February is Heart Health Month, so take a nap! Seriously tho, research show that sleep restores the body, mitigates the effects of stress and boosts our sense of overall wellbeing. To reap the full benefits, clocking seven hours each night is key. Getting ample sunshine and physical activity throughout the day also aid in improving sleep quality.
there is loads of yada-yada about getting more sleep for optimum recovery and mental health. i am here for this!! i love to sleep. while i’ve heard lots of talk about preparing your space for sleep, i find it most useful to get your mind right for blissful slumber. as your esthetician, i have studied how best to activate your parasympathetic nervous system (PSN) aka your rest & digest response. and guess what: research has shown that nightly facial massage is a reliable pathway to arouse the PSN, relaxing the body and mind while queuing the body for deep rest.
washing your face mindfully followed by gentle, methodical movements to apply your serum and moisturizers create the perfect time and space to breathe deeply and let the body know it’s time to slumber. it’s a combination of the massage + repeating the same steps each night that alerts your body’s systems to slow down & prepare for an excellent night of rest & recovery.
try this: each night for the remainder of Feb, set aside 15+ minutes for your evening ritual.
- turn off your screens (leave some wind-down tunes on if that suits you).
- apply your cleanser (with hands or a wash cloth) slow & purposefully.
- rinse fully with warm water and gently make time to pat your skin dry.
- focus on your breath; begin to sloooow it dowwwwwn.
- starting at your neck, use upward, sweeping motion to apply your serum … then follow with your moisture (eye and face). continue to breathe deeply, into your side ribs and down into your lower diaphragm.
- make lazy circles around your eyes and gentle, fluttery upstrokes on the center of your forehead.
- (whoa, i am sleepy just typing this).
- lemme know how it goes!
You know what else is FAB for activating your rest & digest response (aka the parasympathetic nervous system?) ↠↠↠ a facial!
book online / kenya@kenyabonvivant.com
you coulda got this ? tip in your inbox, but you playin’ ⤵️
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