A Way of Preserving Youth. How to Perform a Facial Massage?

A Way of Preserving Youth. How to Perform a Facial Massage?

If done regularly, facial massage offers an alternative to botox - it firms sagging skin, rejuvenates and eases absorption of nourishing substances delivered with a face serum, for example. What are the benefits of a facial massage, how to perform it correctly and how often should you do these 'micro-workouts'?

Although it's impossible to stay young forever, people have been following various beauty treatments in the hope of delaying skin ageing processes - one of which is giving your face skin massage regularly.

This type of alternative therapy is beloved especially by Asian women who perceive jade rollers as an indispensable part of their daily rejuvenating ritual. It doesn't mean though that using this tool is the only effective way of performing a facial massage. Pinching particular face parts and making use of either a derma roller or suction cups are equally popular and reliable methods that allow you to get desired results.

It's time to learn the secrets of effective facial massage!

Facial massage, which is 'micro-workouts'

Without a doubt, the natural beauty treatments are gaining in popularity. Invasive in-salon treatments are being gradually replaced with those that can be performed at home. Therefore, a facial massage makes a highly effective alternative to botox. Not only does it help you relax but also it leaves the skin visibly rejuvenated. How is it possible?

A well-performed facial massage is nothing but working on the muscles responsible for your skin suppleness. It produces the desired results only when performed regularly - if you forget to workout (massage your face), then your skin will lose its firmness. These are the muscles that create a kind of scaffolding for the skin, and the scaffolding itself is made up of 43 - 57 individual face muscles. Quite a lot, isn't it? Not only are they responsible for creating facial expressions but also for modeling the face oval; also the muscles help skin remain taut. If face muscles are strong, there are no wrinkles on the face.

It's worth realizing that at the age of 25 collagen and elastin production slows down - these two types of proteins are responsible for maintaining skin suppleness. Facial massage also appears to be a good workout for skin cells (that produce the two proteins) since it improves microcirculation in skin, facilitates absorption of nourishing substances and stimulates skin self-renewal processes.

What is a facial massage beneficial for?

What can you win with facial massage? Mostly, this treatment helps you relax and calm down after, for example, a tough day. Undoubtedly, the relaxing effect of a facial massage is its biggest asset. However, there is more to this treatment than that - it increases the absorption rate of skin, which means that dermis receives more nutrients from skincare cosmetics (cream or a serum with vitamin C and retinol). These are the main reasons why a facial massage is worth performing.

The indications for facial massages are simple - this workout should be performed by everyone who has time for it and willingness to do it. And it's a good thing to find time for facial massage because when done regularly (no matter the method), it:

  • helps supply skin with oxygen and nourish it.
  • encourages lymph fluid drainage and increases circulation to the skin.
  • makes skin more firm and supple, softens wrinkles.
  • prevents flabby skin and delays aging processes.
  • takes part in removing toxins.
  • accelerates dead skin cells exfoliation and smooths skin out.
  • energizes, highlights and brightens skin up.

The correct way to give yourself a facial massage step by step

There are various ways of doing a facial massage, each of them has its advantages and disadvantages. Therefore, it's a good idea to match a massaging technique to the amount of free time we have at our disposal and, obviously, the needs we want to satisfy. If you are a beginner who wonders how to give a massage to face, neck and cleavage in the right way, get acquainted with a few simple rules.

How often should you give a massage to the face?

The most essential issue to remember is to massage the face every day. Best if done twice a day: morning and evening. Time devoted to this beautifying procedure equals 5 minutes for each session separately. If you don't want to bore yourself to death during these 5 minutes, you can ‘mix the business with pleasure’: pick up a face serum, play your favorite TV show and keep massaging your face while watching.

What skincare products to choose?

It's suggested combining a facial massage with application of skincare products. It's highly beneficial because massage boosts the effects created by skincare products - it facilitates penetration of nourishing substances and transports them to the deepest skin layers. Also, when spread on face, such products facilitate massaging because not only do they help your fingers glide easily across the skin but also they prevent skin irritations.

The most suitable skincare products used in facial massage:

  • natural beauty oils - not essential oils but only cold-pressed, unrefined and 100% organic oil such as argan oil, almond oil, jojoba oil.
  • face serum - best if it contains vitamin C, retinol, the vitamin of youth (E) and moisturizing hyaluronic acid.
  • face cream - not too heavy but of lightweight consistency, based on organic oils, rich in natural substances.
  • face scrub - it can be either a store-bought product with fine abrasive particles or a homemade cosmetic (e.g. a mixture of natural oil and sugar).

How to give massage to face, neck and cleavage?

Like every good workout, also micro-workout (i.e. facial massage) has to start with the warm up. At the beginning, just a few gentle massaging motions suffice: start moving your fingers from the neck upwards, from jawline to cheeks and then from one temple through forehead to reach the other temple. This is enough to stimulate blood circulation in face skin.

Another step is the proper facial massage, which focuses on pressing the right face parts. Begin with the brow ridges and more towards temples that have to be massaged using circular motions. Then, move to the eye skin area where your motions should be gentle and resemble really delicate skin pummeling (with the fingertips). Then, move on to chin, cheek, forehead, etc.

The last stage is the relaxing phase that results in soothing, calming down and finishing the entire massaging process. This step depends on caressing and dabbing face and neck skin gently. Start with the lower part of the neck and move upwards until reaching the forehead.

What to massage face with?

Obviously, the easiest one is the massage done with your bare hands - it doesn't require using any additional accessories, thus it can be given almost any time you want. What's crucial, when using your own hands, it's easier for you to control the strength of pressure you give to the skin and the way in which you massage chosen face parts.

Nevertheless, if you feel like giving a massage to your face with the aid of special massaging accessories, here is the list of the most common ones.

  1. JADE ROLLER

Undoubtedly, a jade roller has been a real hit of the recent months. Is facial massage done with jade roller as effective as it's said to be? A lot depends on the regularity - the more often you use jade roller to massage the face, the better.

Such tool can be made of jadeite, nephrite or quartz, which are so-called jade stones that are recognized in Asia as the stones of youth. Their beneficial action depends on the cool (it's recommended to put the stones in a fridge prior to the treatment) - in this way skin pores shrink, you get the circulation going and drain away lymph fluid. Additionally, the jade stones have an anti-ageing effect, reduce dark circles and under eye sagging. On the top of that, jade roller is really convenient to use, and when gliding over the skin, it delivers a really pleasant soothing feeling.

Not only is jade roller cheap but also nobody should experience any problems with using it. Basically, this is a massaging tool that - apart from looking nice - relaxes, brightens up and rejuvenates face.

  1. SUCTION CUP

Another way to perform a rejuvenating facial massage is reaching for suction cups. This method has its alternative name - face cupping. It may sound weird but... it works! What are the benefits of face cupping and how to use suction cups correctly?

This Asian facial massage takes advantage of the positive qualities of vacuum. For the procedure you need either silicone or glass cups that resemble test-tubes of various sizes and thickness. Obviously, if you want to perform facial massage with suction cups (i.e. facial cupping), choose the smallest ones. Such an inauspicious cup promotes topical vacuum skin suction. Sliding the cup over the face stimulates blood and lymph flow, reduces inflammations, smooths skin out and reduces tension in muscles. Another benefit of face cupping is the fact that this alternative therapy unclogs skin pores.

  1. GUA SHA

Some people say that Gua Sha is another version of jade rollers. The thing that connects these two accessories is that both of them are made of jade stone (in most cases it's jadeite). Similar are also the favorable outcomes achieved with both massaging tools, however, Gua Sha is believed to have stronger effects.

What are the differences between Gua Sha and jade roller? Basically, use of jade roller depends on rolling, whereas the flat stone pad requires putting more pressure over your face; basically, it resembles gentle scratching. Even the name of the pad indicates this: 'Gua' means rubbing and 'Sha' stands for red rash (the effect of therapeutic massage with a jade pad). Despite being easy to perform, the facial massage performed with Gua Sha requires patience. What's interesting, this type of massaging was already known in antiquity and is beloved by Chinese women.

What are the benefits of exposing your face skin to Gua Sha? Mostly, this treatment relaxes muscles and reduces inflammations due to the inner warmth that is generated while rubbing. Last but not least, Gua Sha are commonly used to relieve pain.

  1. ROLLER AND DERMA ROLLER

A facial massaging can be performed at home using rollers and derma rollers too. What's the difference between both tools? Only derma rollers are covered with tiny needles that deliver comparable effects to microdermabrasion treatment - derma roller stimulates circulation of blood in skin and encourages skin self-renewal processes due to hundreds of micro-punctures it makes. Rollers, in turn, are less invasive, yet their effects are weaker unless you use the roller made of cooling jade stone (see point 1).

  1. FACIAL MASSAGE TOOLS

An entire separate category includes all the remaining facial massagers. There are plenty of them, each one creating slightly different effects. Still, all of them focus on one thing, which is stimulating blood and lymph flow. Also, they promote cell self-renewal processes and lift skin, providing that they are used systematically. You can choose among three types of facial massage tools:

  • facial rollerball massager - it's convenient and the balls arranged on its head (in most cases they are made of cool metal) ease gliding the tool over the face.
  • vibrating bar massager - its head is T-shaped (some are enriched with 24K gold) and uses vibrations to handle two tasks: improve circulation in skin and stimulate skin renewal processes.
  • ultrasound facial massager - in plain English, this is a tool that gives micro-massage to the skin due to ultrasounds (1 MHz waves). This tool combines the effects of two treatments: cavitation facial that affects superficial layers of skin and sonophoresis that affects deep skin layers.
  1. FACIAL SONIC BRUSH

Although the main principle of sonic brush is to make face clean without using any skincare products, it can be also used in the role of a facial massager. Actually, this task is also well-performed by the older version of this tool, which is an electric cleansing brush. Systematic face cleansing with such brushes is a way to obtain smooth skin, which consequently starts absorbing more nourishing substances, and stimulates cell self-renewal processes. On the flip side, such tools are fairly expensive and more difficult to use when compared to a regular facial roller.

Fun Fact

Viral clips boosted the popularity of using regular toothbrushes for facial massages. This technique depends on massaging the face using a clean and dry toothbrush - it is supposed to improve circulation in skin and help exfoliate dead skin cells. Is facial massage performed with a toothbrush effective? Perhaps it is, however, making use of a dedicated facial massager or... just your fingers seem to be a far more easier and safer solution.

Facial massage. Should you even bother?

A regularly performed facial massage is a beauty treatment that each and every women should give a try to. Instead of dreaming of having gorgeous and youthful-looking skin, it’s better take this matter into your own hands. Reach for facial massagers to get a little bit of relaxation and a massive portion of sheer pleasure; you should also consider this alternative treatment as your new anti-ageing strategy. The biggest asset of facial massage is the fact that it's completely natural and almost free.

However, before turning to either a jade roller or derma roller, get acquainted with the conditions that make using facial massage tools inadvisable. Generally speaking, giving yourself a facial massage isn't the best idea if you suffer from:

  • severe, chronic, phlegmonous acne.
  • enlarged lymph nodes or tonsils.
  • open wounds or herpes.
  • broken capillaries.
  • inflammation of oral cavity, e.g. gingivitis. 

Feel encouraged to share your opinion about the article with us.


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