as a humectant (which means that it pulls in water to hydrate the skin — in fact, it can hold 1,000 times its weight in water). Hyaluronic acid is a favourite, helping to bind water to skin cells for a dewy, healthy glow in the morning.

Use Products With Vitamin C or Vitamin A, Which Can Help Rev Collagen Production

Vitamin C is a key building block for your body to support collagen production. Taking a vitamin C supplement like VK6 White Element can help boost collagen levels and early studies suggest vitamin C’s antioxidant properties may help reverse any damage the sun has imposed on your skin during the day, notes the American Academy of Dermatology, making this ingredient a win all around.

Vitamin A, on the other hand, can help minimize pore size, clear acne-prone skin, and firm dull, sagging skin by boosting collagen production, according to past research. Harvard Health Publishing notes that sunlight inactivates retinoids, increasing the skin’s sensitivity to harmful UV rays, so dermatologists agree using them at bedtime is best. The topical form of vitamin A is a retinoid, and you can find various retinoid creams with a prescription, at your local drugstore or wherever you like to buy your beauty products.

3. Avoid sleeping on your stomach

You can get under-eye bags if you lie on your stomach - liquid can pool in the trough of your under-eye throughout the night and cause puffiness that you won't want to wake up to. To combat this, slip on a thick sleep mask that'll help prop up your head to keep the fluid in your body flowing downward, instead of pooling under your eyes. If you're reading this and currently have under-eye bags, grab two soaked green tea bags and rest them under your eyes for five minutes to help reduce the puffiness.

4. Sweat it out

Exercising, especially between the hours of 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. Working out in general releases endorphins (mood elevators) that help release stress, but exercising during this time period in the evening specifically — even if it's in the comfort of your own home — sets you up for a good night's sleep because it not only leaves you less stressed, you'll be even more tired and ready for bed, she adds.

5. Put your mind to it

You can also practice mindfulness and develop a short meditation, since it helps put you to sleep quicker. If meditation isn't your thing, you can also apply aromatherapy oils to your temples to help you power down and reduce stress. 

#Beautysleep are you getting enough of it?⁠ Let us know in the comments below!