Why humans need facial expressions

There is a very precise way to express feelings and emotions – facial expressions. Mimicry is much more eloquent than words and difficult to fake. Not in vain in theatrical art, there is a genre entirely devoted to the language of the face and gestures – mime. A mime can evoke any emotion in the spectator: sympathy, delight, fear, playing miniatures with his face and body. If a person loses the ability to convey signals to the interlocutor through additional means (gestures, intonation, facial expressions), communication becomes impoverished, colorless and emotionless, gray and boring. In many professions facial expression control is an essential skill. It is the ability to express one’s inner state or, conversely, to hide one’s emotions. Examples of such professions are teachers, TV presenters, diplomats, actors, businessmen and executives. It is important to train mimicry, not only for work, but in order to be able to clearly and accurately express feelings.

Along with the development of facial expressions to take care of the articulation and speech, it depends on the use of mimicry. There is a whole system of mimicry classes for those who have problems with pronunciation. Mimicry and speech are very dependent on each other; if one is developed, the other is perfected in parallel.

Facial expressions and wrinkles

Many women try to use their facial muscles as little as possible because most believe that active facial expressions can lead to premature ageing. Can vibrant emotion lead to fine lines and wrinkles?

To give you an example, consider celebrities who are notable for their facial expressive abilities. The famous Jim Carrey is over 50 years old and has deep wrinkles in the corners of his eyes and forehead. The actor does not deny that they appeared as a result of active creative work. Jim Carrey has not used any cosmetologists, but the actor uses special creams to slow down the aging of his skin.

Johnny Depp is about the same age as Jim Carrey, his secret is that he uses cosmetic surgery – Depp has had eyelid surgery and a facelift.

Jackie Chan is an order of magnitude older than his colleagues, but he looks great and smiles all the time. Chan has never resorted to plastic surgery or cosmetology to stay young.

Contrast the famous cranks with Keanu Reeves, of course, there are rumours that he has resorted to Botox injections as well. At slightly over 50, he looks considerably younger than his years, largely due to the fact that Reeves practically does not use facial expressions in his roles, and all the emotions he conveys through his eyes.

Sooner or later, wrinkles are bound to appear, and he’d rather have playful creases from laughter than frown lines.

Wrinkles are caused by a number of factors: quality of skin care, heredity, skin structure and type. Anyone with good facial care can cope with the appearance of wrinkles.

Exercise for the facial muscles

Stand in front of a mirror, remove all unnecessary things from the face (hair, makeup) and try to play with all the muscles of the face with the greatest amplitude. Raising and lowering the eyebrows, opening the eyelids wide, smiling sincerely and folding the lips in a bow will help develop facial mobility. Try to ensure that one exercise does not involve other muscles. Regular facial exercises will help maintain muscle flexibility.

Emotions

Learn how different emotions should look on the face and try to show them in front of a mirror. You can take photos of your own performance of fright, brooding, joy, surprise, disgust, and look at the photos to draw conclusions about your progress.

When a group of people get together, you can play guessing emotions. One player tries to act out the intended feeling and the others guess it.

Skill development

Practice using facial expressions regularly and progressively more difficult tasks. Do not raise both eyebrows at once, but each eyebrow separately; learn to wink rather than just close each eye in turn. Speech development is also important and this involves learning how to twist the tongue into a tube, fold it into an accordion, or try to reach up the nose. In the early stages you can help yourself but it’s much easier later on.

Incorrect facial expressions

There are facial expressions that can have an adverse effect on the skin and lead to wrinkles. Many people don’t even realise that they are squinting, frowning or wrinkling. It is important to control yourself and remind yourself that such grimaces are unattractive by periodically presenting them to yourself in the mirror or asking your acquaintances to remind you to exercise self-control.

Everyone has facial expressions, even in early childhood a child looking at a parent’s facial expression tries to replicate it. But there is also room in life for uncontrollable facial expressions. Some people unwittingly reveal with their facial expressions what is in their mind and cannot hide their feelings.

The importance of facial expressions should not be underestimated, and knowing how to use them can make a big difference in your life.