The Esthetician’s Hands

One of the first lessons learned in an esthetician’s education is facial massage. The health of the skin is the foundation for beautiful skin. Massage helps to enhance blood circulation for nutrition and oxygenation. This is the main benefit of getting regular facials. An additional benefit of facial massage is helping to drain sitting fluid from the skin. However, unless you specifically work with the lymphatic system to open the lymph nodes, and help “guide” the fluid through the nodes, the maximum benefit of stimulating the lymphatic system is lost. Many in the medical spa/aesthetic space use lymphatic facial massage techniques specifically after a facial procedure.

The lymphatic system’s job, as part of our immune system,  is to remove toxins from the skin. Running parallel to the circulatory system, the lymphatic system does not have its own pump  with the heart. Therefore, we must help manually move the fluid through the system with gentle massage movements. When there is a wound in the skin, the lymphatic system will produce more fluid to try and flush any toxins out of the skin to help the skin heal quicker. However, to see the efficiency of this, we must help move the fluid through the system. This is why lymphatic drainage massage is so beneficial post face lift.