Summertime brings long weekends and family vacations, which can lead to stress and anxiety. Chasing after kids, arguing with teenagers, missed flights, foreign food, bug bites and sunburn can stress your mind and body, leading to unexpected breakouts and expeditions to foreign pharmacies. Unlike other organs in the body, your skin has an immediate reaction to stress and anxiety through the “brain-skin connection”, a complex interplay between our mental state, our immune system, and our skin.
The management of anxiety-induced skin problems requires us to address both the internal emotional triggers and the external physical discomfort. Can Anxiety Cause Rashes? When anxiety reaches heightened levels, it can lead to stress rashes that emerge anywhere on the body as red patches, bumps (hives) or welts on the skin’s surface. Often, stress rashes appear on the face, neck, chest, or arms, and may be itchy or cause a burning or tingling sensation.
If you already suffer from eczema, acne, or rosacea, stress can trigger flare-ups. Can Anxiety Cause Hives? Anxiety triggers a physiological cascade: stress hormones such as cortisol prompt the release of histamine, a potent chemical messenger, into the bloodstream. Histamine triggers puffy skin and inflammation, which leads to hives - raised, itchy, and often red surface welts that can vary significantly in size, shape, and itchiness.
Hives usually last less than 24 hours and disappear on their own, but if the stress continues, hive.
