Are you sick and tired of waking up with super dark under eye circles?
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As much as I enjoy the freedom of working from home, it also comes with some drawbacks like staying up all night at times and waking up with raccoon-like eyes.
It’s even worse when you have to go out somewhere like to a job interview or to a party. You can cover it up with concealers and foundation all you want but if it’s one of that really deep dark under eye circles that have been there for so long, it will show up somehow.
It makes you want to cake up your makeup but all it does is it just puffs out and somehow still looks like you’re trying to hide something bad. Not all products that claim to give you a one day cure for this problem are reliable and the majority of them have really bad chemicals that can do more harm than good.
So what on earth can you do to try and get rid of those dark circles under your eyes?
Below some reliable remedies and tips that have worked for me as well as some products that will be beneficial to prevent and treat this problem.
What Causes Dark Circles Under Eyes?
Sometimes knowing the causes and correcting them is the first and only remedy you need!
Sleep
When people say they need their beauty sleep, there is an obvious reason behind it [hopefully they know it too] and that reason is that sleep helps maintain your beauty.
Tadah, yes I know you’re probably thinking “Duh I know I got under eye circles because I didn’t sleep” and if you do then you have to try your best to get those 8 hours of beauty sleep.
It is as simple as that! If you’re getting your 8 hours of sleep every day and still have under eye circles, ignore this tip and check up on the next factors below.
But the first best way to get rid of dark under eyes is to get enough sleep every day and studies also agree that quality sleep helps improve physical appearance [1].
Water
Some people treat water like it’s not essential when the water itself is what makes up 70% of the body. I used to be hooked on to drinking tea/coffee instead of water and hardly drank water.
When we don’t drink the recommended 8 glasses of water per day, we are dehydrating our body and making it really hard to flush out all that bad toxins. I was doing this for so many months or over a year I think and it not only gave me under eye circles but also various other health symptoms too like stress and high blood pressure.
These two things are like bonus boosters for dark under eye circles. Even if it feels like an obvious tip, it has to be stated because as mentioned earlier, knowing the causes and taking care of them is all you might need to get rid of those dark eye bags.
So go ahead and do your best to get your 8 glasses of water and 8 hours of sleep every day.
Genetics
Sadly for some people, dark under eye circles can run in their families and in which case, you could be doing everything right from regular exercise to a healthy diet and still have them. This can usually be reduced by the natural remedies that you will see on this page as well as further medical advice from doctors.
Stress
Overthinking about all the problems in your life and isolating yourself in a corner with anxieties does not only harm your inner self but also your physical appearance.
How you feel is how you look, seriously. Life seriously is too short to stress about everything and you only live once [Yolo]. So just relax and stop stressing.
Your boyfriend broke up or cheated on you? Heartbreaking news but ladies, learn to get over it because someone special is out there for everyone and I mean everyone! You just haven’t met that person yet and I know life isn’t a fairy tale but if you just say to yourself that your chosen one hasn’t found you yet and move on with your life, everything will fall into place eventually.
I just talked about boyfriend issue because it is literally one of the most common things women stress about all day. Take some deep breaths and meditate on some calming music. Go for a daily walk to your local park or somewhere beautiful and just give a virtual treat to your eyes and soul. It’s one of the biggest ways to relieve stress.
Say NO to stress, keep smiling and watch those under eye circles vanish!
Smoking
No big surprise here. Smoking is well known for all the dangerous health problems that it can cause to one’s body and in this case, it speeds up aging. It damages the collagen and elastin under around the eyes and plays around with blood circulation too [2].
This results in fine lines, wrinkles and dark under eye circles. So if you’re a smoker, here is another reason added on your list to quit as soon as possible.
Too much Sunshine is bad for your eyes
Sunshine has its benefits as well as consequences for your health. Little sunshine here and there is good but super bright and burning hot sunshine is very bad for your health.
It can cause cancers, skin damage and under eye circles [3]. So don’t forget to put on your SPF 15 moisturizer next time you go to the beach and some cool sunglasses can also be beneficial.
Alcohol and Too much Caffeine
Got this habit? Not good for your eyes!
I mentioned earlier that I was a heavy coffee/tea addict and I didn’t even have to tell people, it’s like they can instantly figure it out when they looked at my eyes because it kept giving my eyes a kind of druggy look with huge under eye circles.
It was super hard and took ages to give up this habit but it has benefited my health in many ways. It has done a huge favor in helping me to get rid of dark under eye circles.
Natural Home Remedies to Get Rid of Under Eye Circles
Assuming you’re now aware of all the major factors that cause under eye circles, we’re now moving on to the next exciting part. Some of these remedies have existed for centuries and it is what the women of the olden (golden) days used as part of their beauty regimen.
These are some of the remedies that have worked for me and ones that have worked for others to get rid of dark circles under the eyes.
Do these 2 things first before anything else.
TIP #1- Drink 2 glasses of water first thing in the morning, take a warm shower and splash your face with ice cold water for about 20 seconds. Okay so If you’ve been having one of those owl moments of staying up all night and have to get ready to go somewhere in the morning, the first thing you should do is to drink 2 glasses of water to hydrate your body and take a nice warm shower. After cleansing and washing your face, splash ice cold water on it for about 20 seconds before moving on to the next tip. When you wash your face with cold water, it will close all the opened pores and reduce the red puffiness of your tired eyes by increasing blood circulation around the eyes.
TIP #2- Time for some Cinnamon & Lemon Face Steaming! Once you’ve cleansed your face and pat dry it, boil a bowl of water with few pieces of cinnamon sticks and half a lemon [yes the whole thing]. Let it boil for about 5-8 minutes until the water starts boiling and releasing the beautiful aroma of the lemon and cinnamon.
Once it has boiled, turn off the heat and steam your face for 10-15 minutes. You can do it with just the cinnamon sticks or with both lemon/cinnamon for some super relaxing and therapeutic face steaming.
Warning: Avoid covering your head with a towel [scarf etc] and letting it hang down as it may accidentally trip the boiling water bowl or make the steaming to be too powerful for sensitive skins. Just tie your hair up in a bun and wrap it with a scarf. Also, avoid steaming your face more than 2 times per week and only once or twice a month if you have super sensitive skin.
And avoid the steaming remedy at all cost if you happen to develop any irratations towards it (Rare but some people do have ultra sensitive skin). Lemon for instance doesn’t go well with a lot of people’s skin due to its acidic nature.
Potato, Cucumber, Sandalwood powder Remedy
Make a fine paste out of a fresh potato slice, cucumber slice, 1 teaspoon of organic sandalwood powder and a few drops of almond oil. The paste should have a creamy and easy to apply consistency. Apply it under your eye bags and a little bit on the top eyelid as well, close your eyes and relax for about 15 minutes. Wash it off with warm water first followed by ice cold water for instant fresh looking eyes with no or minimized under eye circles.
Sandalwood powder has amazing healing benefits for your skin and body. It is antiseptic and anti-inflammatory which helps reduce infection and the external symptoms such as swelling, itching and skin irritations.
I don’t know what I would do without sandalwood powder for my summer eye infections, gosh my lower or upper [sometimes both] eyelids will have really painful and swollen bumps which will last for weeks/months and cause serious damage to eyes if I don’t have sandalwood powder coming in for rescue each time! I just have to make a creamy paste out of it mixed with few drops of cold water and apply around my eyelids [not inside] until the infection heals.
When you can’t be asked or don’t have time to make the above potato + sandalwood powder paste, just mix half tsp of Sandalwood powder with a few drops of water to make it into a toothpaste consistency and apply it on your eye bags.
Wash it off with warm water after 10 or 15 minutes and then splash some cold water on your face to give your whole face an additional glow.
You can also treat eyebags by placing fresh potato slices on your eyelids like how you would with cucumber slices and then splash some cold water after 10 or 20 minutes.
More Natural Remedies for Dark Under Eye Circles
I would suggest doing at least 2 of these remedies for best results.
For the first 3 remedies, you will have to refrigerate the ingredient for at least an hour to see best results.
- Potato- Take two thin slices of a fresh potato and refrigerate for 1 hour. If you don’t have 1 hour you can keep it in the freezer for about 10 minutes and then apply it to your eyes. Keep the potato slices on for 15-20 minutes and wash your face with cold water. If you’re planning on doing at least 2 remedies then you can just wipe your face with a wet tissue and move on to the next remedy.
- Cucumber- Same as the remedy above, take two thin slices of cucumber that has been refrigerated and apply it on your eyes for 20 minutes.
- Teabags- Take 2 cold tea bags and apply on your eyes for 20 minutes. Be sure to wash it off with water and cleanser if necessary to get rid of any tea stains under your eyes.
- Cold spoon press- Keep two sterilized teaspoons in the freezer for 30 minutes, close your eyes and gently press the back of the spoons on your eyelids for 5-10 minutes. The cold spoon compresses will help get rid of puffiness and irritation from the eyes.
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What worked for you to get rid of dark under eye circles?
Please share your experience in the comments below.