1. Get Enough Sleep

One way to stop stress affecting your skin is to do your best to get enough sleep. There's a reason it's referred to as beauty sleep! While we're asleep the body uses that time to repair itself. So if you're short on shut-eye, your skin will suffer. And don't forget to take off your makeup before you go to bed!

2. Up Your Exercise Regime

You may be under stress because you're really busy, so you think you don't have a spare minute for doing any exercise. Unfortunately, this lack of exercise isn't good news for your skin. Find some time to fit in exercise, which will help your skin cope with the stress you're under. It will get your circulation going and help your skin look brighter.

3. Relaxation

No matter how busy or stressed you are, you can always find some time for relaxation. This will help protect your skin from the harmful effects of stress. Find a quiet place and close your eyes for a few minutes, slowing your breathing down. Or listen to a relaxation recording. Everyone can find time for five minutes of relaxation, no matter how busy they are!

4. Is Your Skin Feeling Dry?

This could be down to stress, which stops your skin from absorbing as much moisture as it normally would. Make sure you're drinking enough water (which is far better than downing cup after cup of coffee). You may also benefit from changing your moisturiser and using a richer one than you normally would.

5. Improve Your Diet

If you're stressed, you're probably more inclined to reach for chocolate and sugary snacks to keep you going. But this won't help your skin at all, and in fact will make you more likely to suffer breakouts. Try to eat a good diet, with whole grains, fruit and vegetables, and lean protein; cut down on fatty and sugary foods.

6. Find Time for You

So often we claim that we just don't have time for ourselves, especially if we have busy careers or a family (or both). But try to organise time management so that you can have some time to yourself, and do whatever you want to do. Pamper yourself a little. It will pay dividends, as you'll feel more relaxed and your poor skin will feel less stressed as a result.

7. Take Control

Stress is often caused by feeling that we don't have control. So help your skin by helping yourself and taking control of the situation. Work out what you need to do to reduce the stresses in your life, and work on doing just that. Your skin will look much better - and you'll feel happier as well.

There are lots of things you can do to help protect your skin from stress. While it's hard to avoid stress completely, if you eat well, exercise and get enough sleep that will help a lot. What's your favorite way of relaxing?