Ageing is a Privilege

It’s funny how when you are young, you want to be older and when you are older, you want to be younger. Why can’t we just be happy with the age that we are and live in the present moment?

I am a Holistic Facialist & Reflexologist specialising in natural approaches to beauty and balancing the mind body and soul to feel your best. I aim to inspire people to embrace holistic approaches to better their health and accept the natural ageing process.

The society we are now in is hugely influenced by social media and unfortunately a lot of what we seen on these platforms are filtered versions of the good stuff. This means that we often strive to look like something which is not even real. When it comes to skincare, I am here to remind you that texture is normal, wrinkles are normal and a lot of us have asymmetrical faces which makes us unique and special.

‘If you look good, you feel good’

I’m a firm believer in ‘if you look good, you feel good’. However, a lot of people struggle following this moto simply because of unrealistic expectations. Mental health and self-acceptance plays a huge part in this. I use many modalities in my profession to bring about mental balancing and healing, but also to lift and rejuvenate the face naturally to make you feel good about the way you look. I won’t necessarily make you look younger, but I will help your face feel more relaxed and look fresher. A lot of what I offer in my treatments will give you a mental cleanse and balance systems of the body so that you feel better in accepting yourself.

Reflexology / Face Yoga / Face Massage / Gua Sha / Facial Reflexology / Buccal Massage These are just some of the holistic approaches I use to make you a better version of yourself. I don’t believe you can stop the ageing process….and why would you want to? We are lucky to be here!

I teach online selfcare classes where I equip you with simple selfcare techniques to help you age naturally and sleep better by balancing the nervous system. Mental health and self-acceptance under pins a lot of what I offer. My online classes allow me to empower people in being better versions of themselves.

There are many ‘quick fixes’ in the beauty industry which can give you immediate results, but often come with a hefty price tags and normally involve invasive procedures. I am pro-choice, so as long as it’s an informed decision and you understand the long-term implications and investment then fine. But please be aware there are selfcare techniques which will aid you physically and mentally and save you a hefty bill. For example, through facial massage you can help release trapped emotions and also improve the facial muscle structure. With Face Yoga, you can improve blood flow to muscles to give a plumper look to the face and also increase blood flow to the brain to help with productivity and fatigue. Regular Gua Sha can help with lymphatic flow which not only helps with healthier skin, but also improves immunity by helping white blood cells flow. Reflexology helps balance systems of the body to ensure everything is working at its optimum and the body is rested. It’s a win / win approach when it comes to holistic approaches to beauty.

Insta vs Reality

So when you are next looking at that perfectly skinned influencer on Instagram, check to see if you can see real pores and textures on her skin to understand if they have used a filter. Have they used an App to edit their figure? And we all know how to use smart poses to only show the best angles of ourselves. It’s absolutely fine to do all this, as social media is a showcasing platform. Just be sure to know if something is real or not before striving for ‘perfection’ and damaging your mental health when it comes to ageing and beauty.

This article is dedicated to my beautiful sister-in-law Usheila Patel who never got to age. She passed away suddenly at the age of 31 when she was at the peak of happiness and had so much to look forward to. Her young and sudden death always reminds me that we are extremely lucky to be here, and we should accept ageing and do it in the most natural and graceful way.

By Reena Halai

Soleful by Reena www.solefulbyreena.co.uk

@soleful_by_reena