In the midst of scrunching your face up, crossing your eyes and sticking out your tongue, you hear your mother drill into your head, “Keep doing those faces and you’ll get stuck like that!” Which, of course, only led to us doing these expressions more to try and prove a point, “Relax Mom, see? I’m fine”.
Maybe that warning didn’t ring true to its words in the fact that no, my face is not going to permanently get stuck like that. However, there is truth lying beneath that phrase somewhere and we’re about to shed some light on that.
Throughout our lives, we take on certain habitual actions- whether it be squinting when we’re confused or pursing our lips when we’re mad. We adopt these expressions as significant identifiers of our current state of emotion. It becomes routine and, above all, unnoticed, that we are letting our facial muscles react cohesivley to what we are currently thinking or feeling at that moment.
Over time, these expressions become more and more impressioned, deeper into our skin. Picture the skin as a piece of paper: when you fold it over, a light crease begins to form. However, if we were to continusouly fold this paper along that same line, time and time again, the more permanant and prominant the fold becomes.
Dermatologist Eric Schweigher, M.D. told the Huffington Post, “Constantly making an expression causes collagen to break down in that specifc area…”, while other specialty experts and board certified plastic surgeon, Dr. Monica Tadros, would agree with his assessment. That’s how expressions effect the skin of the face, ultimately resulting in wrinkles, creases and fine lines such as crows feet at the corner of the eyes or frown lines between the eyebrows and around the mouth.
For centuries, aging has always been considered the uninvited guest accompanied with wrinkles and creases. Many individuals spend hundreds, even thousands, on creams, gels, masks, treatments and procedures.
Before emptying the bank account, however, people have been using age-old secrets to try and hinder the visual effects of aging skin. By limiting the amount of sun exposure they receive, mixed with the proper use of sun screen, your chances of showing signs of aging do decrease, but you are not completely free from the inevitable aging process.
Another trick people try to implement into their skin routine is to drink plenty of water to keep the skin hydrated and plump. Also, wearing sunglasses to prevent the eyes from squinting in the sun along with corrective lenses to avoid squinting for clear focus.
Believe it or not, some women are even going as far as keeping a permanant poker face to avoid showing expression. Tess Christian, 50, who has been dubbed “The Mona Lisa” amongst her friends, has made a concious effort to avoid laughing, frowning, smiling, etc. for the past 40 years. Since she was 10 years old, she has trained herself to become the ultimate slayer of ‘Resting B*tch Face‘. No wrinkles, no problem. And evidently, it has worked! Tess is among a handful of celebrities that practice the Resting B*tch Face such as Kim Kardashian, Rhianna, Demi Moore and Victoria Beckham.
For years, aging has been in inevitable part of life and the aging process has been one of the more dreaded changes that directly affect our outward appearance. Although it is just a natural part of life, now more than ever, men and women alike are constantly seeking out new ways to reverse the aging process and maintain their youthful appearance.