Facial Massage by Sandii May

General Instructions:

v  Do all massage steps three times in a slow manner, pressing lightly with the third and ring fingers (massage fingers), except as noted. 

v  When making circles on the face, rotate up and away from the face so as not to break down muscles and cause sagging.   

v  When making circles on the neck, reverse the direction to in and down –  chin to shoulders.

v   When massaging, do not remove both hands at the same time, unless necessary. 

v  You should wash your hands before giving a massage.  If the person’s skin is dry and rough, you may want to apply a light coating of massage oil or lotion to aid in moving your hands without pulling their skin.

v  The person receiving the massage can be in a recliner, with you sitting on a chair at their head ~ or on a bed or the floor with their head in your lap on a pillow, whichever works best for the both of you. The important thing is that you both are comfortable and you can reach their face, neck (front and back) and behind their shoulders during the massage.

v  The massage is done from the forehead down to and around the shoulders, then feathered off at the upper arms.

v  The person receiving the massage should have eyes closed and be relaxing.  Do not talk unless you have to.  Play soft music for a really relaxing atmosphere.

v  Each massage step can be done individually.  A full facial massage includes all of the following steps and should take some time.  I usually allow 45 minutes to an hour.

v  Do not rush….. when done properly this actually can put the person to sleep.  It is so relaxing. 

 

1.   Forehead/Temple Massage ~ Placing the massage fingers of both hands on your right side of their forehead close to the temple hairline, slowly slide them up and down diagonally across the forehead (hairline to brow and back) to the area where the nose joins the eyebrows.  When at the brow/nose junction, hook the pointer finger of your right hand into the hollow of the left junction and with a gentle-firm motion, pull the brow up.  Move to the other side of the nose and repeat on the right junction with the left pointer finger.  Then continue the diagonal sliding across the forehead with both hands to the left side of the forehead by the temple. Place your right hand lightly on the right temple (or lay it gently across the forehead) and with your left hand massage the left temple in a circular motion clockwise (up to the hairline, down towards the cheek, forward to the front of the face and back to the hairline).  When you have massaged the temple three times, place the right hand with the left again and diagonally slide to the right, stopping at the brow/nose junction and then moving on to the right temple.  Massage in a circular motion on the right temple.  

2.   Eyebrow Pinch ~ Slide both hands to the nose/forehead junction, make a soft fist and using your thumb against the pointer finger gently pinch the eyebrows moving outward from the nose to the end of the brow.  Go back to the nose junction and repeat 2 more times.    

3.   Hairline Massage ~ After completing the eyebrow pinch, slide your hands apart and place your massage fingers on each temple. In circular motions using the massage fingers, move down the hairline to the back of the neck.  When at the nape of the neck, cradle the head in both hands and gently stretch the neck, pulling the head up away from the shoulders.  Hold for a second and release.  Slide the fingers along the hairline to the temples and repeat.

4.    Cheek Massage ~ Slide the fingers to the cheek area with a hand on each side.  Here you will be changing your hand position and will be lifting your hands off the face.  Move your hands to the center of the face by the nose and with a gentle pinching motion, pinch the cheek bone to from the nose to the hairline.  This is done with the thumbs up and “pinching” against the 2^nd joint of the pointer finger with the fists closed. You can also do this step with the thumbs touching the face at all times – just slide it gently towards the hairline as you pinch.  (This step is also called “Rosing the cheeks” as it adds color when completed).

5.   Cupid’s Bow Massage ~ Slide the left hand to the chin and gently cradle it as if holding it up from the chest. Slide the right hand to the area just under the nose and above the mouth.  This is the Cupid’s Bow area. Place your right pointer finger inside the indentation, and with the thumb and middle finger, gently pinch the bow area together, slightly pulling out as you pinch.  You may lift your right hand off the face as your complete each pinch.

6.   Chin Massage ~ Move your right hand to the chin to cradle it as you gently pull your left hand along the jawline to the hairline.  Your right hand should be cradling the chin by the time your left hand reaches the hairline.  Then move your left hand to the chin again, as you gently pull the right hand along the jawline to the hairline.  This massages the jaw area.   

7.   Front Neck Massage ~ Slide both hands to the sides of the neck just under the jaw line.  With the massage fingers, massage in small circles down to the shoulders then slide hands up to the starting point and repeat.  Do this very gently as the neck sags easily and you do not want to stretch the muscles causing them to break down and prematurely sag. 

8.   Back Neck & Shoulders Massage and finish ~ As you complete the third front neck massage set, move your hands to the back of the neck at the base of the skull.  With your massage fingers, rotate down the neck in small circular motions.  The circles should move towards the vertebrae, down towards the shoulder blades, out to the side of the neck and up towards the head.  When you get to the shoulders, change the position of your hands, one at a time so you don’t lose contact, and place them on the back of the shoulders with the fingers pointing down towards the back.  Cup the shoulders and pull them forward to the breastbone in a scrolling motion as you slide your hands forward to the front of the shoulder area.  Hold the shoulders in the curled forward position for a second, release and slide your hands back to the starting position.  Repeat this three times.  After releasing the third time, slowly and gently ~ like a feather ~ slide your hands down the upper arm towards the elbow and off into the air.  This is called feathering and it completes the massage.