Suddenly looking old

[ShinyNewBear]

Just turned 40 and suddenly feel and look old. My hair looks dull and lacklustre and my skin looks the same.
Best (not too expensive ideally) products for either? I don’t really want to go down the Botox route.
I don’t mind looking my age but I’d prefer not to look older than I am.
My sense of style feels harder too as I suddenly feel like all my extra weight has moved entirely to my stomach!

Nutrition, exercise and lots of water. Always look after your gut. I also make my own night time serum with 2 base oils and some essential oils. I'm 50 now and people have said I have good skin and no wrinkles. Though I can see some activity around mouth 😂 Always keep a good skin care routine. Hair can always be trimmed and apply a deep condition mask. I've bought one of those heated head things where you apply conditioner or other hair product then pop on your head for however long and the heat helps penetrate hair shafts. It's also great if you have a headache 😂

I regularly get mistaken for mid 30s I'm 48. I do a fair amount of exercise but not heavy intense cardio, think it's aging. I've done yoga for over 20 years at least twice a week... That seems to have made a difference, love walking and cycling. Use decent skincare including serums and SPF, keep hydrated, vegetarian diet of 30+ years. Also wear what I want.. Don't conform to these daft ideas about what middle aged women should and shouldn't wear... Still wear mini skirts, I have good legs!

Quit alcohol, yoga, treadmill hill walking, retinol and a little bit of Botox

@RudsyFarmer @notwavingbutdrowning1 sorry you fell apart after menopause. I'm 56 and look pretty fantastic. Much better than I did in my 40s. No lie, I look better. I. My 40s I was anxious, bigger and looked mumsy. I just look a whole lot fresher and younger now.

Remember you eyesight is not what it once was 🤣

Glad to hear positive stories of how some
of you ladies feel post menopause. The OP asked for skincare tips not horror stories anyway!

@gogogoji I didn't fall apart after menopause. I started to look older, thanks to physical changes such as loss of skin elasticity, but I am very much still in one piece. And, since menopause coincided with breast cancer, I am also grateful to be alive. There are worse things than looking older.

@blahblahblah1654 it is not a 'horror story' to say that certain aspects of ageing are inevitable. In fact, the horror story is society's insistence that women should not age.

The OP's request was perfectly sensible - she doesn't want to look older than she is. But it is also sensible to make the point that certain aspects of ageing are inevitable. All the sheet masks and serums in the world won't change that. And when people on here say that products like that 'worked', I wonder what they mean. Because nothing I've tried on my skin has done anything other than make it feel a bit softer and I'm not sure anything can.

Does that make you feel better @RudsyFarmer?

Why?

@milosmouse I bought some of the Superdrug vitamin c. It smells amazing! Completely non greasy and really brightened my skin up right away. Thanks for the recommendation!

I bet you look fab to others but appreciate that it may not be necessarily how you feel! It's all about "balance" for me. I like to indulge (sweet tooth, fast food, absolutely love anything made out of potato) but also understand the importance of staying hydrated, mindfulness, getting some sleep, exercising (cross trainer, a walk, light jog, yoga, even doing the housework (dare I say it)). Doing things that make me feel happy and healthy, basically! Finding things that you like will make it all the more enjoyable and less of a chore x

You really resurrected a 3 day old thread to bitch at someone making an obvious joke?

Does that make you feel better?

Why?

Hmm.

I only resurrected it because @RudsyFarmer was not giving out good vibes. We had already chatted about it.

@iamturtle, why you ask?

Sounds a bit scratchy.