We’re all familiar with the benefits of body massages. They relax the muscles, improve circulation, and lift the spirits. But how many of us realize that facial massages can do all that and possibly more?
This age-old, science-backed practice isn’t just about relaxation; facials are also extremely beneficial for the health of our skin, no matter our age group. From teenagers to older people, everyone can benefit from the healing and soothing properties of facial massages.
And the best news? Facials don’t have to be part of some expensive spa treatment. At-home facial massages are equally effective and much more affordable. What’s not to like about them?
The many benefits of facial massages
1. Improves blood circulation
A facial massage stimulates blood flow to the skin's surface. The improved blood circulation increases oxygen levels, delivers essential nutrients to skin cells, and promotes skin cell regeneration. This leaves the face feeling healthier and more energized.
2. Increases collagen production
Massaging one’s face boosts the production of collagen, which is the protein responsible for maintaining the skin’s elasticity. As we age, our body naturally makes less collagen. The slow-down can start as early as in our mid-to-late 20s. A regular facial massage helps ensure its continuous production, keeping our facial skin plump and wrinkle-free longer.
3. Promotes lymphatic drainage
The lymphatic system is an essential part of our immune system and plays a crucial role in removing toxins and other wasteful products from our body. A good facial massage stimulates lymphatic drainage, which in turn reduces face puffiness, minimizes the bags under our eyes, and improves the overall tone and texture of our facial skin.
4. Tones the muscles
Regular facial massages can tone and lift our facial muscles. Strengthening the muscles of our face can potentially help keep fat - which might otherwise slide down with aging and the pull of gravity - where it belongs.
5. Enhances nerve functioning
Massaging our face is proven to stimulate the nerves, and have a calming and soothing effect. This can alleviate headaches and relax the face.
6. Reduces stress
Science has shown that stress releases cortisol, a hormone that increases our heart rate and blood pressure and can lead to facial skin breakouts, acne, redness, and irritation. Frequent facial massaging lowers our cortisol levels and improves our overall skin health.
7. Enhances product absorption
Facial massage also facilitates the better absorption of skincare products. A thorough facial massage helps our favorite serums and creams penetrate deeper into our skin and work more effectively.
Types Of Facial Massages
Like with body massages, there are all sorts of different types of facials used around the world, from lymphatic drainage to shiatsu, kobido, remedial facial massage, and gua sha. Obviously, these are best left in the hands of trained professionals. As for those of us who prefer a DIY at-home facial, there’s the widely used classical facial massage.
Here’s an overview of some of the most popular types:
1. Lymphatic drainage
Lymphatic facial massage is a specialized massage designed to aid the drainage of waste and impurities carried by our lymph system. It is particularly effective against specific skin conditions such as acne and eczema (dry and itchy skin).
2. Shiatsu
Influenced by traditional Chinese acupressure, shiatsu uses finger or palm pressure on certain points on the face to tone muscles and reduce wrinkles.
3. Kobido
Meaning ‘ancient path of beauty,’ Kobido is an ancient Japanese facial lifting technique that involves 47 different ways to target 16 facial muscles. It promotes relaxation, relieves discomfort, and improves the skin tone.
4. Remedial facial massage
Although focused on the face, remedial facial massage concentrates on all those areas and muscles surrounding and affecting the face, such as the jaw, the neck, and the shoulders. Only then does the practitioner move to massage the cheekbones, sinus region, eye orbital area, forehead, and scalp.
5. Gua Sha
Another ancient healing technique derived from classical Chinese medicine. Originally a scraping method to turn the face red and encourage it to heal itself, it has evolved into a more gentle facial massage, whose benefits are often apparent even after the very first gua sha treatment.
6. Classic Facial Massage
Also referred to as standard or basic facial massage, it includes 5 basic steps: cleansing, exfoliating, massage, mask, and moisturizing. Classic facial massage involves gentle caressing, tapping, kneading, and pinching of the skin. It stimulates collagen production and relaxes your skin, and is the easiest to do at home.
The basics of a facial massage at home
Preparation
● Wash hands properly.
● Before we start we should clean well our face with a mild cleanser, such as our ATHONITES CLEANSE AND COMFORT FACE OIL. Upon contact with water, it transforms into a light milky substance for easy rinsing, leaving the skin clean, soft, and properly hydrated. Additionally, we can apply our ATHONITES PROTECT AND RESCUE PRECIOUS OIL FACE & NECK to improve our skin elasticity before our massage. Among its many other benefits, this powerful blend of 9 supercharged oils activates our blood’s microcirculation and boosts our skin’s recovery.
● If we don’t want to use our fingers, we can also use a face roller or a gua sha tool for massaging our face.
● Finally, we should avoid squeezing acne and breakouts before a facial massage. This will only irritate the skin and make the massage experience unpleasant.
Facial massage
● Forehead: Using our knuckles, we can gently move them up towards the hairline, and then sideways towards our temples, repeating our movements five times.
● Eye area: Using the tips of our middle and index fingers, we can glide them from the temples to the area under the eyes and then towards the nose bridge. Following a circular motion, we should repeat five times.
● Cheeks: Using our knuckles, we can swipe gently across the cheeks and towards the ears, repeating five times.
● Mouth area: Making a “V” shape with our index and middle fingers with both hands, we can place the fingers so that the index finger is above the upper lip and the middle finger is below the lower lip. We can then gently press and pull towards our ears, repeating the movements another five times.
● Neck: Placing the knuckles under our chin, we can pull them gently downwards towards our collarbone. We should repeat five times.
Conclusion
Once done, we can apply our ATHONITES RESTORE AND REVITALIZE 24H MOISTURIZING FACE CREAM, with peptides, vitamin E, and sodium hyaluronate for optimum moisturization.
Bonus tip: Enjoying a facial massage before going to bed with a scented candle burning nearby and a cup of our ATHONITES SWEET DREAMS organic herbal blend, is the perfect way to ease out of a long day and wake up the morning day fully recharged and brimming with energy.
