This article was written by Bokhara and originally featured and posted at https://www.annmariegianni.com/5-minute-facial-massage/

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"Make time for yourself." - Anonymous

As you read this you are most likely activating one of your 43 facial muscles without consciously meaning to. Each of these unconscious, as well as all the conscious expressions we make, form temporary lines or markings in the skin that show our feelings.

Over time, our facial muscle memory begins to hold onto our expressions and these lines remain visible even when not consciously activated. These lines, also known as wrinkles, are a universal sign of getting older.

Some cultures revere their elder population as wise teachers that are to be respected and never seek to hide or prevent these markings of experience. This approach toward aging is, unfortunately, a less common reaction to facial wrinkles and getting older.

SMOOTHING SKIN FROM THE INSIDE, OUT

Majority of populations revere youthful skin and as a result, we tend to want to feel as well as look younger than we are as we age. So what can we do about these wrinkles from a muscle perspective?

Logically, if activating our facial muscles repetitively creates these lines, it stands to reason that calming the facial muscle contractions regularly can smooth out the lines and prevent them from embedding into the skin as deeply over time.

THE MANY BENEFITS OF FACIAL MASSAGE

One of the best ways to calm our muscles is with massage. Sometimes, we don’t even realize how tense we are until we get a massage and feel how firmly we are holding our muscles. Before going to Esthetic school I never realized how many muscles the face had, how often we activate these muscles (constantly and oftentimes even in our sleep) nor was I aware my face was in a constant state of tension.

After the first facial massage I received, I remember feeling euphoric. All the tension I didn’t know I had around my eyes, temples, forehead, jaw and even my ears had melted. I was shocked by how different I felt.

I was calmer, found myself breathing deeper and when I looked in the mirror my face was refreshed like I had just woke up from taking a nap!

DIY FACIAL MASSAGE

You can perform facial massage at home for similar results. Daily facial massage could be your key to preventative wrinkle care and the natural answer to achieving more youthful skin as we age.

Below is a special facial massage sequence I created just for you. With this, you can get the benefits of facial massage daily at home and achieve a smoother, calmer and clearer complexion for overall rejuvenated youthful skin.

prepare

• Skin should be free of makeup and clean.
• Hands freshly washed.
• Hair tied back or held away from the face.
• Skin should have a fresh and generously applied oil serum or balm of your preference.
• Choose: Perform the sequence seated, spine tall and aligned with the feet firmly on the floor -or- Standing with your spine lengthened and tall, shoulders down, in front of a mirror.

5 minute facial massage for skin rejuvenation

1. RELAXING BREATH

• Close your eyes and take 3 deep breaths.
• Breathe deeply through the nose and exhale completely through the mouth.
• You can incorporate an essential oil of your choice during this step if you’d like.
• A botanical facial serum can also be used for aromatic breaths.

2. CALMING WARMTH

• Briskly rub your hands together to create heat.
• Place palms gently over face, covering your eyes and take a deep breath.

3. NECKLINE LIFT

Right side:

• Place your left hand on your right collarbone aligned under your ear.
• Turn your head slightly to the left and tilt your chin up slightly.
• Hold your fingers together, straight and flat.
• Smooth (softly glide) up the neck from the collarbone to the jawbone.
• Move your hand back down to your collarbone aligned under your eye.
• Smooth (softly glide) up the neck from the collarbone to the jawbone.
• Turn your head back to center, keeping your chin tilted up slightly.
• Move your hand back down to your collarbone aligned under your nose.
• Smooth (softly glide) up the neck from the collarbone to the jawbone.

Left side:

• Place your right hand on your left collarbone aligned under your ear.
• Turn your head slightly to the right and tilt your chin up slightly.
• Hold your fingers together, straight and flat.
• Smooth (softly glide) up the neck from the collarbone to the jawbone.
• Move your hand back down to your collarbone aligned under your eye.
• Smooth (softly glide) up the neck from the collarbone to the jawbone.
• Turn your head back to center, keeping your chin tilted up slightly.
• Move your hand back down to your collarbone aligned under your nose.
• Smooth (softly glide) up the neck from the collarbone to the jawbone.

Note: When you are comfortable with this move, you can alternate left and right hand with rhythm using the same locations and motions.

4. FIRM JAWLINE

• Look straight forward and tilt your chin slightly back.
• Place both thumbs under the chin side by side.
• Place both pointer and middle fingers on top of chin aligned above thumbs.
• Compress chin gently between middle and pointer fingers and thumbs.
• Gently smooth from the center of the face outward to ears maintaining a gentle compression.
• Reposition fingers at the center chin and Repeat 3 times.
• On the 3rd time, pause by the ears, lift the thumbs off the skin and smooth down the side of the neck with pointer and middle fingers.
• Roll your shoulders back and take a deep breath.

5. CHEEK TONE AND OPEN SINUSES

• Place hands flat together in prayer below the chin.
• Keep the heel of your hands together, open the fingers outward away from each other.
• Rest your chin in-between your hands.
• Holding your head and neck firmly press the heels of your hands into your chin and smooth outward along the jawbone, chin to ears.
• Reposition the heels of your hands at the corners of your mouth.
• Holding your head and neck firmly press the heels of your hands into your cheeks and smooth outward from the corner of your lips to ears.
• Reposition the heels of your hands at the corners of your nose.
• Holding your head and neck firmly press the heels of your hands into your cheekbone and smooth along cheekbone outward to your scalp.

6. BRIGHT EYES AND SMOOTH LAUGH LINES

• Place pointer and middle fingers aligned between your eyebrows.
• Apply pressure, hold for a count of 3 and release.
• Pause for a deep breath.
• Smooth fingers outward along eyebrow bones toward temples.
• Circle around the eye, following on top of the bone, up the ridge of the nose and back the between the brows.
• Complete 3 eye circles with steady gentle pressure all the way around.
• Smooth across the brows again, this time pause at the temples (between the corner of the eye and your hairline).
• With gentle pressure make 6 small, steady, circles on the temples.
• Pause for a deep breath.

7. FOREHEAD TENSION AND LINE RELIEF

• Place the heel of your palm at the top ridge of your nose just below your eyebrows. It should sit comfortably in the curve with your palm and fingers pointing upward flat over your forehead.
• Press the heel gently into the forehead and slide from between the brows straight up into your hairline.
• Reposition the heel of your hand.
• Repeat this calming glide 3 times over the center of your forehead.

Once the first move is complete, align your fingers down the center of your forehead. Place both hands with fingertips touching, so that you have 8 fingers in the center of your forehead. (pinky, ring, middle and pointer fingers)

• Apply gentle pressure onto the skull and slide outward and down to temples.
• Reposition fingers in the center of the forehead and repeat 3 times.
• Pause at the temple, smooth down the side of the face and down the side of the neck.
• Roll your shoulders back and take a deep breath.

8. OPEN EARS

• Hold your earlobe between your thumb and pointer finger with your thumbs behind your earlobe and your pointer in front.
• Gently compress ear between fingers.
• Reposition fingers by moving a finger width up the outer ridge of the ear.
• Gently compress ear between fingers.
• Reposition fingers again by moving a finger width up the side of the ear again.
• Gently compress ear between fingers.
• When you get to the center of the outer ear ridge switch your thumbs to the front of your ear and your pointer behind your ear and continue compressions up the ear.
• Pause after you complete the top of the ear compression.
• Release your thumb, reposition your pointer and middle finger together where the top curve of the ear connects to the side of the face.
• Press firmly and hold for a count of 3 then release.

9. CALMING WARMTH

• Briskly rub your hands together to create heat.
• Place palms gently over face, covering your eyes and take a deep breath.

10. RELAXING BREATH

• Close your eyes and take 3 deep breaths.
• Breathe deeply through the nose and exhale completely through the mouth.
• Roll your shoulders back.
• Lift the outer corners of your lips into a smile.

daily ritual life hack:

A few years ago I committed to daily facial massage. How do I do it? To keep it in my daily routine without adding much to my getting ready time I began doing a modified version of facial massage each time I cleanse my skin and apply my facial oil.

You are already creating circulation with those two rituals and you can boost the benefits of cleansing and applying oil by incorporating movements from the above facial massage and being more intentional during these two skin care steps. It sounds too easy and that’s the point. If it’s easy, it is easier to stick to the daily commitment.

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Thank you for reading,

Bokhara Lashi

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