How to Prevent Side Sleeping Wrinkles

How to Prevent Side Sleeping Wrinkles
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Sleep wrinkles are simply unfair. You eat right, you exercise, you avoid excess alcohol and caffeine and you go to bed early. But, the next morning, there they are: deep sheet wrinkles in your face and neck, making your face look like badly folded laundry. Side sleeping wrinkles are a particular challenge because the only real way to avoid them is to not sleep on your side. That's difficult to do, but don't give up. You can avoid sleeping wrinkles, even if you find sleeping on your back uncomfortably close to coffin rehearsal.

Step 1

Try sleeping on your back. Place an extra pillow under your knees to keep you from turning over. You may not last that way the entire night, but any time spent off of your face will help.

Step 2

Lay a body pillow alongside yourself and rest as much of your weight on it as you can. Use it to prop your shoulder and part of your chest, and throw your leg and hip over it. This will keep your head turned somewhat way from the pillow, keeping a lot of the weight off of your face.

Step 3

Invest in satin pillowcases. The slippery surface will reduce the friction between your face and the pillowcase, helping to avoid the bunching of the fabric that causes the deep creases.

Step 4

Take your vitamins. According to Marianne O'Donoghue, M.D., associate professor of dermatology at Rush-St. Luke's-Presbyterian Medical Center in Chicago, vitamins A, C, the B complexes and E help ensure healthy and young-looking skin.

Tips and Warnings

  • Apply a deep moisturizer before going to sleep to soothe your skin and keep it hydrated.
  • Avoid alcohol before bed because this can lead to puffiness in the morning, which just make sleep wrinkles look even worse.

Things You'll Need

  • Extra pillow
  • Body pillow
  • Satin pillowcase
  • Vitamins A, B complexes, C and E
  • Deep moisturizer (optional)

References

Article reviewed by Heather Wilkins Last updated on: Jun 6, 2010

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