How to Correct Your "Facial Posture" For Younger Looking Skin

All skincare enthusiasts know great products can make a world of difference. Case in point: Vitamin C serums can enhance radiance, collagen moisturizers can boost firmness, and retinol creams can smooth fine lines and wrinkles. However, it's not just topical products that can affect our skin's texture and appearance. Our facial posture also has an impact—from how we hold our mouths to how we furrow our brows. Ahead, Sculpted by Joseph facial masseur, Joseph Carrillo, breaks down exactly how facial posture can affect how your skin looks and feels. 

What Is Facial Posture?

Like body posture, facial posture refers to how you hold and position your face. "It's important first to note there is no 'perfect' face posture, just as there is no perfect body posture," Carrillo notes. "Good posture, in general, refers to having a neutral spine, plus having the muscle groups, joints, and ligaments aligned in a way that reduces stress on them. This helps you maintain your balance and keep your body flexible."

Carrillo says the same idea of alignment should apply to our faces. "We tend to chew more on one side, sleep on one side, and favor one side," he says. "All that attention on one side can leave us looking a bit lop-sided. Good facial posture will get you to [care for] both sides."

How Does Facial Posture Impact Our Skin? 

Our facial posture is often affected by stress. When we're feeling tense, it typically shows up in mannerisms like repeatedly furrowing our brows, clenching our jaw, and tightening our chin. "Tension or stress causes changes to the proteins in your skin, which reduces its elasticity," Carrillo explains. "The loss of elasticity can contribute to wrinkle formation."

Mouth breathing is another surprising facial behavior that impacts our skin. "When you breathe through your mouth, usually your lips are apart, and your chin muscles stay smooth and relaxed at rest," Carrillo says. "But when you close your mouth, the chin muscles become strained trying to keep it in that position as it's trained to stay open at rest. By straining your chin for hours, the mentalis (chin muscles) is then getting stronger. This muscle has tentacles that hold the chin skin, so it can lead to dimpling as it gets stronger." 

How to Correct Your Facial Posture

Carrillo's specialty is non-invasive face sculpting. In his New York studio, he adheres to the S.E.L.F. (Sculptural Energetic Lifting Facial) Method to address the effects of poor facial posture. This technique involves deeply massaging the face and mouth with his hands. "I use this technique to stretch, tone, and release the underlying facial muscles to put them back where they want to go," he says. 

Beyond his in-depth massage methods, Carillo also likes utilizing a metal spoon to massage the chin and cheekbones. "Using facial tools, like spoons or a gua sha, can really help with releasing tension in the face, neck, head, ears, and chin," he adds. 

The Final Takeaway  

In our day-to-day lives, we often don't think about how our various facial expressions can affect our skin. However, keeping your face tense (i.e., furrowing your brows) can greatly influence the state of your skin. Becoming more aware of your facial posture and implementing facial massage into your skincare routine can help address wrinkles or dimpling. With regular massaging, you'll notice a difference in how sculpted and contoured your face looks.