— HeyMonicaB

Hooray!! I have more goodies from my favorite book, Absolute Beauty, by Dr. Pratima Raichur. This little ritual is super fun and I think all the ladies will especially enjoy it. The book discusses some simple techniques for a natural face-lift to raise droops and erase any lines. “Sign me UP,” you say? Right on, keep reading!

Let me fill you in about why it works first. We have marma points (mini energy centers) throughout our bodies. These marma points are found along srotas, or channels, that run from head to toe. Really similar to acupuncture! Stimulating these points release stored energy and stimulate flow. One reason why we get wrinkles is because we are making the same expression over and over – and our faces “get stuck that way” (your mom ever tell you that when you made a goofy face?). Ok not really stuck, but you know what I mean.

Dr. Raichur writes, “Massage not only helps skin to look younger, smoother, clearer more radiant, but also helps the body to overcome tension and fatigue, and the mind to feel peaceful and refreshed.” We hold a lot of tension in our face that we probably don’t even realize. Try pinching your eyebrows or pressing your temples – maybe a little tender? Yep, we hold a lot of stress in our face, so let’s remove some! Yeehaw!

Ok. Let’s get to the good stuff.

The Natural Face-Lift Massage by Pratima Raichur (all the words are hers, the drawing is mine)
Using your middle finger, massage each point below in clockwise direction for twenty to thirty seconds.

1. center of chin (relief for head colds)
2. both corners of the mouth
3. center bone between the nose and upper lip
4. outside corners of nose where nostrils flare (corresponds to small intestines and relieves sinuses)
5. center of cheek bones. Push up on underside of bone and massage
6. lower lids just above cheekbone. *Press gently with ring finger, do not massage
7. brows. Use bottom of thumbs to press upward on the inside corner of eyebrows at bridge of nose. Then with thumb and forefinger, pinch each brow across the whole arch from inside to outside corner. Repeat (When done correctly, this may cause mild soreness due to stored tension. Good for headaches and bladder problems)
8. temples. Use flat fingers to massage gently
9. third eye (between eye brows)
10. crown. Place both hands on top of the head and move them rapidly back and forth to vibrate the scalp.

TADAAAA! Do you love it?! You can do this whenever you think of it. Daily is great, but we don’t always have that time. Great to do before bed as it always zonks me out. Happy Lifting!!