The Grooming Manual

How to Get Rid of Tired Eyes: 3 Proven Ways

Man with dark circles under eyes

Do your eyes feel tired? Are you wondering how to get rid of tired eyes? There are lots of effective (and simple) ways to wake up even the most tired of eyes. We’ve all been there, and it can leave you looking and feeling wholly out of it.

Let’s paint a picture: you’ve had a big night out, a late night with the kids, or just couldn’t sleep -- and suddenly you find yourself bleary eyed, puffy, and wishing you could muster some energy. Here’s what you should know.

First Thing’s First: What’s Going on with Tired Eyes?

If you’re going to effectively banish those tired eyes, you have to know what’s causing your dark circles, puffiness, and expression lines to begin with. Although some people have a naturally dark eye area all the time, you might be noticing that it's more pronounced after a late night out or when your lifestyle habits are lacking.

Let's get to the bottom of the problem so you can learn how to get rid of tired eyes, dark circles, and bags.

Dark Circles

Most people attribute their dark circles and sleepy eyes to fatigue or lack of sleep. But it can be much more complicated than that, as additional factors often contribute to dark circles, including:

Age

As you get older, you lose fat and collagen in your face (it starts in your 20’s). This can lead to thinner skin with less padding and more pronounced dark circles. Knowing how to wake up your eyes as you age is crucial.

Try an Anti-Aging Routine:

If collagen and fat loss are why your eyes are always tired, incorporate an advanced anti-aging routine into your self-care regimen.

Our anti-aging kit contains powerful restorative ingredients like Matrixyl 3000, MSM, hyaluronic acid, and more. With a night serum, eye cream, and face moisturizer, this routine will set you up for success on your journey to more youthful skin.

Allergies

Any kind of allergic reaction can cause the blood vessels around your eyes to enlarge, creating -- you guessed it -- a blue or purple hue.

Check Your Skincare Products

Have you started using any new products lately? Your body might be sensitive to certain ingredients, resulting in puffy, sleepy eyes, even if you aren't applying it to your face. Check the ingredients in your products and reconsider body wash, face wash, and lotions with harsh additives.

Eye Strain

If you’re straining your eyes to get some paperwork done, look at your phone, or work on the computer, it can also cause your blood vessels to enlarge, making your circles more prominent.

Try Using a Restoring Eye Serum

Wake up your sleepy eyes with our restoring eye serum that brightens dark circles and boosts collagen production. This serum tightens the skin, preventing fine lines and the formation of vertical wrinkles and crow's feet. It contains vitamin C to fight sun damage and protein peptides to strengthen collagen bonds, resulting in tighter, invigorated under-eye skin.

Dehydration

If you've been wondering how to make your eyes less tired, it might just be a matter of dehydration. Poor hydration will always lead to a more sunken and deflated appearance -- and that will always make your dark circles pop.

Try Moisturizing Your Face

Sometimes all you need is a little moisture to bring life back to dry, tired skin. When exploring how to wake up your eyes look for a face moisturizer and eye serum with humectants and occlusives to enhance moisture retention and prevent moisture loss.

Genetics

Listen -- sometimes we’re just not handed the dark circle genetic lottery. And if you’ve been dealt a bad hand, they’ll always get worse with age.

Try a Glycolic Acid Serum

Discovering how to wake up tired eyes caused by genetics requires science-backed ingredients and consistent effort. A Glycolic Acid Serum will facilitate cell turnover, removing old, dull skin and replacing it with a layer of fresher, brighter cells. This will brighten the area by changing the rate at which your skin naturally sheds cells.

Lack of Sun Protection

Sun exposure is arguably the factor that accelerates aging the fastest. A tan is actually the skin's response to being injured; it gets darker to block out UV rays and prevent further damage. Over time, sun exposure leads to wrinkles, dark spots, and older, tired skin.

So next time you're wondering "why do my eyes feel tired?", think about how much time you've been spending in the sun.

Try Using SPF Cream

The best way to prevent and wake up tired eyes is with an SPF moisturizer to protect the skin from sun damage. Not only does our sunscreen block UVA and UVB rays, it provides the antioxidants necessary to right free radicals that break through. This way, you can enjoy time soaking up the sun without skin concerns holding you back.

Puffiness

Anyone can have eye puffiness - but it will get worse with:

Age
Allergies
Smoking
Heavy drinking
Fluid retention after a long sleep or a high-sodium meal
Hereditary factors

Puffiness can also result from eye strain, a common occurrence when the eyes get strained from constant use. It makes the eyes feel heavy and tired and look exhausted, too.

Expression Lines

Fine lines, expression lines, and crow’s feet naturally creep up with time. That said, these physical signs of aging are exacerbated by external factors like smoking, exposure to pollution, sun damage, and free radical damage.

Tackling tired eyes, along with all of these concerns can be quite a task, but is doable. Here are some tips and tricks that can help.

3 Ways to Wake Up Tired Eyes

We've covered the causes; let's learn how to get rid of tired eyes. Consider these changes to prevent and repair sleepy eyes.

1. Use An Anti-Aging Cream

It’s not just marketing -- the right eye cream can truly make a world of difference when it comes to getting rid of tired eyes. But it’s all about incorporating active ingredients that are proven to treat dark circles, puffiness, or fine lines. These include:

Matrixyl 3000:

A blend of protein peptides, Matrixyl 3000 can help rebuild collagen production and reduce wrinkles by up to 45% (which, in turn, can also help dark circles).

Already have sleepy eyes? Let us help you wake them up. Our Restoring Eye Routine is a two-step kit containing all the active ingredients necessary to fight dark circles, crow's feet, and puffy bags.

MSM (Methylsulfonylmethane):

MSM is a natural compound found in all living things, and it’s essentially the “glue” that holds our tissues together and strengthens them. It inhibits the breakdown of collagen, reduces inflammation, and makes cell walls more permeable -- which, in turn, helps nutrients flow through more easily.

Our Resurfacing Anti-Aging Cream for Men is designed to replace old, dull cells with a layer of fresh ones. The new skin layer will be tighter, smoother, and more luminous. If you feel your eyes are always tired, try this cream.

Hyaluronic Acid:

This gel-like water-holding molecule retains over 1,000 times its weight in water, making it the ultimate moisturizer for tired eyes.

Got sleepy eyes? Try our Revitalizing Anti-Aging Cream for Men, a night-time treatment that slows the aging process with powerful, natural ingredients. Your skin will feel refreshed in the morning and look just as good as it feels.

Caffeine:

Caffeine works as a natural stimulant, reducing eye puffiness by increasing blood circulation around the eyes. So, if your eyes feel heavy and tired, caffeine is a great option to brighten your day.

Our Men’s Daily Elite Face Care Routine I provides all the tools needed for a successful skincare regimen. If you're looking for a one-stop shop with science-backed products that work together, this is your kit. The eye cream included contains caffeine to wake up your eyes just like it does for you in your morning coffee.

Vitamin C:

This powerful vitamin restores delicate eye skin by fighting free radicals and environmental aggressors (it can even reverse their effects). This strengthens, tightens, and firms skin over time - oh, and it adds moisture too!

Our Restoring Eye Serum Treatment addresses more than one cause of sleepy eyes. Whether you're trying to eliminate fine lines, dark circles, puffiness, or all of the above, this serum has what it takes to achieve energized eyes.

Try Our Restoring Eye Cream for Best Results

You’ll find all of these active ingredients to wake up tired eyes (and more) in our Restoring Eye Cream. Use it every morning and evening for the best results. Most guys notice a significant improvement - in skin texture, appearance, and smoothness - after a few weeks of regular use.

Pro tip: For a cooling sensation that soothes your skin even more, try putting your eye cream in the fridge.

2. Try The Spoon in the Freezer Trick

This trick on how to treat tired eyes is an oldie but a goodie -- and it really works. Put a metal spoon in your freezer. On days when your eyes look especially puffy, gently massage the back of the spoon over the area of concern. You’ll notice an instant decrease in puffiness. Why?

The cold of the spoon will cause the blood vessels around your eye to constrict, which will combat the expansion caused by allergies or lack of sleep. Additionally, it will reduce blood flow, which can quell additional swelling and fluid retention.

3. Throw on Some Cucumber Slices

This may seem like some kind of 90’s movie spa trope, but it actually works! For one, cucumber is naturally rich in vitamin C. What’s more, research has proven that cucumber can help:

Cool the skin
Hydrate eye tissue
Reduce dark circles (thanks to high concentrations of vitamin K)
Reduce inflammation (thanks to compounds called lignans)
Brighten skin by inhibiting tyrosinase, an enzyme that’s involved in melanin production

Cucumbers can also help extract toxins and remove waste materials from the eye area. If you've been wondering how to get rid of tired-looking eyes naturally, there's your solution!

Tips on How to Get Rid of Tired Looking Eyes Successfully

Aside from these, we have a few at-home remedies and lifestyle changes to promote more youthful skin. These tips for how to brighten tired eyes are from the professionals here at Brickell.

Choose the Right Eye Cream: Older men should use eye creams with the anti-aging properties that we've listed above. Younger guys can focus on moisturizing products over ones that speed up cell turnover.
Eye Exercises: Avoid eye strain and sleepy eyes with the 20-20 rule. While reading, working, or playing video games, look up at least every 20 minutes and stare at something 20 feet away for at least 20 seconds.
Sun Protection: Apply sunscreen 30 minutes before sun exposure and reapply every 2 hours that you're in the sun.
Healthy Diet: Nourishing your body with vitamins, minerals, and a balance of the recommended food groups not only makes you feel better but makes you look better, too.
Proper Application: Apply skin care products in the recommended order and avoid rinsing for a few hours to allow them to soak in.

Get Rid of Tired Eyes and Skin for Good

We can't change our genetics, but we can use science to find out how to get rid of tired eyes and give our skin a helping hand.

Dark circles can be fought off with caffeine-infused products and avoiding eye strain using the 20-20 rule. Fine lines, though inevitable, can be diminished using sunscreen and products that facilitate cell turnover. Puffiness is usually best combated with a healthy lifestyle and cooling tricks.

The best thing for tired eyes is a combination of healthy choices and killer skincare. Our complete collection of men's grooming kits has everything a man needs to look his best.

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