Spiritual Facelift. Victoria Holt

stress, anxiety, and tension.

      As you progress with clearing your soul of negative emotions, your need for meditation will slow. Once you are at one with God, it will eventually cease. This is because you will not have emotions in your soul creating negative thoughts, actions, or events. (You can read more about the Law of Attraction in Chapter 5.) Your mind will be very peaceful because there will be no stress or conflict in your life. If you need to meditate, that is a sign you still have negative emotions to process deep in your soul. But completely purifying your soul, reaching a place of perfected love, and becoming at one with God where you are free from suffering, takes time. It is here that meditation can be a useful support tool until your emotional injuries are gone.

      Be aware that you should not use meditation to disconnect from your emotions. Meditation is not meant for emotional avoidance. You cannot clear your soul through clearing your mind. You clear your mind by clearing the emotions in your soul. If you feel that you cannot get through your day without meditating, then you are addicted and are avoiding your emotions. You are fearful of feeling your emotional pain. Do your emotional clearing work first, and then sit down to meditate. You can do that by focusing on refilling your body with fresh energy. Purge your negative emotions while inhaling and thereby replenishing pure, higher vibrating energy from God’s universe. Eventually, your soul will be clear; your deep breathing will be constant, and your inner and outer world will be peaceful

PRACTICAL TOOLS

      Now you have the inner tools to help you remove your facial wrinkles, but there are also practical steps you can take to support your internal process to ensure you have a youthful face.

      The next step to creating a wrinkle-free face, alongside of your deep soul work, the learning of God’s laws, proper breathing, meditation, and a gentle exercise program, is to remove makeup, oil, and environmental contaminants from your skin.

      The cleansing of your skin should not be just a morning ritual. At night, make sure you remove your makeup and cleanse properly before you go to bed. It is very damaging for your skin to get into bed leaving makeup and environmental grime on your face while you sleep. Use a natural cleanser or a natural, oil-free makeup remover. Once your face is clean, moisturize with a natural face cream that is oil free. Ideally, your face cream should contain alpha lipoeic acids, alpha hydroxy acids, amino acids, Vitamin A, C, and E, peptides, and peptide complexes. Try also to find a natural cream containing beeswax or zinc oxide, which stimulates the renewal of collagen, diminishes fine lines and wrinkles, and increases firmness as well as elasticity. Zinc helps boost elastin (the skin’s protein) production. Do not rub or pull your face while applying your face cream. Rubbing stretches your skin and can promote sagging and wrinkles. You should also apply a natural sunscreen over your moisturizer. Another great tip is to sleep on your back instead of your front so you minimize creasing your face. If you press your face to your pillow, you will experience increased puffiness in the morning.

      Exfoliation is important for removing dead skin cells from the skin’s surface. There are many homemade exfoliants you can make that slough off dead skin cells and create smoother, more radiant skin. Baking soda is a very effective and popular exfoliant. Its natural abrasive texture combined with its ability to neutralize acidity makes it an excellent choice for an exfoliating process. Three effective face masks may also be made from just oatmeal, avocado and sesame oil, or ground almond and yogurt.

      Many natural beauty experts offer a natural facelift whereby they work away your wrinkles with a deep facial tissue massage or employ advanced technology using light and sound waves. I recommend that you treat yourself to a professional facial. It is important to pamper yourself. It is an act of self-love. But ensure that you go to only a highly regarded, certified practitioner who uses nontoxic organic products. If you cannot put it in your mouth, do not put it on your face. If you cannot spell or understand the ingredients, do not allow anyone to put them on your skin. Do not get addicted to these professional procedures and merely start to focus on the outside of your face again. Remember to put your main focus on the emotional cause of the “who,” “what,” or “why” that is getting in your face.

      This commitment to using natural products should extend to your makeup line. Most makeup products are made of synthetic materials that can severely damage your skin and the health of the cells in your body. There are many new mineral eye shadows and foundations available in the marketplace that nurture the skin and infuse it with nondrying, beneficial minerals.

      Facial toning acupuncture can also be very effective and leave you with a radiant complexion. It stimulates the blood flow and facial muscles, improves your skin texture, and increases the collagen in the face. Facial toning acupuncture began in China over eight hundred years ago and was used to maintain the beauty of the favorite concubines. With hundreds of years of history behind it, facial toning acupuncture is a tried and tested holistic treatment. Microdermabrasion and facial peels are also effective treatments for blemishes, wrinkles, and uneven skin pigmentation.

      If you cannot afford to pay for a professional treatment, do not worry; you can still treat yourself to a daily pampering. At the end of your busy day, I highly recommend that you give yourself a facial massage every night as you sit and watch television. Work your fingers through the skin of your forehead to smooth away the deep crevices and wrinkles. Remember that you are unblocking stagnant energy and creating a flow with your hand movements. Use your index fingers or knuckles to mold the skin deeply, upwards and out with circular motions. Move the deep energetic imprints up and away; let the old stale energy unclog from your facial tissue. Do not forget your neck. So often we concentrate on only the face, but your neck should also be part of your morning and nighttime moisturizing regime. Massage moisturizer into your neck with upward strokes so you do not pull the skin. Make this nurturing, deep tissue facial and neck massage the perfect ending to your stressful day. Use organic oil when you massage your face and neck so that you do not “burn” the skin. Vitamin E oil is very healing for the skin. Coconut oil is also effective. It contains rich antioxidants and nutrients, helps fight bacteria, and naturally diminishes wrinkles. Coconut soap is a powerful facial cleanser, and coconut water can cure acne scars. This is due to coconut water’s cleansing and toning effects on the skin. These natural products are relatively cheap in comparison to the many expensive antiwrinkle creams in the market place that are full of harmful chemicals.

      Proper nourishment and supplementation are also the keys to healthy skin, healthy brain function, and a peaceful state of mind. The food in your kitchen is the perfect solution to skin and mood problems. If you are to protect your skin and keep yourself emotionally and mentally healthy, it is important that you eat a diet high in antioxidants and rich in nutrients. Fruits, whole grains, and vegetables are highly nutritious and keep the body as well as the brain functioning properly.

      These following types of foods should be the main ingredients in your diet. Avocados contain niacin (Vitamin B3) which is especially important for healthier skin. Niacin is anti-inflammatory so it soothes irritated blotchy skin. You can both eat avocado regularly and prepare it as a weekly facial mask. Eating fruits such as mangoes, which contain Vitamin A, helps to maintain and repair skin cells. Vitamin A is an antioxidant that fights free radical damage that can prematurely age the skin. (You can read more information about free radical damage in Chapter 5.)

      A handful of almonds every day can provide 100 percent of your daily need for Vitamin E, which, as you read, contains powerful healing properties for your complexion. Cottage cheese, Brazil nuts, salmon, or cod contain selenium, which is an essential antioxidant mineral for the skin. Citrus fruits such as grapefruits or oranges supply 100 percent of your daily allowance for Vitamin C, which fights skin damage, prevents wrinkles, and produces collagen, the structural protein in your skin. Even oysters fight acne because they are rich in zinc.

      Mushrooms are rich in riboflavin (Vitamin B2.) Riboflavin is involved in tissue maintenance and repair. It also improves blemishes caused by skin disorders such as rosacea. Wheat germ is a good source of biotin, which is crucial to skin health. Finally, cucumbers, especially cucumber skin, can greatly improve your complexion. Cucumbers have an abundance of antioxidants and silica, which can leave skin soft and smooth. They can be used in a face mask or as a toner