Why you should massage your face
Have you ever thought about what significance the health of your facial muscles, blood and lymph flow have on your appearance? How can massage make a difference to the vitality of your facial skin and delay the ageing processes?
There are 2 main reasons why massaging your face is a great idea:
RELAXATION and CIRCULATION
Why is that important?
In a nutshell: Tension creates restrictions, and restrictions cause impeded blood and lymph flow meaning; the skin will lack in the essential supply of oxygen and nutrients and in the important flow of lymph that carry away waste products and toxins accumulated in the tissues.
One thing that more often than not become our main focus when we look at our own face is our skin. It says so much about us and in particular our health and our age. But what gives us that healthy glow, smooth skin and elasticity, is what lies beneath. The state of our facial muscles and the transportation of blood and lymph has a direct impact on the health of our skin. And if left uncared for, it will show.
We have 56 muscles in our face that give us the ability to frown, smile, chew, squint, kiss, pull funny faces etc. Can you imagine how overworked they can become? Especially after a stressful day or indeed while going through a difficult time. If you have not had a face massage before or had a go at massaging it yourself, you may be surprised at how tense some of these muscles can get!
Release and move
When you massage your face, as with the rest of the body, you help to release tension within the muscles and encourage the flow of blood and lymph. For the face this means you can help to soften the skin by loosening up restrictions within the tissues, relax tense muscles and reduce swelling and puffiness, particularly under the eyes, by moving the lymph. One of the functions of lymph is to carry toxins and waste products away to places in the body where they can be eliminated or excreted. But the lymphatic system does not have a pump like the blood has the heart to transport it around the body. Lymph travel around by the movements of our muscles, like when we move about, exercise and even by breathing. So as you can imagine, lymph can quite easily become stagnant in some areas. This can in example cause puffiness in the face and bags under the eyes.
Blood carries oxygen and nutrients to the tissues and when flowing freely, can give us a healthy glow (rosy cheeks). By massaging the face we encourage these fluids to do their job properly. And it will show!
Skin that has optimal blood flow and lymph movement often regenerates quicker, meaning new skin cells are produced more effectively and any damage can be repaired more swiftly. This helps the skin becoming more plump and therefore reduce lines and wrinkles, gaining a more even colour and reduce puffiness.
Stimulating the tissues also helps to promote the production of collagen and elastin which are so important to keep the skin subtle and delay signs of ageing.
I can't recommend massaging your face at home enough and I encourage you to do it every morning when you apply your moisturiser or face oil. But remember, the facial muscles are not as thick as other muscles in your body. Be gentle! Let it be a soothing and relaxing experience. You will still see and feel the effects.
Best wishes and best of luck!
Ibbi Lidstone
